Christ hath injoyned Christians not by perseqution to force other mens consciences against their wils by the irritation of the Bishops of our Land Sixteenthly because perseqution doe cause men and women to make shipwrack of faith and good consciences by forceing a religion vpon theÌ„ even against their mindes and consciences and also doe send them quike to the devil in their errors if that be heresy for which they are haÌ„ged aÌ„d burned which to doe is a most vnChristian vnnaturall cruell and tyrannous deed and I am suer you would not bee content to be so dealt with all your selves but indeed the popish and Idol Bishops are the authors hereof against the people as wel as of other persequtioÌ„ against the princes For AntychristiaÌ„ Bbs doe draw Kings aÌ„d Princes hereto against their myndes as may appeare by Edward the sixt that Godly King of famous memory who being vrged by his bloudy Bbs to subscribe to the burning of a womaÌ„ caled Ioane Butcher he answered wil you have me to send her quick to the devil in her error but when his bloud thirsty Bs wouls have no nay he said againe to Bishop Cranmer I lay al the chaledg therof on you before God and Cranmer said he had never so much to doe in al his life as to procure it whereby I doe perceave that godly Kings are drawen to battel against the Saints by Antychristian Bbs and false Prophets who otherwyse would rule and reigne more agreable to the mynde of Christ Also herby may al men perceave that the counsel and Bbs could not satisfy the Kings conscieÌ„ce by their perswasioÌ„ if they could have shewed him the word of God for burning that Christian it wold have prevailed with that godly King and he might then of faith have consented but his answer sheweth that he was not of their minde for al that they had said and therfore now if it please you to require of your Bishops warrant from the word of God for the persequting of Christians or for forceing Prince and people to church you shal find not one Bishop yea not all of them together though assisted with their Ministers wil be able to shew warrant from Gods word whereby to perswade your conscieÌ„ces therevnto and whatsoever is not of faith is sinne and whatsoever is not from Gods word cannot be of faith Seaventeenthly because perseqution of Christians by Christians doe not onely justifye papists and teach the Iewes and PagaÌ„s to persequte Christians but also doe teach the papists and others that know not the mynde of Christ and once get the vpperhaÌ„d to persequte those that persequted them yea it is a meanes as we have had lamentable experieÌ„ce to set such as are forced to Church against their consciences at deadly hatred against the King and State and vrgeth al them to treason and rebellioÌ„ that have not truly learned Christ who himself was persequted to death whose harmles crosse al true Christians must take vp aÌ„d whose gentle and humble steps they must follow aÌ„d walke in or els they caÌ„not be his disciples nor sheepe of his pasture And nether can the papists be perswaded that perseqution is a sinne so loÌ„g as they aÌ„d other Christians are also persequted by the protestants seing the papists doe build their perseqution on the same ground with the protestants but both sorts of Bbs doe erre grosly as shal be shewed Godwilling when they make their defence except heerewith their consciences be convinced to yeld as I wish they may for the salvation of their owne foules the peace both of Prince and people and the saftye of the King and State In the meane whyle it is to be observed that those Bbs aÌ„d Ministers which perswade the King and Parliament to burne bannish hang and imprison for difference of religion are bloud-suckers and manslayers and such it cannot be denyed caused Kings and Magistrats to be their excicutioners and tormentors in burning the Martyrs in former tymes even in the dayes of King Henry the eyght Queene Mary as the books of Acts MonumeÌ„ts wil witnes if they be not burned and I aske the Bbs and their Mini if the martyrs should have obeyed the King and Queene rather theÌ„ have suffered death And now I must humbly and with al reverence doe beseech his Maje and parliament advisedly to consider among themselves whether the Prince or Princesse differing with the Church now in matter of coÌ„scieÌ„ce and religion stablished by law in our land as the right noble Princesse Elizabeth did in Queene Maryes dayes doe not incurre the danger ad cruelty of the law now as that worthy Princesse did then seing that popish and cruel law standeth stil in force in most points of religion and who dare trust the Bbs and ther adhereÌ„ts in such a case the matter lyeing in their hands Let it be supposed that the Princes heart should be moved by the lord to embrace the Apostoliq faith discipline shal he be forced to beleeve as the Bishops doe against his conscience shal he bee constrayned to submit to their goverment and discipline against his conscience