Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	people_n	read_v	word_n	2,947	5	4.1038	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01086	Certaine considerations touching the better pacification, and edification of the Church of England dedicated to His most excellent Maiestie.	Bacon, Francis, 1561-1626.	1604 (1604)	STC 1120; ESTC S101540	19,100	46

those which cannot read vpon the booke are yet partakers of the sence and may follow it with their mind So againe after the reading of the Word of God it was thought fit there should bee some pawse for holy meditation before they proceeded to the rest of the seruice which pawse was thought fit to be filled rather with some graue sound then with a still silence which was the reason of the plaving vpon the Organs after the Scriptures read All which was decent and tending to edification But then the curiositie of diuision and reports and other figures of Musick haue no affinitie with the reasonable seruice of God but were added in the more pompous times For the Cap and Surplsce since they bee things in their nature indifferent and yet by some held superstitious and that the question is betweene Science and Conscience it seemeth to fall within the compasse of the Apostles rule which is that the stronger doe descend and yeeld to the weaker Onely the differenceis that it will be materially said that the rule holds between priuate man and priuate man but not betweene the conscience of a priuate man and the order of a Church But yet since the question at this time is of a tolleration not by conniuence which may incourage disobedience but by law which may giue a liberty it is good againe to bee aduised whether it fall not within the equitie of the former rule The rather because the silencing of Ministers by this occasion is in this scarcitie of good Preachers a punishment that lights vpon the people as well as vpon the partie And for the Subscription it seemeth to bee in the nature of a consession and therefore more proper to binde in the vnitie of Faith and to be vrged rather for Articles of doctrine then for Rites and Ceremonies and points of outward gouernment For howsoeuer politike considerations and reasons of State may require vniformitie yet Christian and diuine grounds looke chiefly vpon vnitie Touching a Preaching Ministry TO speake of a learned Ministerie it is true that the worthinesse of the Postors and Ministers is of all other points of religion the most summary I doe not say the greatest but the most effectuall towards all the rest But herein to my vnderstanding while men goe on in Zeale to hasten this worke they are not aware of as great or greater inconuenience then that which they seeke to remoue For while they inueigh against a dumbe Ministerie they make too easie and too promiscuous an allowance of such as they account Preachers hauing not respect enough to their learnings in other Artes which are hand-maides to Diuinitie nor respect inough to the guift it selfe which many times is none at all For God forbid that euery man that can take vnto himselfe boldnesse to speak an houre together in a Church vpon a Text should be admitted for a Preacher though he meane neuer so well I know there is a great latitude in guifts and a great varietie in Auditories and Congregations but yet so as there is aliquid infionum below which you ought not to descend For you must rather leaue the Arke to shake as it shall please God then put vnworthy hands to hold it vp and when we are in Gods Temple we are warned rather to put our hands vpon our mouth then to offer the Sacrifice of fooles And surely it may be justly thought that amongst manycauses of Athiesme which are miserably met in our Age as Schismes and controuersies prophane scoffing in holy matters and others it is not the least that diuers do aduenture to haudle the word of God which are vnfit and vnworthy And herein I would haue no man mistake me as if I did extoll curious and affected Preaching which is as much on the other side to be disliked and breeds Atheisme and scandall as well as the other for who would not bee offended at one that comes into the pulpit as if he came vpon the Stage to play parts or prizes neither on the other side as if I would discourage any who hath any tollerable gift But vpon this point I ground three considerations whether it were not requisite to renew that good Exercise which was practised in this Church some yeares and afterwards put downe by order indeed from the Church in regard of some abuse thereof inconuenient for those times and yet against the aduise and opinion of one of the greatest and grauest Prelates of this Land and was commonly called Prophecying which was this That the Ministers within a Precinct did meete vppon a weeke day in some principall Towne where there was some ancient graue Minister that was President and an Auditorie admitted of Gentlemen or other persons of leasure then euery Minister successiuely beginning with the yongest did handle one and the same piece of Scripture spending seuerally some quarter of an houre or better in the whole some two houres and so the Exercise beeing begun and concluded with prayer and the President giuing a Text for the next meeting the Assembly was dissolued And this was as I take it a fort-nights Exercise which in my opinion was the best way to frame and traine vp Preachers to handle the Word of God as it ought to be handled that hath been practised For we see Orators haue their Declamations Lawyers haue their mootes Logicians their Sophems and euery practise of Science hath an exercise of erudition and imitation before men come to the life onely Preaching which is the worthiest and wherein it is most danger to doe amisse wanteth an introduction and is ventred and rushed vpon at the first but vnto this Exercise of the Prophesie I would wish these two additions the one that after this Exercise which is in some sort publique there were immediatly a priuate meeting of the same Ministers where they might brotherly admonish the one the other and especially the elder sort the younger of any thing that had passed in the Exercise in matter or manner vnsound and vncomely And in a word might mutually vse such aduise instruction comfort or encouragement as occasion might minister for publike reprehension were to be debarred The other addition that I meane is that the same Exercise were vsed in the Vniuersities for young Diuines before they presumed to Preach as well as in the Country for Ministers for they haue in some Colledges an exercise called a Common-place which can m no degree bee so profitable beeing but the speech of one man at one time And if it bee feared that it may bee occasion to whet mens speeches for Controuersies it is easily remedyed by some strict prohibition that matters of Controuersie tending any way to the violating or disquicting of the peace of the Church be not handled or entred into which prohibition in regard there is euer to be a graue person President or Moderator cannot bee suffered The second consideration is whether it were not conuenient there should be a more exact probation and

