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duty_n	call_v	law_n	moral_a	1,184	5	9.0839	5	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A92075	The Cyprianick-Bishop examined, and found not to be a diocesan, nor to have superior power to a parish minister, or Presbyterian moderator being an answer to J.S. his Principles of the Cyprianick-age, with regard to episcopal power & jurisdiction : together with an appendix, in answer to a railing preface to a book, entituled, The fundamental charter of presbytery / by Gilbert Rule ...	Rule, Gilbert, 1629?-1701.	1696 (1696)	Wing R2218; ESTC R42297	93,522	126

He saith also that I contradict the former Position directly in true Representation 2d Vindic. by allowing the taking ruling Power from the prelatical Clergy Beside the Necessity and unsettled State of the Church in these Places brought for justifying this Conduct which he rather mocketh at than solidly answereth I there at length insisted to shew that there is no inconsistancy between this and our principle concerning Parity I need say no more till he answer what is already said § 20. Another Contradiction he will needs make between my disowning some Grounds of Separation in England and owning the same in Scotland The one in my Rational Defence against Dr. Stillingfleet the other in my second Vindic. of the Church of Scotland this he prosecuteth with a great deal of Clamor what strength is in his Discourse let us now try I hope I shall be found semper idem for all this noise Three Grounds of Separation he mentioneth wherein this Contradiction lyeth first Episcopacy Answer I said the setting up Episcopacy in England was not a sufficient Ground for People to forbear hearing of the Word in their Parish Churches I say the same with respect to Scotland I said Episcopacy was a good Ground for Ministers to withdraw from Church Judicatories where they must at least interpretatively own that Authority I say the same of England If he can find any thing in my words that doth import any more than this I shall owne a Contradiction and the shame that it may infer The second is Episcopal Ministers were Vsurpers or Intruders The third is they had not the Peoples Call I am sure I never made these to be two distinct things but this Author 's subtile Wit hath divided them Here I cannot own either Contradiction or Contrariety I approved the Conduct of many People in England who by a tacit and after Consent owned these men as their Pastors and heard them tho' they did not joyn with their unwarranted Ceremonies I never condemned the same Practice in Scotland but approved it by my Practice and Doctrine Only I pleaded that what ever might be said of their not giving Consent which was also the Case of many in England they could not be Charged with Separation while these men were obtruded on them against the Laws of the Gospel especially when they might hear their own lawfully called Ministers tho' in a Corner I find no Contradiction here neither in what he saith about the Covenant which I still think never made any new Duties or sins for the matter but was a superadded Tie to former Moral Obligations I said indeed that the Covenant National and the Solemn League made setting up of Episcopacy more sinful than before but I never said that either it made Episcopacy sinful where it was not so before nor that it made owning of it such tho' I am sure it aggravated the sin of both § 21. His next Effort is to expose my Rejecting the Testimony of some who were brought to Attest the Rabbling but in his way I know not what Freak took him he Digresseth to consider the Preface to Animadv on Stillingf Irenic which he will needs have to be written by the Author himself on which he discanteth after his own manner that is not very Learnedly nor Convincingly I assure him and if he will not be assured he having no great Esteem of my Veracity I can assure the Reader that the Author neither wrote that Preface nor what is in the Title Page nor knew that the Book was Printed till after it was done but was at 300 Miles distance from where it was done The Metaphorical Death spoken of in it taken from the English Phrase of being Dead in Law as the Nonconformist Ministers then were was but a sorry Subject for a Learned Divine to practise upon but he had a mind to write much and had little to say tho' he often pretendeth to have great Plenty of Matter It is true I did and do Question the Truths of many Circumstances whereby the Rabblings were aggravated and tho' he is pleased to say that the whole Nation knoweth them I affirm the Generality of the People where these things were said to be Acted know the contrary let the Reader who hath not occasion to enquire into the Matters of Fact believe as he seeth Cause or suspend