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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45474	A vindication of the ancient liturgie of the Church of England wherein the several pretended reasons for altering or abolishing the same, are answered and confuted / by Henry Hammond ... ; written by himself before his death.	Hammond, Henry, 1605-1660.	1660 (1660)	Wing H617; ESTC R21403	95,962	97

A VINDICATION OF THE Ancient Liturgie OF THE Church of England WHEREIN The Several Pretended REASONS for Altering or Abolishing the same are Answered and Confuted By HENRY HAMMOND D. D. Written by himself before his Death LONDON Printed for Austin Rice and are to be fold at the Crown in Saint Pauls Church-yard 1660. A PREFACE TO THE Ensuing Discourse Sect. 1 THat the Liturgie of the Church of England which was at first as it were written in blood at the least sealed and delivered down to us by the Martyrdom of most of the compilers of it should ever since be daily solicited and call'd to the same Stage and Theatre to fill up what was behinde of the sufferings of those Fathers is no strange or new peice of oeconomy in the Church of God This proposition I shall take liberty briefly to prove by way of introduction to the ensuing discourse and shall hope that you will acknowledge it with me if you but consider these severals Sect. 2 First That there is not a surer evidence and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by which to discern the great excellencie of moderation in that book and so the apportionatenesse of it to the end to which it was designed then the experience of these so contrary fates which it hath constantly undergone betwixt the persecutors on both extream parts the assertors of the Papacy on the one side and the consistory on the other the one accusing it of Schisme the other of Complyance the one of departure from the Church of Rome the other of remaining with it like the poore Greek Church our fellow Martyr devoured by the Turk for too much Christian profession and damn'd by the Pope for too little it being the dictate of naturall Reason in Aristotle whose rules have seldome failed in that kinde since he observed them that the middle virtue is most infallibly known by this that it is accused by either extreame as guilty 〈◊〉 the other extreame that the true liberalitie of minde is by this be● exemplified that it is defamed by the prodigall for passimony and by the niggard for prodigality by which by the way that great block of offence which hath scandalized so many will be in part removed and the reproaches so continually heaped upon this book will to every discerning Judge of things passe for as weak an unconcluding argument of guilt in it as the scarres of a Military man doth of his cowardice or the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the every Topick of rayling Rhetorick Mal. 5. of the unchristiannesse of the person on whom they are powred out Sect. 3 Secondly That ever since the reproaches of men have taken confidence to vent themselves against this book there hath nothing but ayre and vapour been vomited out against it objections of little force to conclude any thing but onely the resolute contumacious either ignorance or malice of the objector which might at large be proved both by the view of all the charges that former Pamphlets have produced all gathered together and vindicated by Mr. Hooker and that no one charge of any crime either against the whole or any part of it which this Directory hath offered which as it might in reason make such an act of malice more strange so will it to him that compares this matter with other practises of these times whose great engine hath been the calumniari fortiter the gaining credit by the violence of the cry when it could not be had by the validity of the proofs most men being more willing to believe a calumnie then to examine it make it but unreasonable to wonder at it It being an experiment of daily observation that those which have no crime of which they are accusable are therefore not the lesse but the more vehemently accused prosecuted and dragg'd to execution that the punishment may prove them guilty which nothing else could it being more probable in the judgement of the multitude who especially are considered now adayes as the instruments to act our great designs that a nocent person should plead not guilty then an innocent be condemned which prejudice as it might be pardon'd from the charitie wherein 't is grounded that they who are appointed to punish vilenesses will not be so likely to commit them so being applyed to usurping judges whose very judging is one crime and that no way avowable but by making use of more injustices will prove but a peice of Turcisme which concludes all things honest that prove successefull or of the moderne Divinity in the point of Scandall which makes it a sufficient exception against any indifferent usage that it is by some excepted against a competent cause of anger that men are angry at it though never so without a cause Sect. 4 Thirdly That it hath been constantly the portion and prerogative of the best things as of the best men to be under the crosse to have their good things of this world 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with persecutions Mar. 10. 30. and so no strange thing that that which is alwayes a dealing with the Crosse should be sometimes a panting and gasping under it There was never any surer evidence of the cleannesse of a creature amongst the Jews then that it was permitted to be sacrificed the Lamb and the Turtle emblems of innocence and charity and the other Christian virtues were daily slaughter'd and devoured while the Swine the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and all the uncleaner creatures were denyed that favour placed under a kinde of Anathema or Excommunication sentence of such it was not lawfull no not to eat and so it must be expected in the anti-type that all the heat of the Satanicall impression all the fire of zeal the sentence to be sacrifized and devoted should fall as now it doth on this Lambe-like Dove-like creature of a making not apt to provoke any man to rage or quarrell or any thing but love of communion and thanksgiving to God for such an inestinable donative Sect. 5 Fourthly That a Liturgie being found by the experience of all ancient times as a necessary hedge and mound to preserve any profession of Religion and worship of God in a Nationall Church it was to be expected that the enemy and his instruments which can call destruction mercy embroyling of our old Church the founding of a new we know who hath told one of the Houses of this Parliament so that they have laid a foundation of a Church among us which if it signifie any thing imports that there was no Church in this Kingdom before that Session should also think the destroying of all Liturgy the onely way of security to Gods worship the no-form being as fitly accommodated to no-no-Church as the no-hedge no-wall to the Common or desert the no inclosure to the no-plantation Sect. 6 Fifthly That the eradication of Episcopacy first Voted then Acted by the Ordination of Presbyters by Presbyters without any Bishop which begun to be practised in this Kingdom about the end of

