in all these places where the Gospel of Jesus Christ was Received all having the same Faith the same Sacraments and the same Form of Government so as they seemed but one Body and in a perfect Unity one with another that every thing might be done with Decency and in Order Socrates and Euschius have given us whole Catalogues of Bishops successively to their Times and we find them nominated in many Histories and Writings of Old and from their beginning deduced down to our Times This is the Regiment you would have pull'd down this is one Form you oppose a Government of Divine Institution by that of the Holy Ghost conferred on the Apostles and by them on others and so successively in the Church in all Ages and thorow all times by Ordination and Laying on of Hands so that there can hardly be manifested a more plain and evident Truth I am not Ignorant that you admit of the Name of Bishops and of Presbyters but would make them of equal Authority you would indeed be all Bishops or Popes rather Subjection and Obedience are things that have seem'd very scandalous to you But there is nothing more plain than that Bishops had not only the preheminency of Order but of Rule also And as there were in the Jewish Church the High Priest the Inferior Priest and the Levites who were not only different in Order and Superiority but there was a distinction so that the one might do what the other might not do the Levites might not Intrench on the Office of the Priests and the Priests could not enter into the Sanctum Sanctorum So in the Church of Christ the Bishops the Presbyters and the Deacons were distinct in Order and Office the Deacons were subservient to the Presbyters and they to the Bishop to whom the Power of Rule and Ordination was only given and the Presbyters again received theirs of Administring the Sacraments Dispensing the Word c. from them being by them Ordained thereto The Bishops are the Fathers the other the Children they Command not as Lords and Arbitrarily these obey not as Slaves but as Sons they Rule and these obey according to the Word of God and according to that Primitive Institution which made that excellent Harmony all things being done for the Glory of God I know the many long and tedious Cavils and Disputes which some of the most Subtle of you have entred into about this thing and what dust you have raised about this Jurisdiction But it has been all laid and none that have Eyes but can see clearly into the matter that Christ gave Power to his Apostles to Rule and Govern his Church and that the same Power was by them Conferred to others Mar. 16.15 Matt. 10.24 Matt. 28.19 20. and so shall continue to the end of the World according to Christs Commission But if you cannot find in Scripture that you ought to submit to Bishops as your Fathers I hope you will believe Mr. Calvin and for his sake have at least a better Opinion of them who says Calvin Epist ad Card. Sandolet Nullo non anathemate dignos Arbitror qui se Episcopis libentissime non submittunt I think them worthy of a Curse who do not willingly submit themselves to Bishops Open then your Eyes at last and look not so asquint on this Form of Government and more particularly as it is here Establish'd in the Church of England which certainly is the most like and comes nearest to the Primitive Institution of the Apostles and the next Ages of any Church in the World both for the Purity of its Doctrine and the Order of its Government its Ceremonies being both Few and Decent and its Power regulated by Just Laws And as one says Vindication of the Conforming Clergy p. 50. The Church of England is a body of so firm a Constitution and so excellently Temper'd and so well Shap'd and of so clear a Strength and Vigor in all its Limbs that no outward Force is able to Injure it nothing but some inward Corruption and decay in the Vital parts that can possibly bring it to the Ground Indeed you had trip'd up its Heels and lay'd it along but it was but a Foil you see how soon it arose again and in that little Interspace or Interregnum as I may term it what horrid Confusions were amongst us With all your Arts you could not hinder others from invading your Province Instead of Surplices you beheld Scarlet Cloaks Wigs and Swords as Ornaments to those who Preached in your Pulpits nay the very Women invading the Chair and challenging a Liberty though expresly contrary to the Rule of the Apostle You saw what ill Steers-men you were and how the Ship of the Common-wealth thrived under your Government in what danger of Drowning or of being Split upon the Rocks or Perishing in the Quicksands Methinks this little Tryal might Convince you of the Weakness and Imbecillity of the one and the Firmness and excellent Temper of the other Government by which this Land has so long Flourished and which is so fitted not only to Monarchy making that Maxim good as we by Experience saw no Bishop no King but also to the Temper and Constitution of the People