shal he live in vexation and perseqution and in danger of his life by the Bishops and law stablished as the Princesse Elizabeth did yea it must bee thus with our right noble Prince except there bee partiality yea it will bee thus with his Princely person except those popish and cruel lawes be repealed and extinguished Wherefore I meekly intreate seeing death is most certaine though most vncertayne when that those Antychristian and Popish Lawes may bee dissimulled and made voyd in tyme least wee all lament and bewayle it when it wil bee to late And I pray your Majesty and honors to consider that Kings and Princes hearts are in the hands of the Lord as the Ryvers of waters to turne as he will And the scripture saith The ten hornes by which I vnderstand ten Kings shall hate the whore and make her desolate and naked Likewyse the Scripture saith to Abraham the Father of beleeving Princes as well as beleeving people Also I will make thee exceeding fruitful and will make Nations of thee Yea Kings shall proceed of thee Which Scripture doe also overthrow the judgment of those men that hould a Christian may not bee a King nor Magistrate Let such consider that the Lord here speaketh of Abrahams Spirituall seed and not of his naturall seed Because if it be vnderstood of his Natural seed then cannot Abraham be o Father of many nations seeing all Abrahams natural seed are caled Iewes and are but one nation of the Iewes so that the covenant of God could not be performed that said I wil make nations of the yea Kings â—â—al proceed of thee Therefore it must be vnderstood of his spiritual seed of which may be Kings and Princes that are not naturaly descended of him as wel as people that are not
RELIGIONS PEACE Or A reconciliation between princes Peoples Nations by Leonard Busher of the County of Gloucester of the towne of Wotton and a Cittieen of the famous and most honorable Citty London and of the second right worshipfull Company Supplicated vnto the hygh and mighty King of great Brittayne etc And to the Princely and right Honorable Parliament with all loyalty humility and carefull Fidelity Esay 60. 1. 3. 10. 12. 16. ARise O Sion be bright for thy light is com and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee and the Gentils shall walk in thy light and Kings at the brightnes of thy riseing vp And the sonnes of strangers shall build vp thy wals and their Kings shall minister vnto thee For in my wrath I smought thee but in my mercy I had compassion on thee Therefore thy gates shall bee open contynually neyther day nor night shall they bee shut that men may bring vnto thee the riches of the Gentils and that their Kings may be brought vnto thee For the Nation and that kingdom that wil not serve thee shal perish ād those nations shal vtterly be destroyed The sonnes also of them that afflicted thee shal come and bow vnto thee and al they that despised thee shal fall downe at the soales of thy feete and they shal call thee the Citty of the Lord Zion of the holy one of Israell Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentils and shalt suck the breasts of kings and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy redeemer the mighty one of Iaacob Proverbs 20. 28. Mercy and truth preserve the King for his throne shall bee established with mercy Eccle. 10. 22. The feare of the Lord causeth that the Kingdom fayleth not but the Kingdom is lost by cruelty and pride Printed in Amsterdam 1614. To the high mighty King Iames by the grace of God King of greate brittayne France Yrland And to the princely right Honorable Parliamēt Leonard Busher wisheth the wisdome of Salomon the Zeale of Iosias the mercy of Christ with the salvation of your Spirits in the day of the Lord Iesus FOr as much as your Maiesty and Parliament doe stand for the maintenance of the Religion wherein you are borne and for the same doe most zealously persequte with fyer and sword I haue thought it good and also my dewty most Royal soueraigne to enforme your Maiesty and Parliament thereof In al humility therfore I give you to vnderstand that no Prince or People cā possible attaine that one true Religion of the Gospell which is acceptable to God by Iesus Christ meerely by birth for Christ saith Except a man be borne againe he cannot see the Kingdom of God Also the Apo Iames saith Of his owne wil he begat vs by the word of truth And the Apo Peter saith Being borne a new not of mortal seed but of immortal by the word of God who liueth endureth for ever Therfore Christ commanded this word to be preached to al nations that thereby they may attayne the new birth By which your Maiesty and Parliament may perceaue that the one true Religion of the Gospel is not attayned by natural birth for the all Princes and peoples in all nations shold haue that one true Religion of the Gospell the which you see and grant they all haue not yet many of them also wil defend theyr Religion wherein they are borne