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cause_n	believe_v	good_a	great_a	1,387	5	2.5396	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78447	The censures of the church revived. In the defence of a short paper published by the first classis within the province of Lancaster ... but since printed without their privity or consent, after it had been assaulted by some gentlemen and others within their bounds ... under the title of Ex-communicatio excommunicata, or a Censure of the presbyterian censures and proceedings, in the classis at Manchester. Wherein 1. The dangerousness of admitting moderate episcopacy is shewed. ... 6. The presbyterian government vindicated from severall aspersions cast upon it, ... In three full answers ... Together with a full narrative, of the occasion and grounds, of publishing in the congregations, the above mentioned short paper, and of the whole proceedings since, from first to last.	Harrison, John, 1613?-1670.; Allen, Isaac, 17th cent.	1659 (1659)	Wing C1669; Thomason E980_22; ESTC R207784	289,546	380

lawfull authority there can be no perjury in such Presbyters as now disown it and joyn with other of their Brethren in the ordination of Presbyters without the concurrence of any Diocesan Bishop and which is the case here spoken to 2 But every intelligent Reader will readily discern how the Parliament is also wounded through our sides for if we be guilty of perjury for disowning Prelacy it is easie for to gather what apprehensions you must needs hereupon have of the Parliament that by their authority took it away But we think we have said that which is sufficient to rowl away the reproach that is cast either on them or our selves in this respect and therefore shall forbear to add any more We therefore now come to the second thing you here charge us with which is pertinacy but why should we be charged with this For no other reason that we can imagine but because we cannot force our consciences to admit of Episcopacy again which the Parliament upon many weighry and sound considerations hath removed and of the necessity whereof you never went about to convince us either from Scripture or sound reason But we do not question but all sober Readers will here see cause to censure you for great uncharitableness laying such heavy things to our charge for which you have not the least shew of proof as we we do also believe that what you count pertinacy they will judg to be constancy in us in sticking close to our sound and good principles that we must not forgoe on so easie termes as you would have us And however you would here make Dr. Usher to patronize you because he confesseth the ordination by Presbyters to be valid where Bishops can not be had so in case of necessity yet he hath not a word touching the imputation either of perjury or obstinacy to such Presbyters as have severed themselves from the Bishops as he was of a farre other spirit then to have been so censorious 8. As touching Ae rius of whom you say that he was most justly condemned for heresie for holding a parity amongst Church-officers we well know that this is commonly said by some Episcopal men from whom we judge you received it but we also know that it hath been as often answered by such as were Antiprelatical Mr. Banes in his Diocesans triall hath spoken to it satisfactorily Dr. Whitaker saith in answer to Campians tenth reason pag. 241. of the second Edition in Octavo Cum Aërio Hieronymus de Presbyteris omnino sensi● illos enim jure divino Episcopis aequales esse statuit i. e. With Aërius Hierome did conceive altogether the same thing concerning Presbyters for he determined that by divine right they were equall unto Bishops And because Hierome is here said by Dr. Whitaker to be of the same opinion in this point with Ae rius we shall give you and the Reader an account thereof from Hierome himself His words in his Commentary upon the Epistle to Titus making the same inference from the words of the Apostle Chap. 1. Ver. 5 6 7. that in our answer to your second Paper we have done are these Idem est ergo Presbyter qui Episcopus antequamdiaboli instinctu studia in Religione fierent diceretur in populis ego sum Pauli ego Apollo ego autem Cephae communi Presbyterorum consilio Ecclesiae gubernabantur And then a little after he saith Putet aliquis non Scripturarum sed nostram esse sententiam Episcopum Presbyterum unum esse relegat Apostoli ad Phillippenses verba dicentis Paulus Timotheus servi Jesu Christi omnibus sanc●is in Christo Jesu qui sunt Phillippis cum Episcopis Diaconis gratia vobis pax reliqua Phillipi una est urbs Macedoniae certe in u●â civitate plures ut nuncupantur Episcopi esse non poterant Sed quia eosdem Episcopos illo tempore quos Prebyteros appellabant propterea indifferenter de Episcopis quasi de Presbyteris est loquutus Whence its clear that he did not only hold Bishops and Presbyters to be all one but proves this from the Scriptures and then after addes other Texts to prove the same thing expounding those Texts he quotes in the same manner as we have done in our answer to your second Paper More might be urged out of Hierome to shew that he was of the same opinion with Aërius as touching the parity of a Bishop and a Presbyter and therefore if this opinion was an heresie in Aërius Hierome according to your assertion should have been also most justly condemned for heresie But if you would but take the pains to peruse David Blondellus he might perhaps satisfie you that Hierome was not to be accused of heresie for this opinion he apologizing for him herein and proving