may be made of the Rest of F. Parsons Arguments I shall follow him no further It is not the Observation of Easter which we dispute with Rome but we urge the Practice of the Britons and Irish to prove the Liberty of these Islands XXV Now to avoid Tediousness in this particular having left the Ancient Britons in possession we must suppose they held it till it can be proved they were ejected Now the first so far as I can yet find who Attempted this to any purpose was Henry Beau-clâ—rk and he being a Wise as well as a potent Prince thought the Subjeâ—â—iâ—g the Welch Bishops to the Metropolitan See of Canterbury might be a means to keep the Welch in order and so far as concerned his own Kingdom he herein dealt not only like a Politick Princâ— but even the Laws of the Church did â—ountenance him But then by the same Act he submitted all the Welch Bishops to the See of Rome as things then stood and so Compleated the Popes Conquest of these Isles which thing the iniquity of those times would either not afford him Eyes to see or not power to prevent Accordingly he prefers Bernardus a Norman and his Chaplain to the Bishopâ—ick of St. Davids But Liberty and Power are both sweet things and Bernardus being got in possession grows resty and Asserts his Rights and the Priviledges of his See And here the Pope first got the Fiâ—gering of the Cause so as to make his true Advantage of it 'T is true Bernardus appeared Confident and swagger'd bravely but in vain did he think â—o carry a Cause in the Court of Rome against the Archbishop of Canterbury's Purse and the Pope's Interest when at the same time and in the same thing he also Cross'd his own Kings design There is no doubt but that his Holiness swallowed this long-look'd for Morsel with a great deal of pleasure and greediness And yet the Sentence did not fully and quietly take place till a long time after which possibly is the Reason that our Authors so differ in Assigning the time of this Submission for the Welshmen could not yet forget what they once were and upon all Occasions strugled hard to retain their Government amongst themselves so that as Affairs went with the English this matter either got or lost Ground If the English Power was at leisure to wait on the Welsh Men and awe them then the Welsb Bishops were the Popes and his Grace of Canterbury's Grumbling Servants But if the English Affairs were so involved that their Countrey had a little Rest the one was as ready to Cast off the Ecclâ—siastical as the other the Civil Yoke And thus Matters seem to have stood Wavering till Henry the third or Edward the first times But about the thirty second year of Henry the third Matt. Paris Hist Maj. Hen. 3. page 715 the English Forces so Harâ—asied Wales that the Ground lay Untilled Cattel neglected the Famine Raged amongst them The Bishop of St. David died overcome with Grief for the miseries of his Countrey and the Bishops of St. Asaph and Bangor were reduced to that miserable Condition as to Beg their Bread in a Counâ—rey wasted with Fire and Sword But when Matters were somewhat Composed St. Davids the Metropolitical See of Wales was found to be so Impoveriâ—â—ed that it was thought a despicable Preferment for an Arch-Deacon of Lincoln though Thomas Wallensis in Commiseration of his Countrey did accept it And here the Brittish Ecclesiastical Liberty seems to have drawn its last Breath or to have given only some few Gasps after yet if we place its Fall in Henry the First his time it will have lasted above 1000 yeareâ— but if in Henry the third's time it will be above 1200. But henceforward till till the Reformation I think it must be Acknowledged that the Pope Rodâ— in full Triumph over all parts of these Isles And though in some Matters he Met with smart Opposition yet he Exercised an Authority nothing less then Patriarchal It remains now therefore to be enquired whether this his Intrusion or Possession did create him any Right or any such Right but that the Churches in these Isles as Matters then stood might Reform themselves and lawfully Re-assume their former Liberties XXVI Were it not that the Romanists make a Flourish with every little Argument that seems to favour their Cause as if there were some great thing in it I should not think it worth my while to mention the Plea from the Conversion of the Saxons by Augustine For first if it were good that would give them but little Ground for his Preaching seems not to have taken any Effect beyond Kent the East-Saxons and perhaps some small Matter in the East-Angles As for the Kingdoms of the Northumbrians and Mercians which were of greatest Extent they were apparently of Scotch or Irish Conversion Nor will this Claim in the least touch the Britons Irish Scots or Picts But Secondly if there be any thing in this then such Zealous Christians as have gone out from any of these Isles and Converted Pagans would obtain a Jurisdiction for the Metropolitans of such Places from whence they went in rhose Countreys But if any of our Bishops should on that score Challenge a Jurisdiction in Germany or other places I am apt to think that they would be well Laught at for their pains and be esteemed very idle impertinent persons if not worse used We are therefore ready Gratefully to Acknowledge all those good Offices which any of the Popes Predecessors have heretofore done for us or