Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	word_n	world_n	worship_n	98	3	6.4411	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A51956	The Church of England and the continuation of the ceremonies thereof vindicated from the calumnies of several late pamphlets, more particularly that entitled, The vanity, mischief, and danger of continuing ceremonies in the worship of God, subscribed by		1690 (1690)	Wing M65; ESTC R4181	64,933	67

Lords Day hath met with many and great Enemies among the Ritualists Pag. 〈…〉 I know of no Men in the Church of England that are Enemies to the Lord's Day and if any such there are they never learn'd it from their Mother It sufficeth to my purpose that nothing is constituted or used in our Church to hinder or discountenance the most pious and religious observation of it but so far on the contrary that our publick Worship is appointed to be every where observed on it Neither am I or any other in her Communion I suppose against the most strict and Christian observation of the whole day which is reconcileable to the necessities and infirmities of this life provided always that it be not accounted nor used as a Jewish Sabbath nor observed by way of obedience to the fourth Commandment of the Decalogue The Scripture hath its share of contempt from Ceremonialists Pag 〈…〉 of the truth hereof the Impositions of Rome are a full proof What are the Impositions of the Church of Rome to us Who is bound to justifie all things in use in that Church Let our Author if he be at leisure and so please try his hand with them and see what Defence they will make As to us either let Men write to the purpose or not trouble themselves abuse the ignorant and harden the prejudic'd or tell us particularly which are those Impositions which are Terms of Communion and which are Scriptural and unscriptural or otherwise he and such like who make precarious suppositions and from thence deduce Inferences as much inconsequent must expect to hear that their pretended preciseness is childish and the wresting alledged places of Scripture from their genuine senses to their own purposes is no other than impertinency which is no reflection on the sacred Scripture but on those superstitious and scrupulous Persons who desiring to seem more holy than others raise doubts under pretences of Conscience and to appear more wise and understanding in the Scriptures as if they could see those things there which no Man could ever do before quote them tho improper to prove what they design 2. 〈…〉 4. Mischiefs in promoting an increase of all kind of wickedness What our Author says upon this Head is of a piece with the rest of his Pamphlet magisterial assertions without Proof or Reason precarious suppositions and idle beggings of the Question intermix'd with scurrilous reflections is stuff'd with bitter Railings 〈…〉 These are part of his words The most immoral Men if they did pretend zeal for Ceremonies and were furious against Dissenters did pass for good Christians and true Sons of the Church I might as well viz. with no less truth and reason say that amongst the Dissenters The most immoral Men if they did pretend zeal against Ceremonies and were furious against Conformists did pass for good Christians in their own phrase true Professors and the seriously Godly and in the Dialect arriv'd here the last year sound Protestants and with at least equal pretence subjoin his words 〈…〉 This false measure hath hardened abundance in their evil ways mightily cherish'd and increas'd Vice in the Land If he is not satisfied with this way of answering let him alter his way of writing when he can make good his words I shall easily do mine He adds Conformity to Ceremonies hath been a Cloak that hath covered the most filthy Abominations Had this been true Dissenters would never have been so numerous The changing one word putting Opposition for Conformity and reading it thus Opposition to Ceremonies hath been a Cloak that hath covered the most filthy Abominations will make the Sentence much truer and this Assertion of mine needs no other proof than the allowance of what he insinuates plainly enough in these words A Ceremonial War hath been once fatal to Clergy men 〈…〉 7. 〈◊〉 c. 〈◊〉 2 to be true They assure us That the Rebellion against King Charles the First was raised to oppose Ceremonies and elswhere to the same purpose the words are plain and admit of no other interpretation I therefore challenge him to give the like instance or proof of Conformity to Ceremonies being a Cloak to cover the most filthy Abominations 〈…〉 which if he doth he shall carry his Cause 6. Hindring a world of Good It cannot be proved that Ceremonies in Worship ever did any good 〈◊〉 25. We in the Church of England as I have said have no Ceremonies in use or enjoined in our publick Worship unless kneeling at Prayers and standing at the Creed and Gospel he called Ceremonies and if they be they may do so much good as to testifie our inward humility and devotion in the one our resolution to stand by maintain and defend the other and our Communion with the Primitive and divers Modern Christian Churches in both and this if Men were not contentious though short might be a satisfactory account of two ancient and Catholick and even in themselves decent Postures What good more would our Author have of them They hinder Reformation Love and Communion of Churches 1. They hinder Reformation In the Reformation of the Church of England from the Novelties and corruptions in Doctrines and Practices tending to Idolatry Superstition and Schism from the Primitive and Catholick Church of Christ great care was taken to prevent the Papists still continuing in the Communion of the Church of Rome from accusing us of injustice and perverseness in abolishing any thing which was innocent and decent in it self made venerable by Antiquity and Catholick by the use of the Universal Church or merely because they used it which prudent and Christian moderation as it was designed to justifie our Reformation from the imputation of Schism or unnecessary separation and prevent the giving a scandal to them or throwing a stumbling-block before them which might hinder their coming over to our Communion So it was attended with so good success that it became more generally and universally received through this Kingdom than in those places where it was brought in by force and accompany'd with Tumults and Rebellions as in Scotland Switzerland the Low-Countries c. Insomuch that had not that politick King of Spain Philip II. prevail'd with the Pope by his Bull to prohibit the Roman Catholicks here in Queen Elizabeth's time to frequent our Churches it is with great probability conjectur'd that her happy Reign would so far have out liv'd Popery as that it would no more have been openly professed in this Kingdom And agreeably hereunto I remember a Clergy-man of my Acquaintance who liv'd some years in Ireland affirmed in my hearing that if Kneeling at the Sacrament the use of Godfathers and the Sign of the Cross at Baptism were abolished in Ireland it would breed such a prejudice in the Irish a People very tenacious of their first Principles against the Protestant Religion that they would very hardly be brought over to it and that one of the

