Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	apostle_n	church_n	word_n	980	5	3.9234	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B09464	Animadversions on the defence of the answer to a paper, intituled The case of the dissenting Protestants of Ireland, in reference to a bill of indulgence from the exceptions made against it together with an answer to a peaceable & friendly address to the non-conformists written upon their desiring an act of toleration without the sacramental test.	Mac Bride, John.; Pullen, Tobias, 1648-1713. Defence of the ansvver to a paper intituled The case of the dissenting Protestants.	1697 (1697)	Wing M114; ESTC R180238	76,467	116

he saith to be always in extreems very good or very bad and is at several times highly applauded and violently decry'd by the whole Body of Dissenting Protestants it hath some truth but not the whole truth in it for both Papists and Sons of the Church have and do decry and commend it according to their need for do not the Papists in England and Ireland and his Episcopal Brethren in Scotland plead for it as much as Protestant Dissenters We suppose he hath seen Bishop Taylor 's Liberty of Prophecying and when he hath answered the Preface to that Book he may possibly prevent mens looking on Toleration as unlawful If he had the wisdom of the unjust Steward he might improve his Remark that should he be put out of his Stewardship which is metaphysically possible he might have Friends to receive him into their Houses To the V's Question whether he could produce one Instance of any Protestant Dissenter even in the late Reign turning Papist The D. gives a womans reason he could give several Instances but will not mention one which certainly flows not from tenderness of our Reputation which he labours on all occasions industriously to blast but either because he can't as we are sure he can't fairly or because he is tender of their honor now they are turn'd Papists and will not expose them or fears if we come to ballance Accounts with him he shall be much a Loser But however He tells the great reason why so few of theirs or our Communion were perverted is under God to be ascribed to the excellent Discourses wr●t against Papists by the Episcopal Clergy and amongst the vest numbers of those admirable Tracts two only were wrote by Dissenters and then he falls to downright calling and revi●ing Dissenters A. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 think it unjust to derogate from the worth of any mans labours yet it is only native to Animals of 〈…〉 their own Praise and inconsistent with the 〈◊〉 of God which directs us to let another man praise 〈…〉 Lips A stranger and not thine own 〈◊〉 but 〈◊〉 D. being jealous none would undertake to be his Parties Herald but with so much Vanity That he calls to our remembrance a frantick man who before the Troubles wandred about in the North under the Title of King of the Rainbow who with great assurance asserted he defended Brittain and Ireland from all foreign Enemies that he fought our Battles and that we ow'd our lives to his Valour Conduct and hath been observ'd busie in an old Fort in his imaginary War So tho we will not deny all good that such discourses may have done yet we are confident that their influence upon Dissenters hath been very weak seeing very few of them hath heard or seen these Admirable Tracts which would justly deserve the Epithete if they could preserve those who never saw nor heard them But how comes he to know that only two were wrote by Dissenters against Papists doth he know all of that nature is done by them we suppose the Morning Exercises Preach't and Printed by the Dissenting Ministers of London to that purpose may vi● with any of these admirable Tracts several others also might be Instanced But yet we see not that the Irish-English Clergy have any great share in this Honour except it be the Bishop of Derry in his Admirable Tract against Manby in which he hath taken the same method to prevent Dissenters being perverted that so did wh● recommended cutting off the Head as a Soveraign Remedy against the ●oothach for lest the Catholick Church shou'd lose its Members by their being perverted he prudently cut them off from being Members of it And left the Lawful Spiritual Governours of the Church shou'd laugh at Presbyterians and Independants he appears to us to treat them no better if his Difinition of the Catholick Church hold good ●or pag. 4. He defines it to be the whole Body of Men professing the Religion of Christ and living under their Lawful Spiritual Governours Now the Lawful Spiritual Governours can't live under the Lawful Spiritual Governours for then should they be undermost and upmost at the same time and therefore a Bishop is as little a member of the Catholick Church