reduce them to the Heresies in Doctrine the Superstition and Idolatry in Worship and the Tyranny in Government which are in that See and for which the Reformed Kirks did separate from it and came forth of Babel From him certainly hath issued all this Deluge which almost hath overturned all What not the Pope himself now surely he could do little then For as I told you in the very last Passage I never intended more to the Reformed Churches than to wish them in Doctrine and Discipline like the Church of England And I hope that was neither to Negotiate for Rome nor to reduce them to Heresie in Doctrine nor to Superstition and Idolatry in Worship no nor to Tyranny in Government All which are here most wrongfully imputed to me And this comparing of me with the Pope himself I could bear with more ease had I not Written more against Popish Superstition than any Presbyter in Scotland hath done And for my part I wou'd be contented to lay down my Life to Morrow upon Condition the Pope and Church of Rome would admit and confirm that Service-Book which hath been here so eagerly charged against me For were that done it would give a greater blow to Popery which is but the Corruption of the Church of Rome than any hath yet been given And that they know full well And whereas they say that for these things the Reformed Churches did separate from it and came forth of Babel That is true that they did separate and for these things But not till for the maintaining of the contrary to these things they were Excommunicated and Thrust out Then indeed they separated but not till they were forced by a double necessity of Truth from which they might not depart and of that Punishment which would not suffer them to enter And yet the Reformed Churches all and every of them had need look well to themselves For if they came out of Babel to run down into Egypt they 'll get little by the Bargain Now they end in Confidence We are therefore confident that your Lordships this they speak to the English Commissioners who were to deliver this their Charge against me into the Lords House will by your means deal effectually with the Parliament that this great Fire-brand may be presently removed from his Majesties Presence and that he may be put to Tryal and have his deserved Censure according to the Laws of the Kingdom Which shall be good Service to God Honour to the King and Parliament Terror to the Wicked and Comfort to all good Men and to us in special who by his means principally have been put to so many and grievous Afflictions wherein we had Perished if God had not been with us Decemb. 14. 1640. Ad. Blayer They were and they might well be confident upon their Lordships For all or some chief of that Committee were in league with them And some of them the principal Men which brought the Scots in to have their ends upon the King And they did deal effectually with the Parliament For as appears by the Date this Charge was delivered to the English Commissioners Decemb. 14. It was Read in the upper House and transmitted to the House of Commons and such haste made of it there that they though they had no Articles drawn yet came up in haste and accused me to the Lords of High Treason desiring my Commitment and Promising the bringing up of their Articles and Proof against me in convenient time So upon this Accusation only I was upon Decemb. 18. committed to Mr. James Maxwell the Officer of the House and so removed from his Majesty's Presence which was the great aim against me For they conceiv'd I wou'd speak my Conscience if I came near him And they could not with any Colour of Justice take me from him but by an Accusation of High Treason of which I would not for all the World be as Guilty as some of them are which Accused me This was their desire for my Commitment Their next desire was That I might be brought to Tryal and receive my Censure according to the Laws And this hath been and yet is my desire as well as theirs For I long for nothing more than a Tryal and I can fear no Censure that is according to Law and am as free from the Breach of any Law that can make me guilty of Treason as I was when my Mother bare me into the World And when I was thus far on upon my Answer I had remained at Mr. Maxwell's and in the Tower Eleven Months so many it was when I writ this But before I came to my Hearing I had been Thirteen Months in Prison and neither brought to Tryal no nor so much as a Particular Charge brought up against me that I might prepare for an Answer in so heavy a Business And I am somewhat farther of my Accusers Mind That to bring me to a just Tryal according to Law would be good Service to God Honour to the King and the Parliament who cannot but suffer in the Judgment of Moderate Men for laying a Man of my Place and Calling so long in Prison a thing without all Precedent and yet charging me with no particular Nay and I think in a good Sense too it would be a Terrour to the Wicked to see an Innocent Man brought to such a Tryal Yea and yet a Comfort to all Good Men too when they see that an Innocent Man shall not be let lye and languish to Death in Prison which may be my Case for ought I see but that in some time they may hope for Tryal Yea and to them the Scots in special For this Bold and most true Word I 'll speak The Scottish Nation in general the City of Edinburgh in special and very many particular Men of good Worth and some Men of Honour besides Clergy-men of all sorts during the time I had Interest in Court have been more beholding to me than to any ten English Subjects of what rank and condition soever And this his Majesty knows and I dare say will Witness And for their present Afflictions which they speak of the Current of this Discourse will shew to the indifferent Reader what a Principal means I have been of them In the mean time I little deserved from them the Name of This great Firebrand for many of them have warmed themselves at me but yet I never Fired any of them Nor can I make any doubt but that God will deliver me out of the midst of this Fire which he knows I kindled not Howsoever letthem take heed for as sure as they now make themselves in the Conjuncture of a great Party in which one Wave seconds and keeps up another yet though these Waves of the Sea are mighty and rage horribly the Lord that dwelleth on High is Mightier And under him I rest and I hope shall till their Waves be broken against some Rock or other
Persons to Ecclesiastical Dignities Promotions and Benefices belonging to his Majesty and divers of the Nobility Clergy and others and hath taken upon him the Nomination of Chaplains to the King by which means he hath preferred to his Majesty's Service and to other great Promotions in the Church such as have been Popishly affected or other wise Vnsound and Corrupt both in Doctrine and Manners I did never wittingly abuse the Power or Trust which His Majesty reposed in me Nor did I ever intrude upon the Places of any great Officers or others to procure to my self the Nomination of Persons Ecclesiastical to Dignities Promotions and Benefices belonging to His Majesty the Nobility or any other And though here be no Particular named yet I guess at that which is meant and will clearly set down the Truth His Majesty some few Years since assumed to himself from the Right Honourable the Lord Coventry the Lord Keeper that then was and from my Lord Cottington then Master of the Court of Wards the disposing of all such Benefices as came to the King's Gift by Title of Wardship of what value soever they were The Reason which moved His Majesty to do this was The Lord Keeper and the Lord Cottington became humble Suitors to him to end a Contention between them about the giving of those Benefices both for their own Quiet and the Peace of other His Majesties Subjects For the Course was when any thing fell void in the Gift of a Ward he of these two great Officers which came first to know of the avoidance gave the Living This caused great and oft-times undue Practising among them which were Suitors for the Benefices And many times the Broad-Seal and the Seal of the Court of Wards bore Date the same Day And then the Bishop which Clerk soever he Instituted was sure to offend the other Lord. And these Lords too many times by the earnest putting on of Friends were not well pleased one with another in the Business Upon this Suit of their own His Majesty gave a Hearing to these Lords and in Conclusion of it took the Disposal of all such Benefices into his own Hands and for ought I know with both their liking and content In the disposing of these Benefices to such Men as had served His Majesty at Sea or otherwise I was trusted by the King and I served him in it faithfully but proceeded no farther nor otherwise than he directed and commanded me But I never took the Nomination of any one to my self or my own disposing And the Truth of this as His Majesty knows so I am Confident my Lord Cottington who is yet living will Witness For the Nomination of Chaplains to the King if I had done it I think the work was as proper for the Arch-Bishop as for any Man Yet because by Ancient Custom it was conceived to belong in a great part to the Lord Chamberlain who was then the Right Honourable the Earl of Pembrook I never Named any to His Majesty but I did fairly acquaint the Lord Chamberlain with it and desired his favour But in all my time I never was the means to prefer any Man to His Majesties Service as a Chaplain or to any Promotion whom I knew to be Popishly affected or any way Corrupt in Doctrine or Manners 9. He hath for the same Trayterous and Wicked intent chosen and employed such Men to be his own Domestical Chaplains whom he knew to be Notoriously disaffected to the Reformed Religion grosly addicted to Popish Superstition and Erroneous and unsound both in Judgment and Practice And to them or some of them he hath committed Licensing of Books to be Printed By which means divers false and Superstitious Books have been Published to the great Scandal of Religion and to the seducing of many of His Majesties Subjects I never chose any Man to be my Chaplain who I knew or had good Cause to suspect was Popishly affected Nor any that was unsound in Judgment or Practice Nor did I commit the Licensing of Books to any such but to those only who I then did and do still believe are Orthodox and Religious Divines and Men of very good Judgment for that Necessary and great Service And if they or any of them have by negligence or otherwise suffered any Erroneous and Dangerous Books to pass the Press they must answer both the Church and the State for whatsoever they have done amiss in that kind for it is not possible for the Archbishop to perform all those Services in Person And in the committing of them to my Chaplains and other Divines of Note I have done no new thing but that which my Predecessors have done before me This I am sure of I gave often and express and strict Command to all and every of them that they should License nothing that was contrary to the Doctrine and Discipline Established in the Church of England or might Personally or otherwise give Offence or Distaste And I hope they have Obeyed my Directions If not they must Answer for themselves 10. He hath Trayterously and Wickedly endeavoured to reconcile the Church of England with the Church of Rome And for the effecting thereof hath Consorted and Confederated with divers Popish Priests and Jesuits and hath kept secret intelligence with the Pope of Rome And by himself his Agents and Instruments treated with such as have from thence received Authority and Instruction He hath permitted and countenanced a Popish Hierarchy or Ecclesiastical Government to be Established in this Kingdom By all which Trayterous and Malicious Practices this Church and Kingdom have been exceedingly indangered and like to fall under the Tyranny of the Roman See The Article is now come of which I spake before and in my Answer to which I promised to set down the substance of that which I spake in the Parliament House to the Lords when this General Charge was brought up against me and I shall somewhat inlarge it yet without any Change of the Grounds upon which I then stood And now I shall perform that Promise And I shall be of all other least afraid to answer all that is here said concerning Religion For my Heart I bless God for it is sound that way to the uttermost of my Knowledge and I think I do well understand my Principles And my Old Master Aristotle hath taught me long since that Qui se bene habent ad divina audaciores sunt they which are well and setledly composed in things pertaining to God that is in Religion are much the bolder by it And this not only against Slanders and Imputations cast upon Men for this but in all other Accidents of the World what ever they be And surely I may not deny it I have ever wished and heartily Prayed for the Unity of the whole Church of Christ and the Peace and Reconciliation of torn and divided Christendom But I did never desire a Reconciliation but such as might stand
a poor Evasion was this Were there no other Lawyers for him because Mr. Solicitor was for me The Truth is all that ever I did in this Business was not only with the Knowledge but by the Advice of my Councel which were Mr. Solicitor Littleton and Mr. Herbert At last this Gentleman submitted himself and the Cause and if as he says Dr. Eden perswaded him to it that 's nothing to me As for the Fine I referred the moderation of it wholly to my Councel They pitched upon Sixteen Hundred Pounds and gave such Days of Payment as that a good part is yet unpaid And this Summ was little above one Years Rent For the Parsonage is known to be well worth Thirteen Hundred Pound a Year if not more And after the Business was setled my Lord Wimbleton came to me and gave me great Thanks for preserving this Gentleman being as he said his Kinsman whom he confessed it was in my Power to ruin For the raising of the Rent Sixty Pounds it was to add Means to the several Curats to the Chappels of Ease And I had no Reason to suffer Sir Ralph Ashton to go away with so much Profit and leave the Curats both upon my Conscience and my Purse And for his Fine to St Pauls I gave him all the Ease I could But since his Son will force it from me he was accused of Adultery with divers Women and confessed all And whither that Fine went and by what Authority I have already shewed And thus much more my Lords at Mr. Bridgman's Intreaty I turned this Lease into Lives again without Fine But since I have this Reward for it I wish with all my Heart I had not done it For I am confident in such a Case of Right your Lordships would have left me to the Law and more I wou'd not have asked And I think this though intreated into it was my greatest Error in the Business 6. The last Instance was about the conversion of some Money to St. Pauls out of Administrations By Name Two Thousand Pounds taken out of Wimark's Estate and Five Hundred out of Mr. Gray's First whatsoever was done in this kind I have the Broad-Seal to Warrant it And for Mr. Wimark's Estate all was done according to Law and all care taken for his Kindred And if I had not stired in the Business Four Men all Strangers to his Kindred would have made themselves by a broken Will Executors and swept all away from the Kindred Secondly for Mr. Gray's Estate after as Odious an expression of it as could be made and as void of Truth as need to be the Proceedings were confessed to be Orderly and Legal and the Charge deserted Then there was a fling at Sir Charles Caesar's getting of the Mastership of the Rolls for Money and that I was his means for it And so it was thence inferred That I sold Places of Judicature or helped to sell them For this they produced a Paper under my Hand But when they had thrown all the Dirt they could upon me they say they did only shew what Probabilities they had for it and what Reason they had to lay it in the end of the Fourth Original Article and so deserted it And well they might For I never had more Hand in this Business than that when he came to me about it I told him plainly as things then stood that Place was not like to go without more Money than I thought any Wise Man would give for it Nor doth the Paper mentioned say any more but that I informed the Lord Treasurer what had passed between us CAP. XXVIII THis day ended I was Ordered to appear again April 4. 1644. And received a Note from the Committee under Serjeant Wild's Hand dated April 1. That they meant to proceed next upon the Fifth and Sixth Original Articles and upon the Ninth Additional which follow in haec verba The Fifth Original He hath Trayterously caused a Book of Canons to be Composed and Published and those Canons to be put in Execution without any lawful Warrant and Authority in that behalf in which pretended Canons many Matters are contained contrary to the King's Prerogative to the Fundamental Laws and Statutes of this Realm to the Right of Parliament to the Propriety and Liberty of the Subjects and Matters tending to Sedition and of dangerous Consequence and to the Establishment of a vast unlawful and presumptus Power in himself and his Successors Many of the which Canons by the practice of the said Arch-Bishop were surreptitiously passed in the late Convocation without due consideration and debate others by fear and compulsion were Subscribed unto by the Prelats and Clerks there assembled which had never been Voted and Passed in the Convocation as they ought to have been And the said Arch-Bishop hath contrived and endeavoured to assure and confirm the Vnlawful and Exorbitant Power which he hath Vsurped and Exercised over his Majesty's Subjects by a Wicked and Vngodly Oath in one of the said pretended Canons injoyned to be taken by all the Clergy and many of the Layety of this Kingdom The Sixth Original He hath Trayterously assumed to himself a Papal and Tyrannical Power both in Ecclesiastical and Temporal Matters over his Majesty's Subjects in this Realm of England and in other places to the Disherison of the Crown Dishonour of his Majesty and Derogation of his Supream Authority in Ecclesiastical Matters And the said Arch-Bishop claims the King 's Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction as incident to his Episcopal and Archiepiscopal Office in this Kingdom and doth deny the same to be derived from the Crown of England which he hath accordingly exercised to the high contempt of his Royal Majesty and to the destruction of divers of the King's Liege People in their Persons and Estates The Ninth Additional Article That in or about the Month of May 1641. presently after the dissolution of the last Parliament the said Arch-Bishop for the ends and purposes aforesaid caused a Synod or Convocation of the Clergy to be held for the several Provinces of Canterbury and York wherein were made and established by his Means and procurement divers Canons and Constitutions Ecclesiastical contrary to the Laws of this Realm the Rights and Priviledges of Parliament and Liberty and Property of the Subject tending also to Sedition and of dangerous Consequence And amongst other things the said Arch-Bishop caused a most Dangerous and Illegal Oath to be therein made and contrived the Tenor whereof followeth in these words That I A. B. do Swear that I do approve the Doctrine and Discipline or Government Established in the Church of England as containing all things necessary to Salvation And that I will not endeavour by my self or any other directly or indirectly to bring in any Popish Doctrine contrary to that which is so Established Nor will I ever give my consent to alter the Government of this Church by Arch-Bishops Bishops Deans and Arch-Deacons c. as it
