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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	good_a	great_a	person_n	2,760	5	4.6597	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65697	Considerations humbly offered for taking the oath of allegiance to King William and Queen Mary	Whitby, Daniel, 1638-1726.	1689 (1689)	Wing W1720; ESTC R30191	59,750	73

181. viz. It is worthy the Note that we find no execution of blood except in open battel in all these combustions nor any Nobleman to die on a Scaffold either in this King's Reign or any other since William the First which is now almost Three hundred years SECT III. NOW as the strength of this Argument seems to me greater than is that of many others which are produced in this Cause so are there many singular advantages which it hath above them For instance First Whereas 't is said n. 1. That we cannot take this Oath upon the Grounds which commonly are offered to move us so to do without condemning the Doctrine of Non-resistance allowing Subjects in some cases a Power to Depose their Prince asserting that our Allegiance to him may cease even whilst he doth continue to Govern or to sway the Sceptre and so we cannot upon those Motives comply with the Act enjoining us to take it without condemning our ancient and avowed Doctrines our Subscriptions to our Homilies and Canons if not the Doctrine of the Ancient Church and that which once was counted the Glory of the Church of England and consequently we cannot do it on those Principles without the scandal of Hypocrisie and Mutability and so of being Ecclesiastical Weathercocks that turn with every wind that blows and Men of such flexible Consciences as will permit us to swear backwards and forwards or any ways for our interest which scandal would cause ur Persons to be despised and our Doctrine not to be regarded Whereas I say some of the other Grounds of taking the Oath of Fealty and Allegiance to King William seem to subject us to these and many other inconveniencies this way entirely avoids them all For 1. We may still honestly declare as do our Statutes n. 2. 3. Jam. 1. c. 1. Can. 36.60 Can. 1. 1640. our Canons and our Convocations That the King's Highness is the only Supreme Governor of this Realm and of all other his Dominions and Countries That the Kingly Authority within his Dominions and Countries is immediately and after God Chief and Supreme and that all Subjects by divine Law stand bound to yield all Faith and Obedience to it above all Earthly Power whatsoever For this Doctrine doth not in the least diminish any Privileges or meddle with any Prerogatives of our Sovereign Lord the King but only tells us who for the time being is that Sovereign Lord to whom these Prerogatives belong 2. n. 3. We may still honestly declare That it is not lawful upon any pretence whatsoever to take up Arms against the King Stat. Car. 2 A. 14. cap. 2.12 Car. 2. cap. 10. And that by the undoubted fundamental Laws of this Kingdom neither the Peers of this Realm nor the Commons nor both together in Parliament nor the People collectively or representatively nor any other persons whatsoever had have hath or ought to have any coercive Power over the Kings of this Realm And with our Convocation still assert A. D. 1640. Can. 1. That for Subjects to bear Arms against their King offensive or defensive upon any pretence whatsoever is at the least to resist the Powers which are ordained of God. We may still subscribe these Doctrines of our Homilies as wholsome and godly Doctrines and Doctrines to be embraced by all men 2d Par. of the Serm. of Obed. p. 72. That it is not lawful for Subjects and Inferiors in any case to resist and stand against Superior Powers that Christ hath taught us plainly that even the wicked Rulers have their Power and Authority from God and therefore it is not lawful for their Subjects to withstand them Although they do abuse their Power That if they would command us to do any thing contrary to God's Commandments in that case we may not in any wise withstand them violently P. 74 75. or rebel against Rulers or make any Insurrection Sedition or Tumults either by force of Arms or otherwise Against the Anointed of the Lord or any of his Officers but we must in such case patiently suffer all wrongs and injuries referring the Judgment of our Cause only to God. Hem. of Rebel Par. 2. p. 301. And that though Multitudes not only of the Rude and Rascal Commons but sometimes also Men of great Wit Nobility and Authority have moved Rebellions against their lawful Princes whereas true Nobility should most abhor such villanies though they should pretend sundry Causes as the Redress of the Common-wealth which Rebellion of all other mischiefs doth most destroy or Reformation of Religion whereas Rebellion is most of all against true Religion yet were the multitude of the Rebels never so great the Captains never so noble politick and witty the pretences feigned to be never so good and holy yet the speedy overthrow of all Rebels of what number state or condition soever they were or what colour and cause soever they pretend is and ever hath been such that God thereby doth shew that He alloweth neither the dignity of any person nor the multitude of any people nor the weight of any cause as sufficient for the which Subjects may move Rebellion against their Prince For this Doctrine only adds to these Particulars this That the King Regnant in possession is the King whom we may not resist in any case 3. We are not obliged for the justification of our selves n. 4. and of our Doctrine to appeal from the Homilies themselves to those who composed or subscribed them to prove their Actions towards others and the Sayings of one or two of them elsewhere were inconsistent with the plain import of the words which they subscribed and taught as good and wholsome Doctrine when it served to defend the Protestants against the Insurrections of the Romanists the chief Adversaries of that Doctrine which England knew of in those times or to insinuate to their disparagement that they held this to be good Doctrine when it was useful to secure them against the Romanists but that the Doctrine of the Lawfulness of Resistance was as good when it was useful to preserve the Protestants in England or beyond the Seas against the Romanists But can fairly account for that assistance which they gave to their oppressed Brethren from the difference betwixt the constitution of their Government and ours this being one of the chief Laws by which the liberty of the Netherlands was long maintained and justified If any Prince hath disturbed the State of the Republick either by violence wrong dealing or treachery Oration of the Lawfulness of the Netherlandish War p. 14. then all the States and Burghers may deny him Obedience and shall be free and discharged of their Oaths they shall appoint a Chief in his place until he be reduced to a better Mind and more easie Government From the Observation of Dr. Hammond out of Bodinus L. 2. de Rep. c. 5. That in France Spain England and Scotland Reges sine

