Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	good_a	great_a	king_n	5,512	5	3.6764	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A96350	The first centvry of scandalous, malignant priests, made and admitted into benefices by the prelates, in whose hands the ordination of ministers and government of the church hath been. Or, A narration of the causes for which the Parliament hath ordered the sequestration of the benefices of severall ministers complained of before them, for vitiousnesse of life, errors in doctrine, contrary to the articles of our religion, and for practising and pressing superstitious innovations against law, and for malignancy against the Parliament. It is ordered this seventeenth day of November, 1643. by the Committee of the House of Commons in Parliament concerning printing, that this booke intituled, [The first century of scandalous, malignant priests, &c.] be printed by George Miller.	White, John, 1590-1645.; England and Wales. Parliament. aut	1643 (1643)	Wing W1777; Thomason E76_21; ESTC R19192	42,473	60

THE FIRST CENTVRY OF Scandalous Malignant PRIESTS Made and admitted into Benefices by the PRELATES in whose hands the Ordination of Ministers and government of the Church hath been OR A Narration of the Causes for which the PARLIAMENT hath Ordered the Sequestration of the Benefices of severall Ministers complained of before them for vitiousnesse of Life errors in Doctrine contrary to the Articles of our Religion and for practising and pressing superstitious Innovations against Law and for Malignancy against the PARLIAMENT IT is Ordered this seventeenth day of November 1643. by the Committee of the House of Commons in Parliament concerning Printing that this Booke Intituled The first Century of Scandalous Malignant Priests c. be printed by George Miller JOHN WHITE LONDON Printed by George Miller dwelling in the Black-Friers M.DC.XLIII To the READER Reader THis ensuing summary Declaration of the Grounds and Causes whereupon this Parliament hath proceeded against divers Ministers to sequester their Benefices from them and to place in their roomes godly learned orthodox Divines diligent Preachers of the Word of God may serve thee for many excellent parposes First To open thine eyes and clearely convince and satisfie thee that the Parliament had good and very great cause from hence among many other things to declare and resolve that the present Church Governement by Arch-bishops Bishops their Chancellours Commissaries Deanes Arch-deacons and other Ecclesiasticall Officers depending upon the Hierarchie is evill and justly Offensive and burdensome to the Kingdome a great Impediment to Reformation and growth of Religion and very prejudiciall to the State and Government of this Kingdome and therefore to be taken away a See the Preamble of the bill for the Assembly of Divines and of the Ordinance by which they sit They have beene by our Lawes entrusted with the Care and Provision for the soules of the King and Subjects to heed feed and watch over them b Acts 20.28 1 Pet. 5.2 Heb. 13.17 And to attend upon the great Embassie they pretend unto to pray and beseech them to be reconciled unto God c 2 Cor. 5.20 and to preach and to cause to be preached by able and faithfull men d 2 Tim. 2.2 The Word of God in season and out of season e 2 Tim. 4 2. They have not onely neglected their Personall Execution of this weighty trust but also have generally and mostly committed the same to Persons illiterate and insufficient dumbe Doggs as the Scripture calls them f Isa 56.10 that cannot barke against whom God hath protested for their ignorance g Hos 4.6 and to men swallowed up with Wine and strong drinke whose Tables are full of vomit and filthinesse h Isai 28.7.8 Quorum ess et vivere est esse bibere Whoremongers and Adulterers who as fed Horses neigh after their Neighbours Wives i Jer. 5.8 Buggerers that change the naturall use into that which is against Nature k Rom. 1.26 And to others scandalous of corrupt mindes and ill affected to the Peace and Safety of the Kingdome men unfit to preach to or live among Christians their wickednesse being so great as that they are condemned by Heathens And hereby they have taken the high-way to destroy the souls committed to them and to drown them in Perdition The evill life of a Minister being like the rods which Jacob spread before the Sheepe m Precepts are iter longum Examples iter breve the people write after his copie with ease and confidence Sinnes are reputed as none or as veniall which receive Patronage from the Ministers Example n Hae hominum faces non Dei ministri sed Satanae satellites non Christi seblatores sed Antichriste successores And though some few of these Church Governors have been men that have otherwise expressed in the course of their lives a true feare of God yet by a strange Influence of the