A TREATISE OF THE CEREMONIES OF THE CHVRCH VVherein the points in question Concerning Baptisme kneeling at the Sacrament Confirmation Festiuities c. Are plainly handled and manifested to be lawfull as they are now vsed in the Church of ENGLAND Whereunto is added a Sermon preached by a Reuerend Bishop 1. Cor. 11.16 But if any man seeme to be contentious c. LONDON Printed for Ralphe Rounthwaite and are to be solde at his shop at the signe of the Golden Lyon in Paules Church-yard 1625. TO THE REVEREND AND GODLY BRETHREN The PASTORS and MINISTERS of the Church of SCOTLAND AS in our Church blessed be God touching the truth of Doctrine there is no controuersie so there is no doubt deare brethren but in the controuerted points of Policie wee would soone agree if wee did consider what is the power of the Church in these matters the extent of her power and the obedience that is due thereto therefore concerning these I haue thought meet to 〈◊〉 this short Preface vnto you Albeit all things necessarie to the worship of God The power of the Church and mans saluation bee eyther expressely or by necessarie consequence contayned in the written Word yet the particular circumstances of persons by whom place where time when and of the forme and order how the worship and worke of the Ministrie should be performed are neither expressely nor by necessarie consequence set downe in the Word but for determination of these some generall rules are giuen according to the which the Church hath power to define whatsoeuer is most expedient to be obserued and done for the honour of God The power of the Christian Church in electing Pastors and edification This is a prerogatiue wherein the Christian Church differs from the Iewish Synagogue as is manifest in euery one of the particulars aboue expressed First as touching the persons in the Iewish Church they who were imployed in the Ministrie were particularly designed to bee Leuies Tribe Numb cap. 3. 1. Tim. 3. In the Christians Church neither Family Nation nor People is separated for the worke of the Gospell but the qualities graces and gifts of men meete for the sacred seruice are onely set downe and it is in the power of the Church to trie the persons particularly in whom these graces and gifts are and accordingly to elect them And albeit the function wherevnto they are called be diuine yet the bounds within which and the persons towards whom the same must be exercised is limited by the Church which hath diuided national Churches in Prouinces Dioceses and Dioceses in Parishes so as both the election of Ministers and the limitation of their jurisdiction is from the power of the Church This the Apostle calls the measure of the Canon 2. Cor. 10. which God did measure out to him beyond the which he did not reach in his Apostleship and such a rule and measure should euery Pastor in the Church haue beyond the which hee ought not to passe entering vpon other mens labour As the Apostles had their measure distributed to them by God so now euerie Pastor hath his bounds designed by the Church Secondly vnder the Law Their power in consecrating places Act. 15.21 albeit the Iewish Church had libertie to build Synagogues for their ordinarie meetings on the Sabbath to prayer and reading of the Law yet the place where the chiefe and solemne worship of God was performed was first the Tabernacle and the Temple both built by Gods owne speciall direction Deut. 12.4 and hauing the principall parts of his worshippe so appropriated to them that in another place the same might not be performed But as vnder the Gospel men shall neither worship God in this mountaine saies our Sauiour nor in Ierusalem but the true worshippers shall worship him in truth and spirit the Christian Church hath power according to that Apostolicall Rule 1. Cor. 14.40 Let all things be done decently and in order to make choice of a place conuenient within the bounds of each Parish for the meeting of the faithfull to performe all the points and parts of Gods worship and this place being built and dedicated to the worship of God may not bee condemned neglected nor profaned but frequented and kept for religious vses Not that wee esteeme that there is any more holinesse in it then in another place or that Gods presence and so his worship is annexed more to that place then to another but to the end religious Seruice may be performed decently and in order this is done Thirdly The power of the Church in appointing times to Gods worship Leuit. 23. vnder the Law the chiefe parts of Gods worship were astricted to certaine set times festiuities lawfully could not be performed on other daies but vnder the Gospel omnis dies Domini est omnis hora omne teÌ„pus habile est diuinocultui as Tertul. in his book de Baptismo witnesseth and Esay prophecied in his 66.23 From one Sabbath to another and from one New-moon to another shal all flesh appeare before me saith the Lord. Thus the Apostles ceassed not to teach daily in the Temple Act. 5. Act. 19. from house to house the Doctrine of Christ S. Paul taught in the Schoole of one Tyrannus for the space of 2. yeres daily and as one of the Greeke Editions hath it from the fifth houre to the tenth On the Iewish Sabbath Act. 13.14 Epitom de â—â—â—e Catholica which is our Saturday he taught often in the Iewish Synagogues And Epiphanius records that Christians kept their conuentions on Wednesday Friday and Sonday by Apostolical tradition and example Epist ad Ianuar. 