Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A42830
|
Seasonable reflections and discourses in order to the conviction & cure of the scoffing, & infidelity of a degenerate age by Jos. Glanvill ...
|
Glanvill, Joseph, 1636-1680.
|
1676
(1676)
|
Wing G830; ESTC R23378
|
24,921
|
115
|
right and you in the wrong D. I did not trouble my self to do that A. And yet you withdrew from his Ministry upon it D. I did A. Then let me tell you you did a very rash uncharitable unchristian action We are not you know to separate from the conversation of any private person till we have told him his fault between us and him though the fault be plain and apparent much less may we divide from the Church and our Ministers till we have made the matter of offence known much less may we do it when the fault is not evident and certain It is no small matter to change the Guide that Gods providence and our Governours have set over us and to take others contrary to the Laws under which we live 't is a thing that before a man doth it he should consider well for here is at least the appearance of danger 'T is something to break Laws and disturb Governors and trouble Ministers and offend private Christians 't is something I say which a tender Conscience would not do without great consideration and without being fully resolv'd in the necessity of it and how then durst you do it upon a mislike of your Ministers Doctrine when you never did your self or him that right as to speak with him about it and to enquire what satisfaction he could give you in it This let me tell you plainly is an error greater than any you can pretend in his Doctrines it is a sin that hath a complication of many others Pride and Stomach Self-will Contempt of your betters and causeless Disobedience to your Governors You have now chosen ways and teachers upon your own head and if you happen to be mistaken in your choice as I much fear you are this confident proceeding and bold relying on your own understanding will render your sin and folly inexcusable D. I perceive you grow angry Fare you well A. Nay pray stay a little I am not so much angry as griev'd at your ways and have a question more to ask you on occasion of what you have told me and that is Whether you are to leave every Minister and Church as soon as any thing is said that is really erroneous in the lesser and unessential matters D. Should we not love the truth and fly from errors I think we ought to settle where the greatest purity is both in Doctrine and Worship A. And upon these terms we shall never settle any where at all For no Church pretends it self to be infallible but the Roman and there are no particular men or body of men but have their actual errors and mistakes So that according to this way of proceeding you must have departed from the Preaching and Communion of the holiest Men and best Churches of the most ancient yea and of all times In many things we err as well as offend all I have thus spoken to you freely in this matter I hope you will consider it But I have a little more to say of your not profiting under our Minister I am yet speaking to the first cause your prejudice against his person which in a manner you confess Where this is the Doctrine will not be heeded be it what it will and I have plainly observed this effect in you when I have seen you at Church sometimes at Funeral Sermons or other occasions D. What have you observed A. I have taken notice that though the Minister hath been speaking of the greatest matters in the most pathetical and moving way yet you have looked coldly insensibly and unconcernedly upon it whereas I remember when the men you now follow preacht in publick you used to listen with a very visible and affectionate attention to all even the poor mean impertinent and sometimes senseless things they deliver'd and to be very diligent in penning those Sermons when as these you manifestly slight by your carriage even when they are full of the weightiest and most useful truths And is not this to have the Faith of Christ with respect of persons And to come under St. Judes Character of the Separatists of his time who had mens persons in admiration This is not to honour Ministers for their works sake but to undervalue and slight their work for theirs whereas a Christian should joyfully hear Christs Truths and Laws and affectionately imbrace them for their own sake and his D. This I do for all your observations and so I hope you have done with me A. No I have more causes yet to shew of your not profiting under our Minister you told me he delivered Doctrines sometimes that you did not like He presseth the duties of Peaceableness Modesty of judgment Candor Subjection to Governors Charity c. And reproves the contrary vices and these are very proper and seasonable subjects for the needs of the Age But such Doctrines you do not like your party is wont to call the most modest â—nd necessary representation of â—hese matters railing and reâ—lecting on the godly So that â—hose duties and their contrary â—ins must not be toucht lest you wound the good People No Preach up the comfortable Doctrines of Gods seeing no sin in â—is chosen Salvation by Faith â—ithout Works and the Righteousâ—ess of Christ covering our Sins in the Antinomian sence Liberty of Conscience the Privileges of the Saints the marks of Regeneration that comprehend the Party and exclude all else the abominations of the Wicked that are for the Common-Prayer and Bishops O these are edifying Soul-refreshing Doctrines these you like because they flatter you in your ways Those thaâ— Preach thus shall have youâ— Company your Ears youâ— Hearts and your Purses wheâ— as such as Preach the sound searching Doctrine you cannoâ— endure you vilifie their persons and are prejudiced againsâ— their Preaching and be it neveâ— so powerful and profitable yoâ— can learn nothing from it becausâ— you will not Here 's the bottom of your phancied profiting bâ— your own Preachers and not bâ— ours But if a man should asâ— you in what principles of Religion you are better instructed what duties you are excited to and directed in that you coulâ— not learn from our Ministers I believe you would be able tâ— â—ive but a slender account of â—our profiting in those things in â—hich the true proficiency of a Christian doth consist But your profiting is your being gratified pleased and incouraged in the way of opposition and separaâ—ion you are in D. I cannot endure to hear â—our wicked and prophane discourse and therefore once more fare you well A. I know every thing is prophane in your account that doth not favour your Phantastical and Schismatical ways If you are angry at my honest freedom I must bear it as well as I can and so Your Servant E. He 'l do your errand to the Brotherhood and publish you for a very carnal wicked man A. That 's their usual way of answering when they are roundly opposed and of reforming when they are seriously
