Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	bishop_n	church_n	faith_n	1,387	5	4.9058	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88107	The nevv quere, and determination upon it, by Mr. Saltmarsh lately published, to retard the establishment of the Presbyteriall government, examined, and shewed to be unseasonable, unsound, and opposite to the principles of true religion, and state. Whereunto is annexed a censure of what he hath produced to the same purpose, in his other, and later booke, which he calleth The opening of Master Prinnes Vindication. And an apologeticall narrative of the late petition of the Common Councell and ministers of London to the Honourable Houses of Parliament, with a justification of them from the calumny of the weekly pamphleters. / By John Ley, one of the Assembly of Divines at Westminster.	Ley, John, 1583-1662.	1645 (1645)	Wing L1885; Thomason E311_24; ESTC R200462	96,520	124

Elders or in any other part of Ecclesiasticall power but humbly wait for further warrant from the Parliament to proceed in the work while many of our dissenting Brethren of their owne accord and without the command or consent and against the Vote of the Civill State gather Churches or continue the Government of those they have gathered according to the modell of their owne choosing notwithstanding the joynt admonition of many eminent Ministers as well Independent as Presbyteriall to forbeare untill what was and yet is in part under deliberation came to accomplishment and * M. S. Eaton Teacher and Tim. Taylor Pastour of the Church of Duckenfield in Cheshire in their late defence of sundry positions and Scriptures to justifie the Congregationall way some take the boldnesse publikely and in print to avow themselves as Ministers under the name and office of Teachers and Pastors of new constituted Churches and publikely to assert their repugnant principles and practises in opposition to that which the Honourable Houses of Parliament have partly authorised already by their Civill Sanction and engaged themselves further to authorise throughout the Churches of both Kingdomes as God shall be pleased to make way for a thorow reformation by reducing the severall Countries under the command of the King and Parliament But I had rather then recriminate friendly and kindly close with my yet dissenting Brother and therefore heartily commend it to his Christian consideration to study the reconciliation and union of all the godly party as Mr. Burroughs hath lately done and not to proceed to discourses which tend to make or maintaine division or estrangement and alienation of affection betwixt them To that purpose I shall propose as a patterne of imitation to Mr. Saltm and to all others who partake with him in his present Opinion what he hath set downe in the seventh Chapter of his Irenicum in his owne words First Mr. Burroughs his Irenieum c. 7. p. 43 44 45. Those in the Congregationall way acknowledge that they 〈◊〉 bound in conscience to give account of their wayes to the Churches about them or to any other who shall require it this not in an arbitrary way but as a dutie that they owe to God and man Secondly They acknowledge that Synods of other Ministers and Elders about them are an Ordinance of Iesus Christ for the helping the Church against errours schismes and scandals Thirdly That these Synods may by the power they have from Christ admonish men or Churches in his Name when they see evils continuing in or growing upon the Church and their admonitions carry with them the anthoritie of Iesus Christ Fourthly As there shall be cause they may declare men or Churches to be subverters of the faith or otherwise according to the nature of the offence to shame them before all the Churches about them Fiftly They may by a solemne act in the Name of Iesus Christ refuse any further communion with them till they repent Sixthly They may declare and that also in the Name of Christ that these erring people or Churches are not to be received into fellowship with any of the Churches of Christ nor to have communion one with another in the Ordinances of Christ Now all this being done in Christs Name is this nothing to prevaile with conscience If you say private brethren may admonish and declare in the Name of Christ This is more then if any private Brethren should do the same thing for at Synod is a solemne Ordinance of Christ and the Elders are to be looked on as the officers of Iesus Christ But our Brethren say There is one meanes more in their way then the Congregation all way hath that is if the sixe former will not work then Synods may deliver to Satan In this very thing lies the very knot of the Controversie betweene these who are for the Presbyteriall and those who are for the Congregationall way in reference to the matter in hand namely the meanes to reducing from or keeping out errours and heresies from the Church in this lies the dividing businesse But I beseech you consider at what a punctum we divide here and judge