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A48848
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A sermon preached at St. Martins in the Fields, on November the fifth, 1678 by William Lloyd ...
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Lloyd, William, 1627-1717.
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1679
(1679)
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Wing L2709; ESTC R20333
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13,102
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38
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he must be burnt There is only this difference He that dies in their hands his Body is not buried but burnt He that was buried before he was discovered he is digged up to be burnt as soon as he is discovered though it be twenty or forty years after I could give many undeniable Instances of all that which I have said in this matter Few Instances can be given to the contrary in Spain or in Italy in those parts which are under the Inquisition If it is not so in any other Country yet it was so even there when it was under the full Dominion of Popery As for instance in France a little more than a hundred years since In our Kings Dominions about a hundred and twenty years since In the Low-Countries as Grotius tells us in the first Book of his Annals a hundred thousand Men and Women had suffered thus before ever Sword was drawn against the Spanish Government Not to speak of Merindole and Cabriers and Piedmont and in Austria and Bohemia and other Places where this Cruelty was exercised so lately in Countries not under the Full Power of Popery When all was theirs before the Reformation it was no where otherwise How was it possible it should be When since the time that it came to be a Practice of their Church that all whom they accounted Heretics should be burnt that is since about the year 1200 for then it began it hath been Established by their Laws both Ecclesiastical and Civil It hath been approved by and acted in their General Councils It has been taught by their Doctors and Writers It hath been Enacted and Prosecuted and Executed every thing by the Pope whose very Throne is Established whose Greatness has been built the Foundations of it laid in the Bodies and the Walls cemented as I may say with the Blood of Orthodox and Innocent Christians Where they have not Power to do this and the colour of Law where the Government hath been against them or where it hath been weakly on their side There they have found other ways to do the same thing by Private Murther by Public Assassination by Open Rebellion by such Barbarous ways as I should not mention for fear of being accounted a Slanderer but that they are notoriously known to all the World And in All these ways there 's none like them for Cruelty among Christians There were indeed Assassines among the Heathen Saracens There are Deruices among the Turks and Saids among the Moors Single Persons or Orders of Men that are bloody enough in other Sects But for a whole Sect to be led by its Principles nay even Obliged to shed Blood I know none like these Traditionary Christians The Jews in the Apostles time to Them were but Children Their Zealots not to be mentioned with the Iesuites the Cannites of the Popish Religion They have the same Zeal that those had for their Traditions the same Diligence to make Proselytes the same Cruelty to shed Blood Only what those acted upon the small Stage of One Country these do throughout the whole World wheresoever they dare and have opportunity to do it Whether it is to be done by Private Murther or by Open War Whether by a Foreign Sword or by the Civil Whether it be upon Subjects or upon Princes And in this last thing indeed they Out-do the Turks and the Jews and all other That they spare not their own Princes where they may hope to advantage their Cause by it For the Foreign Sword they hold it not only Lawful but Necessary to be drawn upon the meer account of Religion There is no Kingdom in our Europaean World but the Pope hath given it away upon the account of Religion No Country but He has made an Aceldama upon the account of Religion His giving Kingdoms indeed hath been like the Devil 's offering them to Christ upon Condition that they to whom he gives them shall fall down and Worship him As the Devil offered All so the Pope hath given Many though they are none of His Own Though He had no more Title to any One of them than the Devil himself has to All Kingdoms The Empire he hath given away more than once France many a time over England many and many a time to those that would Conquer them And for fear that Prize should be too little he hath given them Heaven into the Bargain He hath Commanded them to Conquer those Kingdoms and that for the Remission of their Sins Thus he gave Navarre to the Spaniard who both Conquered it and holds it to this Day under no other Original Title but of the Popes Gift and that founded upon No other Right the Pope had to it but what he hath to All Kingdoms He knows little of our Story that knows not how he hath plaid with the Kingdoms of England and Ireland