it if not so punctuall for the tradition St Basil may speak for all in hom 2. of fasting that there was no age nor place but knew it and observed it And then I know no necessity of despising Christs pattern Apostolicall practice unlesse it be the same which obliges to the destroying of Episcopacy which as it is an imparity opposite to the equality of Presbyters is clearly deducible from both those Authorities to which it seems this yeer is resolved to prove fat all that so there may be at length as little imitation of Christ among us as reverence to Apostles Then for R●gation week though the originall or occasion of that cannot be deduced so high but is by Historians referred to Claud. Mamertus Bishop of Vienn● in France for the averting of some Judgements which on the observation of many inauspicious accidents and prodigies were sadly scared to be approaching yet will it not be Necessary to turn the Fasts or the L●tanies or the Services assigned to it out of the Church as long as dangers are either present impendent or possible or indeed as long as there be sins enough among us to abode us ill or provoke any wrath of Heaven any judgements on us And when all those occasions cease I am content those Services may be laid aside also i. e. when we meet all together in Heaven Next the Ember weeks are of great Antiquity in the Church called the quatuor tempora in the latin Fathers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from whence I conceive in the English Ember in the Greek and beside the first institution of them for quarterly seasons of devotion proportion'd to each part of the year as the first fruits of every season that the whole and each division of it might be blest by it and again beside their answerablenesse to those foure times of solemn Fast mention'd among the Jews that we Christians may not be inferiour unto them in that duty an admirable use is assign'd to them in the Church in imitation of the Apostles Act. 13. 3. by Fasting and Prayer to prepare for the ordination of Ministers immediately consequent to every such week that God would send and furnish worthy Instruments of his glory to serve him in that glorious Office and till Ministers are acknowledg'd to be generally so good that either they cannot or need not be better till those are also grown immortall as the framers of this Ordinance and so no use of care for succession I shall suppose it not over-necessary to precipitate these out of the Church of Christ but rather wish that there were in our Liturgie some Service appointed of Lessons and Prayers for this purpose to be used constantly on the dayes of Fast through those weeks Sect. 47 Thus have I as briefly as I could examined all the pretended exuberances of our Liturgie which have required it thus to be more then lanced even to a deliquium animae to many fainting fits a long while and at last to its fatall period if our Assemblers may be allowed of the Jury and this Ordinance have leave to be the executioner And as yet to the utmost of our impartiall thoughts can we not discern the least degree of necessity of any the most moderate signification of the word to own so tragicall an Exit The leafs which have been spent in this search as it may seem unnecessarily might perhaps have been better employed Yet will it not be unreasonable to expect a expect a favourable reception of them when 't is considered that by this means a farther labour is spared there needing no farther answer to the whole body of the Directory or any part of it when it shall thus appear that there was no necessity for the change nay which I conceive hath all along been concluded that the continuance of the Liturgy unlesse some better offer or bargain were proposed to us is still in all policy in all secular or Christian prudence most necessary And therefore when we have considered the second particular in the Ordinance and to that annext a view of some severalls in the Preface the Readers task will be at an end and his patience freed from the ●entation of our importunity Sect. 48 The second thing then in the Ordinance is that all the severals which this Ordinance is set to confront are Statutes of Edward the sixth and of Queen Elizabeth all which are without more ado repealed by this Ordinance which I mention not as new acts of boldnesse which now we can be at leasure to declaim or wonder at but to justifie the calumniated Sons of this Church who were for a long time offered up maliciously to the peoples hatred and fury first as Illegall usurpers and adders to Law then as Popishly affected and the pattern of Queen Elizabeths time vouched to the confirming of this their Charge and the Erection of her very Picture in some Churches and solemnization of a day for her annuall remembrance by those who will not now allow any Saint or even Christ himself the like favour design'd to upbraid those wayes and reprove those thoughts It seemeth now 'tis a season for these men to traverse the scene to put off disguises and professe openly and confidently what till now they have been carefull to conceal that their garnishing the Scpulchre of Q. Elizabeth was no argument that they were cordially of her Religion or meant kindnesse sincerely to the Q. Elizabeths reformation Some seeds we know there were of the present practices transmitted hither from our neighbour Disciplinarians in the dales of Q. Elizabeth and some high attempts in private zeal in Hacket and Coppinger and Arthington at one time which when God suffered not to prosper it was the wisdom of others to call phrensie and madnes in those undertakers And generally that is the difference of fate between wickednes prospering and miscarrying the one passeth for Piety the other for Fury I shall now not affirm or judge my Brethren but meekly ask this question and leave every mans own conscience to answer not me but himself in it sincerely and without partiality whether if he had lived in the dayes of Q. Elizabeth and had had his present perswasions about him and the same encouragements and grounds of hope that he might prosper and go through with his designes he would not then in the matter of Religion have done just the same which now he hath given his Vote and taken up Arms to do If he say out of the uprightnesse of his heart he would not I shall then onely ask why it is done now what ill Planet hath made that poyson now which was then wholsome food why Queen Elizabeths Statutes should be now repealed which were then so laudable If any intervenient provocation or any thing else extrinsecall to the matter it self have made this change now necessary this will be great injustice in the Actors Or if the examples of severity in her dayes the hanging of Coppin and