Fundamentals of this Government he may not have forfeited it And Fourthly Whether he may not have done it by actually subjecting part of it to a foreign Power and both it and himself to Papal and French Power Again on the part of King William he must know Whether he had not a just cause of War and if he had Whether that do not create a right to the thing gained by it Whether King James by disbanding his Army and withdrawing his Person did not virtually yield him the Throne And must not the Decision of these things if it be necessary to be made by every Soul in order to the paying that Obedience to the Higher Powers he stands obliged to yield them for Conscience sake cast many honest Souls into great Mazes and under insuperable difficulties And must it not then be very reasonable to conceive that God hath given them some way more easie And fitted to their mean capacities for satisfaction in this case and what can that more likely be than this of yielding actual Obedience to him whom they find in actual Possession of the Government whilst they enjoy the benefit of his Protection and of his Government Thirdly God saith the Apostle hath called us to Peace n. 7. 1 Cor. vii 15. i. e. to peace even with Pagans and to a peaceful Deportment in our conjugal and oeconomical Relations for unto that he in that Paragraph seems more immediately to referr 1 Pet. ij 12. And the Apostle requires the Christian to yield Subjection to the present Powers that by this good Behaviour their Adversaries might be convinced of the peaceable Deportment of Christians and how free their Religion was from causing any disturbance to the Government Now if Christianity did indeed enjoin them to yield this peaceable Subjection to the Powers then reigning and having full Possession of the Government without a scrupulous enquiry into the justness of their Titles they must be then obliged to live peaceably under all Governments and give disturbance unto none but if it did enjoin them first exactly to enquire and satisfie themselves of the validity of every Princes Title and refuse Subjection as ost as they found reason to dispute the Justice of it it might then often happen that all of them might be obliged to disturb the Government and the Jewish Converts at that very time who scrupled the Title of any Heathen Ruler over them might lie under continual Temptations to Disobedience and Tumults Again even in our present Case if we can bring our selves to this perswasion That Allegiance is due to a King in Possession for the time being we may not only pray for all that are in Authority 1 Tim. ij 2. that under them we may live peaceable and quiet Lives in all holy Conversation and Godliness but we shall actually do so But if after the Wisdom of the Nation in the most solemn Assembly hath conferred the Government on such a Person and given him the Title of our Sovereign Lord the King and put him in full Possession of the Crown every private person may still not only Question whether they ought to own him as such but even deny him their Allegiance and maintain that by an immutable Law of Nature they stand bound to give it to another it is in vain to pray we may live peaceable and quiet lives under his Government to hope for any Settlement of such a Government or any peaceable subsistence of it since we conceive our selves indispensably obliged to promote and to abett all struglings to disturb and overturn it But against this Discourse it may be urged n. 8. Obj. That Allegiance is a Duty we owe unto a lawful Sovereign not only by virtue of our Oath which is stiled legal Obedience but by virtue of the Law of Nature Now though our legal Obedience may cease as being that which only is imposed on us by Law and so may be removed by such a Law as rendereth it impracticable or transferrs it to another yet our natural Allegiance must be immutable because the Obligations of the Law of Nature are so To strengthen this Objection let it be considered out of the famous Judgment given in Calvin's Case First P. 440. That our Ligeance is due to our natural Leige Sovereign descended of the blood Royal of the Kings of this Realm Secondly Ibid. That by the Law of Nature is the Faith Ligeance and Obedience of the Subject due to his Sovereign or Superiour because Magistracy is of Nature for whatsoever is necessary and profitable for the preservation of the Society of Man is due by the Law of Nature but so is Magistracy Seeing as Tully saith Sine imperio nec domus ulla nec civitas nec gens nec hominum universum genus stare nec ipse denique mundus potest Without Government no House City Nation nor the whole Race of Mankind could stand Thirdly Ibid. That seeing Faith Obedience and Ligeance are due by the Law of Nature it followeth that the same cannot be changed or taken away Fourthly P. 441. That when a Man is out of the Kings legal Protection as a Man Out-law'd a Man attainted with a Premunire he is not out of his natural Protection but notwithstanding any Statute the King may protect and pardon him And so in like manner it seems reasonable to distinguish betwixt legal and natural Obedience or Allegiance and to affirm That by these Statutes and Judgments we seem to be absolved indeed from our legal but cannot by them be absolved from our natural Allegiance I think I have made the Objection as strong as the most scrupulous person would propound it and if I can really tender a clear and satisfactory Answer to it I hope my foregoing Argument will hold good even in the judgment of the most impartial I therefore Answer n. 9. Repl. 1. That what is granted seems to yield Advantage enough to us viz. That legal Allegiance may cease to be due to a King de jure and may be due to a King de facto though natural Allegiance cannot this last is due Antecedently to all Laws Promises and Oaths whereas legal Allegiance is that which we by Law do swear and promise Natural Allegiance is due to our natural Liege Lord descended of the Royal Blood of the Kings of this Realm Legal is that which the Laws exact to the King for the time being though he should not be thus our natural Lord. Natural Allegiance is due because he to whom I owe it is rightful King. Legal because he is King Regnant and actually affords me that protection which calls for Subjection This is undoubtedly mutable the other is esteem'd immutable Well then supposing but not granting what this Objection doth suppose That King William were King only de facto no natural Allegiance can be due to him but only legal and mutable that therefore only is required by the Law imposing this Oath and that