which I answered at both times First that the Statute of Ed. 6. spake of other Images and that Images in Glass-Windows were neither mentioned nor meant in that Law The Words of the Statute are Any Images of Stone Timber Alabaster or Earth Graven Carved or Painted taken out of any Church c. shall be Destroyed c. and not reserved to any Superstitious Use. So here 's not a Word of Glass-Windows nor the Images that are in them Secondly that the Contemporary Practice which is one of the best Expounders of the meaning of any Law did neither destroy all coloured Windows though Images were in them in the Queens time nor abstain from setting up of new both in her and King James his Time And as the Body of this Statute is utterly mistaken so is the Penalty too which for the First and Second Offence is but a small Fine and but Imprisonment at the King's Will for the Third A great way short of Punishment for Treason And I could not but wonder that Mr. Brown should be so earnest in this Point considering he is of Lincolns-Inn where Mr. Pryn's Zeal hath not yet beaten down the Images of the Apostles in the fair Windows of that Chappel which Windows also were set up new long since that Statute of Edward 6. And t is well known that I was once resolved to have returned this upon Mr. Brown in the House of Commons but changed my Mind lest thereby I might have set some furious Spirit on Work to destroy those harmless goodly Windows to the just dislike of that Worthy Society But to the Statute Mr. Brown added That the Destruction of all Images as well in Windows as elsewhere were Condemned by the Homilies of the Church of England and those Homilies confirmed in the Articles of Religion and the Articles by Act of Parliament This was also urged before and my Answer was First that though we Subscribed generally to the Doctrine of the Homilies as good Yet we did not express or mean thereby to justifie and maintain every particular Phrase or Sentence contained in them And Secondly that the very Words of the Article to which we subscribe are That the Homilies do contain a Godly and a wholesom Doctrine and necessary for those Times Godly and wholesom for all Times but necessary for those when People were newly Weaned from the Worship of Images Afterwards neither the Danger nor the Scandal alike Mr. Brown in his Reply said That since the Doctrine contained in the Homilies was wholesom and good it must needs be necessary also for all Times But this worthy Gentleman is herein much mistaken Strong Meat as well Spiritual as Bodily is good and wholesom but though it be so yet if it had been Necessary at all Times and for all Men the Apostle would never have fed the Corinthians with Milk and not with Meat The Meat always good in it self but not necessary for them which were not able to bear it 4 The Fourth thing which Dr. Featly Testifies is That there were Bowings at the coming into the Chappel and going up to the Commanion-Table This was usual in Queen Elizabeth's Time and of Old both among Jews as appears in the Story of Hezekiah 2 Chro. 29. 28. and among Christians as is evident in Rhenanus his Notes upon Tertullian And one of them which have written against the late Canons confesses it was usual in the Queens Time but then adds That that was a Time of Ignorance What a Time of such a Reformation and yet still a Time of Ignorance I pray God the Opposite be not a Time of Prophaneness and all is well Mr. Brown in the Summ of his Charge given me in the House of Commons instanced in this also I answered as before with this Addition Shall I Bow to Men in each House of Parliament and shall I not bow to God in his House whither I do or ought to come to Worship him Surely I must Worship God and Bow to him though neither Altar nor Communion-Table be in the Church 5 For Organs Candlesticks a Picture of a History at the back of the Altar and Copes at Communions and Consecrations All which Dr. Featly named First these things have been in use ever since the Reformation And Secondly Dr. Featly himself did twice acknowledge that it was in my Chappel as it was at White-Hall no difference And it is not to be thought that Queen Elizabeth and King James would have endured them all their Time in their own Chappel had they been introductions for Popery And for Copes they are allowed at Times of Communion by the Canons of the Church So that these all or any are very poor Motives from whence to argue an Alteration of Religion 2. The second Witness against my Chappel was Sir Nathaniel Brent But he says not so much as Dr. Featly And in what he doth say he agrees with him saving that he cannot say whether the Picture at the Back of the Communion-Table were not there before my time 3. The third Witness for this Charge was one Mr. Boreman who came into my Chappel at Prayers time when I had some new Plate to Consecrate for use at the Communion And I think it was brought to me for that end by Dr. Featly This Man says first he then saw me Bow and wear a Cope That 's answer'd Secondly That he saw me Consecrate some Plate That in that Consecration I used some part of Solomon's Prayer at the Dedication of the Temple And that in my Prayer I did desire God to accept those Vessels No fault in any of the Three For in all Ages of the Church especially since Constantine's Time that Religion hath had publick allowance There have been Consecrations of Sacred Vessels as well as of Churches themselves And these Inanimate things are Holy in that they are Deputed and Dedicated to the Service of God And we are said to Minister about Holy Things 1 Cor. 9. And the Altar is said to Sanctifie the Gift S. Matt. 23. which it could not do if it self were not Holy So then if there be no Dedication of these Things to God no separation of them from common use there 's neither Thing nor Place Holy And then no Sacriledge no difference between Churches and common Houses between Holy-Tables so the Injunction calls them and ordinary Tables But I would have no Man deceive himself Sacriledge is a grievous Sin and was severely Punished even among the Heathen And S. Paul's Question puts it home would we consider of it Thou which abhorrest Idols Committest thou Sacriledge Rom. 2. Thou which abhorrest Idols to the very defacing of Church Windows dost thou Thou of all other Commit Sacriledge which the very Worshippers of Idols punished And this being so I hope my use of a part of Solomon's Prayer or the Words of my own Prayer That God would be pleased to accept them shall not be reputed Faults But
Articles Which follow in haec Verba The Eighth Article 8. That for the better advancing of his Trayterous Purpose and Design he did abuse the great Power and Trust his Majesty reposed in him and did intrude upon the Places of divers great Officers and upon the Right of other his Majesty's Subjects whereby he did procure to himself the Nomination of sundry Persons to Ecclesiastical Dignities Promotions and Benefices belonging to his Majesty and divers of the Nobility Clergy and others and hath taken upon him the commendation of Chaplains to the King by which means he hath preferred to his Majesty's Service and to other great Promotions in the Church such as have been Popishly affected or otherwise Vnsound and Corrupt both in Doctrine and Manners The Ninth Article 9. He hath for the same Trayterous and Wicked intent chosen and imployed such Men to be his Chaplains whom he knew to be Notoriously disaffected to the Reformed Religion grosty addicted to Popish Superstition and Erroneous and Vnsound both in Judgment and Practice and to them or some of them he hath committed the Licensing of Books to be Printed by which means divers False and Superstitious Books have been Published to the great Scandal of Religion and to the 〈◊〉 of many of his Majesty's Subjects The Fourteenth Day of my Hearing At the ending of the former days Charge I was put off to this day which held The First Charge was concerning Mr. Damport's leaving his Benefice in London and going into Holland 1. The First Witness for this was Quaterman a bitter Enemy of mine God forgive him He speaks as if he had fled from his Ministry here for fear of me But the Second Witness Mr. Dukeswell says that he went away upon a Warrant that came to Summon him into the High Commission The Truth is my Lords and 't is well known and to some of his best Friends that I preserved him once before and my Lord Veer came and gave me Thanks for it If after this he fell into danger again Majus Peccatum habet I cannot preserve Men that will continue in dangerous courses He says farther and in this the other Witness agrees with him That when I heard he was gone into New-England I should say my Arm should reach him there The Words I remember not But for the thing I cannot think it fit that any Plantation should secure any Offender against the Church of England And therefore if I did say my Arm should reach him or them so offending I know no Crime in it so long as my Arm reached no Man but by the Law 2. The Second Witness Mr. Dukeswell adds nothing to this but that he says Sir Maurice Abbot kept him in before For which Testimony I thank him For by this it appears that Mr. Damport was a dangerous Factious Man and so accounted in my Predecessor's Time and it seems Prosecuted then too that his Brother Sir Maurice Abbot was fain being then a Parishioner of his to labour hard to keep him in The Second Charge was concerning Nathaniel Wickens a Servant of Mr. Pryns 1. The First Witness in this Cause was William Wickens Father to Nathaniel He says his Son was Nine Weeks in divers Prisons and for no Cause but for that he was Mr. Pryn's Servant But it appears apud Acta that there were many Articles of great Misdemeanour against him And afterwards himself adds That he knew no Cause but his refusing to take the Oath Ex Officio Why but if he knew that then he knew another Cause beside his being Mr. Pryn's Servant Unless he will say all Mr. Pryn's Servants refuse that Oath and all that refuse that Oath are Mr. Pryn's Servants As for the Sentence which was laid upon him and the Imprisonment that was the Act of the High-Commission not mine Then he says That my Hand was first in the Warrant for his Commitment And so it was to be of course 2. The Second Witness was Sarah Wayman She says that he refused to take the Oath Therefore he was not committed for being Mr. Pryn's Servant She says that for refusing the Oath he was threatned he should be taken pro Confesso And that when one of the Doctors replyed that could not be done by the Order of the Court I should say I would have an Order by the next Court Day 'T is manifest in the Course of that Court that any Man may be taken pro Confesso that will not take the Oath and answer Yet seeing how that party of Men prevailed and that one Doctors doubting might breed more Difference to the great Scandal and Weakning of that Court I publickly acquainted his Majesty and the Lords with it Who were all of Opinion that if such Refusers might not be taken pro Confesso the whole Power of the Court was shaken And hereupon his Majesty sent his Letter under his Signet to command us to uphold the Power of the Court and to proceed She says farther that he desired the sight of his Articles which was denyed him It was the constant and known Course of that Court that he might not see the Articles till he had taken the Oath which he refused to do 3. The Third Witness was one Flower He agrees about the business of taking him pro Confesso But that 's answerd He adds that there was nothing laid to his Charge and yet confesses that Wickens desired to see the Articles that were against him This is a pretty Oath There were Articles against him which he desired to see and yet there was nothing laid to his Charge 4. Then was produced his Majesty's Letter sent unto us And herein the King requires us by his Supream Power Ecclesiastical to proceed c. We had been in a fine case had we disobeyed this Command Besides my Lords I pray mark it we are enjoyned to proceed by the King 's Supream Power Ecclesiastical and yet it is here urged against me that this was done to bring in Popery An Excellent new way of bringing in Popery by the King's Supremacy Yea but they say I should not have procured this Letter Why I hope I may by all Lawful ways preserve the Honour and just Power of the Court in which I sat And 't is expressed in the Letter that no 〈◊〉 was done than was agreeable to the Laws and Customs of the Realm And 't is known that both an Oath and a taking pro Confesso in point of refusal are used both in the Star-Chamber and in the Chancery 5. The last Witness was Mr. Pryn who says That his Man was not suffered to come to him during his Soarness when his ears were Cropped This Favour should have been asked of the Court of Star-Chamber not of me And yet here is no Proof that I denyed him this but the bare Report of him whom he says he employed Nor do I remember any Man's coming to me about it The Third Charge followed it was concerning stopping of Book
from the Press both Old and New and expunging some things out of them 1. The first Instance was about the English Bibles with the Geneva Notes The Bibles with those Notes were tolerated indeed both in Queen Elizabeths and King James his Time but allowed by Authority in neither And King James said plainly That he thought the Geneva Translation was the worst and many of the Notes very Partial Vntrue Seditious and savouring too much of Dangerous and Traiterous Conceits And gave Instance This passage I then read to the Lords And withal told them that now of late these Notes were more commonly used to ill purposes than formerly and that that was the Cause why the High-Commission was more careful and strict against them than before Here Michael Sparks the Elder came in as Witness and said he was called into the High Commission about these Books But he confesses it was not only for them He says the restraint of those Bibles was for the Notes But he adds as he supposes And his Supposal is no Proof Besides he might have added here also that the restraint was not for the Notes only For by the numerous coming over of Bibles both with and without Notes from Amsterdam there was a great and a just fear conceived that by little and little Printing would quite be carried out of the Kingdom For the Books which came thence were better Print better Bound better Paper and for all the Charges of bringing sold better Cheap And would any Man Buy a worse Bible Dearer that might have a better more Cheap And to preserve Printing here at home as well as the Notes was the Cause of stricter looking to those Bibles And this appears by a Letter of Sir William Boswell's his Majesty's Agent in the Low Countreys the Letter written to me and now produced against me But makes for me as I conceive For therein he sends me word of two Impressions of the Bible in English one with Notes and the other without And desires me to take care to regulate this business at home What should I do Should I sleep upon such Advertisements as these and from such a hand Especially since he sends word also that Dr. Amyes was then Printing of a Book wholly against the Church of England So my Care was against all underminings both at home and abroad of the Established Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England for which I am now like to suffer And I pray God that point of Arminianism Libertas Prophetandi do not more Mischief in short time than is expressible by me 2. The Second Instance was about the New Decree of the 〈◊〉 concerning Printing Four Articles of this Decree were read namely the 1 2 18 24. What these are may be seen in the Deecree And as I think that whole Decree made Anno 1637. useful and necessary So under your Lordships Favour I think those Four Articles as necessary as any Mr. Waly and Mr. Downes two Stationers Witnesses in this Particular say That they desired some Mitigation of the Decree and that Judge Bramston said he could not do it without me I saw my Lord Chief Justice Bramston here in the Court but the other Day why was not he examined but these Men only who oppose all Regulating of the Press that opposes their Profit And sure that grave Judge meant he could not do it alone without the consent of the Court. Or if he would have me Consulted it was out of his Judicious Care for the Peace of this Church almost Pressed to Death by the Liberty of Printing The Chief Grievance they Expressed against the new Licensing of Books was only for matter of Charges But that is provided for in the Eighteenth Article And Mr. Downes takes a fine Oath which was that he makes no doubt but that all was done by my Direction and yet adds that he cannot say it So he swears that which himself confesses he cannot say And manifest it is in the Preface that this Decree was Printed by Order of the Court and so by their Command sent to the Stationers Hall And the end of it was to suppress Seditious Schismatical and Mutinous Books as appears in the First Article 3. The Third Instance was That I used my Power to suppress Books in Holland This was drawn out of a Letter which John le Mare one of the Prime Preachers in Amsterdam writ to me expressing therein that since the Proclamation made by the States no Man durst meddle with Printing any Seditious Libels against either the State or Church of England Where 's the Fault For this Gentleman did a very good Office to this Kingdom and Church in procuring that Proclamation For till this was done every discontented Spirit could Print what he pleased at Amsterdam against either And if he had any Direction from me about it which is not proved I neither am nor can be sorry for it And the Fear which kept Men in from Printing proceeded from the Proclamation of the States not from any Power of mine 4. The Fourth Instance was in the Book of Martyrs But that was but named to Credit a base Business an Almanack made by one Mr. Genebrand In which he had left out all the Saints Apostles and all and put in those which are named in Mr. Fox And yet not all them neither for he had left out the Solemn Days which are in Fox as Feb. 2. Feb. 25. Mar. 25. And Cranmer Translated to Mar. 23. In this Particular Mr. Genebrand Brother to this Almanack-maker witnesseth that the Queen sent to me about this New Almanack If her Majesty did send to me about it as 't is probable she would disdain the Book is that any Crime in me Could I prevent her Majestys sending who could not know so much as that she would send He says his Brother was acquitted in the High-Commission but charged by me that he made a Faction in the Court If I did say so surely my Lords I saw some practising by him in this new-found way He says the Papists bought up a great number of these Almanacks and burnt them It seems he could not hinder that nor I neither unless it shall not be Lawful for a Papist to buy an Almanack For when he hath bought him he may burn him if he please But since the Book of Martyrs was named I shall tell your Lordships how careful I was of it It is well known how easily Abridgments by their Brevity and their Cheapness in short time work out the Authors themselves Mr. Young the Printer laboured me earnestly and often for an Abridgment of the Book of Martyrs But I still withstood it as my Secretary here present can Testifie upon these two Grounds The one lest it should bring the large Book it self into disuse And the other lest if any Material thing should be left out that should have been charged as done of purpose by me as now I see it is in other Books