118. S. Augustine affirmes That in his time men receiued the Sacrament euerie day Our owne Church besides the Lords day hath appointed other houres and times for diuine Seruice in great Townes as houres for Morning and Euening Prayer euery day for Preaching and interpretation of Scripture such other times as they hold to bee conuenient Thus is it manifest that the Church hath power to appoint other set times besides the Lords day for his seruice as wel by the liberty which God hath giueÌ„ to his Church to come and worship before him euery day as by the practise of the Apostolicall and Primitiue Churches Yea further the Church hath power to appoint religious exercises and certaine speciall parts of diuine Seruice to be performed in the times which shee thinkes most expedient for edification So hath our Church bin accustomed to appoint particular Scriptures to be interpreted vpon the daies so called of Exercise and by the first Booke of Discipline euery Pastor is ordained to teach in his Congregation on the Sondaies at afternoones certaine heads of the Catechisme Likewise to minister the Sacrament of the Communion vpon the first Sondaies of March Iune Septemb. December It was the custom of the Church of Geneua Caluin 361. Epist in the daies of I. Caluin
was not Anniuersary as first yee leaue it vncertaine yee thinke the same was an addition of the Pharisies who inlarged the glory of this Feast as they did their Phylacteries but this is a friuolous coniecture and the interpretation of Iunius words out of the Talmude is no better to wit that the Wisemen who decreed that the eighth dayes of that Feast should bee yeerely dayes of ioy were the Pharisies because they are called Sapientes Israelis for it behoued these that appointed the Festiuities not onely to bee Wisemen but men of Authoritie also And therefore it is more probable that the Wisemen in the Talmude were the Masters of the great Synagogue that had power to appoint such Festiuities But how would our Sauiour who censured the Pharisies for inlarging their Phylacteries and corrected the abuses of the Law brought in by them haue omitted such a grosse Errour and Superstition as the Institution and keeping of these holy dayes vnrebuked if it had beene a Pharisaicall Addition and not a lawfull Constitution Then yee teach your Reader a great cunning to play fast and loose in answering all the instances brought from the Iewish Church and that is whether hee grant or denie them to bee lawfull yet to eschew the dint of the Argument for if hee grant them to bee lawfull then he may flye to this refuge that the Iewes had extraordinarie directions which wee want as Prophets who were only Prophets by the Spirit vnto the dayes of Malachie Vrim and Thummim vnder the first Temple and in place thereof vnder the second a slender voyce sounding from Heauen called Bathcoll But if hee denie the same to haue beene lawfull then to alleadge that they were Pharisaicall Additions and that wee should not imitate the Pharisies and fond Iewes I assure my selfe that no honest-hearted man will either follow the Pharisies in their Superstition nor you in vsing such sophisticall euasions of which none will serue against the instances alledged for if yee say that the obseruation of the dayes of Purim or Dedication were Pharisaicall Additions the exact diligence of our Sauiour in rebuking and correcting all such abuses and superstitious Nouations as were brought into the worship of God by the Pharisies will controll you And if ye say that they had extraordinarie directions yee speake without warrant of Scripture which is presumption in you to doe So it remaines for any thing ye haue said that holy dayes were and might bee lawfully kept vnder the Law without any particular warrant from God But put the case that the same might not haue beene done vnder the Law it followes not that the Christian Church hath not libertie to appoint dayes and times for religious exercises without particular direction For vnder the Law God not only set downe the substance of his worship but all the circumstances also as the persons in particular by whom the place where and the times when he should be worshipped so fully as little or nothing was left to the abitrement of the Iewish Church and as yee say these times were so ceremonious that the greatest part of the externall worship consisted in Ceremonies vnder the Gospell it is not so for in the Gospell the substance of these Ceremonies and of the worship of God is perfectly set downe but the circumstantiall Ceremonies of time place persons and formes which are no part of the worship but pertinences only are left to bee determined by the Church according to the generall Rules of Order and Decencie It is true because the Iewes had one place only appointed by God for his worship