Sometimes exciting the Foreign Sword sometimes stirring up Princes against their Subjects sometimes Arming the Subjects against their Prince sometimes commanding them and sometimes hiring them either to Rebellion or to Assassination And in this they exceed the Turks and all others who do bloody things otherwise but not to their own Princes at least not upon the account of Religion But to Kill Kings meerly for Religion I know not one Instance where it was ever done but for Popery Not to insist upon old Stories Within this last hundred years there have been Two Kings of France Stabb'd by their own Popish Subjects but for Favouring the Protestant Religion Henry the Third in our Queen Elizabeth's and Henry the Fourth in King Iames's time For those Princes themselves Queen Elizabeth's Life was attempted many times She was never out of Danger after the first Eleven years of her Reign Though all that time she had not put One to Death of that Religion Afterwards indeed she did put some of them to Death to secure her own Life And knowing it was Chiefly sought by their Priests she forbad them to come into her Kingdoms And for coming in spite of her she did sometimes put to Death some few of them whom she had cause to judge faulty otherwise But this Rule she observ'd She never put any One to Death that would declare under his Hand That the Pope had no Power to take away her Life and her Kingdoms When King Iames came in after her He even Studied to oblige them He treated them with all possible Indulgence He could not presently take away the Laws but he put none in Execution against them He never touched either the Person or the Purse of any of those whom they call Catholicks He forgave all that was in Arrrear from them to Queen Elizabeth He refunded what Money of theirs he found in the Exchequer He gave them leave to live at Home how they pleased only peaceably Or to go Abroad and Travel where they pleased without Account Or to take Imployment under what Prince they pleased without Distinction He Honoured all alike with Advancement
and Favour He Knighted Many of them and even One that was afterwards in this Treason This Gunpowder-Treason was Encouraged or at least Hastned by those Means I speak in the very Words of that King Saith he The Papists themselves grew to that Height of Pride in Confidence of my Mildness that they did directly expect and assuredly promise themselves Liberty of Conscience and Equality with my other Subjects in all other things When they found that King Iames was not for down-right Toleration then they were for his Blood Nothing would satisfie them but his Blood And not only His but the Queens and his Childrens I speak the Words of His MAJESTIES Proclamation and of the Act of Thanksgiving upon this Day The King the Queen the Prince were all at one Thunder-Clap to be sent to Heaven together Oh Barbarous and Horrid and Execrable Cruelty How could it enter into the Hearts of Men but by the Instigation of the Devil to do such horrid things as they had design'd To destroy their own Prince the Anointed of the Lord His Gracious Queen their Hopeful Children their whole Parliament with them and GOD knows how many more that should come within the reach of that Blow The Innocent with the Guilty Yea all Innocent for there were none Guilty of any thing but the Protestant Religion And their Religion was according to Scripture Only it was against the Popish Traditions as the Scripture it self is The Scripture is against those Popish Traditions What then If others do what Christ and his Apostles did muâ—t they be such Arrant Jews to kill them for this Yes and that with the same colour of Duty and Religion It was resolved To be Lawful to be Laudable to be Meritorious or as my Text says a good Service an acceptable Sacrifice to God I know how they that come afte do endeavour to excuse this and shall lay open their Excuses more fully elsewhere I shall only at this time desire you to think what they can say for themselves and much more for the Authors of this Wickedness What they first say is That the Authors did not come of themselves but were drawn into it They were indeed led into this Wickedness by their Religion They acted according to their Consciences as the Jews did in Crucifying Christ. They were drawn in by none but their Spiritual Guides by their own High Priest and their Rulers by the Pope and the Governing Clergy For the Minister of State whom they Now charge with this there was no Ground for such a Charge but his Vigilance There was not the least Intimation of any other in those days Both they that died and they that survived accused none but themselves left no shadow of Guilt on any other But what then Were they Rashly drawn into it Nothing less It was a Deliberate Plot. It was begun and carried on with great Consultation It was some Years in Contriving before it was to be put in Execution But it was managed only by a Few Desperate Men that were thrust upon it with some great Provocations That is a second Excuse But for the Provocation take it in the King 's own Words There was no Foreign Grudge nor no Inward Whisper nor Discontent that was any way