which we differ from them And Mr. Wakerly confesses that the Words as alter'd are That they are Persecuted for their Religion and their Religion is the Protestant Religion and so is ours And therefore I could have no intention to make the Religions different but the Opinions under the same Religion For Mr Wakerly he is a Dutchman born and how far the Testimony of an Alien may be of force by the Law I know not And a bitter Enemy to me he hath ever shewed himself since I complained to the King and the Lords that a Stranger born and bred should be so near a Secretary of State and all his Papers and Cyphers as he was known to be to Mr. Secretary Coke A thing which few States would indure And how far the Testimony of such a Canker'd Enemy should be admitted let the World judge Admitted he was 2. The Second Witness was Mr 〈◊〉 He acknowledges my improvement of the Collection and my great readiness therein which doubtless I should not have shewed had I accounted them of another Religion He says there was no Alteration but in that Clause and that implies a manifest difference But that is but in his Judgment in which I have already shewed that Wakerly is mistaken and so is he Beside he comes here as a Witness of the Fact not as a Judge of my Intentions or Thoughts He adds That if he remember well the Alteration was drawn by me But if he do not remember well what then Surely here 's no Evidence to be grounded upon Ifs. Here upon the point of Antichrist Mr. Nicolas stiled me as before and was furious till he foamed again but I saw a necessity of Patience Mr. Brown also in his Summary Ch followed this Business close But I gave it the same Answer The Fifth Charge and the last under this Article was the calling in of a Book An. 1637. shewing the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church in the Palatinat but called in only because against Arminianism The single Witness Michael Sparks He says this Book was called in but he knows not by whom nor mentions he for what But he says The Pursevants which searched for it were mine He means such as belonged to the High-Commission for other than such I had none And there was cause enough for calling in the Book without thinking of Arminianism But what is the Reason why here 's nothing urged against me about Abrogating the Immunities and Priviledges of the French and Dutch Churches which fill the Body of this Article Why I conceive there may be two Reasons of it One because there was taken by Mr. Pryn among other Papers for my Defence a Letter under Queen Elizabeth's own Hand to the Lord Pawlet Marquess of Winchester then Lord Treasurer in which she expresses her willingness that those Strangers distressed in and for point of Conscience should have Succour and free Entertainment but should conform themselves to the English Liturgy and have that Translated into their own Language And they knew I would call to have this Letter produced proved and read And had this Letter been stood unto they had never been able to do the Church of England half the harm they have since done The other was because they found by their own search against me that all which I did concerning those Churches was with this Moderation that all those of their several Congregations in London Canterbury Sandwich Norwich or elsewhere which were of the second Descent and born in England should repair to their several Parish Churches and Conform themselves to the Doctrine Discipline and Liturgy of the Church of England and not live continually in an open Separation as if they were an Israel in AEgypt to the great distraction of the Natives of this Kingdom and the assisting of that Schism which is now broke forth And as this was with great Moderation so was it with the joint Approbation of his Majesty and the Lords of his Council upon the Reasons openly given and debated And all this before I proceeded to do any thing As appears apud Acta Then they went to the Thirteenth Original Article which here follows He hath Trayterously and Wickedly endeavoured to reconcile the Church of England with the Church of Rome and for the effecting thereof hath Consorted and Confederated with divers Popish Priests and Jesuits and hath kept secret Intelligence with the Pope of Rome and by himself his Agents or Instruments Treated with such as have from thence received Authority and Instruction He hath permitted and countenanced a Popish Hierarchy or Ecclesiastical Government to be Established in this Kingdom By all which Trayterous and Malicious Practices this Church and Kingdom have been exceedingly indangered and like to fall under the Tyranny of the Roman See The Seventh Additional Article That the said Arch-Bishop at several times within these Ten Years last past at Westminster and elsewhere within this Realm contrary to the known Laws of this Land hath endeavoured to advance Popery and Superstition within the Realm And for that End and Purpose hath wittingly and willingly received harboured and relieved divers Popish Priests and Jesuits namely one called Sancta Clara alias Damport a dangerous Person and Franciscan Friar who having written a Popish and Seditious Book Intituled Deus Natura Gratia wherein the Thirty nine Articles of the Church of England established by Act of Parliament were much Traduced and Scandalized the said Arch-Bishop had divers Conferences with him while he was in writing the said Book and did also provide Maintenance and Entertainment for one Monsieur S. Giles a Popish Priest at Oxford knowing him to be a Popish Priest The First Charge they say was to be laid as a Foundation and it was That I was generally reputed a Papist in Heart both in Oxford and since I came thence 1. The first Witness for this was Dr. Featly He says There was such an Opinion of me Thirty Years since there But he says he never heard any Popish Opinion maintained by me So here 's nothing of Knowledge And if I should say that above Thirty Years ago there was an Opinion that Dr. Featly then in Oxford was a Puritan this could make no Proof against him nor can his saying that I was reputed a Papist make any Proof against me He says farther That one Mr. Russel who had been bred in S. John's College told him in Paris That I maintained some Catholick Opinions First Mr. Nicolas would have it that this Mr. Russel was my Scholar But that the whole College can witness it is not so nor had he ever any relation to me in the least Degree After his Father's Death he left the College and went beyond Sea where the Weak Man for such he was lost his Religion Secondly Dr. Featly says expresly that Mr. Russel said I was no Papist which for the Countenance of his own Change he would never have said had he thought me one Thirdly if he did say
and by the Council-Table the Courts of Star-Chamber and High-Commission and in Convocation and because many more things so done are to come in the next Head concerning the Law I humbly crave leave for avoiding tedious Repetition to say it once for all That no act done by any of these either by full Consent or major Part which involves the rest ought to be charged singly against me And that for these Reasons following 1. First because this is not Peccare cum Multis For they meet not there in a Relation as Multi but as Vnum Aggregatum as Bodies made one by Law And therefore the Acts done by them are Acts of those Bodies not of any one Man sitting in them And in this Sense a Parliament is one Body consisting of many and the Acts done by it are Acts of Parliament For which should any of them prove amiss no one Man is answerable though many times one Man brings in the Bill 2. Secondly because I could sway no Man's Vote in any of those Places though this hath been often urged against me as an Over Potent Member for my Vote was either last or last save one in all these Places So I could not lead Nor is there any so much as shew of Proof offered that I moved or prepared any Man to a Sentence one way or other in any one of these Courts or Places 3. Thirdly because in those Courts of Judicature there was the Assistance of able Judges Lawyers and Divines for direction And how can that be a Treason in me which is not made so much as a Misdemeanour in any of the rest 4. Fourthly because the Act of this present Parliament which hath taken away the Star-Chamber and the High-Commission and bounded the Council-Table looks forward only and punishes no Man for any Act past much less doth it make any Man's Actions done in them to be Treason And I am no way excluded from the Benefit of that Act. 5. Lastly because in all my Proceedings both in the High-Commission and elsewhere I kept strictly to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England Established by Law against both Papist and other Sectaries And under this Government and Doctrine of this Church it hath pleased God now for above Fourscore Years together to Bless this Kingdom and People above other Nations And I pray God if we forsake the one it prove not a Cause to deprive us of the other And now Mr. Speaker I shall follow this worthy Gentleman as he went on to the Second General Head the Subversion of the Laws And here when he had caused the 1 2 3 5 and 14. Original Articles to be read as also the 2 9 and 10. Additionals He then said that I had laboured this Subversion by my Counsels and by my Actions 1. By my Counsels First Of which he gave Three Instances 1. The Vote of the Council-Table to Assist the King in Extraordinary ways if the Parliament should prove peevish and refuse And this out of my Diary at Decemb. 5. 1639. 2. The Passage in the Epistle before my Speech in Star-Chamber Not one Way of Government since the Humours of the People were in continual Change 3. A Speech at Council-Table That now the King might use his own Power c. Witnessed only by Sir Henry Vane the Elder 2. From my Counsels proceed was made to my Actions Where the Particulars were 1. That I attempted to set Proclamations above the Law 2. That I was for all Illegal Projects at the Council-Table Instanced in Inclosures in the Ship-Money and Sir John Corbett's Commitment 3. The taking down of the Houses about St. Paul's with the large Commission for the Repair of the West-End 4. The stopping of Two Brewers in their Trade being in Westminster and pretended to annoy the Court. 5. Things done by me as Referee Instanced in a Case between Rich and Pool and another of one Symmes 6. Obstructing the Course of Law by sending to Judges Instanced in the Parishioners of Beckington in the Case of Ferdinando Adams in Sir Henry Martyn's Case about an Attorney at Law Judge Richardson's Words in Mr. Huntley's Case and Baron Trevers Words in Grafton's Case 7. The punishing Men that came in a Legal Way Instanced in the Case of New-comin and Burrowes that I said in the High-Commission I hoped to see the Clergy exempt again the next hundred Years the two Church-wardens of Chesham with Words concerning Sir Thomas Dacres 8. The Case of Prohibitions and Mr. Wheeler's Note out of a Sermon of mine concerning them 9. That no Pope ever claimed so much Jurisdiction not from the King 10. The Canons and I the main Man the over-grown Member again 11. The Statutes of Oxford enforced a second time Nevill's Case of Merton-College instanced in 12. Books Printed that are against the Law Instanced in Cowell's Interpreter and Dr. Manwaring's Sermons 13. The Alteration of the King's Oath at his Coronation 14. My Enmity to Parliaments To all which as I then gave sufficient Answers so I hope the Courteous Reader hath found them at large in their several Places And for this last concerning Parliaments I humbly and heartily desire that this may be taken notice of and remembred That there is not in any one of these Paper-Proofs produced against me any one thing that offers to take away any Rights of Parliaments rightly understood much less any that offers to take away Parliaments themselves Which is a continued Mistake all along this particular Charge And if any rash or unweighed Words have fallen from me yet these cannot be extended to the disannulling of Parliaments or their Priviledges in any kind which I defended in Print long since before I could foresee any of this Danger threatning me It is in my Book against Fisher. It was read in the Lords House and I humbly desire I may read it here And it was read After this it was inferred by this worthy Gentleman what a great Offender I was and greater than Cardinal Woolsey Mr. Speaker I have seen the Articles against the Cardinal and sure some body is mistaken for some of them are far greater than any thing that is proved against me In which I thank Christ for it my Conscience is at peace whereas the Cardinal confessed himself guilty of them all and yet no thought of Treason committed And a Premunire was all that was laid upon him Then he gave a touch That in Edward III.'s time there was a Complaint That too much of the Civil Government was in the hands of the Bishops and that in the 45th Year of his Reign they were put out and Lay-men put in But first this concerns not me Secondly the late Act of this Parliament hath taken sufficient Order with that Calling for medling in Civil Affairs Thirdly the time is memorable when this was done It was in the Forty and fifth Year of Edward III. That 's enough Mr. Speaker I shall draw towards an end
apply this term unto are the Brownists as they call them by another Name and they know their Tenents The truth is they differ with us in no Fundamental Point of Doctrine or saving Truth I know Here then my Lord is 〈◊〉 to say that all that he hath hitherto said is so far from making him the greatest Separatist in England that it cannot argue him to be any at all For my part I would to God it were so But let 's examine whether it be so or not First then this I humbly conceive is certain That he whoever he be that will not Communicate in Publick Prayers with a National Church which serves God as she ought is a Separatist But the Church of England as it stands established by Law serves God as she ought Therefore my Lord by his general absenting himself from her Communion in Prayers is a Separatist And this is by his own confession For he says a little before and that expresly that this is a Separation which every Man must make that will keep himself pure from other Mens Sins And I cannot doubt but his Lordship hath made that which he says he must make All that can be said for my Lord herein is this First That my Lord Charges the Church of England with Corruptions in the Worship of God and such Corruptions as he must Separate from her But is it sufficient for a Separation for a particular Man barely to say there are such Corruptions in the Liturgy when he doth neither prove them to be such nor so much as name them what they are Surely no. And I think these Gnats which his Lordship strains at may be swallowed without any Offence to God or Man So far are they from being a just Cause of Separation Therefore for all this my Lord is a Separatist Yea but my Lord charges upon the Church of England that she injoyns her Liturgy upon all Men by a certain Number of Men usurping Authority to themselves and imposing this Injunction under the name of the Church I have made answer already to this Power of the Church to compose a set Form for publick Service and I hope made it manifest that this Authority is not usurped And then that can be no just Cause of a Separation Nay I must doubt whether if such Authority were usurped by some Church-Men in any National Church the injoyning of the Service after it is made supposing always that it contain no Idolatry or Fundamental Error be for the Injunction alone a sufficient Warrant to my Lord or any other to Separate Therefore my Lord 's forsaking the publick Service of the Church upon no better Grounds than these makes him a Separatist by his own Confession without any Man calling him so As for his Lordship's being the greatest Separatist in England I have at the beginning of this Tract clearly related to the uttermost of my Memory what and upon what occasion I spake of his Lordship in this kind But whether I said it or not my Lord for ought I see will hardly escape being so For he is the greatest Separatist from the Church that absents himself with most will and least cause And this if I mistake not is my Lord's Case for he separates with most will that says Men must and ought to Separate And upon least Cause because as yet he hath Named none at all but Corruptions in general which any Man may say and the Injunction of a set Form which is no cause Therefore for ought I yet see it may truly be said of his Lordship that he is the greatest Separatist in England Especially if you add to this how busie and active his Lordship is and for many Years hath been to promote this Cause of Separation And I have some very good grounds to think that his Lordship hath been and is the great Cause and enlarger of all the Separation that now is in Church Affairs And of all the Disobedience thereby bred or cherished against Soveraign Power Next my Lord appeals to my Lords the Bishops and tells them that they know that they whom they usually apply this Name Separatist unto are the Brownists as they call them by another Name I know not all things which the rest of my Learned Brethren the Bishops know Yet I think both they and I know this that the Name Separatist is a common Name to all Hereticks or Schismaticks that separate for their Opinions sakes either from the Catholick or from any particular Orthodox Church And if my Lord himself who it seems is well acquainted with them or any of my Lords the Bishops do know that this Name is usually applyed to the Brownists be it so That I am sure is not material unless it be for that which my Lord closes this passage withal Namely that my Lords the Bishops know the Tenents of the Brownists and that the truth is they differ from us in no Fundamental Point of Doctrine or Saving Truth that his Lordship knows I doubt not but my Lords the Bishops know the Tenents of the Brownists so far forth at least as they be Tenents and not varied from and so far as they are their General Tenents to which all or most of them agree And so far as they are plain and univocal Tenents and not such as shall equivocate with the very Faith it self But such Tenents of the Brownists as these are it may be all my Lords the Bishops know not Now if the Truth be as my Lord says it is for ought he knows that the Brownists differ from us in no Fundamental Point of Doctrine or saving Truth Then out of all doubt Majus peccatum habent their Sin and my Lord 's too is the greater that they will so Uncharitably and with so great Heat and setled Violence and to the great scandal of Religion first separate themselves from and now labour utterly to overthrow that Church which by my Lord 's own Confession here differs not from them in any Fundamental Point of Doctrine or saving Truth For sure if they differ not from us we differ not from them But this is only Argumentum ad Hominem and is sufficient to convince this Lord I think in his own way But I doubt the Truth is quite another thing Namely that the Church of England is very Orthodox and that the Brownists or Separatists call them as you will do Separate upon false and unchristian Opinions And that besides Matters of Opinion and breach of Charity they do differ from us in some Fundamental Points of Doctrine and saving Truth My Lord a little before tells us of Corruptions in the Liturgy of the Church but names none And should I charge the Brownists with difference from the Church in Fundamental Points of Doctrine and yet name none I should run into the same fault for which I there taxed my Lord I shall therefore give some Instances of some of their Opinions and then leave the indifferent Reader to judge whether