be not with drawne from the Liturgie For though the guift of Preaching bee farre aboue that of Reading yet the action of the Liturgie is as high and holy as that of the Sermon It is said Domus me a domus or ationis vocabitur The house of Prayer not the house of Preaching And whereas the Apostle saith How shall men call vpon him on whom they haue not belerued and how shal they beleeue vnlesse they heare and how shall they beare without a Preacher It appeareth that as Preaching is the more originall so Prayer is the more finall as the difference is between the seed and the fruit for the keeping of Gods Law is the fruit of the teaching of the Law and Prayer or Inuecation or Diuine seruice or Liturgie for these be but varietie of termes is the mediate hallowing of the Name of God and the principall worke of the first Table and of the great Commandement of the Law of God It is true that the Preaching of the holy word of God is the sowing of the seed it is the lifting vp of the brazen serpent the Ministrie of Faith and the ordinary meanes of saluation but yet it is good to take example how that the best Actions of the worship of God may be extolled excessiuely and superstitiously As the extolling of the Sacrament bred the superstition of the Masse the extolling of the Liturgie and prayers bred the superstition of the Monasticall orders and oraisons And so no doubt Preaching likewise may be magnified and extolled superstitioufly as if all the whole body of Gods worship should be turned into an eare So as none as I suppose of sound judgement will derogate from the Liturgie if the forme thereof be in all parts agreeable to the word of God the example of the Primitiue Church and that holy decency which S. Paul commendeth And therefore first that there be a set forme of prayer and that it be not left either to an extemporall forme or to an arbitrarie forme Secondly that it consist aswell of lawdes hymnes and thankesgiuings as of petitions prayers supplications Thirdly that the forme therof be quickned with some shortnes and diuersities of prayers and hymnes and with some interchanges of the voyce of the people as well as of the voyce of the Minister Fourthly that it admit some distinctions of times and commemorations of Gods principal benefits as well generall as particular Fifthly that prayers likewise be appropriated to seuerall necessities and occasions of the Church Sixtly that there be a forme likewise of words and Liturgie in the administration of the Sacraments and in the denouncing of the censures of the Church and other holy actions and solemnities These things I thinke will not bee much controuerted But for the particular exceptions to the Liturgie in forme as it now stands I thinke diuers of them allowing they were just yet seeme they not to be weightie otherwise then that nothing ought to bee accounted light in matters of Religion and pietie as the Heathen himselfe could say Etiam vultu sape laeditur pietas That the word Priest should not bee continued especially with offence the word Minister being already made familiar This may be said that it is a good Rule in translation neuer to confound that in one word in the translation which is precisely distinguished in two words in the originall for doubt of aequiuocation and traducing And therefore seeing the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bee alwayes distinguished in the originall and the one vsed for a Sacrificer the other for a Minister the word Priest beeing made common to both whatsoeuer the deriuation be yet in vse it confoundeth the Minister with the Sacrificer And for an example of this kind I did euer allow the discretion and tendernesse of the Rhemish translation in this Point that finding in the originall the Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and neuer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doe euer translate Charitie and neuer Loue because of the indifferencie and equiuocation of the word with impure Loue. Touching the Absolution it is not vnworthy consideration whether it may not bee thought vnproper and vnnecessary for there are but two sorts of Absolution both supposing an obligation precedent the one vpon an Excommunication which is Religious and Primitiue the other vpon Confession and Pennance which is superstitious or at least positiue and both particular neither generall Therefore since the one is taken away and the other hath his proper case what doth a generall Absolution wherin there is neither Penance nor Excommunication precedent For the Church neuer looseth but where the Church hath bound And surely I may thinke this at the first was allowed in a kind of Spirituall discretion because the Church thought the people could not bee suddenly weaned from their conceit of assoyling to which they bad heene so long accustomed For Confirmation to my vnderstanding the state of the Question is whether it bee not a matter mistaken and altered by time and whether that be not now made a subsequent to Baptisme which was indeed an inducement to the Communion For whereas in the Primitiue Church children were examined of their Faith before they were admitted to the Communion time may seeme to haue turned it to referre as if it had beene to receiue a confirmation of their Baptisme For Priuate Baptisme by Women or Lay-persons the best Diuines doe vtterly condemne it and I heare it not generally defended and I haue often maruelled that when the Booke in the Preface to publique Baptisme doth acknowledge that Baptisme in the practise of the Primitiue Church was anniuersarie and but at set and certaine times which sheweth that the Primitiue Church did not attribute so much to the Ceremonie as they would breake an outward and generall order for it the Booke should afterwards allow of Priuate Baptisme as if the Ceremonie were of that necessitie as the very Institution which committed Baptisme onely to the Ministers should bee broken in regard of the supposed necessitie And therefore this point of all others I thinke was but a concessum propter duritiam cordis For the forme of celebrating Matrimonie the Ring seemeth to many euen of vulgar sence and vnderstanding a Ceremonie not graue specially to be made as the words make it the essentiall part of the action besides some other of the words are noted in speech to bee not so decent and fit For Musicke in Churches That there should be singing of Psalmes and spirituall songs is not denied so the Question is De modo wherein if a man will looke attentiuely into the order and obseruance of it it is easie to discerue betweene the wisedome of the institution and the excesseof the late times For first there are no Songs or Verses sung by the Quire which are not supposed by continuall vse to bee so familiar with the people as they haue them without booke whereby the sound hutteth not the vnderstanding and