appearing before this Plot. For their Condition the chief Actors in it were Men of Great Estates and spent many Thousands of Pounds in it and were able to have spent many more For the Number I believe the Design it self was known to Few But that there was a Design was known to many more King Iames himself tells us so A great Number of my Popish Subjects of all Ranks and Sorts both Men and Women as well within as without the Country had a Confused Notion and Obscure Knowledge that some great Thing was to be done in that Parliament for the Weal of the Church Though for Secresies sake they were not to be acquainted with the Particulars But perhaps those Many were of the more Ignorant sort that were drawn into it for want of Knowledge Nay they knew as much as they generally care to know They understood the mind of their Governours concerning this matter Their Spiritual Governours were the Chief Men in it themselves Garnet the very Chief Man was the Provincial of the Jesuits and the rest of his Order were the chief Instigators Who not only consulted and contrived but formed Prayers for this Purpose and used them in their several Congregations for the good Success of this Business These are again the Words of King Iames in his Book But it will be said The Catholicks ever since have disowned it I think and doubt not many of them do from their Hearts But I assure you 't is disown'd by not many of the Governing Party Some of the Traytors themselves confest their Guilt at their Death three of them and no more The rest justified themselves and stood in it to the last Some of them refused to ask any Pardon for it One of the Jesuits said It would have been Commendable if it had been done A Lay-Gentleman said even at his suffering He hoped their Sons would grow up to Revenge their Cause One of them being advised to Repent of that Sin answered chearfully He was satisfied it was far from being a Sin Nay that he trusted the Merit of that Vndertaking would amply suffice for the Satisfaction of his Sins Thus they thought What others did it appeared after their Deaths Some of their Leaders are yet esteemed no less than Martyrs in their Church And those Principles by which they went are yet the very Catholic Doctrines I know or believe at least they are detested by some Members of that Church But they are as boldly and as strenuously asserted by the Head of that Church and by all the Principal Members They do really that which Christ foretold some would do in future times upon the Account of Religion They will saith he put you out c. The more evident this is in them the stronger Motive it should be to us both to Zeal for our Religion at all times and now especially to Thankfulness to God for this Deliverance For our Religion we know it is from the God of Truth and theirs as far as it differs from ours is from the Father of Lyes And they take his way to maintain it if Fraud and Violence are of the Devil which they are as sure as Truth and Goodness are of GOD. Blessed be GOD for our Religion for giving it for keeping it from all Danger and especially from this He deserveth no other MERCY that is not thankful for this LORD We deserve none at all We deserve nothing but Judgment We are below even the least of thy Mercies It was for thy Mercy sake for thy own sake that thou didst this Oh never let it be forgotten in our Days Never let it be remembred or thought of but with Thanksgiving to our God! And as the highest Motive upon Earth to those Ways that are pleasing in his sight To a Zeal for his Truth to Love and Unity among our selves to true Holiness in all our Conversations And having this Experience of GOD's Care for his Church in these Kingdoms let us learn by this to trust him with it on all other Occasions We have a great Occasion at present and GOD knows what we are like to have more Let us Trust in Him that as He has done so He will still deliver us But withal Let us Keep His Way and not follow our Adversaries in theirs It is properly their Way to Kill Men for Religion GOD forbid we should follow them in it But for those other things in which they give us Example for Zeal and Activity and Undefatigable Diligence as they are Theirs in an Ill Cause so in a Good they may and ought to be Ours And in these if we cannot out-do them yet for shame let us not be out-done Let us not as perhaps we are too apt to do so much relie on our Cause as to think that we need not defend it Lastly Let us follow our Endeavours with our Prayers to Almighty GOD That being delivered from the Hands of all our Enemies we may serve Him without fear That having escaped the greatest Cruelty on this side Hell we may at last escape that too And that Living and Dying in the Communion of his Church we may be Partakers of his Kingdom in Life Everlasting FINIS Vers. 1. Matth. 15. 16. a Sir Everard Digby b King Iames's Works pag. 253. c King Iames's Works pag 224. d Thu. Hist. Tom. 4. p. 1206. E. King Iames's Works pag. 503. e King Iames's Works p. 225. f King Iames's Works pag. 291. g King Iames's Works p. 273. g Ibid. p. 291. h Winter Rockwood and Digby i King Iames's Works pag 291. k Hall l R. Winter m Grant