they do not differ from us in some Fundamental Points of Doctrine and saving Truth And then consequently whether it be not an Heretical as well as a Schismatical Separation which they make from the Church of England 1. And first there was a Creed Printed by John Turner in this present Year and the Parliament sitting This Turner is a Notorious Separatist or Brownist if you will In this Creed of his he leaves out the descent of Christ into Hell This is an Article of the Apostle's Creed And 't is an Article of the Church of England And so I presume a Fundamental Point of Doctrine Yet herein this Brownist and his Fellows differ from us And I have heard from some present that at a Committee of Lords appointed for Matters of Religion a young Lord should say openly and boldly enough that he did not believe the descent of Christ into Hell And that my Lord the Author of this Speech should second him 2. In the same Creed Turner professes he believes that Christ Instituted by his Apostles certain particular Churches here on Earth and no other So the Catholick Church the Mother of all particular both Men and Churches and out of which there can be no Salvation in the ordinary way is quite thrust out of this Brownist's Creed And this I hope is another Fundamental Point of Doctrine and saving Truth But in this I must do my Lord right and not charge him with this point Because a little before his Lordship tells of a two-fold Separation one whereof he says is from the Vniversal or Catholick Church So the Catholick Church is not yet thrust out of my Lord's Creed But then this appears that the Separatists are not yet agreed upon all the Articles of their Creed Nay some of them call the Apostle's Creed a patched Forgery And Barrow justifies it 3. Thirdly they differ from us in charging gross Corruptions upon the Church of England And these are known to my Lord for he acknowledges them and so gross that should they be true the Church of England must be faulty in Fundamental and Saving Truth As shall farther appear in my Answer to my Lord's next Passage Therefore if their Charge be true they must by my Lord 's own Confession differ from us in Fundamental and saving Truth And if their Charge be false why do they separate from us Besides all Anabaptists and Brownists agree in this that the Church of England is Antichristian And if it be so they must either differ in Fundamentals from the Church of England Or be Antichristian themselves in joyning with them Or grant that Christ and Antichrist have one and the same Foundation 4. Fourthly some of them yet living though they dare not speak it out in all Companies do cunningly insinuate That at Death Soul and Body are extinct together but shall rise again at the Resurrection first or last And that Christ shall come and live here upon the Earth again That the Martyrs shall then rise and live with him a Thousand Years And that Christ once come upon the Earth shall not for any thing they can learn out of Scripure ever depart from the Earth again 5. Fifthly one Brierly and his Independent Congregation are of this Belief That the Child of God in the Power of Grace doth perform every Duty so well that to ask Pardon for failing either in matter or manner is a Sin That it is unlawful to pray for Forgiveness of Sins after their Conversion With divers others some as bad some worse to the number of Fifty 6. Sixthly One Spisberrye yet living and of that Independent Fraternity maintains that God works all things in us and that we are but Organs Instruments and meer empty Trunks Which is to make God the Author of all the Sins which Men commit And therefore Brierly says expresly that if they do at any time fall they can by the power of Grace carry their Sin to the Lord and say here I had it and here I leave it Will not the Devil one day stop the Mouth of this Blasphemy 7. Seventhly Mr. Pryn himself who hath been a great stickler in these Troubles of the Church says expresly Let any true Saint of God be taken away in the very act of any known Sin before it is possible for him to Repent I make no doubt or Scruple of it but he shall as surely be saved as if he had lived to have repented of it And he instances in David in case he had been taken away before he had repented of his Adultery and Murther So according to this Divinity the true Saints of God may commit horrible and carying Sins dye without Repentance and yet be sure of Salvation which teareth up the very Foundations of Religion induceth all manner of Profaneness into the World and is expresly contrary to the whole current of the Scripture 8. In the Eighth place almost all of them say That God from all Eternity Reprobates by far the greater part of Mankind to eternal Fire without any Eye at all to their Sin Which Opinion my very Soul abominates For it makes God the God of all Mercies to be the most fierce and unreasonable Tyrant in the World For the Question is not here what God may do by an absolute act of Power would he so use it upon the Creature which he made of nothing But what he hath done and what stands with his Wisdom Justice and Goodness to do 9. Ninthly One Lionel Lockier now or late of Cranbrooke in Kent among other his Errors rails against teaching Children the Lord's Prayer or other Forms of Catechising And if they differ from the Church of England in the whole Catechism I think the Lord must work a Miracle before he can make his Speech good That they differ from us in no Fundamental point 10. Lastly to omit all those base Opinions in which the Brownists agree with the Anabaptists this in which they differ from them will be sufficient to prove that they differ from us in that which is fundamental unless they will say that to believe the Trinity is not Fundamental For some of them and by name one Glover deny the Deity of the Holy Ghost Which stands condemned for a gross and Fundamental Heresie in the Second General Council held against Macedonius And for the Familists of which there is Store this Day in England they deny the Resurrection of the Flesh turning it as they do many other things into a Mystery or Allegorie Perhaps more particulars might be found upon a narrow search But if there be no more these are enough to make it evident to the World that these Separatists 〈◊〉 from us in some fundamental points of Doctrine or saving Truth And as these are in fault for their Separation so I doubt the Church is to blame for not proceeding against such of them as are altogether incorrigible But whether my Lord thinks these to be
Fundamental Points or whether he know that the Brownists do differ from us in them I shall not take on me to declare till his Lordship open himself farther In the mean time his Lordship goes on to tell us wherein these Brownists fail though they do not differ in Fundamental Points to his Knowledge Their failing is in this They hold that there is no true Church in England no true Ministry no true Worship which depend the one upon the other they say all is Antichristian Here is their Error they distinguish not between the bene esse or Purity of a true Church and the esse or true being of it though with many Defects and gross Corruptions But conclude because such things are wanting which are indeed necessary to the well-being of a true Church and to be desired therefore there is none at all in being Here my Lord shews a great deal of sharp and good Apprehension And distinguishes very rightly between the entire being of a true Church which is her bene esse and the true Being of a Church which is her esse only And my Lord doth farther fairly acknowledge that this is the Brownists Error To conclude no Church in being because it hath many Defects and gross Corruptions in it to hinder its well-being So then my Lord here grants two things First that to hold there is no True Church in England no True Ministry no true Worship which depend one upon another but that all is Antichristian is an Error And Secondly that it is the Brownists Error How and how far these Three No True Church no True Ministry no True Worship depend one upon another And in what cases it may in some Exigents be otherways I will not now dispute nor divert from the main Business 1. First then if it be an Error to say there is no True Church no True Ministry no True Worship in England Then I hope it will be found Truth to say there is a True Church a True Ministry and a True Worship in England And he that shall avow the contrary must needs differ from the Church of England in Fundamentals For these Contradictions a True Church and no True Church a True Ministry and no True Ministry a True Worship of God and no True Worship cannot be built up but upon different Foundations And as for that which my Lord affirms is added by the Brownists That there are many Defects and gross Corruptions in it So long as this is said and not proved 't is enough without farther Proof to deny both the Defects and Corruptions both the many and the gross As I doubt not but the Church of England can make good against both my Lord and all the Brownists in England 2. Secondly if to affirm this be the Brownists Error then I would fain know of my Lord how he can say the Brownists do not differ from or with us in any fundamental Point of Doctrine or saving Truth For if this be no fundamental Point or no saving Truth that we be in and of a true Church that this Church hath a true Ministry to be between God and us in all the Duties of their Function whether upward to God in Prayer and Spiritual Sacrifice or downward to us in the Word and Sacraments that in this Church and by this Ministry there is a true Worship and that without gross Corruptions What can be accounted next the Creed it self fundamental or saving So that in one Line my Lord is pleased to say the Brownists do not differ with us in any fundamental Point of Doctrine or saving Truth and in the very next Line his Lordship confesses they differ from us in these three things which if not several yet altogether as they depend one upon another are saving and fundamental Nor can this cautelous close help my Lord one jot that he adds The Brownists do not differ from us in any fundamental point of Doctrine or saving Truth as his Lordship knows For were his Lordship of a shallow or narrow Comprehension 't were another matter But since he is so full of understanding in these things 't is impossible but he must know these three together are fundamental and being so he must needs know also that the Brownists differ with us in Fundamentals which is that which he denyed If therefore my Lord will say he knows not this to be the Brownists Error why doth he take upon him to say it is If he will grant that he knows it he must needs know withal if he will not shut out the Light of his Conscience of which a little before he is so tender that the Brownists or Separatists call them what you will differ from us in some fundamental Points of Doctrine or saving Truth Thus far then my Lord relates the failing of the Brownist I hope he will be so careful as not to fail with them himself Yes sure for he adds I hold no such Opinion but do believe to the contrary That there are in England many true Churches and a true Ministry which I do hear and with which Churches I could joyn in Communion were those Yokes of Bondage which are laid upon them taken off and those Corruptions removed which they do contrary as I think to their Duty yield unto and admit of And this I am sure no Separatist in England holds that deserves that Name And therefore I hope your Lordships will in that respect let me stand right in your Opinions Here my Lord tells us he holds no such Opinion but does believe to the contrary But I doubt he so believes to the contrary as that he is of the same Opinion For he believes that there are in England many true Churches and a true Ministry And so do all the Brownists For no doubt but they believe that all their Congregations or Conventicles are true Churches in England and that the Ministers which they hear are true Ministers And this is plainly my Lord's Belief For he saith he believes there is a true Ministry in England 〈◊〉 he doth hear But what Ministers they are which he doth hear he does not say Or if this be not my Lord's meaning but that there are some true Churches and some true Ministers in England though ordained as in England they are yet my Lord continues a Separatist still For his Lordship doth not say either that he doth or that he will or that he can joyn in Communion with any of these Churches or this Ministry which he says are true But only that he could joyn with them if If what Why if these Yokes of Bondage were taken off which are laid upon them and those Corruptions removed By the Yokes of Bondage he means the Injunction of a set Form of Prayers which he hath so often mentioned in this Speech But what Corruptions he means I know not till his Lordship shall be pleased to tell us Only this I conceive I may add That all things are not Corruptions in the Church
which my Lord calls so That if these Corruptions be fundamental they may be such too as may keep these Churches which he speaks of from being true Churches and the Ministry from being a true Ministry But if these Corruptions be of a very light Allay as I verily believe they are if there be any then his Lordship ought not to separate but to joyn in Communion with them for all these either Yokes or Corruptions The Apostle indeed tells us of a Church without Wrinkle Ephes. 5. But that is a Triumphant Church in Heaven not a Militant upon Earth And for the Yokes which my Lord speaks of they are not Yokes of Bondage as he pleases to call them but Yokes of Obedience which whenever they shall be broken the wild Asses of the Wilderness will over-run all My Lord goes farther and says That in these true Churches this true Ministry does yield unto and admit of these Yokes and these Corruptions contrary as he thinks to their Duty But it seems they think not so or if they do think so why do they not remonstrate their Grievance Sure if their Conscience tell them they do against their Duty they ought to inform their Conscience or forbear the Work To inform their Conscience I am sure is fit for them if they need it Though it seems my Lord would rather have them forbear the Duty the doing whereof he calls their yielding unto and their admitting these things which he calls Yokes and Corruptions As for that which follows and which my Lord says he is sure of that no Separatist in England that deserves that Name holds that which his Lordship says here he doth believe In that also I conceive his Lordship is utterly mistaken For I believe there is no Separatist in England Brownist or other deserving that Name but he holds and will say as much as my Lord believes namely that there are in England many true Churches that is Assemblies or Congregations of their own Brotherhood And a true Ministry To wit those which themselves have made And that they do hear them that is such as these Yea and that they could joyn in Communion with some other Churches were those Yokes of Bondage which are layd upon them taken off and those Corruptions removed That is upon the matter if they would become as themselves are then they would joyn with them And this 〈◊〉 of all doubt they think they ought to do and neither yield unto such Yoeks nor admit of such Corruptions So that my Lord may see every 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in England even they which most deserve that Name hold that which his Lordship believes And therefore no question can be made but that my Lord deserves that Name as much as any of them even while he says he is sure no Separatist in England that deserves that Name holds as he doth But to come to the quick The Brownists and Separatists deal plainly with God and the World and say expresly that the whole Church of England as it stands established by Law is peccant both in the Doctrine Liturgy and Discipline of it and in such a degree as that they neither will nor can joyn in Communion with it And therefore separate from it and betake themselves to their own private Opinions and Congregations But my Lord he Equivocates both with God and Man And tells us he believes there are true Churches in England and a true Ministry which he hears And this no Separatist that understands himself but will say as fast as he But let his Lordship come home to the Business directly and plainly Let him say that the Church of England is a true Church That the Ministry of it is a true Ministry That the Doctrine Liturgy and Discipline of it as it stands established now by Law are free from any such Corruptions as give just cause for a Separation And when he hath said this let him joyn in Communion with it as he ought to do and then he shall wrong my Lord very deeply that says he is a Separatist But for all this which he hath yet said for himself 't is manifest that a Separatist he is And I doubt hath hereby proved himself whether I will or no the greatest Separatist in England And therefore he hath little cause to hope as he says he doth that he shall stand right in their Lordships Opinions or any other Man's that is not possest with the same Humour Yet my Lord hath two Requests to make I will now end with two Requests The one that your Lordships will please to pardon me for troubling you with so long a Discourse concerning my self I have not used it heretofore and I am not like to offend again in the same kind It is but once and your Lordships will consider the occasion In this Suit were there need I would joyn with my Lord. For though I have a great deal of hard Measure put upon me in this Speech yet I have the more reason to be content with it because this whole Discourse of my Lord's well weighed is more against himself than me And such Trouble of his Lordship's I hope all Men well affected to the present Church of England will easily Pardon And this I doubt not but their Lordships and all Men else will the rather do when they consider the Occasion Which certainly I gave not personally in the House But a Guilty Conscience it seems would needs be meant The Second Request is to entreat of you that where you know there is one and the same God worshipped one and the same Faith embraced one and the same Spirit working Love and causing an unblamable Conversation without any offence to the State in your Brethren who in all these concur with you you will not suffer them for Ceremonies and Things indifferent to you but not to them but Burthens which without offence to the State or prejudice to the Churches you may take off if you will to be thrust out of the Land and cut off from their Native Country For if you thus shall wound the Consciences of your Brethren you will certainly offend and sin against Christ. In this second Request I can easily agree with my Lord in some things but must differ in other And First I agree with all my Heart that I would have no pressure at all much less cutting off from their Native Country put upon them who are known to worship the same God to embrace one and the same Faith and one and the same Spirit working Love But in this I must disagree that the Separatists for they are the Men of whom this Lord speaks thus and says they are your Brethren and concur with you in all these are not known to be such For though he be one and the same God whom they worship yet the Worship is not one and the same For my Lord says plainly that our set Forms are Superstition And that he cannot joyn in Communion with us till our
Novations now spoken of were not then on Foot So that it is evident enough to any Man that will see that these Commotions had another and a higher cause than the present pretended Innovations And if his Majesty had played the King then he needed not have suffered now Besides they are no Fools who have spoken it freely since the Act of Oblivion for the Scottish Business was passed that this great League before mentioned between the discontented Party of both Kingdoms was Consulted on in the Year 1632. and after the King 's being in Scotland Anno 1633. it went on till they took occasion another way to hatch the Cockatrice Egg which was laid so long before But they say these Novations were great besides the Books of Ordination and Homilies So the Books of Ordination and Homilies were great Novations Had they then in Scotland no set Form of Ordination I promise you that 's next Neighbour to no Ordination and no Ordination to no Church formal at least And therefore if this be a Novation among them its high time they had it And for the Homilies if they taught no other Doctrine than was established and current in the Church of Scotland they were no Novations and if they did contain other Doctrine they might have Condemned them and there had been an end Howsoever if these Books be among them in Scotland they were sent thither in King James his Time when the Prelate of Canterbury neither was nor could be the prime cause on Earth of that Novation The other Novations which they proceed unto are first some particular Alterations in matters of Religion pressed upon them without Order and against Law To this I can say nothing till the particular Alterations be named Only this in the general be they what they will the Scottish Bishops were to blame if they pressed any thing without Order or against Law And sure I am the Prelate of Canterbury caused them not nor would have consented to the causing of them had he known them to be such The two other Novations in which they instance are the Book of Canons and the Liturgy which they say contain in them many dangerous Errours in Matter of Doctrine To these how dangerous soever they seem I shall give I hope a very sufficient and clear answer and shall ingenuously set down whatsoever I did either in or to the Book of Canons and the Liturgy and then leave the ingenuous Reader to judge how far the Prelate of Canterbury is the prime cause on Earth of these Things ART I. AND first that this Prelate was the Author and Vrger of some particular Things which made great disturbance amongst us we make manifest first by Fourteen Letters Subscribed W. Cant. in the space of two Years to one of our pretended Bishops Ballatine wherein he often enjoyns him and our other pretended Bishops to appear in the Chappel in their Whites contrary to the Custom of our Kirk and to his own Promise made to the pretended Bishop of Edinburgh at the Coronation That none of them after that Time should be more pressed to wear those Garments thereby moving him against his Will to put them on for that time Here begins the first Charge about the Particular Alterations And first they Charge me with Fourteen Letters written by me to Bishop Ballantyne He was then Bishop of Dunblain and Dean of His Majesties