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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	great_a	lord_n	people_n	4,203	5	4.5705	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A95489	The preachers plea or, A short declaration, touching the sad condition of our clergy, in relation to the smalnesse of their maintenance, throughout the kingdome. / By William Typing. Esq;	Tipping, William, 1598-1649.	1646 (1646)	Wing T3566; Thomason E1111_3; ESTC R1965	7,786	36

THE Preachers Plea OR A short Declaration touching the sad condition of our Clergy in relation to the smalnesse of their maintenance throughout the Kingdome By WILLIAM TYPING Esq LONDON Printed by W. WILSON for Christopher Meredith at the Signe of the Crane in Pauls Church-yard 1646. THE Preachers Plea WE live in doubtfull times I feare a Cloud of bloud hangs over us as a streame of bloud hath already ran round about us Me thinkes the frame of our spirits presage it for wee have had various dispensations of Gods dealings with us First shewers of judgments then gleams of mercy scattered in the Land yet the same temper lies still brooding on our hearts Punishments will not awaken us blessings cannot melt us Perdidimus utilitatem calamitatis nostrae miseri facti sumus pessimi permanemus What should God doe with such a sinfull people We have been and will continue a stubborne generation Is it not strange that in such a gratious season as this when such an inundatlon of loving kindnesse have broken in upon us from the Lord and hee hath holpen us so miraculously in our pinching necessities farre beyond what we could expect or hope for Yea that now whilst his mercies are hot and reaking in our memories the worke of our God should so sticke in our hands and our begun Reformation move like Pharaohs Chariots when the Wheelos were off with such a dull and slow progression The Lord grant our Preservations prove not reservations to greater judgements I feare lest what Salvianus sighed our against another people should prove our fatall doome Sopor infunditur ut perditio subsequatur The Truth is nothing gives beauty and glosse to our cause but our glorious victories Take us abstracted from our happy successes and they are none of ours and what miserable Christians shall wee appeare Was there ever any Christian Nation under heaven that after so many Covenants to reforme so many cleare demonstrations from heaven of Gods acceptance of our Covenants have yet abounded in so many and various Sects Schismes Heresies Blasphemies and that with so high a hand and in so uncontrolable a way as this out Nation Adde to this what a world of time hath beene crumbled away in debate on Church-government yet how little Progresse is made therin How farre are we at this day from an establishment thereof throughout the Kingdome Something indeed hath been concluded on by our Worthy Patriots in order to the Presbyterian way but what is a branch to the Tree what is this to the setling of the whole body and Bulke of a Church-government and of Ecclesiasticall Discipline in the Realme for want whereof sinne abounds and many fearefull Transgressions goe unpunished And how doth our unhappy Church notwithstanding this good hand of God upon us lie still destitute afflicted disgraced impoverished cloathed with her old Ragges fed with her old maintenance served with her old Chaplaines having neither meanes nor Ministers serviceable for any use almost but to stand as Monuments of her shame The consideration whereof hath I must confesse very often much sadded my heart and at this time prest mee to this Discourse Surely what ever mens hearts may desire their eyes shal never see able Ministers in our Church untill there be able maintenance to encourage them For Workemen will not bee got without wages nor will the wages bee any invitation to the worke if it be set forth as formerly in a base and despicable proportion It 's true indeed wee have formerly had to the scorne of our Church and Kingdom and to the undoing of thousands of soules the lowest of the people for the serviee of Gods house Ignorant contemptible persons through the corruption of this worser age have beene advanced to the most honourable calling the world could yeeld And from whence proceeded this iniquity why scandalous meanes ushered in scandalous men ad tenuitatem beneficiorum sequebatur ignorantia sacerdotum Poverty brought in ignorance into the Church ignorance brought in scorne For what eve mens integrity and parts may be a torne coate seldome findes reverence or regard amonst the common sort of people who for the most part measure out their respect to their Pastors not according to their inward abilites but according to their outward garbe and greatnesse The Parliaments frame the 27. of Henry the 8. who gave away impropriations from the Church or did that which amounted to the same to this day have I feare something to answer for that in so large a tract of time have found out no expedient whereby to reduce the Patrimony of the Church into a competency It was but reason when they had taken away the joynture of the Church to assigne some livelihood to maintaine her Truly want amongst all