by fyer and sword as if it were theyr natural and earthly inheritances or had with fyer and sword been gotten and therfore wil with fyer and sword maynteyne and defend it But your Maiesty and Parliament may please to vnderstand that the Scriptures doe teach that the one true religion is gottē by a new birth then by the word and spirit of God and therewith also it is onely maynteyned and defended For the word of God is liuely mighty in operation sharper then any two edged sword entereth through even vnto the deviding asunder of the soule the spirit of the joynts of the marrow is a discerner of the thoughts the intents of the heart Seeing then the one true Religion of the Gospell is thus gotten and thus defended and mainteyned namely by the word preached onely let it please your Maiesty and Parliament to be entreated to revoke and repeale those Antychristian Romish and cruel lawes that force al in our lād both Prince ād people to receaue that Religion wherein the King or Queen were borne or that which is stablished by the law of man and in steed thereof enact and publish that Apostolick Christian Gentle merciful law of Christ viz Goe teach al nations preach the Gospell to every creature that is Christ wil haue his ministers to preach and teach the people of al nations the things that concerne the Kingdom of God the name of Iesus Mesiah repentance remision of sins to baptise in his name such as doe beleeve And for as much also that the false ād Antychristian religion did come by the spirit of error doctrine of Devils ād not by fyer and sword therfore by the spirit of Christ ād doctryne of the word of God must it be driven out of the hearts and consciences both of Prince and People and not by fyer and sword as the false Bishops and ministers haue and doe still perswade Therfore may it please your Majesty and Parliament to vnderstand that by fyer and sword to cōstraine Princes and peoples to receaue that one true Religion of the Gospell is wholy against the mynde and mercifull Law of Christ dangerous both to king and State a meanes to decreace the Kingdom of Christ and a meanes to increace the Kingdom of Antychrist as these reasones following doe manifest The which I humbly beseech your Majesty and Parliament carefully to consider and that according to the word of god which shal judge every man according to his deeds and perseqution is a worke well pleasing to al false Prophets and Bishops but it is contrary to the minde of Christ who came not to judge destroy mens lives but to save them And though som men and women beleeue not at the first howre yet may they at the eleventh howre if they bee not persequted to death before And no King nor Bishops can or is able to command faith That is the gift of God who worketh in vs both the wil the deed of his owne good pleasure set him not a day therefore in which if his creature heare not and beleeue not you will imprison and burne him Paule was a blasphemer and also a persequter and could not be converted by the Apostles and ministers of Christ yet at last was receaued to mercy and cōverted extraordinarily by Christ himself who is very pittiful mercyful would have
wyfe and the beleeveing woman that hath an vnbeleeveing husband cannot liue together as the scripture teachet for the salvation of the vnbeleeveing if they be persequted to death Indeed som therby are forced to comfesse with the mouth that which they beleeue not in heart and so are made true dissemblers in steed of true Christians wherby many men and womeÌ„ are deceaved with dissembling husbands and wyves as wel as the King and State are deceaved with dissembling servants and subjects but the word of God if permission of conscience might be granted would procure vpright puer and vnfeyned husbands and wyves servants and subjects so that thereby neyther Prince nor people should be deceaved for al good shepherds wil devide and seperate and not force slay and persequte for if men and women be found hereticks they shal be seperated from the Church but if they be vnbeleevers they shal not be joyned vnto it vntil they be converted by the word of God much lesse forced Which conversion for ought we know may be at their death if not afore seing the Lord caleth som at the elevent hower so wel as at the first and not at the King and Bs. pleasures Kings and Magistrats are to rule teÌ„poral affayers by the swords of their temporal Kingdoms And Bs aÌ„d Ministers are to rule spiritual affayers by the word and spirit of God the sword of Christs spirituall Kingdom and not to intermedle one with anothers authority office and function And it is a greate shame for the Bs. and Ministers not to bee able to rule in their Church without the assistance of the King and Magistrat yea it is a greate signe they are none of Christs Bishops and ministers of they were they would not be afrayd nor ashamed of their faith nor yet would they perswade Princes and people to persequte and