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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A42763 CXI propositions concerning the ministerie and government of the Church Gillespie, George, 1613-1648. 1647 (1647) Wing G752; ESTC R21587 30,033 52

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touching the outward man or the outward disposing of divine things in this or that Dominion as was said not as they are Spirituall and Evangelicall Ordinances piercing into the conscience it self But the object of the power Ecclesiasticall is a thing meerly and purely spirituall and in so far as it is spirituall for even that jurisdiction Ecclesiasticall which is exercised in an outward court or judicatory and which inflicteth publike censures forbiddeth from the use of the holy Supper and excludeth from the society of the Church doth properly concerne the inward man or the repentance and salvation of the soul 56. Surely the Faithfull and Godly Ministers although they could doe it unchallenged and uncontrolled and were therein allowed by the Magistrate as in the Prelaticall times it was yet would not usurpe the power of life and death or judge and determine concerning mens honours goods inheritance division of Families or other civill businesses seeing they well know these things to bee heterogeneous to their office But as they ought not to entangle themselves with the judgeing of civill causes so if they should bee negligent and slothfull in their owne office they shall in that bee no lesse culpable 57. To the object also of Ecclesiasticall power belongeth the assembling of Synodes so far as they are spirituall Assemblies proper to the Church and assembled in the holy Ghost for being so considered the governours of Churches after the example of the Apostles and Presbyters Acts 1 5. in a manifest danger of the Church ought to use their owne right of meeting together and conveening that the Churches endangered may be relieved and supported 58. Thirdly Those powers are differenced in respect of their formes and that three wayes For first the Civill power although in respect of God it bee Ministeriall yet in respect of the Subjects it is Lordly and Magisteriall Ecclesiasticall power is indeed furnished with authority yet that authority is liker the Fatherly then the Kingly authority Yea also t is purely Ministeriall much lesse can it bee lawfull to Ministers of the Church to bear dominion over the flock 59. Emperours Kings and other Magistrates are indeed appointed fathers of the Countrey but they are withall Lords of their People and Subjects Not as if it were permitted to them to bear rule and command at their own will and as they list for they are the Ministers of God for the good and profit of the Subjects yet it belongs to their power truely and properly to exercise dominion to hold principality to proceed imperiously It is indeed the duety of Ministers and Rulers of the Church to oversee to feed as shepherds to correct and rectifie to bear the keyes to bee Stewards in the house of Christ but in no wise to bee Lords over the house or to governe as Lords or Lordlike to rule yea in brief this is the difference between the civill Magistrate and the Ecclesiasticall Ministery in respect of those which are committed to their trust that the lot of the former is to bee served or ministred unto the lot of the latter to minister or serve 60. Now we have one onely Lord which governes our souls neither is it competent to man but to God alone to have power and authori●y over consciences But the Lord hath appointed his owne Stewards over his own Family that according to his commandment they may give to every one their allowance or portion and to dispense his mysteries faithfully and to them hee hath delivered the keyes or power of letting in into his house or excluding out of his house those whom hee himself will have let in or shut out Matth. 16. 19. and 18. 18. Luk. 12. 42. 1 Cor. 4. 1. Tit. 1. 7. 61. Next the civill power is indued with authority of compelling But it belongs not to the Ministery to compell the disobedient If any compulsion bee in or about Ecclesiasticall matters t is adventitious from without to wit from the help and assistance of the Magistrate not from the nature of Ecclesiasticall power from which it is very heterogeneous and therefore if any Suspended or Excommunicate person should be found who shall be so stiffe-necked and so impudent that at once he cast off all shame and make no account at all of those censures but scorne and contemne the same or peradventure shall insolently or proudly engyre and obtrude himself upon the Sacrament or being also filled with devillish malice do more and more contradict and blaspheme the Ecclesiasticall Ministery in such cases hath nothing more to do by way of jurisdiction But the Magistrate hath in readinesse a compelling jurisdiction and externall force whereby such stubborne rebellious and undaunted pride may bee externally repressed 62. Last of all the power of the Magistrate worketh onely politically or civilly according to the nature of the Scepter or Sword maketh and guardeth civill Lawes which sometimes also he changeth or repealeth and other things of that kinde hee effecteth with a secular power But the Ecclesiasticall power dealeth spiritually and onely in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by authority entrusted or received from him alone neither is it exercised without Prayer or calling on the Name of God nor lastly doth it use any other then spirituall weapons 63. The same sinne therefore in the same man may be punished one way by the civill another way by the Ecclesiasticall power by the civill power under the formality of a crime with corporall or pecuniary punishment By the Ecclesiasticall power under the notion and nature of scandall with a spirituall censure even as also the same civill question is one way deliberate upon and handled by the Magistrate in the Senate or place of Judgement another way by the Minister of the Church in the Presbytery or Synode by the Magistrate so farre as it pertaineth to the Government of the Common-wealth by the Minister so far as it respects the conscience for the Ecclesiasticall Ministery also is exercised about civill things spiritually in so far as it teacheth and admonisheth the Magistrate out of the Word of God what is best and most acceptable unto Gods or as it reproveth freely unjust judgements unjust warres and the like and out of the Scripture threatneth the wrath of God to be revealed against all unrighteousnesse of men So also is the Magistrate said to bee occupied civilly about spirituall things 64. Therefore all the actions of the civill Magistrate even when hee is imployed about Ecclesiasticall matters are of their own nature and essentially civill he punisheth externally Idolaters Blasphemers Sacrilegious persons Hereticks Prophaners of holy things and according to the nature and measure of the sinne hee condemneth to death or banishment forfeiture of goods or imprisonment he guardeth and underproppeth Ecclesiasticall Cannons with civill authority giveth a place of habitation to the Church in his territorie restraineth or expelleth the insolent and untamed disturbers of the Church 65. Hee taketh care also for maintaining the