as a Presbyterian Bishop Sheridon also Preach't a Sermon against Popery which we have seen but how it preserv'd him in his Bishoprick the D. knows and yet notwithstanding all these admirable Tracts he boasts of the Establish't Church has furnish't Rome with twenty Proselytes to one more than all the Dissenting Protestants in Britain and Ireland so that their Works has been better Amulets for their Neighbours than themselves If we intended to render railing for railing we would charge the Episcopal Clergy with what he falsely accuseth all Dissenting Ministers as being Trumpoters in State Tumults and Seditions But we leave that work to his Jacobitish Brethren who have upbraided many of their own Clergy with that Evil under the aggravation of Treachery and Perjury But wickedness proceedeth from the wicked my hand shall not be upon them Tho the D. endeavors to ridicule Preaching the Gospel under the name of raising the Hue and Cry c. Yet it hath pleased God by the foolishness of Preaching to save them that believe The Gospel was planted by Preaching not by Printing and shall be preserved by the same means Acts 20. 32. And as Rome's first wound was given by the faithful Preaching of the first Reformers more than by their Printing so we understand not that the Walls of Rome shall be battered by Books but as the Walls of Jericho did fall by Faith even so shall Rome's 2 Thess 2 8. The Lord shall consume it with the spirit of his mouth and Faith comes by hearing and hearing by God's Word Preached Rom. 10. 14 15. The V. having told to mortifie the man's vanity that years experience might convince them how unsuccesful they had been in gaining Dissenters to their Communion the D. tells that this is mainly to be attributed to the unwearied labours of Dissenting Preachers in raising unreasonable prejudices and in fixing invincible aversion to our Ecclesiastical Discipline and Constitutions c. in them A. As their endeavors have been very unsuccesful as to the numbers they have gain'd from us so the worth of such is inconsiderable being persons whom a worldly Interest and a more licentious Life prevail'd upon and as they are no Ornaments to their Church except their admired Bishop of Derry so they are no loss to us who could spare them more such when we detect them Nor is this to be attributed so much to the unwearied labours of Dissenting Preachers as he saith as to the Dignified Clergy's easy wearying in their labours and inverting the Apostle's words into Woe to me if I Preach the Gospel and the unwearied pursuit of Dignities and Revenues of the Church more than Ministerial Duties nor need the Dissenting Preachers weary themselves to beget in people an aversion and prejudice against

the Discipline and Constitutions of the Church for 't is the selling the management of Church Discipline to Officials and Registers and their ways of exercising Church Discipline more by picking mens Pockets than bringing them to due Penitence that hath rendred Discipline odious and nauseous even to all sober Conformists while they see Ecclesiastical Discipline used as an Engine to drain mens Purses more than reform their Manners And the Keys of Heaven and Hell intrusted with such hands who for trifles deliver men to Satan but will not relax them without sums of Money whereby they shew themselves too liberal to the Devil but not so careful to deliver out of his power These are things not done in a corner but such as the Nation is dissatisfied with besides this the manifest partially in the Exercise of Discipline makes men think there is little regard had to Paul's charge given to Timothy 1 Tim 5. 21. I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the Elect Angels that thou observe these things without preserring one before another doing nothing by partiality For 't is known that Great Mens Immorality tho' never so heinous escape without rebuke and the truly poor free to sin because they want Silver according to the Rule in the Official Court Deux 6. Ace non possunt six cinque non solvere volunt Hoc tamen est notum quater tres solvere totum By these and such like Methods many are driven to us If he say the Church does not allow these Practices why then are Dissenters Excommunicated for disobedience to that which the Church allows not of But lest our words shou'd give offence we hope Dr. Andrews will not which he Preached before the Convocation viz. The Church Censures now a days reach the Purse only Evil doers when they have paid their Fees return Scot-free If no Money then have at the Offenders with the Episcopal Sword presently at one blow they are cut off from the Church dilivered over to Satan proclaimed Publicans Heathens Anathema for the most ridiculous things and against every good Man these Brutish Thunderbolts do fly up and