Divine Curse upon their Offices branches of the Hierarchy of Rome plants not planted by our heavenly Father these as well as the rest have unhappily laid hands suddenly upon many and preferred divers wicked and unworthy by partiality o 1 Tim. 5.2 to marry and put off their hands a Daughter a Kinswoman and upon other bie and base respects without regard of the good of the soules of them over whom they were set And in this Booke thou shalt have an Assay of the Gall and Worme-wood of the Episcopall Governement taken out of London the Metropolis and of the Counties adjacent that when thou seest what Vermine crawles upon and devoures the principall and vitall parts thou maist reflect with a mournefull heart upon the more miserable condition of Wales and of the North the more remote parts of this Kingdome where upon scrutiny will be easily found many for one as vile and abhominable as these And if thou wouldost have the people perish for want of vision or impoysoned with the destructive Errours of Popery and Arminianisme and the Land yet more defiled with cursing swearing drunkennesse whoredome sodomie then put thy shoulders still to the support of the said Church-Government and Governours but if thou be better minded as in Charitie I hope thou art then joyne heart and hand with the Parliament to purge out such Popish dreggs and together with them pray for and endeavour a through Reformation according to the word of God Secondly Thou maist by perusall of this booke clearly see what manner of persons those Cleargie-men be that favour the present course of his Majestie against his Parliament and people and dislike and maligne the wayes of the Parliament they will appeare unto thee to be such as cannot endure the purity power and strictnesse of the true Religion that hate Reformation and to be brought in their hearts Religion and lives to the holy Word of God that seeks themselves and not the things of Jesus Christ that are given over to vile affections to superstition ambition persecutions covetousnesse malignity and all wickednes and knowing the judgement of God and what they deserve that commit such things yet not only doe the same but have pleasure in them that doe them a Rom. 1.28 29 32. Thirdly Thou maiest hereby discerne one principall ground and cause of the generall ignorance and debauchery of the Gentry and people of this Kingdome Like Priest like people b Hos 4. ● They cause the people to erre by their lyes and by their lightnesse c Jer. 23.31 They are a snare on Mispah and a net spread upon Tabor d Hos 5.1 They have wrested and broken the law of the Lord defiled his holy things hid their eyes from his Sabbaths polluted his Sanctuary e Ezek. 22.26 and seduced the people to the same wickednesse dawbing with untempered Morter f Ezek. 13.10 These Prophets prophesie falsly the Bishops beare rule by their means and the people love to have it so g Jer. 5.31 Fourthly Behold with

his house on Sundayes after prayers to sit there with him and consume their time in drinking and tipling 35. The Benefice of Henry Hancocks Vicar of the Parish Church of Fornax-Pelham in the County of Hertford is sequestred for that he hath preached That it is as lawfull for a woman if she dislike her Husband to leave him and take another as for one to goe out of his Parish to heare another Minister And that to goe to another Church was as the sinne of Witch-craft and Idolatry and filleth as well his Sermons as his ordinary discourses with bitter invectives and slanders against those that are religiously affected especially presenting them under the names of Puritans and Round-heads and hath said in his Sermons That the Puritans forced the Parliament to make Lawes according to their own fantasies and not according to the Law of God And after the fight at Edge-hill said in his Sermon That he was overjoyed to thinke that God should put it into the heart of the King to fight the Lords battell on the Lords day to uphold the ould antient Catholike Faith And fearing the pulling up of the railes about the Communion-Table he walked with his Sword about the Church-yard in the night saying he would rather loose his life then suffer them to be pul'd up and that if the Bishops should command him to weare a Kettle upon his head he would doe it and is a common tipler and haunter of Ale-houses and a prophane swearer of bloudy oathes 36. The Benefice of Alexander Clarke Vicar of the Parish Church of Bredfield in the County of Suffolk is sequestred for that he hath used very frequent bowing to the Altar in his going and returning from it and hath pressed the observing thereof upon his Parishioners and refused to let the Church-wardens levell the ground where the Altar stood because it was holy and consecrated and not fit to be throwne out or mixed with common earth and hath enveighed in his Sermons aginst praying by