at large from the concurrent testimony of the Fathers that he held not in this any singular opinion but what was generally received amongst the ancients His Treatise is a large Quarto and the main subject of it is to apologize for Hierome in this respect as the title of his Book doth also shew But it is well observed by the Provincial Assembly of London that Ae rius was never condemned by any Council of heresie for holding the identity of a Bishop and a Presbyter but that on the contrary Concil Aquisgranens sub Ludovieo pio Imperatore 10. anno 816. hath approved it for true Divinity out of the Scriptures that Bishops and Presbyters are equals bringing the same Texts that Ae rius doth They also well observe that he is called an Heretique by Epiphanius and Augu●tine but this was especially if not only because he was an Arrian and that the same Authours condemne Aërius as much for reprehending and censuring pr●ying and offering for the dead and the performing good works for the benefit of the dead as for holding Bishops and Presbyters to be all one and which opinion as it is commonly thought they condemned in Ae rius But will you say that Ae rius was most justly condemned for heresie for those opinions also But this for Ae rius his opinion touching a parity amongst Church-Officers may be sufficient 9. Concerning your submission to the judgement of Councils you have indeed declared your selves before and we have shewed you have submitted therein too farre as you will further declare your selves to this purpose hereafter But as touching our selves you shall not find that we vary from what we have professed to be our judgement touching this matter either in our first answer or in what we have said in answer to the second Section of this Paper and whereunto we referre the Reader that by comparing of what we say there and what you charge us with here or hereafter touching our not holding to what we have professed he may the better judge how groundlesly you herein do accuse us 10. But you will still have our Provincial Assembly at Preston a

edifyingly and lastingly be effected that when all our undermining scorning and opposing enemies do hear and see these things they may be much cast down in their own eyes perceiving that this work hath been wrought of our God in whose arms of mercy and truth we leave you and the Cause we manage Manchester Jan. 11. 1658. Signed in the Name and by the appointment of the Class by John Harrison Moderator THE EPISTLE To the READER IT is no new thing that such workes as have been most eminently conducing to the glory of God and the Churches greatest wellfare have met with strong oppositions When the Adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the Children of the captivity builded the Temple unto the Lord God of Israel they set themselves diverse waies to hinder and obstruct the worke When Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabians and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up and that the breaches began to be stopped then they were very wroth and conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem and to hinder it When Jesus Christ the eternall Son of God the brightness of his Fathers glory and express Image of his Person appeared in the world cloathed with our nature though he came about a worke of greatest consequence that ever was yet his enimies withstood and opposed his Kingdome Of this the Psalmist prophesied before it came to pass Psal 2. 1 2. Why did the Heathen rage and the people imagine a vaine thing The Kings of the Earth set themselves and the people take counsell together against the Lord and against his annointed saying Let us breake their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us And this the Church saw fulfilled who in their Prayer unto God applied unto the times wherein they lived what he by the mouth of his Servant David had foretold so long before saying For of a truth against thy holy Childe Jesus whom thou hast annointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsell determined before to be done It would be here too long to go through the Books of the N. T. and tell what persecutions were raised against the Apostles of our Lord and Saviour for executing that Commission which he had given them when he commanded them to go teach all Nations or to go through the story of the Church and speak of the diverse kindes of tortures and torments which thousands of all rankes endured in the times of the ten Primitive persecutions under the Heathen Emperours to tell of the Martyrdome of Ignatius Polycarpus Justin Martyr Irenaeus Cyprian and many others glorious lights and worthy Confessors of the truth for no other reason but because they studied to advance Christs Gospell We will instance something in latter times When the Romish Synagogue having most abominably apostatiz'd both in Doctrine Worship Discipline and Governement Luther and other faithfull Servants of Christ did earnestly bend themselves to endeavour a reformation in Religion the Antichristian world was mad with fury To come yet a little nearer home When Religion was reformed in Scotland in Doctrine and Worship the Church of Christ there had many conflicts and the worke was long obstructed before the Governement and Discipline of Christ could be fully established amongst them as it is in fresh remembrance what troubles they passed through more lately in their contending against Episcopacy and the Ceremonies which had been introduced amongst them to the great prejudice of their Ancient Church governement and Discipline