conditions of men is a very melancholy thing but it must needs lie nearest the heart of a laborious Pastor because over and besides his owne personall sufferings the honour of God is concerned therein For let reason speake is it not sinne and shame that the servants of the most high God who in a peculiar manner draw nigh to him in the service of his Church should be so coursly entertain'd as to have little better then Daniels dainties to preserve them or live like poor Lazarus with the crums that fall from rich mens Tables Certainely the slighting of an Embassadour reflects upon the Soveraigne and the Mr. Takes himselfe to be dishonoured when his servant is abused or held in a base esteeme and can we reasonably imagine the Lord of Heaven Earth who when hee might justly have made us the reproach of all Nations for our sinnes hath now so gloriously exalted us in the sight of men will not take it unkindly yea in high indignation if after all our endeavours in a blessed Reformation we should looke on his Embassadours with a regardlesse eye but I hope better things I trust the time is comming and will hasten on when burning and shining lamps shall bee set up in every corner of the Land and oyle enough provided to keepe them flaming But till the second be brought to pass I expect not the first until there bee a tolerable subsistence provided in every Parish it 's impossible there should be what wee have so long expected a constant faithfull preaching Ministery throughout the Kingdome Men may fancie to thēselves what they please talke of Elders debate on government but beleeve it these things will never be brought into act exercise so as God shall bee glorified and the people edified thereby till this be done This is the hinge on which all must turn I know not how the iniquity of the times have brought it about but so it is God is not in credite among Christians as in dayes of olde Nor hath his servants and service Pudet haec dici potuisse that reverend regard which former age hath given them Time was when men of honour and high Parentage cheerfully devoted themselves to the

Edward the sixt very hardly paid and did not the vicinity of of other Churches in this Populous City hold forth some ease and accommodation to supply the want of the deserted Churches aforesaid the Inhabitants there must necessarily have been reduced into as sad a strait as those in the Countrey who through the persecution of these times have lost their Teachers Now if things must stand at this stay what will become of us and where shall wee see the fruit of our Reformation Wee give God good words with our mouthes but if wee acknowledge him our Lord where is his honour Oh that we would sit downe a while and reflect into our selves forget our swelling thoughts and look a little backe to the dayes of our Calamity How did our Pulses beat three yeares since what Prayers and Cries and Teares did wee then send up to heaven in that our low condition and how did we then lift up our hands and hearts to the most high God and sweare and ingage that we would endeavour a Reformation as in Religion so in Discipline and Government also but what Reformation in Religion and Government are we or our Posterities like to joy in if no effectuall care or course should be taken as yet I humbly conceive it is not for the advancement of godlinesse and godly Preachers throughout the Kingdome But we thinks I heare some reply there is no cause of this complaint for the Honourable houses of Parliament have already made provision for augmentation of small livings out of Deane and Chapter Lands and Delinquent Impropriations To this I humbly answer that how plausible soever this provision may seeme at first sight yet I suppose it will stand at a great distance from a full supply For the first of these namely Dean and Chapter Lands These are in part already disposed of another way as for instance in the County of Oxon the Deane and Chapter in Christ-Church is comprehended under the Articles for Oxford And the Deane and Chapter at Westminster and that at Windsor provision is made out of them still as I am credibly informed for divers persons that were setled in those houses and had not slewed any disaffection to the Cause And this being agreeable to common equity and justice I beleeve the same rule is observed in all other such places also So that the Deane and Chapter Lands are not all disposed of at least for the present to the said intended use Besides all this divers Counties there are in the Kingdome which have no Deane and Chapter peculiarly belonging to them and where there are some small Proportions of these Lands lying scattered in severall Counties this is no way considerable to so great a want Now for Impropriations since the benefit that shall arise from them to this use must issue onely from those that are setled in the hands of Delinquents it cannot bee conceived that these should hold forth any great benefit or succour to the Church most of your Impropriations doubtlesse being in the hands of Colledges and Hospitalls or of such persons as are well-affected to the Cause But that which is also a maine obstruction and Remora to this great Worke is