he at any time shall do for us But if for Others merits or his own good Turns he conclude he has gained us to be his Slaves I think he Sells Kindnesses the dearest of any Man living and we shall beg his Pardon that we are not in Haste to agree to so hard a Bargain XXVII As for these Isles they having been truly and rightfully possessed of such Ecclesiastical Liberties they cannot be lawfully deprived of them by any fraud or force If another Man take away my Goods and keep them never so long yet if I can prove them to have been my Goods and that they were fraudulently and forcibly taken and detained from Me no Possession or Prescription can Create a Right to him who by unlawful means is possessed of that which Apparently belongs to another de facto indeed it may be otherwise but de jure it never ought or can And therefore it was a Sanction of the Twelve Tables Adversus Furèm aeterna Lex esto But the Canons of the primitive Church seem more carefully to have secured the Rights of pâ—rticular Churches then the Secular Laws have done the possessions of particular Men. The Bishops of thâ—se overgrown Cities Rome Antioch and 〈…〉 mâ—ke Use of their Reputation and Interest to Augment their Power and Jurisdiction But as none other had the like Advantages so none Traded with such Success as the Bishop of Rome These were
which is Commanded by the Almighty Maker of Heaven and Earth VII But still we are further informed of how great Moment this duty is from the rewards and punishments that attend the performance or violation of it The Breach of Unity is it self no small punishment for Divisions naturally create Disturbances increase troubles and tend towards destruction Hence St. Paul gives us this Caution Gal. 5. 15. If ye Bite and devour one another take heed that ye be not Consumed one of another So that the Advantages which flow from Unity and the Mischiefs which arise from the contrary are sufficient Motives to any Man who minds his own good to follow those things which make for Peace But least this should not be enough aâ—l that further can affright us from evil is added And no less then eternal Damnation is made the portion of Transgressors in this kind For St. Paul telling us what are the Works of the Flesh which they that do shall not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven Amongst them reckons these Hatred Variance Emâ—lations Wrath Sâ—rife Seditions Heresies Envyings Gal 5. 20. And the same Apostle tells us That if any Man did but seem to be Contentious they had no such Custom neither the Churches of God 1 Cor. 11. 16. By which he seems to me to intimate That such Persons do cast themselves out of the Church and consequently exclude themselves from the Hopes of Salvation But that we may not Complain of being Affrighted into Goodness and terrified to our Duty the punishment of the Violation of this Duty is not so great but the Reward of its due performance is every way equal And besides those Comforts that â—re naturally contained in it and flow from it there is no less then eternal Happiness entailed on it Christ himself hath declared That Blessed are the Peace-Makers for they shall be Called the Children of God Mat. 5. 9 And if so then certainly they shall have a portion and inheritance with the rest of his Children and be fellow-Heires with Christ VIII Now if all these Considerations were put together and well weighed methinks no difficulties whatsoever should be able to deterr or remove us from our duties or to hinder us from standing fast in one Spirit with one Mind striving together for the Faith of the Gospel For to Him that professeth Himself a Christian and believes what he professeth what can all the Allurements and Temptations all the Joyes Troubles or Torments of this transitory Life Work when set against the pains of Hell on the one Hand and the Joyes of Heaven on the other and yet even this pretence is taken away And that we may not with any Shew of Reason plead any discouragements we are assured that God will supply us with Strength and Succours in our faithful Endeavours that so far as concerns us we shall be able to overcome all difficulties and discharge our Duties And the difference is not much whether there be no difficulties or the difficulties be Conquerable an idle fluggish Person perhaps would desire the former but he that is content to take pains for Heaven and had rather exercise and Varnish his Graces then suffer them through disuse to be sullied and weakned possibly will think the latter more expedient for him I do not say that we shall be furnished with abilities to reduce all others but that unless by our own default we shall not want Assistance to secure our selves And then whatever the difficulties may really be or appear we can have no just cause of Discouragement And I know not what greater Comfort or Encouragement to this Duty could be given us then what St. Paul tells us 2 Cor. 13. 