But here it may not be forgotten how when the Parliament of famous memory that was convened eighteen yeares agoe having taken into their pious consideration the condition of our own Church at home and judging that a further reformation in matters of Religion then had been made in the daies of Queen Elizabeth was necessary and setting upon that work as also the vindication of the liberties of this English Nation were forced to take up Armes for their own defence against that Partie that could not brooke the Reformation which they intended And to what an height that opposition grew in after time and with what difficulties they conflicted for many years together because they would not give up that cause they had undertaken to defend is so well known to even such as may be but strangers in our Israel that we may spare the pains of a full recitall But yet nothing of all this is to be wondered at Satan must needs be like himselfe and stir the more when he sees his Kingdome begin to shake And corruption will rage when it is crossed God also hath a wise hand in these oppositions not only thereby the more inflaming the zeal and brightning up other graces in his faithfull servants trying and exercising their faith and patience the purging and purifying and making them white but also getting himself the greater glory when his worke is carried on notwithstanding the greatest opposition of his and his Churches enemies And here we cannot but with all thankfullness to Almighty God take notice of this hand that was most eminently lifted up in the worke of Reformation begun by that late forementioned Parliament as there is cause why also we should to the honour and glory of his great Name and the praise of that Parliament unto the generations that may come hereafter acknowledg their unwearied pains courage and constancy in that worke Much was done yea very much by that illustrious and worthy Parliament By them the foundation of reformation was laid in the solemne League and Covenant which they not only took themselves but ordained should be solemnely taken in all places throughout the Kingdome of England and Dominion of Wales And for the better and more orderly taking thereof appointed and injoyned certain directions to be strictly followed And in pursuance of this League and Covenant engageing every one that tooke it in their severall places to indeavour the refomation of Religion in England and Ireland in Doctrine Worship Discipline and governement according to the word of God and the example of the best reformed Churches and to bring the Churches of God in the three Kingdomes to the nearest conjunction and uniformity of Religion Confession of Faith forme of Church Government Directory for worship and Catechizing After consultation had with the Reverend Pious and Learned Assembly of Divines called together to that purpose they judged it necessary that the Book of Common Prayer should be abolished and the Directory for the publick worship of God and in their Ordinance mentioned should be established and observed in all the Churches within this Land as appears by their Ordinance of January the 3. 1644. for that purpose By them Prelacy that is Church Government by Archbishops Bishops their Chancellors and Commissaries Deanes Deanes and Chapters Archdeacons and all other Ecclesiasticall

there which you doing but partially and catching only at some passages that you think makes for your purpose do most grosly wrong him by your misrepresentation And if we should deal by other Authors even such as are for the Episcopal Government as you deal by Calvin which of them almost but we might make to appear Patronizers of the Presbyterian Government But you will have Calvin to say that in the ancient Church the Bishops did all viz. make and publish Canons a note certainly of rule and jurisdiction in the Church Thus you represent him to hold forth the Bishops exercising solitary power of jurisdiction in those times which as it is in it self as contrary to truth as light is to darkeness so it is expresly contrary to what Calvin saith in the very next Section to that which you cite For in the former Section he saith that they to whom the Office of preaching was enjoyned speaking still of the ancient Church they called all those Presbyters These saith he did in every City chcose out one out of their own number to whom they gave more specially the title of Bishop lest dissentions should arise from equality as oft it comes to pass But yet he presently adds and saith Neque tamen honore dignitate superior er at Episcopus ut dominium in Collegas haberet sed quas partes habet Consul in Senatu ut referret de negotijs sententtias roget consulendo monendo hortando alijs praeeat authoritate suâ totam actionem regat quod decretum communi consilio fuerit exequatur id muneris sustinebat Episcopus in Presbyterorum caetu atque id ipsum pro temporum necessitate fuisse humano consensu inductum fatentur ipsi veteres And then he quotes Hierome asserting a Bishop and a Presbyter to be all one We wonder very much where your modesty and ingenuity nay common honesty was when being you could not but take notice of these things in Calvin in this second Section else you read him very negligently yet you say as you here do that according to Calvin's representation of the Government of the ancient Church the Bishops did all make and publish Canons a note certainly of rule and jurisdiction in the Church Whereas you see Calvin saith the Bishop had no dominion over the rest of the Presbyters whom he here calls his Colleagues that he had