force one another to beleeve them but would use onely the assistance of Gods word and spirit and therwith suffer their faith and doctryne to bee examined proved and disputed both by word and writing And he is a true Bishop who is vnreproveable aÌ„d that is able to stop the mouthes of his adversaries by Gods word and Spirit onely and whose faith and discipline agreeth with the Prophets Christ and his Apostles and maketh no contracictioÌ„ but al those Bishops that force Princes and peoples to receaue their faith and discipline by perseqution doe with Iudas goe against Christ in his members with swords slaues aÌ„d halberos who seing Gods word wil not help them betake themselues with al hast and hazard vnto the authoritie of the King and Magistrate I read that a Bishop of Rome would haue constrayned a Turkish Emperor to the Christian faith vnto whom the Emperor answered I beleeve that Christ was an excellent Prophet but he did never so far as I vnderstand command that men should with the power of weapons be constrayned to beleeue his law verely I also doe force no man to beleeue Mahomets Law Also I read that Iewes Christians and Turks are tollerated in Constantinople aÌ„d yet are peaceable though so contrary the one to the other If this bee so how much more ought Christians not to force one another to religion aÌ„d how much more ought Christians to tollerate Christians when as the Turks doe tollerate them shal we be lesse merciful theÌ„ the Turks or shal we learne the Turks to persequte Christians It is not onely vn merciful but vnnatural and abominable yea monstrous for one Christian to vex and destroy another for difference and questions of Religion and though tares haue ouergrowen the wheate yet Christ wil haue them let alone til harvest least whyle you goe about to pluck vp the tares you pluck vp also the wheat with them as your predecessors haue done who thought they had gathered vp the tares and burned them but you see now that they haue burned the weate in steed of tares Wherfore in al humility aÌ„d Christian modesty I doe affirme that through the vnlaufull weedhooke of persecution which your predecessors haue used and by your maiesty and Parliament is still continued there is such a quantity of wheate plucked vp and such a multitude of tares least behinde that the wheate which remayne cannot yet appeere in any right vissible congregation And now beloved soueraigne and Parliament I know that through ignorance you doe persequte as did also your predecessorâ—s Amend your lives therefore and turne that your sinns may bee put away when the tyme of refreshing shal come from the presence of the Lord who before hath shewed by the mouth of his holy servant Iohn that the woman meaning the church shold fleye into the wildernes for a tyme tymes aÌ„d half a tyme from the presence aÌ„d persecution of the Serpent And that the wynepresse shold bee troden without the Citty vntil â—loud came out of the wynepresse vnto the horse brydels by the space of a thousand and sixe hundred furlongs and thus he hath fulfilled it Now therefore I humbly beseeth you suffer not your Bishops and ministers any longer to perswade to force your subjects or any others to their faith and Church by perseqution neyther suffer them therewith to defend their faith and Church against their adversaries if they have not any thing from Gods word against vs let them yeld and submit themselves if they thinck they have any thing against vs let them betake themselves onely to Gods word both in word and wryteing for the whole Scripture is given by inspiration of God to that purpose and is profitable to teach to reprove to correct and to instruct in righteousnes that the Man of God may be absolute being made perfect vnto al good works With which Scripture and not with fyer and sword your Majestyes Bishops and ministers ought to be armed and weaponed And whosoeuer shall not heare the words of such Bishops and ministers then such Bishops aÌ„d ministers are commanded by Christ not to to imprison burne ban and hang them but to shake the dust of theyr feete against them for a witnes when they depart from them affirming that at the day of judgment it shal bee easier for Sodom and Gomorrha then for such persons And this com of Christ did his Bishops and ministers obey as you may read By which and by that which follow your gratious may and Princely and honorable Parliament may perceave the will and mynde of our Lord and Saviour Christ vnto whose mercy I commend you and to the word and wisdom of his grace which is able to build further and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctifyed Amen Your faithfull and loveing subject Leonard Busher Not Furbusher Certayne reasons against perseqution FIrst because Christ hath not commanded any King Bishop or Minister to persequte the people for difference and judgment in matter of Religion Secondly because Christ hath commanded his Bishops and ministers to