to wit the Temple and Tabernacle whereunto the people could not resort at all times therefore to their owne election was permitted the appointing of other commodious places for their Synagogues And now vnder the Gospell there is one onely Day of diuine Institution to wit the Lords Day whereunto to tye the worship of God is a Iudaicall Pedagogie against the Christian libertie and practice For the time is now come that from one new Moone to another and from one Sabbath to another all flesh shall come and worship before God Isa 66.23 According to the which Pro phesie the Apostolike and Primitiue Church did not only conuene on the Lords Day to worship God but on such other times as they thought commodious to obserue Saint Paul taught often on the Iewish Sabbath and at Ephesus daily for the space of two yeares in the Schoole of one Tyrannus Saint Augustine testifies that in some Churches they conuened daily not onely to preaching praying and Lectures but to the celebration of the Sacrament also Epiphanius in his Epitomie or Abridgement of Christian Faith affirmeth Apostolos instituisse synaxes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is The Apostles to haue instituted their holy meetings for diuine Seruice on Wednesday Friday and the Lords Day Socrates witnesses that on these dayes through the whole World for the greatest part the holy mysteries were celebrated Hereby it is manifest albeit the Church was tyed to worship God solemnly and publikely on the Lords Day that yet they were not tyed to that Day only but that all dayes were sanctified by Christ that the Church might choose and determine of them for the Seruice of God as she pleased So to conclude the Church vnder the Gospell hath power without any particular warrant of God keeping the general Rules of Pietie Charitie and Decencie to dedicate times and places and set downe formes and orders for the worship of God The Ceremonies in the Iewes Church were not only Circumstantiall but Mysticall for the greatest part and a part of diuine worship it selfe such as the Church vnder the Law and vnder the Gospell hath no power to institute but the Geremonies vnder the Gospell are meerely Circumstantiall for the greater part not Mysticall and a part of the worship it selfe but onely accessorie thereto these the Christian Church hath power to appoint And such are the fiue dayes of old obserued by the Primitiue Church and now restored againe in our Church and such were the dayes of Purim and the Feast of Dedication which were not obserued as a part of religion instituted by God but only for commemoration of Gods benefits bestowed vpon his people in these times PP The obseruation of Anniuersary dayes pertayned to the Ceremoniall Law The fourth Reason but so it is that the Ceremoniall Law is abolished Yet confirme the Antecedent by the reasons following First The Anniuersary Dayes were distinguished from the Morall Sabbath many were the preheminences of the ordinary Sabbath aboue the Anniuersary dayes Secondly The Apostle cals them weake beggerly rudiments Gal. 4.9.10 The elements of the world Col. 2.20 Shaddowes of things to come Col. 2.16 17. The Apostle sayes not the obseruation of Iudaicall dayes but simpliciter the obseruation of dayes serued to the people of God for a typicall vse and rudiment of Religion If the obseruation of some anniuersarie dayes was prescribed
importunately the voting of the Articles in Conference saying That hee would commit twentie preiudices to please the King whereas the truth is that after many answers made to giue them satisfaction and shew that no preiudice was either intended or done to the Assembly when as nothing could content them but still they talked of preiudice he willed them to be quiet for rather then his Maiestie should offend with the Church and these troubles come vpon it which were iustly to bee feared hee would commit twentie such preiudices as these were The rest of that after-noone was spent in talking as the Libeller sayes vpon Simony c. but in the deuising some ouerture for the restrayning of that abuse to bee proponed to the whole Assembly which the next day after was by vniuersall consent allowed As likewise the Commission for the planting of the Church of Edinburgh and the forming of the booke of Common Prayers and extracting of the Canons of the Church And thus ended this Conference Thursday the 27. of August THat day being an ordinary day of preaching a Sermon was made by the reuerend Father in God William late Bishop of Galloway against which the Libeller excepts three manner of wayes First saying that his Doctrine was farre contrary to that which he had taught before the Estates of Parliament Anno 1606. Secondly that hee set at nought the ancient order of our Church sometime highly commended by himselfe extolling the new light and thirdly that he presumed to teach them a new kind of Catechisme vnder whom he himselfe might be yet catechised To all which seeing he is now at rest this much may be truely replyed in his behalfe That howeuer his opinion in these matters of the externall gouerment were sometimes other his Doctrine was