Chappel Royal there He was a Learned and a Grave Man and I did write divers Letters to him as well as to some other Bishops and some by Command but whether just fourteen or no I know not But sure I am their Love to me is such that were any thing worse than other in any of these Letters I should be sure to hear of it First then They say I injoyned wearing of Whites c. surely I understand my self a great deal better than to injoyn where I have no Power Perhaps I might express that which His Majesty Commanded me when I was Dean of his Majesty's Chappel here as this Reverend Bishop was in Scotland And His Majesty's Express Command was that I should take that care upon me that the Chappel there and the Service should be kept answerable to this as much as might be And that the Dean should come to Prayers in his Form as likewise other Bishops when they came thither And let my Letters be shewed whether there be any Injoyning other than this and this way And I am confident His Majesty would never have laid this Task upon me had he known it to be either without Order or against Law Next I am Charged that concerning these Whites I brake my Promise to the Bishop of Edinburgh Truly to the uttermost of my Memory I cannot recall any such Passage or Promise made to that Reverend and Learned Prelate And I must have bin very ill advised had I made any such Promise having no Warrant from his Majesty to ingage for any such thing As for that which follows that he was moved against his will to put on those Garments Truly he expressed nothing at that time to me that might signifie it was against his Will And his Learning and Judgment were too great to stumble at such External Things Especially such having been the Ancient Habits of the most Reverend Bishops from the descent of many Hundred Years as may appear in the Life of St. Cyprian And therefore the Novation was in the Church of Scotland when her Bishops left them off not when they put them on In these Letters he the Prelate of Canterbury directs Bishop Ballantine to give Order for saying the English Service in the Chappel twice a day For his neglect shewing him that he was disappointed of the Bishoprick of Edinburgh promising him upon his greater care of these Novations advancement to a better Bishoprick For the direction for Reading the English Service it was no other than His Majesty Commanded me to give And I hope it is no Crime for a Bishop of England by His Majesties Command to signifie to a Bishop in Scotland what his pleasure is for Divine Service in his own Chappel Nor was the Reading of the English Liturgy any Novation at all in that place For in the Year 1617. I had the Honour as a Chaplain in Ordinary to wait upon King James of Blessed Memory into Scotland and then the English Service was Read in that Chappel and twice a Day And I had the Honour again to wait upon King Charles as Dean of His Majesties Chappel Royal here at his Coronation in Scotland in the Year 1633 And then also was the English Service Read twice a Day in that Chappel And a strict Command was given them by His Majesty that it should be so continued and Allowance was made for it And none of the Scots found any fault with it at that time or after till these Tumults began And for Bishop Ballantyn's missing the Bishoprick of Edinburgh and my promising him
another upon his better Care of his Majesties Commands I gave him both the Answers and the Reason and the Promise which His Majesty gave me and Commanded me to write to him It follows That I taxed him that is Bishop Ballantine for his boldness in Preaching the sound Doctrine of the Reformed Kirks against Mr. Michell who had taught the Error of Arminius in the Point of the Extent of the Merit of Christ. They should do well to shew my Letter and then I will answer punctually to any thing in it In the mean time I do not know that ever Mr. Michell Preached Arminianism For that Christ died for all Men is the Universal and constant Doctrine of the Catholick Church in all Ages and no Error of Arminius And are the express words of Scripture it self in more places than one And the Synod of Dort called purposely about the Errours of Arminius allows this for Orthodox Christum Mortuum esse pro omnibus And for my part I wish with all my heart that this had been the greatest Error of Arminius But yet whether I taxed that worthy Prelate for this or no I know not This I know that if I did tax him he deserved it And for Bishops even of divers Churches to write one to another about Points of Divinity yea and sometimes to tax one another too as their Judgments lead them hath been usual in all Times and Places The next Charge is That I bid him send up a List of the Names of the Counsellors and Senators of the Colledge of Justice who did not Communicate in the Chappel in a Form which was not received in our Kirk And that I commended him when I found him Obsequious to these my Commandments telling him that I had moved the King the Second time for the Punishment of such as had not received in the Chappel Here I must desire again that this Letter of mine may be produced For I have cause enough to suspect some material Change in the Matter or Form of my Words Howsoever if they be justly set down I answer That if this be one of the Things which made great Disturbance amongst them they would be greatly disturbed with a very little For first I writ nothing in this but what I was expresly Commanded by His Majesty And I have His Majesties Warrant under His Hand to keep a Correspondence with that Bishop of Dunblain that from time to time he might receive His Majesties Direction by me for the Ordering of all those Things And howsoever the thing it self is no more than as if His Majesty should Command all his Counsellors and Judges here once in the Year at least to receive the Communion in his Chappel at White-Hall And if you say 't is more because it was to Communicate in such a Form as was not received in the Church of Scotland under Favour that is not so neither For this Form here spoken against was to receive it Kneeling And to receive the Sacrament Kneeling was an Article of the Synod of Perth made in a General Assembly and Confirmed by Act of Parliament Both then in force when my Letters were written And therefore either this Form was received in their Kirk which is here denied Or else there was little Obedience in their Kirk and Kirk-Men either to General Assembly or Parliament As for that which comes fluttering after That I commended him when I found him Obsequious I had reason to do it For whatsoever is said here it was to the Kings Commands not to mine And the Reason why I writ that I had moved the King a Second time for the Punishment of such as disobeyed was because the Bishop had written unto me that if some were not Checked or Punished none would obey And 't is true too that I took occasion once and a second time but upon Second Letters of his to the same effect to move the King But only by shewing His Majesty what was written by him that was upon the place and trusted with the Office Nor did I ever meddle farther in those Businesses than by laying before His Majesty what was written to me to that end Leaving the King as it became me to Judge both of the Motion and the Person that made it as in his Princely Wisdom he thought fit The next thing is that in these Letters I did upbraid him Bishop Ballantine that is that in his First Synod at Aberdeen he had only disputed against our Custom in Scotland of Fasting sometimes on the Lord's Day And that I did Presumptuously Censure their Kirk that in this we were opposite to Christianity it self and that amongst us there was no Canon at all More of this stuff may be seen in the Letters themselves And my humble desire is that the Letters may be seen For whatsoever account is made of this Stuff it was once and in far better times of the Church valued at a better rate And I shall not be ashamed of any Stuff contained in any of my Letters to this Bishop or any other let them be produced when they please But what then is this Stuff 'T is that I upbraid this worthy Prelate about their Custom in Scotland of Fasting sometimes on the Lord's Day And censure their Church presumptuously as opposite herein to Christianity Surely I do not use to upbraid meaner Men than the Bishop is much less presumptuously to censure a Church If I thought as I do that 〈◊〉 in an Errour for only disputing against that which he should have reformed I conceive it was no upbraiding As for the Custom in Scotland of Fasting on the Lord's-Day It is not only sometimes as is here expressed but continually when they have any Solemn Fast the Lord's-Day is the Day for it And if I did Write that that was opposite to Christianity it self I doubt it is too true For it is against the Practice of the whole Church of Christ And that which is so must oppose Christianity it self And this I find That as Apostolical Universal Tradition settled the Lord's-Day for Holy and Publick Worship So from the very Apostles times the same general Tradition hath in all times accounted it unlawful to Fast upon that Day And if an Ordinary Fast were not Lawful upon that Day much less was a Solemn Nor is there any thing more clear in all Antiquity For in the Canons of the Apostles which if they be not theirs are very antient If a Priest did fast upon the Lord's day he was to be deposed and if a Layman he was to be Excommunicated And S. Ignatius tells us if any Man fast upon the Lords Day he is Christ's Interfector a Murtherer of Christ And that I am sure is against Christianity it self Tertullian professes 't is altogether unlawful The Council of Gangra held An. 324. decreed against it and set an Anathema upon it and that not only when it is done in contempt of the Day
ready made That which was mine is here confessed to be but Interlinings and Marginals and Corrections and at most some Additions And they would be found a very small Some were the Original Book seen And yet it must be Evident that no Hand but mine did this by my Magisterial way of Prescribing in an Interlining or a Marginal Excellent Evidence Secondly they have another great Evidence of this But because that is so nervous and strong I will be bold to reduce it to some Form that it may appear the clearer though it be against my self There was they say a new Copy of these Canons all written with S. Andrews own Hand and according to the former Castigations and Directions sent to have the King's Warrant to it which was obtained Therefore these Interlinings and Marginals c. were done by no other than Canterbury Most Excellent Evidence and clear as Mid-Night The plain Truth is contrary to all this Evidence For by the same Command of His Majesty the Reverend Bishop of London was joyned with me in all the view and Consideration which I had either upon the Book of Canons or upon the Service-Book after So it is utterly untrue that these Interlinings or Marginals or Corrections or call them what you will were done by no other than Canterbury For my Lord of London's both Head and Hand were as deep in them as mine And this I avow for well known Truth both to the King and those Scottish Bishops which were then imployed and this notwithstanding all the Evidences of a Magisterial way and a New Copy And yet this General Charge pursues me yet farther and says The Kings Warrant was obtained as is said to these Canons but with an Addition of some other Canons and a Page of New Corrections according to which the Book of Canons thus Composed was Published in Print The inspection of the Books Instructions and his Letters of Joy for the success of the Work and of other Letters from the Prelate of London and the Lord Sterling to the same purpose all which we are ready to exhibit will put the Matter out of all debate Yet more ado about nothing Yet more noise of Proof to put that out of all debate which need never enter into any For if no more be intended than that I had a view of the Book of Canons and did make some Interlinings and Marginals and the like I have freely acknowledged it and by whose Command I did it and who was joyned with me in the Work So there will need no Proof of this either by my Letters or the Prelate of Londons or the Lord Sterlings Yet let them be exhibited if you please But if it be intended as 't is laid that this was done by no other than Canterbury then I utterly deny it and no Proof here named or any other shall ever be able to make it good As for the Addition of some other Canons and Pages of New Corrections according to which the Book of Canons is said to be Composed and Published Truly to the utmost of my Memory I know of none such but that the Copy written by my Lord of S. Andrews own Hand and sent up as is before mentioned was the very Copy which was Warranted by His Majesty and Published without any further Alteration But if any further Alteration were it was by the same Authority and with the same Consent And for my Letters of Joy for the Success of the Work let them be exhibited when you please I will never deny that Joy while I live that I conceived of the Church of Scotland's coming nearer both in the Canons and the Liturgy to the Church of England But our gross unthankfulness both to our God and King and our other many and great Sins have hindred this great Blessing And I pray God that the loss of this which was now almost effected do not in short time prove one of the greatest Mischiefs which ever befel this Kingdom and that too This is the General Charge about the Canons Now follow the Particulars Beside this General Charge there be some things more special worthy to be adverted unto for discovering his Spirit First the Fourth Canon of Cap 8. For as much as no Reformation in Doctrine or Discipline can be made perfect at once in any Church Therefore it shall and may be Lawful for the Kirk of Scotland at any time to make Remonstrances to His Majesty or his Successours c. Because this Canon holds the Door open to more Innovations he writes to the Prelate of Ross his Prime Agent in all this Work of his great Gladness that this Canon did stand behind the Curtain And his great desire that this Canon might be Printed fully as one that was to be most useful Now come the Particulars worthy to be adverted unto for the discovery of my Spirit And the first is taken out of the Fourth Canon of Cap. 8. The Charge is that this Canon holds the Door open to more Innovations First I conceive this Accusation is vain For that Canon restrains all Power from private Men Clergy or Laye nay from Bishops in a Synod or otherwise to alter any thing in Doctrine or Discipline without Authority from His Majesty or his Successours Now all Innovations come from private assumption of Authority not from Authority it self For in Civil Affairs when the King and the State upon Emergent Occasions shall abrogate some Old Laws and make other New that cannot be counted an Innovation And in Church-Affairs every Synod that hath sate in all times and all places of Christendom have with leave of Superiour Authority declared some Points of Doctrine condemned other-some Altered some Ceremonials made new Constitutions for better assisting the Government And none of these have ever been accounted Innovations the Foundations of Religion still remaining firm and unmoved Nay under favour I conceive it most necessary that thus it ought to be And therefore this Canon is far from holding a Door open for more Innovations since it shuts it upon all and leaves no Power to alter any thing but by making a Remonstrance to the Supream Authority that in a Church-way approbation may be given when there is Cause And therefore if I did write to the Prelate of Ross that this Canon might be Printed fully as one that was to be most useful I writ no more then than I believe now For certainly it is a Canon that in a well-governed Church may be of great use And the more because in Truth it is but Declaratory of that Power which a National Church hath with leave and approbation of the Supream Power to alter and change any alterable thing pertaining to Doctrine or Discipline in the Church And as for that Phrase said to be in my Letter that this Canon did stand behind the Curtain it was thus occasioned My Lord the Bishop of Ross writ unto me from the Arch-Bishop of S. Andrews that no words might
Peace of both Kingdoms which must be little less than a Miracle if he do As for my Hand that it was at the Warrant of Restraint of the Commissioners sent from the Parliament c. This also is but a meer clamour to bring me into further hatred which hath been their aim all along For why else is my Hand picked out alone whereas the Hands of all for ought I know that were then present at the Committee were subscribed to that Warrant And yet it seems no Hand hath troubled them but mine And for these Commissioners seeking the Peace of the Kingdom I will not offer to enter upon their Thoughts what they sought but leave it to future times that will discover the success of things and by it open the aim of the Agents how they sought the Peace of these Kingdoms But yet they go on For when we had say they by our Declarations Remonstrances and Representations manifested the Truth of our Intentions and Lawfulness of our Actions to all the good Subjects of the Kingdom of England when the late Parliament would not be moved to assist or enter into a War against us maintaining our Religion and our Liberties Canterbury did not only advise the breaking up of that High and Honourable Court to the great grief and hazard of the Kingdom but which is without Example did sit still in the Convocation and make Canons and Constitutions against us and our Just and Necessary defence They did indeed offer by many Pamphlets Printed and sent into England to manifest the Truth of their Intentions which was to join close with their Party here and come and gain some good Booty in England And this end they have obtained But the lawfulness of their Actions they neither have nor can make good to any Impartial and Judicious Reader of them And whereas they say they have made the lawfulness of them manifest to all the good Subjects of the Kingdom of England you must know that they are only such English as joyn with them in their Plot or at least in Affection to Religion And 't is easie to make any thing that fits their Humour and comes from their Associats manifest enough But God forbid these should be all the good Subjects of England which it may too justly be feared are none of them And yet it cannot be denied but that England hath at this day much too many of these good Subjects They add further that the late Parliament would not assist nor enter into a War against them I believe that is true and I leave the Parliament to give their own Reasons why they would not But I am sure that which follows is most untrue That I gave Advice for the breaking of it up as appears by that which I have formerly set down and will not repeat And I shall ever wish from my Heart that the Kingdom may never be hazarded more than it hath been by my Counsels and then by God's Blessing it shall be a happier Kingdom than the youngest now alive are like to see it if things go on in the Track they now are Next they say that without all Example I sat still in Convocation though the Parliament were risen Without Example What is that to them if it were so But the Arch-Bishops of Canterbury have sate in Convocation and made Canons too when no Parliament hath been sitting as is most manifest by the Records of that See Yea but there is no Example of it since the Reformation Be it so Nor is it for all that forbidden in the Statute of the submission of the Clergy 25 H. 8. so they sit by the King 's Writ And yet here I was so careful as that I caused the great Lawyers of the Kingdom to be consulted abaut it and followed their Judgments as is before expressed And for the Canons which were made they were not against them One branch indeed of the first Canon is against Subjects bearing Arms against their King offensive or defensive under any pretence whatsoever But this as it is the Antient Doctrine which the Church of Christ hath ever Taught in all times and places So is it not against them at all unless they against Christian Religion and Natural All giance bear Arms against their King But if they do or have done so the Canon that was not made against them hits them full And in this Case let them pretend what they list their Defence can neither be Just nor Necessary Yea but they say farther that I Ordained under all highest pains That hereafter the Clergy shall Preach four times in the Year such Doctrine as is contrary not only to our Proceedings but to the Doctrine of other Reformed Kirks to the Judgment of all sound Divines and Politicks and tending to the utter Slavery and Ruine of all States and Kingdoms and to the dishonour of Kings and Monarchs This goes high indeed if it were as full in proof as 't is loud in expression But here is not one shew of Proof added either from Reason or Authority Divine or Humane more than their bare word And therefore I must answer it in the same Key First then 't is true that in the Preface of the first Canon every Minister is injoyned under a Penalty to Publish to his People the Exposition of Regal Power contained in that Canon and this once every quarter of a Year So then if the Doctrine contained in that Canon be true and it was approved for Truth by the whole National Synod of England then all this high Charge falls low enough Besides it will concern them to consider well what their Proceedings have been For as for this Canon it is according to the Doctrine and Practice of the Primitive Church And they surely were both Pious and Sound Divines that lived in it and I for my part shall hold no Man a Sound Divine that runs contrary to it Now that the Primitive Christians were of Opinion that Subjects ought not to take Arms against their Kings Offensive or Defensive upon any pretence whatsoever which are the words in our Canon which they are so angry with no not for or under pretence of Religion see the Proofs in the Margin For in the most bitter Times of Persecution for the very highest points of Religion whatever Miseries they indured they still contained themselves within the bounds of their Obedience And that too not out of any want of Power but will to hurt And if the Doctrine of other Reformed Churches be contrary to this they shall do well to shew it and then I 'll give such farther Answer as is fit But if the Canon be contrary to the Judgment of sound Politiques I know not which they call sound For if they mean such as are of their Feather I think their Judgments are alike Sound that is neither And if they mean Learned and well experienced Politiques I believe they will be able to shew none of