of England that there can be no better Government ever thought on which shall be here so well Approved and Received It is not only my Opinion but of many more the most Eminent and Learned of the Nation and those not of small Repute and who have been Able to give sufficient Proof to maintain their good Opinion of the Excellency of our present Form of Church Government and among the rest the Learned Mr. Hooker has these Words Pref. Sect. 1. which he sets down as his full Perswasion Surely the present Form of Church Government which the Laws of this Land have Established is such as no Law of God nor Reason of Man hath hitherto been alledged of force sufficient to prove they do ill who to the uttermost of their power withstand the alteration thereof And contrarywise The other which instead of it we are required to accept is only by Error and Misconceit named the Ordinanee of Jesus Christ no one proof as yet brought forth whereby it may clearly appear to be so in very deed And these two Assertions he hath so fully and unanswerably Maintained in his excellent Book of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity that methinks you should lay your Finger on your Mouths and no longer speak against this Form of Church Government nor remain at this Distance and in this state of Separation till you have found out better Arguments for to Justifie your so doing than those you have yet made known to the World However low and mean Opinion you have of this Form of Church Government as it is now Establish'd in England 't is otherwise respected abroad By others 't is look'd upon with Envy and Admiration The beauty of the Church of England is not so
as to what belongs to our Salvation yet it is no ways derogatory from its fullness and sufficiency to say that we cannot make use of this Rule without the Light of our Reason and also that in Civil things we may with a Christian Liberty do many things that we find not in Scripture by the meer use of Reason alone and that very Lawfully and without Sin so those things be not contradictory to the Word of God If then our Governors have a Power given them that they may Ordain and Constitute divers Ceremonies in the Church though not mentioned and found in Scripture then ought Inferiors to submit to such Laws and Rules and are in Duty bound to observe them when they are injoyned by a Lawful Authority Do but consider with your selves that whilst you so strictly Demand Scripture to be shown for the use of Ceremonies and other things made use of in the Church of England may not others with the like Liberty bid you to show what Example or Command you have in Scripture for your Lay Presbyters your Classes your stone Churches your Tythes your Infant Sprinklings your Singing Psalms your Weekly Sabbath all these things you know have been Objected against you to which you led the Way and opened the Gap by such your unreasonable Demands If Man hath not a Liberty given him to make use of his Reason in Ordering the Affairs of the Church or in altering many things and adding others as may be Convenient to the temper and constitution of Times but must have a Precedent or Command for it expresly in Scripture how did David err when he thought to build a Temple at Jerusalem 2 Sam. 1.2 3 1 King 8.5 2 Chron. 7.6 7.30.23 Which the Prophet approved of Or Solomon for keeping a Feast of seven days for the Dedication of the Altar Or Hezekiah for continuing the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days longer than the time appointed by the Law Or Mordecai for making an Ordinance for the Yearly observation of the Feast of Purim Esth 9.27 The building of Synagogues wearing of Sackcloth and Ashes in sign of Humiliation their Fasts more then were Commanded immediately by God Zach. 8.19 were all of Humane Institution and without doubt Lawful Times alter and what at one Time may be thought Fitting and Harmless at another would be accounted Scandalous and Unfitting as that Osculum Charitatis used in the Times of the Apostles and approved of by them Rom. 16.16 2 Cor. 13.12 would now give Cause of offence and those Agapae or Love Feasts used by the Primitive Christians at first Innocent enough but soon grew to be worthy of Reproof by the Apostle 1 Cor. 11. There is Milk for Babes and Meat for stronger Men. There is a difference between the Church in its Infancy and after the growth of so many Years It has been Corrupted and grown four on its Lees and it hath been again Purged and Refined therefore there must of necessity have been several Laws Rules Canons and Institutions framed for its several Dispensations most agreeable to the temper of the Ages and the Times in which they were made And the Orders of the Times of the Apostles themselves are not in all things now to be urged as of absolute necessity I cannot but wonder since that these Ceremonies and Rites of the Church are by you accounted of but as Mint and Cummin nay by some Condemned as Toys