neuer contrarie to that which at any time he professed and preached but these men haue beene so accustomed in feeding the eares of people with matters belonging to order neglecting the substantiall points of Religion which are Faith and Repentance as they dreame of no other Doctrine but that and counts the alteration of iudgement in these points of outward discipline a sort of Apostasie and falling from the truth And where he is said to set at nought the ancient order of our Church it is a false and impudent lye for neither he nor any else that seeme most earnest for receiuing these Articles did euer contemne the orders and rites formerly established but while as they stood in force reuerently practised them and were obedient to the ordinances of the Church made thereabout but the circumstances of things now being changed and these times requiring other fashions and manners wee thinke without the despising of these they may be well admitted and as commendably vsed as euer the other were For the third of presuming to teach them by whom he might be catechized because this is spoken in despight I passe it with this answere That his Sermons and workes left behind him which will continue with the posteritie will witnesse against all their malice that hee was inferiour to none of the Opposites in preaching yea in many degrees superiour to them all But to returne to our purpose the Assembly being not in full number to take some conclusion in the businesse for which they were conuened after inuocation of the Name of God it was declared vnto them that by the labours of the Conference in their priuate meetings the Articles proponed by his Maiestie were brought and reduced into that forme as it rested for the Assembly to consider whether or not the same should be receiued in our Church and to moue them the rather to condescend his Maiesties resolution to haue the Articles receiued was declared and how no other answere could satisfie but granting of the said Articles They were likewise remembred of their promises made to his Maiesties selfe at Saint Andrewes and in the last generall Assembly and had the lawfulnesse and indifferencie of these matters at length of new exponed vnto them Neither was any of their common pretexts left vnanswered place being giuen to all that would reason against any one of the Articles to doe the same And while some of them insisted by long speeches to haue a continuation made of matters to another Assembly and a supplication sent to his Maiestie for some longer delay his Highnesse Commissioners hauing vrged a present answere they were desired to cease and not to trifle time with vnnecessary speeches seeing matters should receiue decision before they went forth of doores And so some few making shew to reason in the contrary were permitted to speake till they had no more to say and had their reasons answered to the full The Libeller sayes the libertie was granted to a few and that the reasons were checkt and borne downe with authoritie but how contrarie this is to the truth wee leaue it to bee answered by such as were present And now when they haue set downe in writing all that then was said or possibly they can inuent Let the Reader iudge if by the answeres giuen their obiections be not sufficiently confuted Doctor Lindsay his answere being posed on conscience to declare his iudgement touching kneeling at the Sacrament is maliciously mutilated His declaration was this as all the Assembly can testifie in whose presence it was giuen On my conscience I neither know Scripture reason nor antiquitie that enforceth kneeling sitting standing or passing as necessary but thinke them all indifferent and therefore that any of them may bee lawfully vsed when it is found expedient And considering nothing to be more expedient for the weale of our Church then to keepe peace with our gracious Soueraigne and not to contend for such matters I iudge yeelding to his Highnesse desire to bee the onely best When all the reasoning was ended his Maiesties Letter was againe read to the end the Assembly might see his earnestnesse about the same matters And because of a Pasquill cast in in the Pulpit of Edinburghe the Sunday before which was deliuered to the Archbishop of Saint Andrewes the penners whereof had warned the Ministers not to yeeld to the Articles giuing them promises of satisfaction for their stipends in case they should be taken from them and to fight in the defence of thē that cause He disswaded them to leane vnto such suggestions or be moued with them for that they would proue nought in the end as the experience of the seuenteene dayes worke might teach them And added which he is not ashamed of nor will denie That were there no other to take imployment against these Mutiners and seditious persons he could wish that he were honoured therewith These are the great blasts and terrours which the Libeller mentions otherwaies they can take exception at nothing iustly that then was vittered As matters were then proponed to be voted one of that number gaue in writing some particular reasons for disswading the grant of the said Articles which they