their Opinion unless they be such as have been bred up either in their Faction or in the Opposite at Rome For Bodin is clear That Arms may not be taken up against the Prince be he never so Impious and Wicked And instances in Saul and Nebuchadnezzar And Grotius doth not only say as much as Bodin but Censures them which hold the contrary to be Men which serve Time and Place more than Truth Nor is it any whit more Lawful for Inferiour Magistrates to make this resistance against the King than it is for private Men. And this is universally true where the Princes are free and have not undertaken the Government under that or the like Condition or being free seek with a Hostile Mind to ruine their People which is scarce possible And a great Civilian tells us that he is properly a Rebel that resists the Emperor or his Officers in things belonging to the State of the Empire Some Cases he lays down indeed in which the pleasure of a Prince may not be obeyed but none in which his Power is to be resisted Nor is it any marvel that Christians do disallow the taking up of Arms against the Prince since even the soundest Politicks among the Heathen have declared so likewise Aristotle was of this Opinion that if the Magistrate strike yet he is not to be struck again And Seneca that Men are to bear the unjust as well as the just Commands of Princes And Tacitus that good Emperours are to be desired but whatever they be to be born with And Plutarch that it is not Lawful to offer any Violence to the Person of the King And Cicero That no Force is to be offered either to a Man's Parent or to his Country And therefore in his Judgment not to the Prince who is Pater Patriae the Father of his Country And the truth is where-ever the contrary Opinion is maintained the Prince can never be safe nor the Government setled But so soon as a Faction can get a fit Head and gather sufficient strength all is torn in pieces and the Prince lost for no considerable Errour or perhaps none at all For a strong Party once Heated can as easily make Faults as find them either in Church or Common-wealth And make the King say as Zedekiah sometimes did to his potent Nobles Behold Jeremiah is in your Hands for the King is not he that can do any thing against you Jerem. 38. But whereas they say it is a Doctrine that tends to the utter Slavery and ruin of all States and Kingdoms That will appear most untrue by the very Letter of the Canon it self which gives way to no Tyranny but expresses only the true Power of a King given by God and to be exercised according to God's Law and the several Laws of Kingdoms respectively And I hope there will ever be a real difference found in Christian Kingdoms between the Doctrine that tends to Slavery and Ruine and that which forbids taking up of Arms against their Sovereign which is all that this Canon doth And in the mean time I pray God this not Doctrine only but Practice also of taking up Arms against the Lord 's Anointed under meer pretence of Religion do not in a shorter time than is fear'd bring all to Confusion where-ever 't is Practised For howsoever it bears a shew of Liberty yet this way of maintaining it is not only dishonourable to Kings but the ready way to make them study ways of Force and to use Power when-ever they get it to abridge the Liberties of such over-daring Subjects And in all times it hath sown the Seeds of Civil Combustions which have ended in Slavery and Ruine of flourishing Kingdoms And I pray God these do not end so in this But they go on And as if this had not been sufficient he procures six Subsidies to be lifted of the Clergy under pain of Deprivation to all who should refuse The giving of the King Subsidies is no new thing The Clergy have bin ever willing to the uttermost of their Power But what I and my Brethren of the Clergy did at this time therein is before set down And I hold it not fit to lengthen this Tract with the needless Repetition of any thing And which is yet more and above which Malice it self cannot ascend by his means a Prayer is framed Printed and sent through all the Parishes of England to be said in all Churches in time of Divine Service next after the Prayer for the Queen and Royal Progeny against our Nation by Name as Trayterous Subjects having cast off all Obedience to our Anointed Sovereign and coming in a Rebellious manner to Invade England that shame may cover our Faces as Enemies to God and the King We are now come to the last part of their Charge and that 's the Prayer which was made and sent to be used in all Churches when the Scots came into England But this Prayer was made not by my means or procurement but by his Majesties special Command to me to see it done And it hath bin ever usual in England upon great and urgent occasions to have one or more Prayers made by some Bishop or Bishops nearest hand to fit the Present business And this may appear by divers Forms and Prayers so made and publickly used in all times since the Reformation And since this Prayer was made by his Majesties own Command I am sorry they should say of it that Malice it self cannot ascend above it Though I perswade my self they thought to hit me not him in this Speech Now what I pray is that above which Malice it self cannot ascend Why first it is That they were called in that Prayer trayterous Subjects which had cast off all Obedience to their Anointed Sovereign Why but Truth spake this not Malice For Trayterous Subjects they were then if ever a King had any And the Kings Proclamation called them so before that Prayer came forth And what Title soever it is fit to give them now since his Majesty hath bin graciously pleased to treat with them and pass by their Offence that 's another thing but as the case stood then they had shaken off all Obedience and were as they were then called Trayterous Subjects And I had a special Charge from the King not to spare that Name Secondly They except against this that 't is there said that they came in a Rebellious manner to Invade this Kingdom And that is most true too for whereas they said they came in a peaceable manner to deliver their Petitions to the King for the Liberty of their Religion and Laws Is it a peaceable way to come two or three and twenty Thousand Men strong and Armed to deliver a Petition Let the whole World judge whether this were not a Rebellious Invasion Thirdly They say 't is desir'd in the Prayer that God would with shame cover the Faces
which comes next An Evil therefore which hath issued not so much from the Personal Disposition of the Prelates themselves as from the innate Quality and Nature of their Office and Prelatical Hierarchy which did bring forth the Pope in Ancient times and never ceaseth till it bring forth Popish Doctrine and Worship where it is once rooted and the Principles thereof fomented and constantly followed They tell us here that this Conformity with Rome is an Evil that issues not so much from the Personal Disposition of the Prelates themselves as from the innate Quality and Nature of their Office Conformity with Rome in any Error or Superstition is doubtless an Evil but that it issues from the Nature of a Bishop's Office cannot be For that Office is to Preach Christ and to govern the Church of Christ according to his Laws If any Bishop break this 't is his Personal Error and most unnatural to his Office to which if he adhere he can neither teach nor practise Superstition Therefore certainly what Error soever comes is from his Person not his Office And 't is great Ignorance to call this Evil an innate Quality of the Office when the Office is a thing of Institution not of Nature and therefore cannot possibly have any innate Quality in it But since they will needs have it thus let us invert it a little and see how it will fit them against their King more than it can fit the Bishops for the Pope For if we should say as perhaps we may too truly that the dangerous Positions which too many of the Presbyterian Faction publickly maintain and in Print proceed not so much from the Personal Disposition of the Presbyterians themselves as from the innate Quality and Nature of their Presbyteries and their Antimonarchical Party I believe it would trouble them to shape a good Answer to it unless they will admit of that which I before have given But then if they do this they Charge themselves with falshood in that which they lay upon the Bishops Office Next they tell you that this Prelatical Hierarchy did bring forth the Pope in Ancient times But truly I think they are thus far deceived The Hierarchy cannot be said to bring forth the chief parts of it self Now the Patriarchs of which the Bishop of Rome was one if not Prime in Order were the Principal parts of the Hierarchy Therefore the Hierarchy cannot well be said to bring them forth But suppose it be so that the Pope were brought forth by the Bishops what fault is there in it For the Pope was good both Nomine Re in name and in being as they were at first For thirty of them together were Martyrs for Christ And the Church of Rome was famous for her Faith over the World in the very Apostles times Rom. 1. And if either the Popes or that Church have degenerated since that is a Personal Crime and not to be imputed to the Office And therefore these Men do very ill or very ignorantly to affirm that this Office of Episcopacy never ceases till it bring forth Popish Doctrine and Worship For in all the time of these thirty Popes there was no Doctrine brought forth which may justly be accounted Superstitious or called Popery For the last of those thirty died in the Year 309. ..... And they cannot be ignorant that Bishop Jewell on the behalf of the Church of England challenged the Current of the Fathers for full Six Hundred Years to be for it against Rome in very many and main Points of Popery And therefore I may well say there was no Popery in the World when the Thirtieth Pope died Well if this Evil do not arise from the Hierarchy yet it doth From the Antipathy and Inconsistence of the two Forms of the Ecclesiastical Government which they conceived and not without Cause one Island joyned also under one Head and Monarch was not able to bear The one being the same in all the Parts and Powers which it was in the time of Popery and still is in the Roman Kirk The other being the Form of Government received maintained and practised by all the Reformed Kirks wherein by their own Testimonies and Confessions the Kirk of Scotland had amongst them no small Eminency Sure these Men have forgotten themselves For they tell us immediatly before that this Evil of bringing forth Popish Doctrine and Worship proceeds from the very Office of a Bishop And now they add and from the Antipathy of these two Forms of Church Government Doth the Bishops Office produce Popery And doth the Antipathy between the Presbytery and Episcopacy produce Popery too So then belike in these Men's Judgments both Bishops and they which oppose Bishops produce Popery And if that be true Popery must needs increase that is produced on all sides An Evil then there is though perhaps not this which issues from that Antipathy and Inconsistence of these two Forms of Ecclesiastical Government which they say we Prelates of England conceived and not without Cause one Island joyned also under one Head and Monarch was not able to bear And that Evil was as I conceive the continual Jarrs and Oppositions which would daily arise among His Majesties Subjects of both Kingdoms concerning these different Forms of Government And these would bring forth such Heart-burnings and Divisions among the People that the King might never be secure at home nor presume upon united Forces against a Foreign Enemy And this is Evil enough to any Monarch of two divided Kingdoms especially lying so near in one Island Now if the Bishops of England did conceive thus and as our Adversaries here confess not without Cause Then certainly by their own Confession the Prelates of England had Reason to use all just endeavours to remove and take away this Inconsistence that the Form of the Ecclesiastical Government might be one in one Island and under one Monarch that so Faction and Schism might cease which else when they get Opportunity find a way to rent the Peace of Kingdoms if not Kingdoms themselves And this Island God of his Mercy preserve it is at this time in great hazard to undergo the fatality of it in a great measure The next is a manifest untruth For though there be as is said an Inconsistence between the Governments which makes one Island under one King unable to bear both in the different parts of the Island or at least unsafe while it bears them Yet neither is Episcopacy in all the Parts and Powers of it that which it was in time of Popery and still is in the Roman Church And this is most manifest to any Man that will but look upon what Power the Prelates had before and what they have since the Statute of the Submission of the Clergy in Hen. 8. time Beside all those Statutes which have since been made in divers Particulars to weaken their Power Nor is the other Form of Government received
is upon the bare Circumstance of Quomodo How Christ is present in the Sacrament As for that which was said in the beginning of this Charge That Rome is a True Church I ever did and ever must grant it that such it is Veritate Entis in the Truth of it's Entity and Being For as I have said against Fisher Ens Verum Being and True are convertible one with another And every thing that hath a Being is truly that Being which it is in truth of Substance but a Right or an Orthodox Church I never said it was either in Doctrine or Manners As a Thief is a true Man in Verity of his Essence that is he is a Creature indued with Reason but it doth not therefore follow that he is a true Man Veritate Moris in his Life and Conversation And this I answered first to the Lords and after to Mr. Brown's Summary Charge who in his last Reply said two things First That when I said Rome was a True Church I spake it generally without this Distinction But this is quite beyond the Proof for no Witness says so Besides it is manifest by distinction of Fundamentals from other Doctrines acknowledged by both the Witnesses that I did not speak it absolutely but plain enough to any ordinary Understanding Secondly which I was very sorry to hear from so grave a Man he added That there was no Truth of a Church but in the Verity of Doctrine and Manners and that in Veritate Entis a Company of Turks were a True Church Now God be merciful to us whither are we posting 'T is known that the Greek Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies Church signifies also in Heathen Authors any kind of Company or Congregation of Men Turks if you will But in Ecclesiastical Writers and among all Christians the Word Church is used only and so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 too for a Company of Men which profess the Faith of Christ and are Baptized into his Name And will any Man say that a Company of Turks are such a Church in Veritate Entis in the Verity of this Being as all the World knows Papists are Or if he will not speak de Ente tali but change the Suppositum he may say what he please But I was very much troubled to hear this and from him I had almost forgot that Mr. Nicolas here pressed the Authority of the Homilies upon me again where 't is said That the Bishop of Rome and their Adherents are not the true Church But the Answer is easie For I say as the Homily doth and as it means too in that place Namely that the Church of Rome is not the true that is not the Catholick Church nor the Head thereof But there is a great deal of difference between the Church and a Church The one is the General the other a Particular The Church it cannot be A Church it is and a true one too in the Sense before specified Upon occasion of this Mr. Nicolas his Mouth was open again and said That at the beginning I reckon'd up some that I had Converted But if this were my Opinion and that if this might stand for good I might Convert the Devil and all My Ears had been so beaten with his Language that I was patient and left him to insult And to help on this business while he was in these loud Expressions the E. of Pembrook came to Mr. Burton to the Bar and in my hearing desired him to repeat the Testimony he had given which Mr. Burton did and his Lordship seemed to be much pleased with it Not long before when the News was come hot to the House that York was taken when I came at Five in the Afternoon to make my Answer I was no sooner come to the Bar but the same Lord came and sat just before me and there with much Joy told Mr. Lieutenant the News I presume he did it in favour to me because he thought it would put me in very good Heart being then instantly to begin to make my Answer God forgive this Lord for I have deserved in my time far better of him if he understood himself or any Man else The next Charge was out of Dr. Packlinton's Altare Christianum p. 49 50. where he speaks they say for I now have not his Book of a Happiness that the Bishops of England can derive their Succession from St. Peter which in great Scorn Mr. Nicolas called the Archbishop's Pedigree First If there be any Crime in this Dr. Pocklinton is to Answer it not I. Secondly He may scorn what he will but Wise Men know 't is a great Honour to the Church of England and a great Stopple in the Mouths of the Romanists that her Bishops can derive their Calling successively from St Peter especially considering how much they stand upon personal Succession Thirdly Dr. Pocklinton in this says no more for me and the Bishops than St. Augustin urged for himself and his Brethren against the Donatists in the same words save that St. Aug. begins at St. Peter and descends to his own time and the Dr. begins at his own time and ascends to St. Peter But it seems an Upstart Clergy without a Calling will serve Mr. Nicolas well enough The Sixth Charge was That Books were written of purpose to maintain these Opinions and such Men as writ them only preferred He named Mr. Shelford Mr. Butterfield Dr. Cosins and Dr. Pocklinton This hath been Clamoured upon already if any have set out unworthy Books they may be called to account for it I hope I shall not answer for all the Divines in the Kingdom They whom I preferred were Worthy and Able Men and it will not be in the Power of Mr. White 's Centuries to Blast a Man of them among any that know them For these that are named Mr. Shelford I know not Mr. Butterfield I saw punished in the High-Commission Neither of them preferred that I know The two last by whomsoever they were preferred deserved all the Preferment they had and more The Seventh Charge is out of my Diary at June 15 1632. where 't is said that I preferred Mr Secretary Windebank my old Friend And here Mr. Nicolas laid all the Correspondency open which he said that Gentleman had with the Popes Agents with Priests and Jesuits and when he had made him this way as foul as he could then I must be guilty of all for preferring such a Man to the King This Gentleman was indeed my ancient Friend In my many Years Acquaintance with him I saw nothing in him but Honesty and Worth If when he was preferred he deceived my Opinion he is living to answer for himself Many in all Ages have been preferred to Princes which do not answer the Hopes and Desires of them which prefer them and yet they not made answerable for them neither But whether he did fail in any Publick Trust or no I am not his Judge