his Belief I did never defend nor deny the Hardships that some of the Episcopal Clergy met with from the Rabble only I said and I insist in it that they were Represented most Disingenuously in several Parts and Circumstances of them his Vouchers I reject I mean some of them ours he rejecteth which is ordinary in such Contendings wherefore unless the thing could come to a Legal Tryal every one must believe as he seeth Cause That I rejected by the Bulk all the Matters of Fact is false and injurious I did acknowledge several of them and condemned them as unaccountable Disorders It is a foolish Inference no man can be a fit Witness before a Court because we are not to believe all the Stories that men tell of themselves or their Friends That I had my Informations in these things mostly from Rabblers themselves is falsly asserted as may be seen by any who Impartially consider the second Vindication His exposing that second Vindication because I had the Accounts of Matters of Fact from other hands and was not Eye nor Ear-Witness to them is odd for what Historian is there who may not be on the same Account blamed The Book he speaketh of Account of the late Establishment of the Presbyterian Government by the Parliament I have not seen nor heard of it before I thanked the Parliament in the Preface to my Sermon before them for their Act Establishing Presbyterian Government can any wise man thence Infer that I commended whatever was beside Incorporated into that Act Therefore all his long Discourse on that head is impertinent Another terrible Contradiction is I say Field Meetings were sometimes necessary and yet they were Condemned by the Wisest and Soberest Presbyterians If I had said they were in all Cases so Condemned he might have Insulted but may not I always that is at all times be of Opinion that a thing should not be done as I see it often done and without Necessity and yet think that there may be a Case of Necessity where it may be done this is to Cavil not to Reason § 22. The Envenomed Words in some Pages that follow wherewith he Concludeth his Preface and these of the same Sort wherewith it Interspersed I disregard he doth himself more Hurt by them than me I resolve not to be Hector'd nor Banter'd out of my Principles nor Scarred by Malice or Reproach from casting in my Mite for the Defence of Truth tho' he and such as he Conspire to Overwhelm me partly with their Books and partly with their Calumnious Imputations It is not usual for Satan so to Rage against a bad Cause These few Pages I have written raptim the Press waiting for them if he or any other will Examine them fairly with that Candor that becometh a Christian and a Disputant I shall be willing to be Corrected if any thing have escaped my Pen if he or they write in the same Strain of this Preface I will Despise them as also will all Sober and Intelligent Readers FINIS

Lapsed Nothing of this I contradict except what I now said He hath run thus far without a Check and therefore ariveth at the Confidence to say p. 58. now consider what followeth and speak your Conscience and tell me if St. Cyprian was not more than either single Presbyter or Presbyterian Moderator I shall yield him yet a little more in what he saith of Cyprian's Meekness and Humility of his being alarmed with this Practice that this was an unparalelled Practice and that Cyprian did zealously and vigorously oppose it And for all this I shall speak my Conscience and shall give Reason for my Light that Cyprian was no Diocesan Bishop in our modern sense and that he neither had nor claimed sole Power nor a Negative in the Government of the Church and that bating what I yielded in stating the Question § 9 10. He was no more but a single Presbyter that is a Parish Minister or Presbyterian Moderator And indeed all that he here bringeth and looketh on as so strongly Argumentative is already Answered he having cited all or most of the places before which he here quoteth He bringeth three Epistles of Cyprian to prove his Assertion § 52. The first is that to the Confessors and Martyrs where I find nothing but a sharp Reproof of them for going without their Line and he blameth those Presbyters who had absolved the Lapsed so disorderly only what seemeth here to contain an Argument is that they should have Petitioned the Bishop for restoring of these Lapsed and not done it without him The Answer here is easie and often before given that the fault of these turbulent Presbyters was that they took this Act of Church Power on themselves without the Presbytery whereas the regular way had been to Petition the Bishop that he might call the Presbytery and that he with them might cognosce of that Affair I have laid down sufficient warrant for thus understanding his words from his