whether the cause of division in this thing be so great as there can be no helpe and whether if an evill spirit prevaile not amongst us we may not joyne For First consider what is there in this delivering to Satan which is a seventh thing which our Brethren thinke may hopefully prevaile with mens consciences when the sixe former cannot Yes say they for by this they are put out of the Kingdome of Christ into the kingdome of Satan and this will terrifie This putting out of Christs Kingdome must be understood clave non errante if the Synod judges right not otherwise yes this is granted by all Then consider whether this be not done before and that with an authoritie of Christ by those former sixe things for bereticall Congregations or persons are judged and declared in a solemne Ordinance by the officers of Christ gathered together in his Name to be such as have no right to any Church Ordinance to have no communion with any of the Churches of Christ Now if this judgement be right are not such persons or Congregations put out of the Kingdome of Christ and put under the power of Satan consequently But thirdly If some brethren rise to a seventh degree and others stay at sixe which have yet such a power over conscience that if they prevaile not the seventh is no way likely to prevaile why should not the Apostles rule quiet us all Phil. 3.15 16. Whereto we have already attained let us walke by the same rule if in any thing you be otherwise minded God will reveale even this unto you if we have attained but to sixe and our Brethren have attained to seven let us walke together lovingly to the sixe if God shall after reveale the seventh we will promise to pray and study in the mean time we shall walke with them in that also why must it needs be now urged with violence so as to divide else and although we hold not the seventh yet there is an ingredient in the sixt that hath in it the strength of the seventh for wherein lies the strength of the seventh above the rest is it not in this that it is the last meanes Christ hath appointed in his Church to work upon the heart this consideration hath much terror it it Now those in the Congregationall way say that this is fully in the sixth wherefore that is as terrible to their consciences as the seventh can be to the consciences of our brethren and that upon the same ground If so what is the difference for this matter more then that which hath beene betwixt many godly and Orthodoxe Divines about the division of the Lords Prayer whether it containe 6. or 7. petitions when those that are for sixe have as much matter in those sixe as those that have seven and those that

an infallible guidance in their determinations or that they may erre and then we must think that though they doe so you resolve to be on their side be it right or wrong if so doe you not tell the world that your complyance with them hath more of policy in it then of conscience and will it not readily follow that such a Mercurius at Westminster would easily turne to an Aulicus at Oxford if which God forbid the Royall Prerogative should so farre advance as to plunder the Parliament of their ancient and Honourable Priviledges The other Animadversion upon Britanicus this weeke concerneth the vilifying of the Petitioners whom Lucian like he fals upon in this scornfull and jeering manner It is a fine humour in any to cry We will have this we will have that done Come let 's petition he should have said we would have this or that done for we will have this or that done are termes rather of the Imperative then the Optative Mood fitter for Commanders then Petitioners Besides Sir you know there be a sort of men who have taken upon them without petitioning to the Parliament or Authoritie from the Parliament to set up a Government of themselves which the Petitioners dare not attempt without warrant from the Parliament this is a humour indeed a fine humour of a new impression but when did you bestow a jeere or a taunt upon them in this surely you bewray your partialitie and somewhat worse which you may heare of hereafter but say on Yes I warrant you we are wise Statesmen know the due times and seasons well enough and though we lye under the decke are able to discerne as well as they that sit at the sterne Did the Petitioners take upon them to be Statesmen did they not professedly disclaime so vaine a conceit when in a modest and humble way they came to the Parliament as to Statesmen the Fathers and Physicians of the State to receive from their prudent resolutions present remedies against the maladies wherewith the Citie is dangerously infected and infested and was it not time to complain when they perceived the subtle insinuations of Schisme creepe into their families and found it had stolne their wives from their bosomes their children and servants from Oeconomicall communion in their families and from hearing Orthodoxe Divines in the publique Churches of the Citie to sort themselves under erroneous and hereticall Teachers in private