down and only to be fear'd of the Purse The D. having Arraign'd Dissenters as the chief Dividers of the Church has been so just not to make them the only Dividers but hath done them the honour to join the Magistrates as Fomenters of division with them which he chargeth 1. Upon the prodigious Licentionsness in a late Reign 2. The Governments too easy Condescentions at another time 3. The rigorous Executing the Laws against Dissenters at some times And thus he disciplins the Magistrates A. Seeing the Government hath had a hand in fomenting our Divisions he might have honour'd the King and Magistrates so far as to give them the pre●eminence above Dissenting Preachers yet as to his Dividers 1. Prodigious Licentiousness he may enquire at Ezek. 33. 34. If the Clergy might have a hand in it and had they spent the one half of their Thunderbolts imploy'd against Dissenters against the prodigiously licentious they might have purg'd themselves from that Division caused by prodigious Licentiousness yet we know that great Men of the Church have caught That it is absolutely necessary to the Peace and Happiness of the Kingdom that there be set up a more severe Government over Mens Consciences and Religious Persuasions than over Mens Vices and Immoralities Thus Teacheth Bp. Packer in his Ecclesiastical Policy page 53. And that Princes may with less hazard give Liberty to Mens Vices than their Consciences page 55. And what he Taught others have Practci'd 2. For easy Condescentions to Dissenters The Church may safely purge her self from this guilt yea we assure her the Dissenters will be her Compurgators herein 3. The Rigorous Execution of the Laws we confess hath given cause to abhor the Executioners but then how can he be guiltless of the Sin of Dividing who pleads for the perpetuating these Laws which he confesseth gives just occasion to abhor them and are Pomenters of Division How inconsistent is he with himself and reason in this for if these Laws may not be Executed without prejudice to the Union of the Church why are they continu'd in force if Rigorous Laws foment Divisions as is confest these cannot be guiltless of the Divisions who urge the making and executing such Laws as the D. now pleads for The Lesson he prescribes to Magistrates That their behavior towards their People should resemble that of discreetly tender Parents towards their Children not indulging their folly by an imprudent fondness nor punishing their faults by too harsh a Correction but by constantly keeping a strict hand over them which will prove the most Effectual means of preventing or restraining their Exorbitancies This we hope the Magistrate will learn and look upon the Sons of the Church to be no more B●st●rds than Dissenters but use the Rod of Correction to drive out that solly is bound up in their Hearts and so prevent or restrain their Exorbitancies The 2d Lesson this D. prescribes to Magistrates is That at present they keep a strict hand in managing the publick Affairs in this Kingdom c. His Reasons for their being strict are these 1. Within these 5 years many thousands of Families have come from Scotland to settle in this Nation 2. They and their Teachers are zealous for the Covenant 3. They have come from a place where Episcopacy is abolished 4. He fears from their aversion to the Ecclesiastical Policy of the Church when their Numbers and Preachers are increased they will overturn the truly Apostolical Government of the Establish't Church And then he prescribes an Antidote against this Plague viz. That their Preachers be obliged to perform their Quarantine and to undergo some Religious Test before they be admitted to Preach in their Conventicles A. This Admonition having apparently its rise from fear must be considered with its Causes and Remedy His fear seems to arise from his gift of Prophecy by laying aside which or prophecying better things he might cure himself of that panick fear for we dare assure him that some of us are so far from desiring the over-turning of the truly Apostolical Government of the Church that we could wish them over-turn'd who turn it out to turn in another of their own tho we are persuaded if the Bishops were turn'd out of Parliament from all their Civil Honours excessive Revenues and sole Exercise of Church-Jurisdiction and should be oblig'd to Preach the Gospel constantly and not to Lord it over God's Inheritance we should not lose any thing of the Apostolical Government which we may the more boldly say because we find in a Speech of the Lord Delamare's in Parliament against the Bishops Voting in case of Blood these words I like Bishops very well but I wish that Bishops were reduc'd to their Primitive Institution for I fear while there is in England a Lord Bishop the Church will not stand very steadily To