but only that Office which the Consul had in the Senate and is no more then what the Moderators have in our Assemblies as is clear from what he here particularly recites and further shews that he was only to execute what was decreed by common counsell and further saith that even this that did belong unto him the Ancients themselves confess was introduced by humane consent and that in regard of the necessity of the times And as touching what was appointed by the Council of Nice touching Archbishops and Patriarchs and whereof he makes mention in Section fourth we have told you before what you may find in Calvin himself in that place where he saith they were rarissimi usus of very seldome use and that their use was chiefly for the assembling of Synods But thus we believe all men will see that Calvin is so express and full for the Presbyterian Government and no patronizer of the Episcopall that they will conclude such as represent him otherwise are either very weak or make little conscience of falsifying the Authors which they cite and that you have taken off our Calvin no otherwise then by misinterpreting and grosly wronging him as after the same manner you took off Beza before and both whom however you in scorn call Modern Doctors yet are such Doctors as both you and we may learn much from 4. And thus we are brought to the Authors which we quoted for Fathers you say we have none though that also is not true we having in our Answer to your second Paper produced clear testimonies out of Origen Ambrose Augustine Optatus giving in clear evidence for the being of the ruling Elders office in their times But as touching our modern Authors the Assembly of Divines the London Ministers in their Jus divinum the Provinciall Synod of London in their Vindication Mr. Rutherford and Mr. Gillespie however you despise them again as before as being but of yesterday yet they are such who as in regard of their known and approved piety and learning as they are deservedly in high esteem in the Church so they are such as we reverence and are not ashamed to cite though this you count but a painting of our margent with them and further say of them they may serve our turn amongst the ignorant and vulgar sort who measure all by tale and not by weight whereby you pour forth such scorn and contempt upon so many reverend and glorious lights as we beleeve all moderate spirited men though in their judgments for the cause which you profess to love will be ashamed of and will disown in you And however you say that others that know what and who many of them are will sc for our referring you to them conclude we draw very near the dreggs yet you had approved your selves to have been farre more profound persons if being sent by us to consider what arguments they urged for the Jus divinum of the Presbyterian Government you had in your reply to our Answer answered them and so rather discovered their weakness then by such expressions as you here use to have branded either us for referring you to them or them by saying that others know what and who they are who yet do neither know any thing by them nor can by their detracting pens publish any thing touching them to the world that will ever lessen their esteem with learned godly sober and judicious persons that are acquainted with their learned Labours And however you may please your selves in your v●lifying them and us for referring you to them yet this is that which you should have remembred must be accounted for one day But why did not you who tell us of drawing very near the dregs here take notice of what in our answer immediately followed you having in your first Paper enquired of us why we had called our Government the present Government and then demanded is there no present Government in any Church or assembly of Saints but where our discipline is erected are all the rest at present without Government or where hath ours been this fifteen hundred years past till this present c. unto all which and that which followed there in your Paper we returned you our Answer yet you take not notice of it though if we had dealt thus by you and yet had made a shew to have answered you as you do pretend to answer us we should not have thought you had wronged us in your telling us here of drawing near the dreggs 5. And now to conclude this Section whereas you here again tell us that as for

Church government or our own practice is not at all to your purpose neither doth it if it had been as you represented which yet we have shewed you is otherwise prove what it concerned you to have made good viz. That those that present not themselves to the Eldership upon the Exhortation given by the Minister to that purpose were according to our Order to have had their names published in the Congregations and they warned before all to reforme Which yet was your high charge and accusation of us but wanting support of it self falls to the ground And hereupon it is manifest that it is not we that go about to mince the matter or that seek to colour over our actions with a seeming deniall of all or to evade what we still practice but are ashamed to own as you here without the least shadow of proofe affirme of us neither is there any thing to be found in our Answer that hath any tendency this way we there professedly defending and justifying all that we practised But it is you who having laid grevious things to our charge which you could not prove would now represent us as if we did as you say that so you might seem to say some thing though when it comes to be scan'd it is nothing but a plaine discovery