the Spirit calling it a Monster conceived borne and dying all in an instant and hath read the Booke of Sports on the Lords day and incouraged his Parishioners to observe the same telling them that it was sitter to play and follow their businesse on the Lords day then on holy dayes and hath publikely sported himselfe with his parishioners on the Lords dayes at Barly-breake and hath taught to the people that he hath absolute power to forgive sinnes blaming them that they did not send for their ghostly Father to have them forgiven and hath seldome observed the monethly Fast enjoyned by Parliament and hath endeavoured to draw his Parishioners to the Forces raised against the Parliament affirming that the Parliament had driven the King away from them and that the proceedings of them about the King were just and that there was not a Papist neere him And hath affirmed that the Earle of Strafford did die wrongfully and that the Parliament put him to death without a cause and hath spoken reproachfully of the Earle of Pembrooke and hath threatned his neighbours to give a list of the Names of them to the King that incouraged any to contribute to the Parliament 37. The Benefice of Zachary Tusham Vicar of the Parish Church of Dallington in the County of Sussex is sequestred for that he is a common drunkard and hath solicited the chastity of one Alice Thorpe and is a common quarreller and did way-lay one Edmund Gore about mid-night and fell upon him and beare him and hath greatly neglected his Cure sometimes deserting the same for two-Moneths together without any supply and hath spoken very disgracefully of the Earle of Essex and expressed great malignity against the Parliament 38. The Benefice of Nicholas Wright Doctor in Divinity Rector of the Parish Church of Thoydon-Garnon in the County of Essex is sequestred for that he hath not preached above twice or thrice a yeare to his Parishioners and yet hath presented divers of them and put them to great charges in the Ecclesiasticall Courts for going to heare Sermons in other Churches when they had none at home and brought also such Ministers as they heard so preach into trouble And hath procured the Communion-Table to be set Altar-wise with stepps to it and railes about it and constantly bowed towards it at his coming and going out of the Church refusing to administer the Sacrament to divers of his Parishioners without any cause other then his own wilfulnesse and read the Booke for Sports on the Lords day in his said Church and preached to maintaine the lawfulnesse of it by meanes whereof the Lords day hath ever since been much prophaned by Foot-ball playing and other ungodly practises and hath deserted his said Cure ever since Palme-Sunday last and betaken himselfe to the Army of the Cavaleeres and is in actuall War against the Parliament and Kingdome And hath brought and continued long under him for his Curate a drunken lewd and scandalous person that hath been indited and found guilty at the Sessions for a common drunkard 39. The Benefice of Iohn Woodcock Vicar of the Parish Church of Elham in the County of Kent is sequestred for that he is a common frequenter of Ale-houses and commonly drunke and abuseth them that will not keepe company with him at the Ale-house and is a common swearer by Wounds Bloud and other like execrable Oathes and a common curser and hath deserted his said Cure ever since the first of August last and hath expressed great Malignity against the Parliament and the proceedings thereof 40. The Benefice of Iohn Manby Doctor in Divinity Rector of the Parish Church of Cottenham in the County of Cambridge is sequestred for that while the Table was set Altar-wise he did constantly bow to it eight or nine times in a fore-noone and though he knew that the Parishioners could not heare him yet did alwayes reade second Service at the Altar and affirmed That it was no matter whether they heard or not for he prayed for them at the Altar which was Sanctum Sanctorum and affirmed That God was there more peculiarly present then in any other place of the Church and hath pressed his people in his Sermons That they ought to bring their offerings to the Altar and offer them there to him for that he was there in Gods stead to receive them and preached That he had power not only to pronounce absolution but had undoubted power to forgive sinnes and that the same was given him by the Bishops laying on of hands and that the Holy-dayes ought to be kept with as much reverence as the Lords day and that he read the late new Cannons and exhorted the people to receive and observe them as Scripture affirming them to be drawn out of Scripture And refused to Baptise children brought to the Church on the Lords day at evening Prayer though earnestly desired giving no other reason for it but because it was not his pleasure and hath preached openly