Conventicles And whereas you would degrade the Petitioners sitting at the st●rne to lying under the d●cke though you for feare or shame may have occasion to play least in sight and to lurke under the hatches to secure your selfe the Petitioners are for the chiefe p●●t of them eminently conspicuous divers of the one sort sit upon the Tribunall of Authoritie and all of the other weekly appeare visible to common view in their Pulpits and have so much advantage ground for discovery of the evils of the times and places they live in that it can be no disparagement to the Parliaments prudence in many particulars to receive informations from them But they goe beyond their bounds as Britanicus chargeth them for their duty leads them 〈◊〉 further saith he then to present matter of grievance in things already established not to demand the establisment of any thing 〈◊〉 this must be left in the Parliament who it is presumed and we must hold to this ma●ime will neglect nothing necessary or convenient Now he takes upon him to play the Casuist and to resolve both positively and negatively how farre men may proceed to petition how farre not they may saith he present matter of grievance in things already established not demand the establishment of any new thing This Aphorisme is framed of purpose for the pulling downe of the Prelacy and against the setting up of the Presbytery that Independencie and under that Title all Sects of what sort soever may be set up and spread abroad without restraint but a man would think it more reasonable that when things are established they should command either assent or silence but in the want of necessary things the presenting of requests for supply to those that are able to grant them hath no affinitie with a fault but rather hath the nature of a dutie and therefore they who petitioned the Parliament for Ordination of Ministers in a new way without Bishops new to this State though most ancient in the Church of Christ were never blamed but approved by the Parliament and accordingly an Ordinance passed both the Honourable Houses for enabling a certaine number of Divines to put it in practise much more cause is there to approve the Petitioners who received a command for the choice of Church Governours whereto without further direction and warrant they could not performe compleat obedience as they desired And for that he saith of leaving all to the Parliament in confidence of their universall care neglecting nothing which may be necessary and convenient it hath a pretence of respect to the Parliament but the drift of it is to make all those who desire a deliverance out of dangerous confusion by a setting up and settling a regular Government remisse in their mediation for it while Independents intentively bestirre themselves in severall Counties to make choice of such for Knights and Burgesses as favour their faction and quicken their Patrons with uncessant importunitie to expedite their designe in Parliament in Committees in the Army and some of them are such ubiquitaries within the Kingdome and without to worke themselves up to a capitulating partie that none but that great Peripatetick 1 Pet. 5.8 goeth beyond them for sedulitie in prosecution of a plot And yet whatsoever he aimeth at in this diversion or prohibition of Petitions the Parliament may have need of them and may make good use of them yea and as some Antipresbyterians bragge a The most and best things that ever this Parliament did were first m●tioned by private men and then authorised and established by them The Postscript of the Libellous Pamphlet called Lilburnes Englands birth-right have done so and may be very well pleased therewith For instance having a purpose to ordaine the Presbyteriall Government which as the b The Copy of the Remonstrance lately delivered to the Assembly by T.G.I.B. c. Independents confesse they have voted already it may be matter of much incouragement to them to perfect their purpose in that behalfe since they see such a generall accord of the Common Councell and Ministery of the Citie petitioning together for the establishment thereof This may suffice for the second Edition of this scandalous contumely against the Petitions and Petitioners of London for whose sakes they being so many in number and so eminent in ranke and order and for the good Cause wherein they and many more are so much engaged I have taken the opportunity that was cast in my way to make this Apologie otherwise I should not think it meete to bestow my most idle minutes upon so meane an imployment as a conflict or contestation with such Antagonists as now I have answered Who if they appeare againe with any degree of folly or offence in this Cause above that which discretion may disdaine or Religion must pardon though I be silent which yet I doe not promise there will be a course taken to make some more sensible of their unsufferable excesses and others more circumspect and cautelous then to runne the hazard of their deserved reward FINIS