Selected quad for the lemma: doctrine_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
doctrine_n	church_n	england_n	reform_a	3,931	5	9.9167	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A75445	An answer to the Solemne League & Covenant; presented to the publick view of all loyall subiects in England, Scotland, and Ireland; in the twelfth year of the reign of our most gracious sovereign Lord Charles by the grace of God, of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c. Published according to order.		1660 (1660)	Wing A3448; Thomason E1045_3; ESTC R207947	9,622	16

Covenant we play fast and loose say and unsay and overthrow the nature of an Oath and take Gods name in vain The Schools and ancient Doctors constantly maintain that it exceedeth even Divine Omnipotency to reconcile Contradictions which are amongst those many things St. Augustine speaketh of which God therefore cannot do because he is Omnipotent But there are apparent Contradictions in this Covenant and Gordion knots which cannot be untied For First It is said in the Preface that the Noblemen Bar●●s c. enter into this Covenant according to the commend●●le practice of these King oms in former times and yet Mr. N●●e in his Speech published by special order of the House upon ●he very day the Covenant was read and sworn unto and subcribed by the honorable House of Commons and Reverend As●●mbly of Divines Sept. 25. saith p. 12. That such an Oa●● for matter persons and other circumstances hath not been in any age or Oath we read of in sacred or humane stories And Mr. Coleman in his Sermon commanded to be Printed by the Commons of the House of Parliament Sept. ult 1643. pag. 18. Ask your Fathers consult with the aged of our times whether ever such a thing were done in their dayes or in the dayes of their Fathers before them And in his Epistle Dedicatory An Oath if vain makes the Land to mourn an Oath if weighty makes it rejoyce This is a new thing and not done in ou● Land before and I hope will have a new effect not seen by our people before We are to swear in the first branch That we will really and constantly endeavour the preservation of the Reformed Religion in the Church of Scotland in Doctrine Worship Discipline and Government and yet in the same branch we swe●r to endeavour to bring the Churches of God in these three Kingdoms of which Scotland is one to the nearest conjunction and uniformity in form of Church-Government according to the Word of God and the example of the best Reformed Churches But this cannot be done if Scotland be preserved in her present Directory for Worship Discipline and Government for the Government in the Church of England Ireland Denmark Swethland Poland Saxony and in all the Churches of the East not subject to the Pope is Episcopal and that is proved to be most conformable to the Word of God by the writings of Bilson Downham Armagh never yet answered by any We swear in the same branch That we will endeavor to reform the Doctrine of the Church of England according 〈◊〉 Gods Word and yet preserve the Reformed Religion in Sco●land in Doctrine whereas the Doctrine of the Church of E●●land and Scotland is all one as appears by the Confession of the one and Articles of the other All the difference ●etween the Church of England and Scotland is concerng Discipline and Liturgie not Doctrine as it is distinguised from them We swear in the second branch That We will endeavour the extirpation of of Prelacy and Schisme whereas Prelacy hath been ever and is the special if not only mean to extirpate Schisme If Prelacy be taken away saith St. Jerome ad Luc. and the preeminencie of one Presbyter above another Tot Schismata erunt quot Sacerdotes That is to extirpate Church Government by Archbishops Bishops c. and yet in the third b●anch we swear to preserve the Rights and Priviledges of the Parliament and Liberties of the Kingdoms among which liberties of the Kingdom of England and priviledges of the Parliament are the contents of Magna Charta and Petition of Right in which the Government of Archbishops and Bishops and the Rights and Priviledges of the Church are comprised In the third branch we swear to preserve and defend his Majesties Person and Authority without any diminution of his just Power and greatness and yet in the sixth Article we swear to assist and defend all those that enter into this League and Covenant in the maintaining and pursuance thereof Whereas it is known by their daily practise that they levie Arms against the KING Seize upon his Forts Ships Magazines and Revenues How can a man take away the Kings Munition and Castles and yet not weaken his power How can a man forcibly encounter and discomfit an Army raised by the KING'S Power and yet not diminish his power How can a man take away his Revenues Houses Parks c. and not diminish his greatness How can he give him Battle and yet Defend his Person Therefore before we enter into this Covenant to make up all the breaches in the Church and Common-wealth we must make up the breaches in the Covenant it self before we reconcile and unite the three Kingdoms we must endeavour to reconcile the contradictions in this our Oath and Solemn League Either this League and Covenant confirmed by Oath is free and voluntary or forced and Compulsory If it be free and voluntary Why is there annexed a most severe penalty to be inflicted upon all those who refuse to enter into it before the first of March If it be forced and compulsory how is it a Covenant especially with God who respecteth not our words but our hearts If it be a const●ained Oath imposed upon us whether we will or no then it is a heavy yoke laid upon the Conscie●ce inconsistent with our Christian Liberty and the requiring it of us is not like to procure a blessing from Heaven to the Land but to pull down the vials of Gods vengeance upon it If Tertullian could say Non est Religionis Religionem cogere it is no rel●gious act to force Religion we may swear that such a constrained Oath is no way acceptable to God Well it may be tea●med in ou● language a League or Covenant but in the Language of Canaan it is not so For Berith a Covenant comes from Bara which signifieth eligere saith Buxtorfius that is to chuse Neither is it any act of vertue in Aristotles School for virtus est habitus electivus a habit whereby we exercise our free choice None ought to swear to that he knoweth not for an Oath must be taken in judgment truth and righteousness Jer. 4.2 A man cannot swear in Judgement or judiciously who knoweth not that to be true in an assertory Oath and honest and righteous in a promissary which he sweareth unto For if that be false to which he sweareth he is perjured and if be a dishonest thing thing which he promiseth to do he is unrighteous Besides it it great precipitancy and rashness to enter into a Covenant blindfolded and to swear to maintain that we understand not But the subjects of England at least for the major part know not what the Scotch Discipline Government or Worship is which notwithanding by this Covenant they are bound to preserve even with the hazard of their Fortunes and Lives FINIS