reproved I value the favour of any wise and good man but for theirs I heed it not E. He speaks bitterly against our Ministers when he is in company where he can talk at liberty His common accusation of them is that they Preach for hire A. It is fit that he that Preacheth the Gospel should live by it And the Justice and Piety of our Ancestors have made some provision for them in most places setled by our most Fundamental Laws and what they have out of any mans Estate on that account is as much theirs as the remaining part is his Here is the mistake of men that talk thus They reckon that all they possess is their own in which account they are much out all is their own when their debts are paid when they have paid to God the things that are Gods and to Caesar the things that are Caesars what the Laws have ordained to be paid out of their Estates to others is their property and no man can be called an hireling for taking what is his own Nor can Ministers be any more justly called so for receiving the maintenance the ancient Laws and Government have allowed them than Kings for taking Taxes and other payments from their Subjects E. Ministers have much to do with such people and many that in words pretend they love the Church are as troublesome as those Such as neglect the publick worship and never come to it but when they have nothing else to do now and then you shall see them drop into the Church by chance but in their very coming in they shew how little concerned they are and their whole carriage after declares their carelessness and indifferency to those things So that if the Minister particularly court and caress them without taking notice of their indevotion and other sins he may chance to have their good word a little while but if he do not so they be ready on all occasions and without any to carp at him if he omits any of the least circumstances of his duty or they phancy so he shall be sure to hear of their railing and backbiting of him when as the most constant laborious and worthy diligence in the work of his Ministry and the most laudable performance of all offices publick and private shall not gain him any jot of interest or favour with them nor as much as their good word The ground of which is because the things he administers to them are not at all valued and have no hold upon their affections A. Perhaps they may like to hear him Preach a little while he is new among them but when he hath resided any time he grows stale and cannot affect them with his Preaching though constant exercise hath never so much improved him in that faculty E. And 't is another discouragement to learned and able Ministers that after all their teaching people have so little sense and understanding of Divine matters as to be most of all taken with the weakest and most trifling of those men that now and then happen to supply their room I have heard some of them say that they are extreamly glad when their Auditors happen to be pleased with any true and substantial Preacher but to hear of their admiring and applauding those that they and other judicious men were asham'd to hear this shews their little proficiency and cannot but be matter of trouble to their Ministers A. And no doubt it is so not out of envy to those poor retailers of small wares but of pitty to their follies and the Peoples want of understanding and judgment it would trouble any man to see that he hath so far lost his labour in all his diligent endeavours to instruct them to find that they generally feel not any thing of substantial practical awakening truth but will sit stupid and dead under such when they are pleased and transported with weak affected superficial stuff that hath no sence understanding or life in it But it grows late we may have some other opportunity to discourse these matters E. Pray before we part let me have a word or two more with you You have been asserting and commending Plain Preaching and you seem to make Plainness the general Character of all good Sermons But will not this disoblige the Ministers from taking pains about them would it not expose their Preaching to the disrespect if not contempt of the People Will they not think they can Preach themselves if it be so plain a business And will not the Ministerial office be hereby render'd liable to be usurp'd by every one that judgeth he has abilities for plain instruction A. I perceive you have not taken sufficient notice of what has been said in describing plain Preaching I do not mean by it what is slight and vulgar what is unthought unconsider'd but what is unstrain'd unaffected what is manly and solid and so to speak requires learning and study and improved faculties This should be the end of a wise mans pains to conceive things clearly and to express them plainly It asks much less of parts and abilities to talk mystically in phrases and hard words and terms of art which many admire because they do not understand than it doth to speak properly and intelligibly which though it may seem very easie to be done yet indeed it requires most labour and 't is mastery to have gain'd this ability A man doth not shew his wit or learning by rolling in metaphors and scattering his sentences of Greek and Latin by abounding in high expressions and talking in the clouds but he is then learned when his learning has clear'd his understanding and furnisht it with full and distinct apprehensions of things when it enables him to make hard things plain and conceptions that were confused distinct and orderly and he shews his learning by speaking good strong and plain sence So that you see there is no fear of making Learning unnecessary to good Preaching there is no fear of excusing Ministers from taking pains there is no fear of exposing the office by the plainness I have commended and for your objection that this will lay it open to intrusions besides the answer contain'd in what I have said already I say further that the Ministers function is blessed be God secured from such invasions by the discipline order and government of the Church according to the primitive Apostolical pattern and rules and not by the Clergies having the only abilities to instruct I doubt not but there are many pious and knowing Lay-men whose parts and knowledg would enable them for publick teaching but they have no Authority so to do and therefore 't would be a great sin and folly for them to attempt it Every man may not do every thing that he can there is a politick as well as natural capacity the Laws of Government are to be consider'd and observ'd and according to them the abilities of men ought to be imployed or restrain'd E. You have satisfied me as to that matter but your plain Preachers do not take so much pains as exact Preaching would require for I understand that some of them Preach Extempore A. I know indeed some that Preach without writing but their Preaching is not therefore Extempore Extempore is unthought not unwritten and these do not vent unconsider'd unpremeditated instructions No those I plead for prepare themselves by previous studies of the Sciences and Divinity after which with much anxiety and thoughtfulness they settle clear and coherent conceptions in their minds of the Christian doctrines encouragements and rules of life they have exercised themselves long in laborious Preaching and it may be thence have gain'd the ability of ready and easiâ— expression they frame thâ— scheme of every particular Seâ—mon and lodge it distinctly iâ— their minds yea they lay thâ— train of the whole inlargemenâ— and settle the consequence oâ— each thing to another undeâ— every head though they givâ— themselves not the trouble oâ— writing and forming all into seâ— words And if any will condemâ— this for Extempore Preaching think they are very unjust iâ— their Censure E. If it be so I shall not makâ— one of those Censurers nor aâ— present give you further Diversion from your occasions A. Therefore Good Night FINIS