Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	brethren_n	learned_a	reverend_n	413	4	16.4988	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29318	Brethren in iniquity, or, The confederacy of Papists with sectaries, for the destroying of the true religion, as by law establish'd, plainly detected wherein is shewed a farther account of the Romish snares and intrigues for the destroying the true reformed religion, as professed in the Church of England, and established by law, and for the introducing of popery or atheism among us : clearly shewing from very authentick writers and testimonies, that the principal ways and methods whereby the papists have sought the ruine of our religion and church, from the beginning of our Reformation, to the present times, and by which they are still in hopes of compassing it, are by promoting of toleration, or pretended liberty of conscience, and that for above these sixscore years the papists have so craftily influenced our dissenters, as to make them the unhappy instruments of effecting their most pernicious designs, which they contrived for, the subverting our church and state.		1690 (1690)	Wing B4382; ESTC R6507	50,245	71

believe that it is with extream unwillingness and reluctancy of Heart that we are brought to differ from any thing which your Majesty hath thought sit to propose And though we do no way doubt but that the unreasonable Distempers of Mens Spirits and the many Mutinies and Conspiracies which were carried on during the late intervals of Parliament did reasonably incline your Majesty to endeavour by your Declaration to give some allay to those ill Humours till the Parliament assembled and the hopes of Indulgence if the Parliament should consent to it especially seeing the Pretenders to this Indulgence did seem to make some Titles to it by virtue of your Majesty's Declaration from Breda Nevertheless we your Majesty's most Dutiful and Loyal Subjects who are now returned to serve in Parliament from those several Parts and Places of your Kingdom for which we are chosen do humbly offer to your Majesty's great Wisdom That it is in no sort advisable that there be any Indulgence to such Persons who presume to dissent from the Act of Uniformity and the Religion establish'd We have also considered the Nature of the Indulgence proposed with reference to these Consequences which must necessarily attend it It will establish Schism by a Law and make the whole Government of the Church precarious and the Censures of it of no moment or consideration at all It will expose your Majesty to the restless importunity of every Sect or Opinion and of every single Person also who shall presume to dissent from the Church of England It will be a cause of increasing Sects and Sectaries whose numbers will weaken the true Protestant Profession so far that it will at least be dissicult for it to defend it self against them And which is yet farther considerable Those numbers which by being troublesome to the Government find they can arrive to an Indulgence will as their numbers increase be yet more troublesome that so at length they may arrive to a general Toleration and in time some prevalent Sect will at last contend for an Establishment which for ought can be foreseen may end in Popery It is a thing altogether without precedent and will take away all means of convicting recusants and be inconsistent with the method and proceedings of the Laws of England Lastly it is humbly conceived that the Indulgence proposed will be so far from tending to the peace of the Kingdom that it is rather likely to occasion great disturbance And on the contrary that the asserting of the Laws and the Religion established according to the act of Vniformity is the most probable means to produce a setled Peace and Obedience throughout the Kingdom Because variety of professions in Religion when openly divulg'd doth directly distinguish men into Parties and withal gives them opportunity to count their numbers which considering the Animosities that out of a Religious Pride will be kept on foot by the several Factions doth tend directly and inevitably to open Disturbance Nor can your Majesty have any security that the Doctrine or Worship of the several Factions which are all governed by a several Rule shall be consistent with the Peace of the Kingdom And if any Persons shall presume to disturb the Peace of the Kingdom we do in all humility declare That we will for ever and in all occasions be ready with our utmost endeavour and assistance to adhere to and serve your Majesty according to our bounden Duty and Allegiance These impregnable and unanswerable Reasons did the excellent Members of that House alledge against Toleration Reasons full and clear carrying with them all the advantages of strength and evidence and as Dr. Tompkins said deservedly of them in his Pleas for Toleration discussed These renowned Gentlemen did then shew that they were able with their Pens to give an account of that Cause for which very many of themselves and Fathers did honourably draw their Swords and knew very well how to assert that Church by all the Rules of Christian Prudence as well as they did formerly set inimitable patterns of Christian Courage in suffering for it In these we may see and admire how those glorious Worthies came up to the Greatness of themselves and of the Argument and indeed they were both worthy of one another they to defend and that to be defended And as nothing was ever better penn'd than those Reasons so there was scarce ever a better occasion The best Church in Europe was then bore witness to by the best House of Commons which ever sat in this Nation And these Votes shall ever remain as a lasting Monument not only of their Zeal and Religion but of the incomparable Endowments and Abilities of those who drew them up A LETTER OF THE MINISTERS Of the CITY of LONDON Presented the First of January 1645. to the Reverend Assembly of Divines sitting at Westminister by Authority of Parliament against TOLERATION To our Reverend Learned and Religious Brethren the Prolocutor and the rest of the Divines assembled and now sitting at Westminster by Authority of Parliament these present Reverend and beloved Brethren WE are exceedingly apprehensive of the desirableness of the Church's Peace and of the pleasantness of Brethrens Vnity knowing that when Peace is set upon its proper basis viz. Righteousness and Truth it is one of the best possessions both delectable and profitable like Aaron's Ointment and the Dew of Hermon It is true by reason of different lights and different sights among Brethren there may be dissenting in opinion yet why should there be any separating from Church Communion The Church's Coat may be of divers colours yet why should there be any rent in it Have we not a touchstone of Truth the good word of God and when all things are examined by that word then that which is best may be held fast but first they must be known and then examined afterward If our dissenting Brethren after so many importunate Entreaties would have been perswaded either in zeal to the Truth or in sincere love to the Church's Peace and Vnity among Brethren or in respect to their own reputation by fair and ingenuous dealing or in conscience to their promise made with the Ministers of London now five years since or any such like reasonable consideration at last to have given us a full Narrative of their Opinions and grounds of their Separation we are perswaded they would not have slood at such a distance from us as now they do But they chose rather to walk by their own private lights than to unbosom themselves to us their most affectionate Brethren and to set themselves in an untrodden way of their own rather than to wait what our covenanted Reformation according to the Word of God and Examples of the best Reformed Churches would bring forth But the offence doth not end here it is much that our Brethren should separate from the Church but that they should endeavour to get a warrant to authorize their separation from it and to have