Trifles and Follies that you should stand so stifly against them but those of the Church of England thinking not so meanly of them have therefore the more Reason to stand for their Continuance They say there ought to be a bowing of the Knee as well as of the Heart That by outward Actions the Mind is stirred up with greater fervency to Attention and Devotion That Solemnities have been in all Ages both in Religious and Divine matters as well as Civil That these things are necessary and of use as Garments to the Body That without them Religion would appear Naked and Uncomly That they are also Edifying and Significant That they move the Heart and the Affections and that they are of great use and force That they have been Instituted not without great Care and Deliberation by Holy Pious and Learned Men That they have been long Confirmed in the Minds of Men That to alter or abolish them would be Dangerous and Scandalous That they are Harmless and Innocent of themselves That they give not the Offence but that it is taken Unjustly against them That under the Use of them the Land hath long flourished with Peace and Prosperity till our late distracted Times That since God hath again Restored them almost Miraculously when they were thought to be Dead and for ever Extinguished These things Considered and that they appear not such Trifles to them as you account them they have more Reason not to Depart from them and you less to Insist upon their Abolishment But alas 't is not only Ceremony that you would take way but the Root and Branch as you are wont to say of Episcopacy the Bishops it seems are also Popery they must not stand but is not Self all the while at the Bottom Is it not that you may Reign in their stead with your Lay Elders And what is this Episcopacy so much Cry'd out against by you and others of your Dissenting stamp I 'll tell you in the Learned Mr. Chillingworth's Words Episcopacy in the Essentiality of it is an appointment of one Man of eminent Sanctity and Sufficiency to have a Care of all the Churches within a certain Precinct or Diocess furnished with Authority not Absolute or Arbitrary but Regulated by Laws to the intent that all the Churches under him may be provided of Good and Able Pastors or Presbyters This is the Government you are so scandaliz'd at and which you would take away being the Institution of Christ himself who made his Apostles Bishops or Overseers of his Church for Matthias was chosen to an Episcopal Office 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And St. Act. 1. Cyp. l. 3. Ep. 9 Cyprian calls all the Apostles by the same Name Episcopos And although they had a large Commission from Christ Go Baptize all Nations and seem Indefinite yet we find some of them Bishops by Restraint as St. James at Jerusalem St. Paul took to himself the Care of the Gentiles and St. Peter of the Jews St. John took Charge of Asia the Less where were afterwards seven Churches governed by so many Bishops termed by St. John Angels Rev. 2. And the Apostles themselves appointed others as Titus and Timothy at first Agents only in their stead and afterwards with Apostolical power of their own And if there be any Credit to be given to History and to Antiquity it self we find that Linus was made Bishop of Rome by the Apostles Iren. l. 3. c. 3 Polycarpus of Smyrna Evodius of Antioch and Titus of Creet Erecting Churches
for Conscience sake they would submit should the King and Parliament by their Authority take away those Ceremonies about which you Contend They have learnt better than to Rebel and the Doctrine of of their Church hath imbued them with sounder and better Principles But God forbid that to gratifie those who can show no sound Reason for what they would have no lawful or weighty plea for what they do and can pretend nothing but a stubborn Will and refractory Conscience that the decent Garments of the Church should be curtail'd or taken from her or that she should lose the least shred thereof But have you forgot already how vehemently you pressed Obedience from your Pulpits And these very Texts now shown you were in all your Mouths when you would have set up your own Sanctified Form to bring the People to your Lure and to submit to your Rule If they were then the Commands of God and ought to be obeyed how comes it that they are not so still Or do the Bishops Command worse things than Goodwyn Manton or Nye Is submission to these Lawful to those not Does not the fifth Commandment Honor your Father reach to your King the Father of his Country Icon Bas p. 285. Or to the Bishops the Fathers of the Church The Royal Martyr observes that you had not Loyalty enough to say Amen to those Petitions for his Majesty which are in the Common Prayer and that he believed it was one of the greatest faults some Men could find in it What signifies it to Command if there be no Obedience There ought to be an Harmony betwixt Commanding and Obeying they should go Hand in Hand