also about the outward businesse or externall things of the Church which are indeed necessary to the Church or profitable as touching the outward man yet not properly and purely spirituall for they doe not reach unto the soul but only to the externall state and condition of the Ministers and Members of the Church 46. For the better understanding whereof t is to bee observed that so farre as the Ministers and Members of the Church are Citizens Subjects or Members of the Commonwealth it is in the power of the Magistrate to judge determine and give sentence concerning the disposing of their bodies or goods As also concerning the maintenance of the poor sick the banished and of others in the Church which are afflicted To regulate so farre as concerneth the civill order Marriages Burials and other circumstances which are common both to holy and also to honest civill societies to affoord places fit for holy Assemblies and other externall helps by which the sacred matters of the Lord may be more safely commodiously and more easily in the Church performed To remove the externall impediments of divine Worship or of Ecclesiasticall Peace and to represse those which exalt themselves against the true Church and her Ministers and doe raise up trouble against them 47. The matter may further bee thus illustrated There is almost the like respect and consideration of the Magistrate as he is occupied about the outward things of the Church and of the Ecclesiastick Ministery as it is occupied about the inward or spirituall part of civill Government that is about those things which in the Government of the Commonwealth belong to the conscience It is one thing to governe the Commonwealth and to make politicall and civill Lawes another thing to interpret the Word of God and out of it to shew to the Magistrate his duty to wit how he ought to governe the Commonwealth and in what manner he ought to use the sword The former is proper and peculiar to the Magistrate neither doth the Ministery intermeddle or intangle it self into such businesses but the latter is contained within the office of the Ministers 48. For to that end also is the holy Scripture profitable to shew which is the best manner of governing a Commonwealth and that the Magistrate as being Gods Minister may by this guiding Starre bee so directed as that he may execute the parts of his office according to the will of God and may perfectly be instructed to every good work yet the Minister is not said properly to treat of civill businesses but of the scandalls which arise about them or of the cases of conscience which occurre in the Administration of the Commonwealth So also the Magistrate is not properly said to be exercised about the spiritual things of the Church but rather about those externall things which adhere unto and accompany the spirituall things 49. And in such externall matters of the Church although all Magistrates will not yet all yea even heathen Magistrates may and ought to aide and help the Church Whence it is that by the command of God Prayers are to be made also for an heathen Magistrate that the faithfull under them may live a quiet life with all godlinesse and honesty 1 Tim. 2. 1 2. 50. Unto the externall things of the Church belongeth not onely the correction of Hereticks and other troublers of the Church but also that civill order and way of convocating and calling together Synodes which is proper to the Magistrate for the Magistrate ought by his authority and power both to establish the Rights and Liberties of Synodes assembling together at times appointed by the knowne and received Law and to indict and gather together Synodes occasionally as often as the necessity of the Church shall require the same Not that all or any power to consult or determine of Ecclesiastick or Spirituall matters doth flow or spring from the Magistrate as Head of the Church under Christ but beecause in those things pertaining to the outward man the Church needeth the Magistrates aid and support 51. So that the Magistrate calleth together Synodes not as touching those things which are proper to Synodes but in respect of the things which are common to Synodes with other meetings and civill publike Assemblies that is not as they are Assemblies in the name of Christ to treat of matters spirituall but as they are publike Assemblies within his territories for to the end that publike conventions may bee kept in any territorie the licence of the Lord of that place ought to be desired In Synodes therefore a respect of order as well Civill as Ecclesiasticall is to bee had And because of this Civill order outward defence better accommodation together with safe accesse and recesse the consent and commandment of him who is appointed to take care of and defend humane order doth interveene 52. Moreover when the Church is rent asunder by unhappy and lamentable schismes while they who have raised the troubles and have given cause of solemne gathering a Synode whether by their Heresie or Schisme or Tyranny or any other fault of others use to place the great strength and safeguard of their cause in declining and fleeing the triall and sentence of a free Synode as being formidable to them Who seeth not that they cannot be drawn to a publike and judiciall tryall nor other disobedient persons be compelled to obedience without the Magistrate publike mandate and helpe 53. The object of Ecclesiasticall power is not the same with the object of the Civill power but much differing from it for the Ecclesiasticall power doth determine and appoint nothing concerning mens bodies goods dignities civill rights but is imployed only about the inward man or the soul not that it can search the hearts or judge of the secrets of the conscience which is in the Power of God alone Yet notwithstanding it hath for its proper object those externalls which are purely spirituall and do belong properly and most nearly to the spirituall good of the soul Which also are tearmed {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} the inward things of the Church 54. Those things then wherein the Ecclesiasticall power is exercised are the Preaching of the Word the Administration of Sacraments publike Prayer and Thanksgiving the Catechising and instructing of children and ignorant persons the examination of those who are to come to the holy Communion the Ecclesiasticall Discipline the Ordination of Ministers and the abdication deposing and degrading of them if they become like unsavory salt the deciding and determining of controversies of Faith and cases of Conscience Canonicall constitutions concerning the treasury of the Church and collections of the Faithfull as also concerning Ecclesiasticall rites or indifferent things which pertaine to the keeping of decency and order in the Church according to the generall rules of Christian love and prudence contained in the Word of God 55. T is true that about the same things the Civill power is occupyed as