was nothing done against Law any Friend may privately assist another in his Difficulties And I am perswaded many Friends in either House do what they justly may when such sad Occasions happen And this Answer I gave to Mr. Brown when he Summed up my Charge in the House of Commons But Mr. Brown did not begin with this but with another here omitted by Mr. Nicolas though he had pressed it before in the Fifteenth day of my Hearing Dr. Potter writ unto me for my advice in some Passages of a Book writ by him as I remember against a Book Intituled Charity mistaken I did not think it fit to amend any thing with my own Pen but put some few things back to his Second Thoughts of which this was one That if he express himself so he will give as much Power to the Parliament in Matters of Doctrine as to the Church This Mr. Brown said took away all Authority from Parliaments in that kind But under Favour this takes away nor all nor any that is due unto them Not all for my Words are about giving so much Power Now he that would not have so much given to the one as the other doth not take away all from either Not any that is due to them For my Words not medling simply with Parliamentary Power as appears by the Comparative Words so much my Intention must needs be to have Dr. Potter so to consider of his Words as that that which is proper to the Church might not be ascribed to Parliaments And this I conceive is plain in the very Letter of the Law The Words of the Statute are Or such as shall hereafter be Ordered Judged or determined to be Heresy by the High Court of Parliament in this Realm with the Assent of the Clergy in their Convocation Where 't is manifest that the Judging and Determining Part for the Truth or Falshood of the Doctrin is in the Church For the Assent of the Church or Clergy cannot be given but in Convocation and so the Law requires it Now Assent in Convocation cannot be given but there must preceed a Debate a Judging a Voting and a Determining Therefore the Determining Power for the Truth or Falshood of the Doctrine Heresie or no Heresie is in the Church But the Judging and determining Power for binding to Obedience and for Punishment is in the Parliament with this Assent of the Clergy Therefore I humbly conceive the Parliament cannot by Law that is till this Law be first altered Determine the Truth of Doctrine without this Assent of the Church in Convocation And that such a Synod and Convocation as is Chosen and Assembled as the Laws and Customs of this Realm require To this Mr. Brown in his Reply upon me in the House of Commons said Two Things The one that this Branch of the Statute of one Eliz. was for Heresie only and the Adjudging of that but medled not with the Parliaments Power in other matters of Religion If it be for Heresie only that the Church alone shall not so Determine Heresie as to bring those grievous Punishments which the Law lays upon it upon the Neck of any Subject without Determination in Parliament then is the Church in Convocation left free also in other matters of Religion according to the First Clause in Magna Charta which establishes the Church in all her Rights And her main and constant Right when that Charter was made and confirmed was Power of Determining in matters of Doctrine and Discipline of the Church And this Right of the Clergy is not bounded or limited by any Law but this Clause of 1. Eliz. that ever I heard of The other was that if this were so that the Parliament might not meddle with Religion but with the Assent of the Clergy in Convocation we should have had no Reformation For the Bishops and the Clergy dissented First it is not as I conceive to be denyed that the King and his High Court of Parliament may make any Law what they please and by their Absolute Power may change Religion Christianity into Turcism if they please which God forbid And the Subjects whose Consciences cannot obey must flye or indure the Penalty of the Law But both King and Parliament are sub graviori Regno and must Answer God for all such abuse of Power But beside this Absolute there is a Limited Power Limited I say by Natural Justice and Equity by which no Man no Court can do more than what he can by Right And according to this Power the Church's Interest must be considered and that indifferently as well as the Parliaments To apply this to the Particular of the Reformation The Parliament in the beginning of Queen Elizabeth would not indure Popish Superstition and by Absolute Power Abolished it without any Assent of the Clergy in Convocation And then in her first Year An. 1559. She had a Visitation and set out her Injunctions to direct and order such of the Clergy as could conform their Judgments to the Reformation But then so soon as the Clergy was settled and that a Form of Doctrine was to be agreed upon to shew the difference from the Roman Superstition a Synod was called and in the Year 1562. the Articles of Religion were agreed upon and they were determined and confirmed by Parliament with the Assent of the Clergy in Convocation and that by a just and orderly Power Nor is the Absolute Power of King and Parliament any way unjust in it self but may many ways be made such by Misinformation or otherwise And this gives the King and the Parliament their full Power and yet preserves this Church in her just Right Just and acknowledged by some that loved her not over well For the Lord Brook tells us That what a Church will take for true Doctrine lies only in that Church Nay the very Heathen saw clearly the Justice of this For M. Lucullus was able to say in Tully That the Priests were Judges of Religion and the Senate of Law The Second Proof is That I made two Speeches for the King to be spoken or sent to the Parliament that then was and that they had some sour and ill Passages in them These Speeches were read to the Lords and had I now the Copies I would insert them here and make the World Judge of them First I might shuffle here and deny the making of them For no Proof is offer'd but that they are in my Hand and that is no necessary Proof For I had then many Papers by me written in my own Hand which were not my making though I transcribed them as not thinking it fit to trust them in other Hands But Secondly I did make them and I followed the Instructions which were given me as close as I could to the very Phrases and being commanded to the Service I hope it shall not now be made my Crime that I was trusted by my Soveraign Thirdly As I did never
which it is in truth of Substance But this Word Right is not so used but it is referred more properly to perfection in Conditions And in this Sense every thing that hath a true and real Being is not by and by Right in the Conditions of it A Man that is most Dishonest and Unworthy the Name a very Thief if you will is a True Man in the Verity of his Essence as he is a Creature Endued with Reason for this none can steal from him nor he from himself but Death But he is not therefore a Right or an Upright Man And a Church that is exceeding Corrupt both in Manners and Doctrine and so a Dishonour to the Name is yet a True Church in the verity of Essence as a Church is a Company of Men which profess the Faith of Christ and are Baptized into his Name but yet it is not therefore a Right Church either in Doctrine or Manners It may be you meant cunningly to slip in this Word Right that I might at unawares grant it Orthodox But I was not so to be caught For I know well that Orthodox Christians are Keepers of Integrity so St. Augustin and Followers of right Things of which the Church of Rome at this Day is neither In this Sense then no Right that is no Orthodox Church at Rome IX Epist. Dedicat. circa med For to my remembrance I have not given him or his so much as Course Language But on the other side God forbid too that your Majesty should let both Laws and Discipline sleep for fear of the Name of Persecution and in the mean time let Mr. Fisher and his Fellows Angle in all parts of your Dominions for your Subjects If in your Grace and Goodness you will spare their Persons yet I humbly beseech you see to it That they be not suffered to lay either their Weels or Bait their Hooks or cast their Nets in every Stream lest that Tentation grow both too general and too strong I know they have many Devices to work their Ends but if they will needs be Fishing let them use none but Lawful Nets Let 's have no dissolving of Oaths of Allegiance no Deposing no Killing of Kings no blowing up of States to settle Quod Volumus That which fain they would have in the Church with many other Nets as dangerous as these For if their Profession of Religion were as good as they pretend it is if they cannot compass it by good means I am sure they ought not to attempt it by bad For if they will do evil that good may come thereof the Apostle tells me Their Damnation's just Rom. 3. 8. Now as I would humbly beseech your Majesty to keep a serious Watch upon these Fishermen which pretend S. Peter but Fish not with his Net So c. X. A Passage out of the Conference at Hampton-Court referred to in the preceding History Pag. 28. Upon the first Motion concerning falling from Grace the Bishop of London took occasion to signifie to his Majesty how very many in these days neglecting Holiness of Life presumed too much of persisting of Grace laying all their Religion upon Predestination if I shall Saved I shall be Saved which he termed a desperate Doctrine shewing it to be contrary to good Divinity and the True Doctrine of Predestination wherein we should Reason rather ascendendo than descendendo thus I Live in Obedience to God in Love with my Neighbour I follow my Vocation c. therefore I trust that God hath Elected me and Predestinated me to Salvation Not thus which is the usual course of Argument God hath Predestinated and chosen me to Life therefore though I sin never so grievously yet I shall not be damned For whom he once loveth he loveth to the End Whereupon he shewed his Majesty out of the next Article what was the Doctrine of the Church of England touching Predestination in the very last Paragraph Scil. We must receive God's Promises in such wise as they be generally set forth to us in Holy Scripture and in our doings that the Will of God is to be followed which we have expresly declared unto us in the Word of God Which part of the Article his Majesty very well approved And after he had after his manner very singularly discoursed on that place of Paul Work out your Salvation with fear and trembling he left it to be considered whether any thing were meet to be added for the clearing of the Doctor his doubt by putting in the Word often or the like as thus We may often depart from Grace But in the mean time wished that the Doctrine of Predestination might be very tenderly handled and with great discretion lest on the one side God's Omnipotency might be called in question by impeaching the Doctrine of his eternal Predestination or on the other side a desperate Presumption might be arreared by inferring the necessary certainty of standing and persisting in Grace XI A Passage out of the Arch-Bishop's Speech in Star-Chamber at the Censure of Pryn Burton and Bastwick referred to in the Preceding History Pag. 36. The Learned make but Three Religions to have been of old in the World Paganism Judaism and Christianity and now they have added a Fourth which is Turcism and is an absurd mixture of the other three Now if this ground of theirs be true as 't is generally received perhaps it will be of dangerous consequence sadly to avow that the Popish Religion is Rebellion That some Opinions of theirs teach Rebellion that 's apparently True the other would be thought on to say no more XII A Passage out of the New Statutes of the Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Christ in Canterbury drawn by the Arch-Bishop and prescribed to that Church by the King 1636. Cap. 34. de Celebratione Divinorum Statuimus etiam ut nullus Canonicorum aliorum in Choro Ministrantium Divinorum Officiorum tempore absque Insignibus Choro Gradui convenientibus Chorum ingrediatur Singuli verò cujuscunque fuerint Gradûs aut Ordinis in ingressu Chori Divinam Majestatem devotâ mente adorantes humiliter se inclinabunt versùs Altare prout antiquis quarundam Ecclesiarum Statutis cautum novimus dein conversi Decano quoque debitam Reverentiam exhibebunt Quòd si contigerit aliquem ex quacunque causâ de loco in locum transire in Choro Reverentiam similiter in medio Chori tam versùs Altare quà m versùs stallum Decani si praesens fuerit exhibebit tum in eundo tum in redeundo toties quoties XIII A Passage out of Arch-Bishop Parker's Antiquitates Britannicae concerning Prohibitions referred to in the preceding History Pag. 326 327. edit Londin Jamque Juris Regni periti ut sui commodi Causâ Regia for a multitudine litium Infinitate replerent plerasque Causas Controversias ab Archiepiscopali Episcopali Audientiâ ad sua Judicia vocabant Ecclesiasticam Jurisdictionem decimarum
those Times had the Grace and the Gift of Prayer as well as other Graces And there was then as peculiar a Gift by Inspiration to pray as to foretell things to come or to do Miracles As is evident in St. Chrysostom who says that these Men made use of this Gift and Prayed publickly in their Assemblies But so soon as this Gift with others ceased there was a set Form from the beginning Neither is it hard to prove that some parts of our Liturgy hath been as Ancient as the Church hath any Records to shew and some both practised and prescribed by the Apostle St. Paul for the substance of them And the true Reason why we cannot shew the exact Primitive Forms then in use is because they were continually subject to Alterations both in times and places Now if this Lord can furnish us with such Men as shall be inabled to pray by the immediate Inspiration of God's Spirit we will bind them up to no Form But 'till he can I hope we shall be so happy as to retain the set Prayers of the Church Fifthly because this enjoyning turns such Forms instead of being Directions into Superstition This is so wild a Conceit that I wonder how it fell into the Thought of so Wise a Man as my Lord is taken to be For can a Command or an Injunction alter the very Nature of a Thing so far as to turn that which is a Direction into a Superstition Then belike it is Superstition for any Christian to obey the Decrees and Injunctions whether for Belief or Practice made by any the four first General Councils And my Lord knows well that 't is Heretical for any Man to profess against any of these Councils And this not only by the Church Law which his Lordship so much slights but by the Laws of England So by this Reason of my Lord's it shall be Heretical to deny the Injunction and Superstition to obey it If this will not serve my Lord may be pleased to remember that in the Council held at Jerusalem by the Apostles themselves they gave a Command though no such Command as might trouble the believing Gentiles And therefore Decreed that they would lay no greater burthen on them No more grievous Injunction than that they abstain from things offered unto Idols and from Blood and from things strangled and from Fornication where first it is most evident that the Apostles did assume this power of enjoyning and exercise it too And I hope my Lord for very Reverence to the Scripture for as for the Church he valueth it not will not say this wholesom Direction to avoid Fornication is made Superstition by the Apostle's Injunction If this Doctrine may hold I doubt very few will be Superstitious in this point And many Men that are very strict and hate Superstition perfectly will rather not abstain from Fornication than be Superstitious by abstaining And no question can be made by a Reasonable Man but that the Church of Christ had and hath still as much Power to enjoyn a set Form of Prayers as any of these things But my Lord hath more Reasons than these and truly they had need be better too But such as they are they follow This sets aside the Gifts and Graces which Christ hath given and thrusts out the Exercise of them to substitute in their places and introduce a Device of Man Sixthly then this Injunction of a set Form is unlawful because it sets aside the Gifts and Graces c. This is upon the Matter all one with my Lord's second Reason and there 't is answered Yet truly I know no Gifts or Graces set aside much less thruss out but such as are neither Gifts nor Graces of Christ but the Bold and Impudent Attempts of Weavers Coblers and Felt-Makers taking on them to Preach without Knowledge Warrant or Calling Much like the Gifts which Alexander the Copper-Smith had in St. Paul's Time And such Gifts and Graces as these cannot be said to be thrust out But my Lord and his Adherents thrust them into the Church to help cry down all Truth and Order Much less can they be said to be thrust out to make room for a Device of Man meaning the set Form of Common-Prayer Now surely I think and upon very good grounds that they which Composed the Common-Prayer-Book had as good Gifts and Graces of Christ as these Men have And that the conceived and often-times Senseless Prayers of these Men are as much or more the Device of Man than the set Form of Common-Prayer is Yea but for all that my Lord says This Injunction of such Forms upon all Men turns that which in the beginning Necessity brought in for the help of Insufficiency to be now the continuance and maintenance of Insufficiency and a bar to the Exercise of able and sufficient Gifts and Graces As if because some Men had need to make use of Crutches all Men should be prohibited the use of their Legs and enjoyned to take up such Crutches as have been prepared for those who had no Legs In the Seventh and last place my Lord is pleased to tell us this Injunction of such Forms upon all Men turns that which in the beginning Necessity brought in for the help of Insufficiency to the Maintenance of it My Lord told us a little before of a turning into Superstition Now here 's another turning into the Maintenance of Insufficiency two very bad turnings were either of them true But God be thanked neither is In the mean time my Lord confesses that Necessity brought in this Injunction of set Forms And I believe there now is and ever will be to the end of the World as great a Necessity to continue them But I cannot agree with my Lord in this that it was a Necessity for the help of Insufficiency that brought them in For when these were first enjoyned in the Church of Christ Men were endued with as great Gifts and Graces as any now are and perhaps greater But Necessity brought them in when Christianity multiplyed to preserve Unity and Order and to avoid Confusion and Sects and Schisms in the Church And that all sorts of Men might be acquainted with that which was used in the Publick Worship and Service of God Now that which follows is an unjust and foul Scandal upon the Church Namely that this Injunction is made the Continuance and Maintenance of Insufficiency For I believe few Churches in many Ages have had more sufficient Preachers than this of late hath had And therefore 't is evident this Injunction here hath neither been the maintenance nor continuance of Insufficiency This ground failing my Lord 's fine Simile hath neither Crutch nor Leg to stand on but it is as all such fine fetches are when they have no Ground to rest on Nor is any thing more Poor in Learning than a fine handsom Similitude such as this when it hath no truth upon which to rest For the