they are both Arts or rather make up but one Science for one cannot be well without the other King cannot be well without Subjects nor Subjects without one to Command Eras Imperare parere imperio Ars emnium pulcherrima quae duae res a Civibus excludunt seditiones tuentur Concordiam They are Correlatives and make up but one fair Art but 't is these two that maintain Concord Amity and Peace and shut out Seditions and Rebellions For your Kings sake for the sake of the Laws and for your Countries sake Amor Patriae ratione valentior omni Ovid. de Pont. which should be of more Power to perswade you than any Argument I could bring Harken at last to good Counsel and be longer Obstinate do not provoke Clemency it self to Anger and Mercy to Justice Frangendum est Mo. Viat quod nulla Caput Clementia Mollit If nothing will mollifie you may you not expect to be broken Outlying Deer are to be frightned within the Pale for their own security Psal 95.8 5. Harden not your Hearts to day if you will hear his Voice let it be instantly accept of the proffered kindness defer it no longer put it not off till to morrow Prov. 27.1 For you know not what a day may bring forth And now after all this what should I say more to urge and perswade you to Conformity I have already told you the danger we are in by these Distractions caused by your Disunion and the Evil that seems to hang over our Heads threatning us with the stormy cloud of Popery Fire and Fagot seem to be enkindling in our Streets by your dissertion new Plots to embroyl a Nation are incouraged by your Nonconformity and a great Gap is made whereby our present Adversaries are ready to enter and to overturn the Fabrick of our Church by your Breach Behold all this I beseech you with an Eye of Pity and Commiseration and stand no longer on Scruples and Niceties Be not affrighted at Mormoes of your own making yield at last to necessity and involve not all in ruin by your obstinacy Leave all By-respects and Self-interest examine your Consciences and deal nakedly with your own Souls and tell us truly if you do not think an Unity betwixt you and your Brethren would not be an happiness to this Nation You cannot but Know it and Confess it secretly Lay aside then your Terms stand not so stifly upon Capitulations acknowledge that 't is as Lawful for Bishops to Rule as for the Superintendents in the Lutheran Churches or leading Presbyters in Geneva Boggle no longer at Words startle not at Titles Lords Masters Fathers are Scriptural phrases and given to good and holy Men. They are Terms not unfitting and avowable But are these things to be stood upon now Are they of value to Continue the Breach betwixt you Ought there to be this difference about Indifferent things Is it not better to take St. Rom. 14.3 Paul's Counsel to the Romans Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not and let not him that eateth not judge him that eateth He tells them this that although there were some private difference among them in indifferent matters yet that they should Continue in their Unity and not make any Separation betwixt each other but labour in the Edification and Instruction of each other v. 1. though one be weak and the other be strong though some have scruples of small weight and others know better things Rom. 15.1 and not by breaking the band of their Unity and Community seek to ruine each other Let not those that Conform despise the weakness of those who do Not nor let those who do not Conform judge the Liberty of those that Do. They that break this Rule want Charity and this ought to be exercised on both sides where Indifferent things are not determined and made otherways by Authority That alters the Case for though they are still the same in their Natures that is Indifferent yet they are not so in their use because enjoyned Those of the Church of England do not despise you for your scruples for they would receive you and they intrude not her Constitutions as the Laws of God but as the Laws of Men not of Divine necessity but of humane Institution for the more orderly Worship of God and that there might be a general Uniformity in the Church Shew therefore by your Conformity since you are thereto Lawfully required that you do not judge your Brother as he doth not despise you but that you will live in Charity and Unity as you ought to do Be not any longer so Scrupulous nay I may say Superstitious Sand. Serm. ad Clerum 4 Sect. 11. for as Bishop Sanderson says The taking away of Indifferency from Indifferent things is in Truth Superstition either by requiring them as Necessary or forbidding them as Vnlawful Let the lesser obligation give way to the greater For if Opinion may make a good thing Evil to him that doubts or thinks it Evil Rom. 14.23 for what is not of Faith is Sin it cannot however make a thing Evil in it self to become either good in it self or so to him that thinks so To disobey the Commands of Authority is of it self a very great