11. Be of one Mind live in Peace and the God of Love and Peace shall be with you CHAP. II. Wherein this Vnity Consists I. THis Unity is a Thing that sounds bravely in the Eares of all Persons and Meets with a General Applause and high Commendation in all Places And indeed it cannot Receive more Praises then it deserves but when we come seriously and closely to consider what it is and wherein it consists When we think to grasp it it Vanisheth and wo fall foully together by the Eares about the Unity we joyntly Extol and make it self the occasion of our losing it the great Reason of which is apparently this That when Men have fallen in love with some singular way and set up their Rest in some dividing Principles they do not fetch the Nature of Unity from the full Precepts of the Gospel which best Teach it and the Practice of the Primitive Church which best Explains it but Catching some Shreds of Scripture for pretence they frame such a Notion of Unity as may suit with their own Scheme and rather then quit any of their darling Errours they will undertake to Wash a Blackmore white I mean to find out such a Unity as shall be consistent with Division and Separation But it is pity to fall out about Unity and therefore leaving such to their vain Imaginations I shall discover my own Apprehensions wherein I think it Consists And if I fall in any part I'shall be highly obliged to that person who shall bring Me to a clearer and fuller Understanding of its Nature for certainly did we better understand what it was we should come nearer together and better concur in the Observation and Practice of it II. But before I can proceed I must for my own Security enter a Caveat against the Pretences of extraordinary Cases And therefore do tell my Reader that I shall limit my Discourse to Gods ordinary Way and standing Establishment to which all Persons ought to have Regard I will not here concern my self upon what terms he may stand who is fast Lock'd in a Dungeon or cast upon an uninhabited Coast or made a Slave amongst Infidels or Lies Concealed in a Cave for fear of his Life or any of the like Nature I make no doubt but that for extraordinary Cases God hath extraordinary Mercies but then this is not Applicable to what is common or ordinary There can be nothing more perverse and unnatural then to judge of the stated Case of Things by the Exceptions from it Or to Confound the common Condition of Mankind with that which is rarely and only at some times the sad Misfortune of some few And it is not possible to Guess whither those Mens Errours will lead them who in stead of observing what are the Exceptions from a General Rule do frame to themselves a General Rule from exempt Cases and so overthrow the common Standard And I must Confess that I have not been a little scandalizeâ— to find this very thing done in a great Measure by Men otherwise of Eminence Learning and Piety III. Now though this Christian Unity be a Harmony of many parts many of which must concur to make it true and all ought to meet to make it Compleat The first Bond in this Common Tye or that from
Transactions of those times His Words are these Caeterùm hanc Bullam Pontificii plerique moderatiores tacitè improbabant quòd nulla ex jure admâ—nitio praecesserit praevidentes molem malorum inde sâ—bi impendere qui priùs privatim sua sacra intra parietes satis securè coluerunt vel recâ—pta in Ecclesiâ Anglicanâ sacra sine Conscientiae Scrupulo adire non Recusârunt Annal. Eliz. ad Ann Dom ' 1570 So that the Reformation was indeed made on our part for which we wanted neither good Cause nor sufficient Authority But the Separation was made by the Pope For had not He Excommunicated Queen Elizabeth for what Reason the Romanists held Communion with us till such Excommunication for the same it might have continued to this day and no Schism made But if this Excommunication had neither lawful Authority nor just cause then will the Pope be not only the Author but cause of the Schism and draw the whole guilt of it on him and his party The proof of this in particular I will not insist on here because it will be â—bundantly done in the progress of the Work especially in the second and â—â—ird part if it shall please God that I live to Finish them Only here I will leave this Choak-pear which I desire my Adversary to swallow before 〈◊〉 â—ttaqae me That whosoever undertakes the Defenee of that Bull beâ—â—des all other Extravagancies which he shall be obliged to maintain must in the first place fairly Confess himself to be a Rebel and a Traytor as to Principles of Civil Government and obliged in Conscience actually to be so 〈◊〉 often as the Pope requires and of this the Pope to be the sole and unconsroulable Judge XXXVII Having here slipt into the mention of Queen Elizabeth it may not be altogether impertinent to Acquit Her of one dishonourable Scandal wherewith some foul Mouth'd Romanists endeavour to Blast her Memory â—f Henry the Eighth belonged to any he was certainly theirs not ours Yet Handling the Reformation they spare not to charge Him with all the â—â—decencies true or false which they can Rake together But nothing 〈◊〉 more exagitated then his two First Marriages and that oâ—ten in such 〈◊〉 and obscene Language as is not a little offensive to chast Eares The Deâ—â—gn of all this is that they might invalidate Queen Elizabeths Title to 〈◊〉 Crown upon which score some ruder Romanists will at this day as faâ—iliarly and confidently call Her Bastard as if she had been found in the â—â—eets laid at some door in a Basket It is well known that she was a Perâ—â—â— so excellently qualified for Government that even living she struck Envy â—â—mb and made those who most implacably hated Her to Admire Her it might therefore justly move Indignation in any Generous