that though your accusation was loud and strong your proof is low weake and empty and such as vanisheth into Aire For all the descants as you call them that we made on either Nounes or Pronouns was to shew that the Relative they in the fifth Order could not refer to the Catechized persons who being found knowing and blamelesse by the Minister though they should not according to the Exhortation of the Minister present themselves to the Eldership yet were not to have had their names published to the Congregation nor for that warned before all to reforme and which because you saw you could not make out do therefore having changed the state of the Question fall upon our practice and tell us we mince it or are ashamed of it though this be also untrue and that which you do not prove against us neither and so are doubly guilty in this one particular of false accusation But when to cleare up the sense of our words we had told you in our Answer that the Relative did often referre to the remoter and not the nearer Antecedent and must do so when the matter spoken of did require it and this you here call a weake senselesse and unheard of descanting on Nounes and Pronouns You do hereby proclaime your own ignorance the like descanting if it must be so called on Nounes and Pronounes being observed by the Learned as we have shewed you to open and expound the sense of Scripture and which you your selves must acknowledge or you shall never be able rightly in some places to understand them as from the instances we have given is manifest And you do hereby further discover your impotent passions else you would not have given us such language as we here as but too often throughout your Paper meet with As touching what follows to the conclusion we have already said what is sufficient for our own vindication We have spoken out and owned what is in truth our pactice and which we have told you is to admit of none to the Sacrament but by the juridicall act of the Eldership this being that which is requisite and necessary to be observed as we have told you or the Governement is indangered to be quite overthrown And yet none are debarred by us from the Sacrament that are knowing and blamelesse because they present not themselves before the Eldership which is that you would gladly fasten upon us though herein you labour in vain but the ignorant and scandalous only Although we here must minde you of what we told you even now viz. That this is not the Question that is now disputed betwixt us Neither do vve need upon any practice of ours or any other account whatsoever wave the Ordinance we act upon as repealed and vvhich however you do yet we must not nor be perswaded thereunto either by your threats or intreaties having proved sufficiently that this Ordinance is of force and strength to this very day that and what we have heretofore said concerning the civill sanction of our Governement is so much to the purpose that it makes this forth And so to conclude we do not question but whatever your conceits may be to the contrary others will determine that your high charge having not been supported by reason is of no vveight to the depressing of us much lesse the Presbyterian governement and vvhich though vve had fallen not having been able to have vindicated our selves from vvhat vve had been accused vvith vvould notwithstanding have been far above any depression of yours However vve believe it vvas the summa totalis and the u●shot of all that you chiefly aimed at in all your Papers though how you have therein acquitted your selves will be manifest enough to the attentive and impartiall Reader vvho vvill easily discerne by vvhat hath been said that you have no otherwise indeavoured to depresse this Governement but by aspersing it vvhen you vvanted Arguments vvherewith to oppose it by taking no notice of the reasons vve urged vvhen you could not Answer them and passing over many things in our Answer in silence saying nothing to them by betaking your selves to the Popish principles and practices refusing to have the controversie touching Church governement determined by the Scriptures and railing on us as Scripturists for contending to have the matter tried by this Judge by asserting severall manifest untruths and sometimes palpably contradictng your selves by falsifying and abusing approved Protestant Authors vvho favoured not the cause you plead for and aspersing others by perverting our words and mangling them vvhen you had a minde to render us absurd by many uncivill and unchristian expressions which you have used toward us to the reproaching of us by your severall bitter and reasonless scoffes jeeres uncharitable censures and slanders laying to our charge severall things for which you bring no proof and venting your distempered passions against us only because we are for Presbyterian and against Episcopall governement and to summe up all in a word by hard words but soft and weake Arguments But all wise and sober persons will conclude you fighting against us and the Presbyterians governement with such weapons as these tooke not the way either to depress it or us but have greatly hereby depressed your selves and which we mind you of that you seeing your manifold errours herein might be humbled for them and prevent that by unfeigned repentance which otherwise you have cause to feare and whereof we have all along in faithfullness warned you as there hath been occasion offered throughout your Papers though thereby what is now presented to the publick view is swelled to the greater bulke If this our pains that hath