Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	king_n	law_n	parliament_n	7,403	5	7.2636	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25528	An answer to A letter to a dissenter, upon occasion of His Majesties late gracious declaration of indulgence.	L'Estrange, Roger, Sir, 1616-1704.	1687 (1687)	Wing A3319; Wing L1196_CANCELLED; ESTC R6343	5,169	8

AN ANSWER TO A LETTER TO A DISSENTER Upon occasion of his Majesties late Gracious Declaration of Indulgence London Printed Anno 1687. An ANSWER to a LETTER to a DISSENTER c. PArdon me Sir if I think it is your Interest at least if not your Fear and Resentment must be the effect of you addressing the Dissenters at this time since hitherto Conscience and Religion could never prevail to draw from you any manner of Condescention to them Truth must at all times carry Conviction with it unless Interest hinder how much it over-ruled you formerly in what you your selves now own to be Truth I leave you to judg In the mean time it is to be considered whether the Dissenters in this Juncture act contrary to Truth or no for if they act according to Truth let the Clamor of the Church of England be never so great they will be able to justify themselves both to God and Man The great Question then will be whether the Penal Laws be just and equitable Laws and consistent with the Law of God or not If they be not consistent with the Law of God but quite contrary to the Principles of Christianity to impose on and enforce Mens Consciences and inflict Penalties on them for not agreeing in meer Matters of Religion then certainly the Dissenters will be found altogether in the right if they consent to the abrogating of those Laws It will be but actum agere to prove this imposing and persecuting Principle to be quite opposite to the express Rule Doctrine and Practice of Jesus Christ it having been sufficiently evinced already and all Parties now readily acquiesce in it And as nothing but Interest at first prevailed in the enacting these persecuting Laws so I doubt it will be found that the self-same Interest and not Religion sways in the continuance of them for if the Church of England for once would lay aside that Idol-Interest and consider what is agreable to the Word of God and what not and remember that Golden Rule of doing unto others as they would be done by I am confident she could never be so eager an Advocate for the continuing of these unchristian Laws Now as to what advantage the Papists can make by Repealing of the Penal Laws and the dismal Consequences hat will follow which indeed is all that is considerable in this Letter and which is the frightful Bugbear made use of it may receive an easy Answer For no Man of sense will argue that the bare taking away of the Penal Laws is in it self either an establishing of Popery or destroying of the Church of England The King is most graciously pleased to tell us in his Declaration that he will maintain Archbishops c. And that he questions not but his Parliament will so settle a Liberty of Conscience for all his Subjects as his Successors shall have no cause to alter Now the Parliament no doubt will go no farther to the settling of Popery or destroying the Church of England than what the King in this his Declaration expects shall be enacted so that the Penal Laws must be the very essential part of the Church of England if the bare taking away of them and confirming all her other Rights and Priviledges will destroy or prejudice her for the same Law that gives Liberty to the Papists and Protestant Dissenters will as strongly confirm her in every Priviledg and Power except only one which is the Power of doing hurt And since you say pag. 16. that the Church of England is convinced of her Error in being severe to the Dissenters they have reason to conclude that the Church of England will rather thank than be displeased with them for taking from her the means and Temptation of her ever falling into the like Error again As to what you say page 3 4. about the new Friendship of the Dissenters and the little Truth to be expected from the Papists Performances let it be as you say yet I know of no Dissenter is shaking hands or entring into any Engagements with them more than what is natural to all Men to desire and endeavour a free and undisturbed Exercise of their Religion according to the Conviction of their Consciences And how little to your purpose is that Paragraph pag. 3. where you say Wine is not more expresly forbidden to Mahometans than giving Hereticks liberty to the Papists For how doth it follow that because we give them Liberty that therefore our Liberty must be precarious from them when the same Law will give the Church of England her Preheminence in Powers Revenues and all other Advantages and Emoluments and the Papists the bare Liberty of the Profession of their Religion Were it intended indeed to divest and strip the Church of England of all her rich and splendid Attirements and cloath the Papists with them the Argument might carry more force in it But it takes from the Church only the worst and vilest of her Garments and which she her self is now ashamed to appear in and leaves her all the rest Pag. 3 you say the Papists cannot have Absolution if they continue their Kindness You need not be beholden to them for any Kindness for the Law will continue all to you without any Kindness to be expected from them so that the Principle concludes amiss and you will have no occasion to put them on such difficulties to get their Absolution And pag. 3 Whatever their Skill in Chirurgery is you say the worst that ever pretended to it at Healing there is another Church hath as bad a Faculty at Healing But I am sure we have had of late one Soveraign Plaister which has given a great deal of ease when other inexpert Physicians had festered and made the Wound almost incurable Pag. 4. As to what you say to the Papists treatment of those that think them guilty of Idolatry is not to the purpose for you proceed on this false Principle That the Papists are to have the Power in their hands whereas the Intent of the Law is that no one sort of Men shall hurt any other for differing from them in their Principles and this to be secured as firm as the Laws can make it so that as to the Consequences that may happen from the Papists if any thing can be rationally concluded in your Letter it must be from hence that the Papists are to be invested with all the Power when no such thing but the quite contrary is to be enacted As to the Matter of Addressing 't is strange the Church of England should oppose it for if the King be Supream Head of the Church as they have sufficiently preach'd and printed the King must have a Power to dispense with Penal Laws for all our Lawyers agree the King to have the same Power as the Pope had in Ecclesiastical Dispensations and that the Pope had a Power to dispense with the Penal Laws in matters of Religion especially in malis prohibitis was never