Spirit to see â—â—ery Ass spurn at a dead Lion But if this were as rrue as it is false yet if 〈◊〉 would deal ingeniously they must confess that this could no way effect 〈◊〉 Church as to that Power Conferred on it by God and that Authority which doth always distinctly and entirely remain in it self Only it may 〈◊〉 the Church destitute of any Legal Civil Sanction during her time â—nd if for that they will Condemn us they may as well Condemn the Chriâ—tian Churches of the first three Hundred Yeares and then we shall not be â—uch afraid in so good Company But there is nothing but Malice or Igâ—orance in the thing it self and the Romanists of all Men ought to be cautious in this Matter because whilest they Fence with this Two-Edged Sword intending to Cut Queen Elizabeth they as deeply Wound Queen Mary Neither will the Sickly Salvo of the Popes Dispensation stand them in any stead for it is not only we who deny that his Power reached to it but the greatest part of their own Universities gave it under their Hands and Seals And indeed this was at that time so generally the Opinion of the Romanists That the Author of Church-Government freely Acknowledgeth though little to the Credit of his Cause that when Mary was Offered in Marriage First to the Emperour Charles the Fifth and after to Francis King of France She was Refused by both on this Account because they doubted of the Lawfulness of Henry's Marriage with her Mother part 5. cap. 2. But for my part I am not of their Humour who take a pleasure in bespattering Princes and to do it by our own can be no Honour to our selves I do not see that any thing Alledged can be any real Prejudice either to Mary or Elizabeth for the Succession to our Crown depends neither upon Canons nor Councels much less upon Popes Bulls and Decretals but upon the Constitutions of our Kingdom And it was nevâ—r yet doubted but that King Henry was Married as well to Katherine as Anue Bolen And if the Marriage was Soleâ—nized the Children are Legitimate by our Laws which abhor all thoughts of any such thing as Bastards in Matrimony 'T is true our Laws permit and Authorize Ecclesiasticks to divorce such Persons who Marry within the degrees prohibited but yet suffer no prejudice to be done to their Issue And if the Parents though too near of Kin were Legally Married their Châ—ldren shall succeed to their Estates and Rights in the same manner that other Persons Childâ—en â—o where the Marriage was without Exception And it is very hard Measure to deprive a King of that privilege which belongs to the meanest of his Subjects especially in this Case which may endanger to involve a Nation in Confusion and Ruine Let King Henry therefore Answer for his own faults what iniquity soever there might be in his Marrages yet being Married his Issue are Legitimated And I doubt not but that Mary and Elizabeth were both in their Turns our Lawful Sovereigns I will therefore prosecute this no further save with a Request to the Romanists that henceforward they would cease to set the Childrens Teeth on Edge with the soure Grapes the Father Eat and be as ready to AcknowIedge Queen Elizabeth a Lawful Sovereign as we are Queen Mary XXXVIII I did once Intend to have thoroughly Examined the Matter of the Reformation but I find that it would oblige Me rather to Write a Volume then a Chapter And after all perhaps I should be accused of needless pains for it hath been often and sufficiently done already And all Answers contain only the Crambe centies cocta or some bold Fictions or tedious Triflings Nor do I think that I can be Constrained to Answer for all that went before me In this Church I was Born Baptized and Bred I had no Hand in the Making Modelling or Altering it Gods Providence cast Me into it and I take it as I found it And if as such it be defensible I need concern my self no further And therefore without troubling my self to Rake the Dead out of their Graves I shall Consider our Church under her present Constitution for if that
will not Hold we are gone without more ado But if that be good it is not ten thousand faults of Men who are dead and rotten that can overthrow it XXXIX I have already proved that the Romanists themselves made the Breach And it may be more fully proved if need Require But two Schismaticks may fall out and both be in the wrong And therefore that we may Appear to be in the right something must be said to clear up the Justice of our own Cause To this End I shall briefly Examine these two things The Government and the Doctrine of our Church Government will of course take in Discipline as the Fruits of it And Doctrine will include Worship because there is no Abuse or ill Practice in Worship but it is Founded upon some Errour in Doctrine Government seems to Me therefore to belong even to the Essence of every particular Constituted Church because without it Ordinances cannot be discharged Sacraments Celebrated nor those things Performed which they are obliged to do in joynt Communion and as a Body of Men. That this Government be lawful and warrantable it is to be wished that the Governours might be always good but it is absolutely necessary that they have Lawful Authority and are rightly empowered to do some things which other Men may not do He who saith otherwise must with Corah and his Company lay all in Common which the most Heathenish and