enjoyned the Congregation in the ordinary Publick Worship prescribed in the Church of England Will the removal of them take away the Vizor with which Formalists Hypocrites Wicked and Prophane Men cover themselves Wicked and Prophane Men as the words themselves imply are bare-fac'd Sinners and wear no Vizor and as for Formality and Hypocrisie they were never since the Ancient Pharisees used by any more than by our Modern Sectarists nor ever so much in esteem and fashion as since the number of those who under that disguise decry Ceremonies made them bold and confident Had kneeling at Prayers and standing at the Creed and Gospel been such an excellent Vizor it would not be prudence in us to abolish them especially for nothing for many of the Dissenters who need a Vizor as well as others would either use them in their Conventicles or come over to us themselves merely for the benefit of them but suppose what it is almost ridiculous to suppose viz. that our Author had herein spoken Truth and Reason yet the removal of Ceremonies would effect little as to that for we find that the Dissenters who seldom kneel at Prayers or use the Creed and have no Gospel have yet under the Vizor of purity preciseness and tenderness of Conscience done abundantly beyond all that ever Ceremonies can or could pretend to neither need we to strip our Church Offices of these and run from the little remainders of decency remaining in use in our Churches into down-right rusticity and more than Corinthian rudeness in our Publick Worship in hopes that then Drunkards 〈…〉 Swearers Whoremongers and such like will be known to be what they are a mere Herd of Brutes It would be a foolish and too costly an experiment and an extravagant instance of our levity and indiscretion but no discovery unless of that which every body knows already or if any Man wants farther satisfaction herein let him repair to our Author who can tell him such wonderful things concerning Rites Ceremonies c. as all the World never dream'd on before nor any Man of but ordinary Sense and Judgment will believe now 5. Mischiefs in promoting a mighty increase of profaneness and all kind of wickedness Pag● 〈…〉 1. Profaneness in the outragious contempt of holy things The tautologies impertinencies improper inferences and untrue assertions of our Author's Pamphlet are too many to be consider'd or remark'd but a Man must either have a conceit of himself like to that of his own Infallibility or else he must presume wonderfully upon the simplicity dulness and ignorance of his Readers before he comes to put such down right contradictions upon them Him who all this while he hath bitterly inveigh'd against as a Bigot and Zealot he now makes a profane and outragious contemner of holy Things whereas Zeal when taken in ill part for Superstition and profaneness are and always were esteemed the two contrary extremes and vices on either side Religion There is scarce any thing in Religion that hath escaped the scorn and reproach of blind Zealots The Ordinance of Preaching the Lords Day the Scripture our Holy Religion and Jesus Christ himself all have been struck at To scorn and reproach Preaching Scripture the Lord's Day c. hath been always hitherto look'd upon as a Sign of a Profane and not of a Zealous Person and this Author hath shewn us no reason to change our Sentiments but suppose his words to be true hence we may observe 1st That a Schism caused by a difference in belief though erroneous can never be reunited by the abolition of Ceremonies for the cause remaining the effect would continue 2ly That the apprehensions of Men being so various and their judgments so discrepant a comprehension without a compliance in things indifferent and a forbearance with Men in their particular Opinions can never be effected but these being once supposed it may follow as things now are 3ly That there are divers others as extravagant Zealots as our Author whose Notions are altogether impracticable who encrease the Schism and widen the Separations in the Church under pretence of making propositions for a comprehension and should not be regarded till they learn more discretion and moderation than at once to ask the abolishing of all Ceremonies the exercise of jurisdiction 〈…〉 and power of Orders and the pulling down the whole Constitutions of our Church The Ordinance of Preaching 〈…〉 21. The constant serious diligent performing of this would spread knowledge amongst the People to the prejudice of humane impositions in Divine Worship They would see what light things they are in the Service of God 〈…〉 43. The Constitutions of the Church of England are so far from discouraging or obstructing constant serious diligent Preaching as our Author would insinuate that on the contrary she requires and enjoyns it so that in that sense even the Ordinance of Preaching may properly be called an Humane Imposition neither do we of her Communion if Passionate Malicious Schismatical Sinister-designing Railing go not as often it hath under that notion fear any prejudice thereby ensuing to any Impositions in use in our Divine Worship We wish all Men in our Communion and in theirs too were more knowing pious discreet honest and conscientious than all the Preaching of Dissenters and our Author with all others of his Opinion is ever like to make them We would be glad all Men did see what light things all our Impositions and Ceremonies both are in the Service of God hoping then they would be better satisfied both of the lawfulness and decency of them and if their prejudices and interests which with ignorance are the great causes of our Schisms and Separations should not hinder would approve of them and conform to the use of them for their lightness adds to their weight and value and their easiness and fewness to their Commendation for those Impositions and Ceremonies which were otherwise allowable as were the Jewish when their numbe like theirs makes them weighty Matt. 〈…〉 become a burthen too heavy to be born As for Preaching it must be confess'd to be far less necessary now at least in a converted Nation than when the World was Pagan And whereas the Papists have resolved all publick religious Duties into Prayers and the Dissenters have run into the other extreme and placed them in long Preachments the Church of England hath herein as in most other things retained the golden Meane and useth both and tho frequency is more necessary to the former yet the latter is not to be neglected but when it excludes Catechizing the change is made for the worse and indeed were that most useful way of instruction of both the young and ignorant much used in the Primitive Church and prescribed by our own revived throughly performed and duly frequented Can. 〈…〉 61. as it would be far more difficult to the Teacher so it would be far more beneficial to the People than Preaching The