Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	law_n	obedience_n	obligation_n	1,036	5	9.4199	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26853	An accompt of all the proceedings of the commissioners of both persvvasions appointed by His Sacred Majesty, according to letters patent, for the review of the Book of common prayer, &c.	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1661 (1661)	Wing B1177; ESTC R34403	133,102	166

Subject In the first he exercises his judicium discretionis in order to a publick Act. In the second he exerciseth a publick Judgement When the question is what order pro tempore is fittest in Circumstantials for this present Congregation the proper Presbyters or Pastors of that Congregation are the Directive Judges by Gods appointment 3. The Magistrate is Ruler of these Pastors as he is of the Physicians Philosophers and other Subjects He may make them such general Rules especially for restraint to goe by as may not destroy the exercise of their own Pastoral power As he may forbid a Physitian to use some dangerous Medicine on his Subjects and may punish him when he wilfully killeth any of them But may not on that pretence appoint him what and how and when and to whom he shall administer and so become Physician himself alone 4. When the question is Who shal be excluded from the Communion of a particular Church The Pastors of that Church or Congregation are the first proper Judges 5. When the question is Who shall be excluded from or received into the Communion of all the associated Churches of which we are naturally capable of Communion The associated Pastors or Bishops of these Churches in Synods are Judges Beyond this there are no Judges 6. When the question is Whether the Laws of Magistrates or Canons of Bishops are agreeable or not to the Word of God and so the obedience is lawful or unlawful the Consciences of each individual Subject is the Judge per judicium discretionis as to his own practice And if men had not this judgement of discerning but must act upon absolute implicite obedience then first man were ruled as unreasonable Secondly the Magistrate were made a God or such a Leviathan as Hobbs describeth him Thirdly And then all sin might lawfully be committed if commanded But we are assured none of this is your sense Sect. 5. These Rules and Canons for decency made and urged by Superiours are to be obeyed by Inferiours till it be made as clear that now they are not bound to obey as it is evident in general that they ought to obey Superiours for if the exemption from obedience be not as evident as the Command to obey it must needs be sin not to obey Repl. To your third Rule we adde It is first considerable what the thing is and then how it is apprehended if it be really lawful and well commanded and to be obeyed it is no ignorance doubt or errour of the Subject that can exempt him from the duty of obeying But it may ensnare him in a certainty of sinning whether he obey or disobey For as God commandeth him to obey and also not to do that which man commandeth when God forbiddeth it So he obligeth the erronious first to lay down his errors and so to obey But if a thing be forbidden of God and commanded of man and one man erroniously thinks it lawful and that he should obey and another is in doubt between both it is neither a duty nor lawful for either of them here to obey For mans errour changeth not Gods Laws nor disobligeth himself from obedience But this mans duty is both to lay by that errour and to refuse obedience But if the question be only of the order of such a persons duty We answer If the thing be really lawful and obedience a duty then he that doubteth or erreth should if possible suddenly lay by his errours or doubt and so obey But if that cannot be he should first goe about the fittest means for his better information till he be resolved and so obey And so on the contrary if really the thing commanded be unlawful if he be sure of it he must resolve against it if he hesitate he is not therefore allowed to do a thing forbidden because he is ignorant For his ignorance is supposed culpable it self but he is first to consult and use the best means for his Instruction till he know the truth and in the mean time to suspend his Act. But yet because of humane frailty between several faults we must consider when we cannot avoid all as we would in what order most safely to watch and to avoid them And so when I have done my best and cannot discern whether a Command be just and the thing lawful or not If it hath the face of Idolatry Blasphemy or some h●inous Sin that is commanded and our disobedience have the appearance but of an effect of involuntary Ignorance it is more excusable in us to fear the greater sin and so to suspend till we are better satisfied than to do that which we suspect to be so hainous a Sin though indeed it prove no sin So on the contrary if our obedience be like to bring Infamy or Calamity on the Church and our Obedience appear to be but about a very small sin if we doubt of it it is more excuseable to obey than to disobey though both be faulty supposing the thing to be indeed unlawful and we discerne it not So that your Rule of obeying where you are not as sure c. Is an unsure Rule unless as we have fullier cautioned it Sect. 6. Pretence of Conscience is no exemption from obedience for the Law as long as it is a Law certainly binds to obedience Rom. 13. Ye must needs be subject and this pretence of a tender or gainsaying Conscience cannot abrogate the Law since it can neither take away the Authority of the Law-maker nor make the matter of the Law in it self unlawful Besides if pretence of Conscience did exempt from obedience Laws were useless whosoever had not list to obey might pretend tenderness of Conscience and be thereby set at liberty which if once granted Anarchy and Confusion must needs follow Repl. To Rule 4. Neither pretence of Conscience nor real Errour of Conscience exempteth from the Obligation to obey though sometime it may so ensnare as that obeying shall become of the two the greater sin so also real Errour or pretence of Conscience will justifie no man for obeying when it is by God forbidden Sect. 7. Though Charity will move to pitty and relieve those that are truly perplexed or Scrupulous yet we must not break Gods Command in Charity to them and therefore we must not perform publick Services undecently or disorderly for the case of tender consciences Repl. O that you would but do all that God alloweth you yea that he hath commanded you for these ends how happy would you make your selves and these poor afflicted Churches But as to the instance of your Rule we answer 1. VVhen the indecency and disorder is so smal as that it will not crosse the ends so much as our disobedience would we are here so far more comfortable and peaceable than you as that we would even in Gods worship do some things indecent and disorderly rather than disobey And so should you do rather than destroy your