Bruitish Religions have ever abhorred to do For this perhaps the Romanists will not much quarrel Me But if it were â—or my present purpose I could accuse him for being false to these Principles by allowing the contrary in Practice But to return to the Business That Authority be lawful it is requiâ—â—te that it be derived from such who were truly invested with such Authority for Nil dat quod non habet And further that they have likewise a Power or Authority to convey and derive it to others for it is often Personally Lodg'd in Men and Incommunicable Knights cannot make Knights nor Lords Lords And therefore a Lawful Church-Authority must be such as desâ—ends from those who received it from Christ with a Power to transmit it Now I find not that our Saviour said to any but his Apostles Aâ— my Father hath sâ—nt me even so send I you John 20. 21. And therefore from those Hands wherein they lâ—st it with the like power to transfer it to others must all Lâ—wful Ecclesâ—â—stical Aâ—thoâ—ity come The Way to Avoid this is either-with Erastus and Hâ—bbs who learnt their Politicks from Jerâ—boams Practiceâ— to place all Authority in the Civil Magistrate or else with the Fanaticks to set up the extraoâ—dinâ—â—y Call and Plea of an Authority immediately from God Now though too many of late have put in Practice M. Hobs his doctrine whilst they Rail against his Person and others are drunk with their pretended Visions Revelations thereby Filling Mens Brains with Enthusiasm and in many places making a Nâ—llity of all Ordinances yet these are not the Men I have now to do with and therefore I will not here engage against thâ—m And as for the Romanists I think I need not dispute it with them for though they strangely doat on Miracles yet I could never observe them either very fond of exeraordinary Missions or very free in allowing any Ecclesiastical Authority to the Civil Magistrate Now if they will take us at this Lock we are ready to Joyn Issue with them And to prove that we have a good Succession of Lawful Authority They cannot sairly Refuse us here becausâ— this is one of the Prescriptions which Tertullian lays down against Hereticks Edant ergo saiâ—h he Origines Ecclesiarum suarum evolvant Ordinem Episcoporum suorum ita per Successioâ—es ab initio decurrentem ut primus ille Episcopus aliquem ex Apostolis vel Apostolicis viris qui tamen cum Apoâ—â—olis Perseveraverint habuit Auctorem Antecessorem de Praescrip Now as for a Succession possibly there is not any in the Christian World so strongly Twisted as that of the English Churches If some of the Apostles and other Apostolical Persons being present in this Isle and planting Churches If Ordination from the Brittish Irish French or Roman Bishops or any or all of these could derive a Lawful Authority to us we do not want it We have more Ways of Conveyance and consequently of God more Evidence of our Authority then the Romanists themselves And if the Rest were laid aside we have the same which they have and so cannot have less so little Reason had the Author of Church-Government to Conclude his Book with such a passionate Invective against our Amocatacresies Indeed could that Infamous Fable oâ— the Naggs-Head Ordination have been made good it would have made a foul Breach in our Succession if not put a full stop to it But never was a most malicious Contrivance more miserably Baffled Several Learned Pens have not only cleared the Matter of Fact but disproved the probability yea the very possibility of such a thing so that if any thing more can nothing more need to be spoken to it If therefore any Romanist will still urge it iâ— this particular I shall leave him as a Man eitheâ— past shame or given up to strong delusions to believe a Lye Their other Objections are of two Sorts Either against the Legality or the Valiâ—ity of our Ordination But because Otherâ— have Answered them fully in eveâ—y minute particular I shall Content my self with two General Aâ—swers First That the Neglect or Oversight if any such were of some Circumstances Required by Law though it may make the Persons obnoxious yet it doth not invalidate the Ordination Our Laws Allow Persons to be Married only betwixt Eight and Twelve in the Forenoon Yet if it Happen that they be Married at Ten at Night the Marriage is good though the Persons be punishable Some Circumstances in the Managery of Ordination may be Regulated by the Civil Power i. e. So fa as it hath Regard to the State But the Ordination it self and the Vaâ—â—dity of it proceeds from a Power so distinct from the Civil that no Civil Authority or Sanction can either make or disannul it And therefore such Objections which are made only against the Legality of our Ordination do tacitely suppose the Validity of it And so if they were true are little or nothing to the purpose As for the other sort of Objections which relate to the Validity of our Ordination those indeed would be fatal if they were sufficient But before I Return my General Answer thereto I desire it may be observed That there is more of Interest then Matter in these Objections For the Church of Rome hath such a Jealousie of this small Church that they think not themselves safe while it is in bâ—ing Now if they could invalidate our Ordination it would take away our Ministry our Ordinances and consequently our Church so that this is a blow at