declared purpose founded on Conscience of Duty to do nothing without the Concurrence of the Presbytery see § 12. And it is like I may after bring yet further Evidence that his Principles led him to this Conduct At present I take notice of that plain Passage Ep. 15. ad Clerum speaking of receiving the Lapsed quaeres saith he cum omnium nostrum Concilium Sententiam spectet praejudicare ego soli mihi rem communem vindicare non audeo And he desireth that that Affair might be put off donec pace nobis à Domino redditâ in unum convenire singulorum causas examinare possumus if Cyprian seem to my Adversary to speak in pure Prelatical Stile as he saith p. 6. He seemeth to me here to speak in the Stile of a Presbyterian Moderator Of the same Importance is the next Epistle cited which was to the Clergy of Carthage he doth not call them his Clergy as our Author wordeth it and if he had there had been no Argument in it he sharply reproveth not the Presbyters in common as our Author fouly representeth the matter for he writeth in a loving Stile to them but some of the Presbyters who had received some of the Lapsed most irregularly and that because they had not taken the due course for receiving these Lapsed which should have been done per impositionem manuum Episcopi Cleri not by the Bishops sole Authority He doth indeed here speak like a Bishop that is a faithful Pastor but not as a Bishop pretending to sole Jurisdiction or a Negative in the Government of the Church His third Epistle is to the People where we have the same Complaint of the Irregularity of the Schismatical Presbyters and complaineth that the honour of his Priesthood and of his Chair was not reserved to him This can never evince that Cyprian pretended to a Power to manage that Affair by himself I see nothing here inconsistent with the Power or the Stile of the Moderator of a Presbytery or Pastor of a Congregation save that the Moderator then being constant his part in the management of publick Affairs was more obvious and therefore more taken notice of He hath yet a further Citation wherein Cyprian telleth the Clergy that they ought to inform him of every thing that happens that so I may saith he Advisedly and Deliberatly give Orders concerning the Affairs of the Church let any one compare this Translation with Cyprian's own words which are faithfully enough set down by our Author in the Margin Is limare Consilium to give Order It is to polish and amend his Advice and make it more exact he then in his Retirement wills them to write often and distinctly to him of all Occurrences that he as making such a figure in their Society might give the more accurate Advice about what was to be done this is no Prelatical but a plain Presbyterian Stile § 53. On this occasion he is pleased p. 61 62. to take notice of and tragically aggravate a Passage in rational Defence of Non-conformity p. 179. where he thinketh Cyprian is reflected on as shewing too much Zeal in that Cause viz. of his Episcopal Authority being neglected and that possibly he stretched his Power a little too far as afterward many did he was a holy and meek man but such may be a little too high This he stretcheth his Invention to expose as contradictory to it self injurious to Cyprian and an uncharitable or ignorant Sugestion his more sedate Thoughts after all this Huffiness may inform him better That Author as he was not so straitned with his learned Adversaries Arguments as he imagineth they being the very same which now I have examined so he was far from speaking Contradictions nor did he seek to reconcile Pride and Patience Superciliousness and Self-denyal Huffiness and Humility carnal hight and Christian Holiness He was far from thinking on such ill Qualities with respect to that excellent person Further than that the best of men have sinful Infirmity mixed with their Graces and best Gifts He might know and I shall not charge him with Ignorance in this that Sin and Grace are consistent in gradu saltem remissiore And that tho' it were ridiculous to say that Moses was the meekest Man on Earth and yet he was Huffie and Proud and Passionate or that Job was most patient and yet he was impatient Notwithstanding it may be said with our Author's leave that neither of these holy Men was so perfect in the grace for which he is commended as to have nothing of the contrary evil Further I am of Opinion that what might be imputed to the excellent Cyprian was rather the Fault of the Age he lived in than his personal Fault there was then a Tendency toward Church-Domination which did shew it self much more afterward Tho' I still maintain it was not arrived at that Pitch that this Author imputeth to that time He spendeth a great many words to prove that Cyprian did not stretch his Power too far