let it bee supposed but not granted that these Provisions before specified could possibly raise the maintenance of the Church to some reasonable Competencie yet how shall the Remedy bee applyed how or by what meanes shall it bee transferred to those that want it Will you suffer Malignant Parishes to lye destitute of the meanes of their salvation till they feele their misery and finde hearts to complaine above Or can you imagine that such Parishes as have for this twenty thirty forty yeares together been nusled up under an unpreaching Ministerie will all on a suddaine hunt about from one County to another for Dean and Chapter Lands or make inquisition after Delinquent Impropriations that out of them or either of them they may extract some considerable sustenance for a godly Minister Surely you may as well suppose the Pillars of a Church may hap to walke or that dead bones will stirre or that a man in a swoone will call for a Cordiall as conceive that men of unregenerate hearts and that are alienated from the life of grace through the ignorance that is in them will ever seek out for an able and sufficient Pastor and meanes for his support Leave such poore soules to the unhappy guidance of their owne corrupt hearts and doe nothing for them till themselves complaine and then the Lord have mercy on them Where Vision failes the people must needs perish but what will follow surely it will fall heavie somewhere in the end Oh thinke of this I beseech you I relate to those whom this great busines doth most properly concerne for plainenesse is most becoming in the Cause of God thinke of this whilst the LORD vouchsafes an opportunity in your hands for th eredresse hereof Yee cannot now suffer the Labourers in Christs Vineyard to be meanly provided for upon so cheap tearms as formerly For these things now cry so much lowder in the eares of God by how much your ingagements have been deeper to reform them Alas doe not your hearts yearne and the bowels of your compassions role within you when you living here by an especiall providence under the droppings of heaven under the plentifull Preaching of the Word do understand of the soule-afflictions of your brethren in your respective Counties How would they rejoyce in some places to glean after your Harvest to heare one of those Sermons once in a moneth which you have or might partake of if your leasure would permit every day The Lord direct your spirits that yee may no lesse speedily than carefully provide that due honour and reward bee given to them that labour in the Word and Doctrine and that yee may not expose poore senselesse soules to everlasting ruine by sus-spending your helpe and leaving of them to seek for that which they care not to finde nay which they extreamly decline to wit the means of their salvation but that you would be pleased rather to command the Committees of each Countie to look into the state of the Ministery and to certifie the defects in that particular And for the remedy of this great sicknessein the Land the poverty of the Clergy I think there cannot bee a more effectuall expedient than the buying in of Impropriations I doubt not but every man who hath any thing of Christ in him his hand will bee inlarged and heart inflam'd to so worthy a worke And in truth Free-willl Offerings are the most accepttable Sacrifices to God Where we give what is our owne and costs us something surely is more pleasing to the Almighty then where wee bestow that wherein we have no interest farther forth than as the iniquity of the times doth cast it into our hands though that may come in to help also Adde to this that some comfort and incouragement would arise to the dejected spirits of the poore Clergie in divers parts of the Kingdome if such Vicarages and Parsonages as are exceeding small as fifty pound per annum or under might bee freed in these pinching times from having any Contributions or Quarterings laid upon them And here although it may seeme a digression from the businesse in hand yet I cannot but vent my troubled thoughts for the spirituall bondage and affliction this whole Nation in all the parts thereof groans under in these distempered times for want of that care and conscience should bee had to instruct the ignorant in the maine grounds and principles of Religion Catechising is now growne almost quite out of use amongst us Hence it is so many strange abhorred unheard of opinions have lately sprung up in divers quarters of the Land for mens fancies are busie things and will set themselves on work where they are not wrought on and where the understanding is left like fallow ground until'd and hath no seeds of Gods word cast into it no marvaile if the Divell sow his tares O that the Honourable Houses of Parliament would bee pleased to take this into their deep serious consideration that some Directory for Catechising may speedily bee sent into all Churches of the Kingdome lest in the roome of formality and superstition for the purging out whereof such care is taken Atheisme and palpable prophanenesse creepe not in amongst them I say no more hee that is wise will ponder these things and the man of understanding will lay them to heart FINIS