Obeyed And hereof in any wise fail you not Jan. 19. 1634. Comput Angl. A Memorial of the Arch-Bishop's Annual Account to the King's Majesty of his Province for the Year 1635. Ex Registro Laud fol 241. WHereas his Majesty in his late Instructions to the Lords the Bishops hath amongst other things commanded that every Bishop respectively should give an Account in Writing to his Metropolitan of all those Instructions or so many of them as may concern him at or before the Tenth day of December yearly And likewise that the Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury his Grace do make out of them a Brief of his whole Province and present it to his Sacred Majesty every year by the second day of January following My Lord Arch-Bishop in Obedience to the said Commands did present an Account in Writing to his Majesty how those Prudent and Pious Instructions for the Good and Welfare of the Church of Christ in this Kingdom have been obeyed and performed by the several Bishops within his Province of Canterbury for the Year of our Lord God 1634. Which Account by his Grace's Command is Registred amongst the other Acts of his Province by his principal Register And that in farther Obedience to the said Instructions his Grace delivered another Brief in Writing of his said Province for this present Year of our Lord God 1635. unto Sir John Cooke Knight one of the Principal Secretaries of State to be presented to his Majesty by the time aforesaid but by Reason of his the said Secretary's Sickness it is mislaid or lost and so hath not been presented to his Majesty nor any Observation by the King put upon it which loss notwithstanding the Lord Arch-Bishop commanded instead of Registring the Brief it self that this Memorial of the loss of it should be Registred Martij 14. 1635. W Cant. W. S. A. C. NOtwithstanding this Memorial the Arch-Bishop's Account for the Year 1635. is very happily come to my Hand after this manner My very Worthy Friend Sir Will. Cooke of Broom in Norfolk sent me a Letter dated Nov 6 1681. that being Executor to an Uncle of his then lately Deceased in Suffolk he found in his Study a Bundle of Original Papers of Arch-Bishop Laud which are the Annual Accounts here following from 1632. to 1639. with a Letter to me in the Words following May it please your Grace c. vide infra The Writer of this Letter Mr Thomas Raymond a very Ingenious Gentleman was as Sir Will C tells me bred up under Sir Will. Boswell Embassadour in Holland and was after Governour to the present Earl of Peterborough in his Travels And was after his Return as I have heard one of the Clerks of his Majesty's Privy Council possibly under Sir Jo Cooke Principal Secretary by which Means these Papers might come into his Hands The Originals are all Signed by the Arch-Bishop that of 1632. by G. Cant. being Abbot's last and the rest W Cant. being Arch-Bishop Lauds all which are Apostilled in the Margin with the King 's own Hand except only that of 1635. which it seems by Secretary Cook 's default never came to the King's view I found also among Arch-Bishop Laud's Papers Duplicates of the Accounts for 1634 6 7 8 and 9. with the King's Notes also Copied in the Margin And 3 of them scil the 3 last are Registred in Registr Laud f. 215. 254. 289. Mr. Raymond's Letter to my Lord Arch-Bishop Sancroft concerning the following Papers May it please your Grace THE inclosed Papers being of Ecclesiastick Concern and true and mighty Evidences of the abundant Love and Care of a Blessed King for the good of the Church as well as that of a most Pious and Learned Prelate your Grace's Predecessor I thought my self bound both in Duty and Prudence to Transmit them to your Grace as to their proper place both for use and safety And this I have endeavoured to do in the carefullest manner I could and do implore your Grace's Pardon for this intrusion beseeching most humbly Almighty God to grant your Grace multos annos in all Health and Prosperity so much conducing to the good of his Church amongst us And withdrawing my self unto my wonted Solitude do crave the great Honour to be esteemed as I am ready to approve my self Della mia povera Capanna 18 di Novembre 78. Your GRACE's Most Humble and Most Faithful Servant THO. RAYMOND Arch-Bishop Laud's Account of his Province sent to the King for the Year 1633. with the King 's Apostills in the Margin May it please Your most Sacred Majesty ACcording to Your Royal Commands I do here upon the Second of January 1633. Comput Aglic present my Accompt of both the Diocess and Province of Canterbury concerning all those Church Affairs which are contained within your Majesty's most gracious Declaration and Instructions Published out of your most Princely and Religious Care to preserve Unity in Orthodox Doctrine and Conformity to Government in this your Church of England And First for my own Diocess of Canterbury I hear of many things amiss but as yet my time hath been so short that I have had no certain knowledge of any thing fit to certifie save only that some of my Peculiars in London are Extreamly out of order For the Bishoprick of London it is certified that my Lord the now Bishop hath not received complaint against any of his Clergy since his coming to that See which was since Michaelmas last For all the former part of this First Year I must give your Majesty Accompt for my self being then Bishop there And First having heretofore after long patience and often conference proceeded against Nathaniel Ward Parson of Stondon in Essex to Excommunication and Deprivation for refusing to subscribe to the Articles established by the Canon of the Church of which I certified the last Year I have now left him still under the Censure of Excommunication I did likewise convent Mr John Beedle Rector of Barnstone in Essex for omitting some parts of Divine Service and refusing Conformity But upon his submission and promise of reformation I dismissed him with a Canonical Admonition only Since my return out of Scotland Mr John Davenport Vicar of St Stephens in Coleman-street whom I used with all Moderation and about Two Years since thought I had setled his Judgment having him then at advantage enough to have put extremity upon him but forbare it hath now resigned his Vicarage declared his Judgment against Conformity with the Church of England and is since gone as I hear to Amsterdam For Bath and Wells I find that the Lord Bishop hath in his late Visitation taken a great deal of pains to see all your Majesty's Instructions observed And particularly hath put down divers Lecturers in Market-Towns which were Beneficed Men in other Bishops Diocesses Because he found that when they had Preached Factious and Disorderly Sermons they retired into other Countries where his Jurisdiction would not reach to punish them
some places refusing so to do Now because this is not Regulated by any Canon of the Church his Lordship is an humble Suitor that he may have Direction herein And truly I think for this Particular the People will best be won by the Decency of the Thing it self and that I suppose may be compassed in a short time But if your Majesty shall think it fit that a quicker way be held I shall humbly submit From the Lord Bishop of this Diocess I have received no Particular but in General thus That all your Majesty's Instructions are now observed there without repugnance for ought either Chancellor or any other Officer of his hath informed him My Lord the Bishop of this See certifies That your Majesty's Instructions are carefully observed and that there are only two Lecturers in the City of Worcester both very conformable and that they shall not longer continue than they are so And that the one of them preaches on Sundays in the Afternoons after Chatechizing and Service in the Parish-Churches and ending before Evening Prayers in the Cathedral I may not here forbear to acquaint your Majesty that this Sunday Lecture was ever wont to be in the Cathedral and that it is removed because the City would suffer no Prebendary to have it And Evening Prayers in their Parish-Churches must needs begin betimes and their Catechizing be short and the Prayers at the Cathedral begin very late if this Lecture can begin and end in the space between But if it can be so fitted I think the Dean and Chapter will not complain of the remove of the Lecture to a parish-Parish-Church For these Three Diocesses my Lords the Bishops Certifie that all your Majesty's Instructions are carefully observed neither do any of them mention any thing amiss in the general either for Doctrine or Discipline Only the Bishop of Exeter hath sent me up two Copies of the late Libel Intituled News from Ipswich which were sent thither to a Stationer with Blank Covers These Five Diocesses following I have Visited this Year by my Vicar General and other Commissioners And for Hereford I find not many things amiss though the often change of the Bishop there which hath of late hapned hath done no good among them But some pretensions there are to certain Customs which I conceive were better broke than kept And I shall do my best to reform them as I have Opportunity and humbly beg your Majesty's Assistance if I want Power For St. Davids the Bishop is now there and will take the best care he can to see all things in Order But there is one Matthews the Vicar of Penmayn that preaches against the keeping of all Holy-Days with divers other as Fond or Prophane Opinions The Bishop hath inhibited him and if that do not serve I shall call him into the High-Commission Court Baronet Rudde is in this Diocess the Son of a late Bishop there who is a sober Gentleman He hath Built him a Chappel and desires the Bishop to Consecrate it But his Lordship finding one of your Majesty's Instructions to be that none should keep a Chaplain in his House but such as are qualified by Law which he conceives a Baronet is not hath hitherto forborn to Consecrate this Chappel as being to be of small use without a Chaplain and humbly craves direction herein what he shall do I humbly propose to your Majesty whether considering the Charge this Gentleman hath been at and the ill Ways which many of them there have to Church it may not be fit to Consecrate this Chappel and then that he may have a License to use the Minister of the Parish or any other lawfully in Orders Always provided that he use this Chappel but at times of some necessity not making himself or his Family strangers to the Mother-Church and that there be a Clause expressed in the License for recalling thereof upon any Abuse there committed and that this License be taken either from the Bishop under his Seal or from the Arch-Bishop of the Province For Landaff there is very little found amiss Only the Bishop complains that whereas Mr. Wroth and Mr. Erbury are in the High-Commission for their Schismatical proceedings the slow prosecution there against them makes both them persist in their By-ways and their Followers judge them Faultless But for this I humbly present to your Majesty this Answer That now the loss of two Terms by reason of the Sickness hath cast the Proceedings of that Court as well as of others behind-hand And there is no Remedy where all things else stay as well as it In the Diocess of St. Asaph there is no Complaint but the usual That there is great resort of Recusants to Holy-Well and that this Summer the Lady Falkland and her Company came as Pilgrims thither who were the more observed because they travelled on Foot and Dissembled neither their Quality nor their Errand And this Boldness of theirs is of very ill construction among your Majesty's People My humble Suit to your Majesty is That whereas I complained of this in open Council in your Majesty's presence you would now be graciously pleased that the Order then resolved on for her Confinement may be put in execution For Bangor I find that Catechising was quite out of use in those remote parts the more the Pity But the Bishop is now in hope to do much good and sees some Reformation in that particular already And I would say for this and the other Diocesses in Wales that much more good might be done there in a Church-way if they were not overborn by the Proceedings of the Court of the Marches there And this present Year in this Diocess of Bangor my Commissioners for my Metropolitical Visitation there complain unto me that the Power which belongs to my place hath been in them very much wronged and impeached by that Court And I do most humbly beseech your Majesty in your own good time to give this my Cause a Hearing if it take not a fair end without that trouble For Rochester the Bishop God comfort him is very ill of a Palsy and that I fear hath made him forget his Account Neither hath the Bishop of Glocester sent me any but why I know not And for Bristol that See is void For this Diocess I have likewise received no Account But I fear that whereas the Bishop was lately complained of to your Majesty for making Waste of the poor Woods there remaining he is not over-willing to give an Accotnt of that Particular Nor of the gross Abuse committed in the Cathedral Church by the Lady Davis who I most humbly beseech your Majesty may be so restrained as that she may have no more Power to commit such horrible Profanations And so I most humbly submit this my Yearly Account of my Province of Canterbury to your Majesty's Princely Wisdom W CANT The Arch-Bishop's Account of
those Learned Men and Able for Direction with whom you conversed Suppose that yet your self accounts me among your Friends And is it not many times as useful when Thoughts are distracted to make use of the Freedom and Openness of a Friend not altogether Ignorant as of those which are thought more Learned but not so Free nor perhaps so Indifferent But the Result you say that first-began to settle you was that you discern'd by this your diligent Conversation and studious Reading that there were great Mistakings on both Sides and that Passion and Affection to a Party transported too many of those that entred into the Lists in this Quarrel Suppose this also to be true I am heartily sorry and have been ever since I was of any Understanding in matters of Religion to hear of Sides in the Church And I make no doubt but 't will one Day fall heavy upon all that wilfully make or purposely continue Sidings in that Body But when Sides are made and continued remember you confess there are great Mistakings on both Sides And how then can you go from one Side to the other but you must go from one great Mistaking to another And if so then by changing the Side you do but change the Mistaking not quit your self from Mistakes And if you do quit your self from them by God's Goodness and your own Strength yet why might not that have been done without changing the Side since Mistakes are on both Sides As for the Passion and Transportation of many that enter the Lists in this Quarrel I am sure you mean not to make their Passion your Guide for that would make you mistake indeed And why then should their Passion work upon your Judgment especially since the Passion as well as the Mistakes are confest to be on both Sides After this follows the main part of your Letters and that which principally resolved you to enter again the Communion of the Church of Rome in which you had been Born and Bred against that semblance of good Reason which formerly had made you adhere to the Church of England And first you say you now perceive that you may preserve your self in that Church without having your Belief bound up in several particulars the dislike whereof had been a motive to you to free your self from the Jurisdiction which you conceived did impose them 'T is true all Churches leave some particulars free But doth that Church leave you free to believe or not believe any thing determined by it And did not your former Dislike arise from some things determined in and by that Church And if so what Freedom see you now that you saw not then And you cannot well say that your Dislike arose from any thing not determined for in those the Jurisdiction of that Church imposes not You add That your greatest Difficulties were solved when you could distinguish between the Opinions of some New Men raised upon wrested Inferences and the plain and solid Articles of Faith delivered at the first Why but I cannot but be confident you could distinguish these long since and long before you joined your self to the Church of England And that therefore your greatest Difficulties if these were they were as fully and fairly solved then as now they are or can be Besides if by these plain and solid Articles you mean none but the Creed and certainly no other were delivered at the first you seem to intimate by comparing this and the former Passage that so you believe these plain and first Articles you may preserve your self in that Church from having your Belief bound up to other Particulars which I think few will believe besides your self if you can believe it And the Opinions of New Men and the wrested Inferences upon these are some of those great Mistakes which you say are on both sides and therefore needed not to have caused your Change To these first Articles you say The Church in no succeeding Age hath power to add as such the least Tittle of New Doctrine Be it so and I believe it heartily not as such especially if you mean the Articles of the Creed But yet if that Church do maintain That all her Decisions in a General Council are Articles Fidei Catholicae and that all Christians are bound to believe all and every of them eâdem Fide quâ Fidei Articulos and that he is an Heretick which believes them not all Where is then your Freedom or your not being bound up in several Particulars And if you reply You dislike no Determination which that Church hath made then why did you formerly leave it to free your self from that Jurisdiction that you conceived imposed them For if the things which troubled you were Particulars not determin'd they were not imposed upon your Belief And if they were determin'd and so imposed how are you now set free more than then You say again You see now that to be a Catholick doth not deprive them of the fore-named Liberty who have Abilities to examin the things you formerly stuck at and drive them up to their first Principles But first then what shall become of their Liberty who are not able to examin shall they enthral their Consciences Next what shall secure them who think themselves and are perhaps thought by others able to examin yet indeed are not Thirdly what Assurance is there in Cases not demonstrable as few things in Religion are that they which are able to examin have either no Affection to blind their Judgment or may not mistake themselves and their way in driving a doubtful Point to its First Principles Lastly how much doth this differ from leaning upon a private Spirit so 〈◊〉 cried out against by that side when Men under pretence of their Ability shall examin the Tenets of the Church and assume a Liberty to themselves under a colour of not being bound But you say this is not the breaking of any Obligation that Church lays upon you but only an exact understanding of the just and utmost Obligations that Side ties Men to I must here question again For first what shall become of their Freedom that cannot reach to this exact understanding And next do not you make your self as a private Man Judge of the Church's Obligations upon you And is it not as great an Usurpation upon the Church's Power and Right to be Judge of her Obligations as of her Tenets For if the Points be left free there 's no Obligation Nor can you or need any other have any Scruple But if the Points be binding by the Predetermination of the Church can you any way be Judge of her Obligation but you must be Judge also of the Point to which she obliges Now I think that Church will hardly give liberty to any private Man to be so far her Judge since she scarce allows so much to any as Judicium Discretionis in things determin'd by her These utmost Obligations to which that Side ties Men