Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	heathen_a	let_v	publican_n	2,742	5	10.9981	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A85789	The nullity of the pretended-assembly at Saint Andrews & Dundee: wherein are contained, the representation for adjournment, the protestation & reasons therof. Together with a review and examination of the Vindication of the said p. assembly. Hereunto is subjoyned the solemn acknowledgment of sins, and engagement to duties, made and taken by the nobility, gentry, burroughs, ministry, and commonalty, in the year 1648. when the Covenant was renewed. With sundry other papers, related unto in the foresaid review.	Guthrie, James, 1612?-1661.; Wood, James, 1608-1664.	1652 (1652)	Wing G2263; Wing W3400; Thomason E688_13; ESTC R202246	280,404	351

Commission that the Writer layes weight The Authors similitude of the Parl. and Ass is answered already and shewn what maybe conceived by some why the paralel holds no● though as to this point the difference betwixt him and the Writer seems not to be so wide as he would give out His conclusion is That he hopes that by what hath been said that it is sufficiently evidenced that the Writer hath brought no considerable reason for the nullity of the late Assembly even supposing sundry of the Acts and Constitutions thereof were wrong upon the matter he should have said supposing the most of all its Acts and the most materiall of them to be wrong upon the matter for so it was supposed and affirmed by the Writer and upon the supposall the Author should have told his judgment upon the point The reason may be considerable enough and such as brings no disadvantage ether to the Writer or to the Protestation for any thing that is yet said by him for infringing thereof yea I wil assure him that it is most considerable weighty in the hearts of most part of the godly in the Land who do not stand so much to dispute and debate Legal forms as they do look to Acts of the Assembly and to what good or what ill is done by them for promoving or hindering the Kingdome of Jesus Christ and the good of souls where they see not godlinesse advanced and the hands of the godly strengthened and their hearts made glad but a wound given to Piety and the hands of the wicked strengthened and their hearts made glad it is not externa species autoritatis to use the words cited before nor any thing that is in that or can be said for it that will conciliat respect and authority to Assemblies in mens consciences and if there were no more in the late Assembly at S. Andrews and Dundee but the loosing of authority in the consciences of the godly in the Land by th●i● wrong Acts it is that which concerns the Author and others who had hand in these Acts exceedingly to think upon VINDICATION THe other passage we would speak a word to is his Answer to the last Objection He saith To make an Act appointing such as decline a Generall Assembly to be summarly excommunicate were either to suppose that a Generall Assembly could not be wrong constitute or could not erre in their proceedings or else suppose they should be wrong constitute and erre yet they ought not to be declined and prote●ted against both of which are equally absurd There he saith That the Act of the Assembly 1582. alleadged for that purpose is grosly mistaken it being nothing against declining unlawful Assemblies he is as grosly mistaken while he insinuateth that such as speak for the late Assembly do mean that such an Act should be against declining any Assembly lawfull or unlawfull 〈◊〉 but against appealing from a lawfull Assembly to the Civill Magistrate and then closeth that from these things it may appear how unwarrantable the Meeting at Dundee it must be still for ought he hath alleadged the General Assembly at Dundee did upon alleadgiance of this Act fall in debate of the summary excommunication of these who had protested Any debate that was in the Assembly was no great or long debate upon that matter and it was not so much out of any purpose or desire to do it as to finde out what they might have done by the Constitutions of this Kirk if they would have minded severity of censure neither was it that Act of Assembly 1582. so much that they looked to as the Authority of the solemn Assembly of Glasgow 1638. which in the sentence of Excommunication against the pretended Bishops and making there protesting and declining of that Assembly one of the causes of their excommunication which by the acts of Assembly is censurable with summary excommunication whether it doth mean that act 1582 or some others could not be gotten tryed at Dundee for want of the Registers then in the Basse but such respect was had to the authority of that grave Assembly that the truth of the relation made by it was not questioned so that all the absurdities alleadged here by the Writter strikes as wel against that Assembly as against any man that alleadgeth such an act and the Assembly at Dundee supposing themselves to be a free lawfull Generall Assembly alleadged no other ground in falling upon debate of that matter then which the Assembly of Glasgow alledged and the Assembly of Glasgow saith there hath been such an act made by a Dilemma he is in a great mistake himself for considering that the act appointing such to be summarily excommunicate who c. is intended onely against protesting against and declining of a General Assembly not in any particular act or acts thereof which we confess may be protested against but against the very being of it as null in it self and having no authority there is no necessity either of the one supposition or of the other following upon it not of the later for the act we speak of saith that decliners of a Generall Assembly should be excommunicate but an Assembly wrong constitute and erring both or only wrong constitute is no otherwise an Assembly then a painted man is a man nor yet the former for I shal give you a third it supposeth a Generall Assembly rightly constitute and not erring de facto though not altogether infallible in it self or rightly constitute in all things belonging to the being of a free and lawfull Assembly though it may be erring in some particular Acts and ordains excommunication to be the censure of these that declineth and protesteth against such an Assembly I mean as to the very being of it Truly this dilemmatick argument of the Writers have been made aswell against that Act made by Jesus Christ Math. 18.17 He that neglecteth to hear the Church let him be as an heathen or publican id est Excommunicate For I suppose this canon comprehends not onely such persons as having offended against particular Brethren comes by degrees of processe before the Church but also such as should offend onely immediatly against that Church it self 2. It is propounded in generall termes without any express distinction or limitation he that neglects to hear the Church let him be excommunicate Just as this he that declines a Gen. Assemgly let him be excommunicate Might not then those that heard that canon first propounded reason it just as the Writer doth here if his argument were good to make such an one as that is unreasonable For it were to suppose either that a Church cannot be corruptly constitute and did erre yet that it ought not to be disobeyed or declined but the argument had been a Cavillation for neither did follow necessarily to be supposed there was a third a Church univocally so called id est a Church right constitute and doing dutie though not unerrable in it self REVIEW THe