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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10835	A iustification of separation from the Church of England Against Mr Richard Bernard his invective, intituled; The separatists schisme. By Iohn Robinson.	Robinson, John, 1575?-1625.	1610 (1610)	STC 21109; ESTC S100924	406,191	526

the case of religion whose way as it is in it selfe narrow and found by few how much more being streytned by the fyery persequutions of the wicked world Indeed the Church of England hath advantage of vs and as I suppose of all the Churches in the world for monstrous speedy growth and encrease for that of a Synagogue of Satan consisting of Popish Idolaters and cruel murderers of the saynts it grew fro top to toe into a true and intire body of Christ of a suddayn before the greatest part of it so much as heard the gospel preached in any measure for their conversion But consider herein M. B. dealing He spares no vngodly means in this his book and otherwayes by slaundering our persons by falsyfying our opinions by exaggerating our infirmities by incensing the Magistrate against vs to suppresse vs and yet reprocheth vs because we grow no faster dealing with vs much what as the Iewes did with Christ when they blindfolded him first then bad him prophesie who smote him Luk. 22. 64. But let it be as Mr B. would have it that the cause of religion is to be measured by the multitude of them that professe it yet must it further be considered that religiō is not alwayes ●own reaped in one age One soweth and another reapeth Iohn Husse and Ierom of Prage finished their testimony in Bohemia and at Constance a hundred yeres before Luther Wickliffe in England wel nigh as long before them and yet neyther the one nor the other with the like successe vnto Luther And the many that are already gathered by the mercy of God into the kingdome of his sonne Iesus the nearnes of many more through the whol land for the regions are white vnto the harvest do promise within lesse then an hundred yeres if our sinnes theirs make not vs and them vnworthy of this mercy a very plenteous harvest That wee have been here and there vp and down without sure footing is our portiō in this present evil world cōmon to vs with the more worthy servants of God going before vs who* have wandred in wildernesses and mountaines and dennes and caves of the earth The sa●ne answer may serve for that other approbation of vs That wee onely have toleration in a place where the enemies of Christ may be as well as wee Yea though we were not so much as tolerated but on the cōtrary persecuted to the death where the enemies of Christ were not onely tolerated but even approved yea the persequuters of vs for the cause of Christ what were this but to partake in the fellowship of his afflictions with the holy Prophets and Apostles and other his most faithful servants And I wil tel you Mr B. in the presence of God what my perswasion is in this case that as we have onely toleration in the City where we live where the enemies of Christ are tolerated with vs so all that truely feare God whether Ministers or private people have onely toleration in your Church no approbation by the canons and constitutions of it And for the leading of the people out of one nation into another of a strange language it is our great crosse but no syn at all and should rather move you and others to compassion towards vs then thus to insult over vs in our exile But your addition that we do this without compulsion is most shameles you your self both beholding and furthering our most violent persecutiō But see your equal dealing with vs whilst we taryed in the kingdom you blamed vs because we got vs not gone now we are gone you find fault we tarry not For your marginall note that Israel left not Egypt without Pharaohs leave nor the Iewes Babylon without Cyrus his consent To let passe the leave which Pharaoh gave the Israelites to depart when to reduce them back he and his people followed them into the sea they could not depart sooner though they would being held in bōdage by their enemies yet when Moses was in daunger of his life as we are he fled as we do Exod. 2. 15. Besides the Israelites had the certayn known time of their captivities limitted prescribed by God which they were to tary Gen. 15. 13. 14. Exod. 12. 40. 41 Ier. 25. 11. 12. Dan. 9. 2. Ezra 1. 1. which is no way our cafe And what other do we in flying then the holy Prophets and Apostles have done before vs and then the Protestants did in Queen Maries reigne that fled to Frankford Geneva and other places where they understood not the language of other nations yea then the Lord Iesus himself hath sanctifyed not onely by his commaundement or license at the least but also in his owne person flying into a Aegypt in his mothers armes Reason see I none why this man should thus blame vs for our flying except vvith the Montanists he thought flight in the time of persecution unlavvfull Lastly Mr B. concludeth his likelihoods vvith a cursed farewell which saith he we leave in all places like a scorching flame swinging where it comes so as the growth of all things are hindred by it And this observation he fathers upon me though in truth it be his owne bastard I affirmed in deed that where this truth came it left the places barrayn of good things in taking away the best sort of people but this I spake to no such purpose as is here insinuated The scorching flame which hinders all things in the Church of England is the Prelacy to which by vniversall and infallible observation no man applyes himself no nor enclynes but with a sensible decay of the former graces which he seemed to have He that but once enters into the High preists hall to warme himselfe at the fyre there shall scarce return without a scorched conscience Having formerly viewed Mr B. his bare probabilities we will now come to debate his reasons against separation The first sort whereof are grounded vpon the entrance into this cause which he makes very sinfull and cursed because of the great evils which sayth he ensue therevpon And the first of these imputed evills is That we not onely disclayme and conde●n● the corruptions and notorious wicked but withall forsake all Christian profession amongst them casting off the word by which wee were made alive the ministers our fathers which have begot vs yea and all fellowship of the godly with them and so account them ever false Christians and Idolaters having a false faith false repentance false baptisme And from these evils thus suggested he both disswades the reader with some passionate Rhyme in the margent and deterrs him by sundry bitter curses cast out against vs both in the margent and text There is no truth of doctrine nor ordinance of Christ taught or practised in the Church of England which we enioy not with farr more libertie better right and greater purity then any person in England doth

places And if the order which Christ hath left in his Church be so vyle in Mr B. eyes in comparison of his vnorderly preaching what can he say for his Lords the Bishops which for the orders devised by themselves by their forefathers of Rome thrust out of so many Churches the ordinance of preaching A man would think Mr B. zeal should find room enough at home and in his owne Church and not thus pursue beyond the ●●as a poore company of despised and dispersed people But to the very poynt which Mr B. drives at There is not one scripture alledged by him which iustifyes the preaching of the gospell out of a true much lesse in a false constitution They do all and every one of them necessarily presuppose the same howsoever he would separate the things which God hath ioyned together Take one for example and that such a one as he makes a pillar in his building It is written and so by him alledged Psa. 147. 19. 20. He shewed his word vnto Iacob his statutes and his iudgments vnto Israell He hath not so dealt with every nation c. Here sayth Mr B. the Lord preferrs his word before a constitution as a testimony of his speciall love But vntruly For in this very place the Lord prefers a constitution before his word statutes and iudgments as the cause why he gave them For wherefore did the Lord shew his word vnto Iaakob his statutes iudgments vnto Israel but because of their constitution that is because Israel was the Lords peculiar people separated from all other nations and received by the Lord into covenant as no other nation was Lev. 26. ●4 14. Exod. 19. 5. 6. Deut. 19. 10. 11. 12. c. with Rō 3. 2. 9. 4. Act. 2. 39. 3. 23. how profanely soever this man doth debase and vilify the true constitution of the Church which he is like never to enioy as Esau did the by●thright wherewith the Lord never meant to honour him Gen. 2● 32. 33. And amongst other debasements of the constitution of the Church he affirmeth pag 55. that though an orderly proceeding ought to be had yet that at no hand for want therof preaching ought to be left of to this end pag. 53. and 54. he violently haleth into the same guilt with himselfe the brethren of the dispersion Act. 8. 1. 4. 12. whom he chargeth in preaching the word not to have stood vp●n every speciall poynt in entering so orderly vnto the work But as theyr enterance was most orderly for that being of a true constituted Church at Ierusalem dispersed by persequution they published the gospel in every place where they came as any member of the Church may do as grace is ministred and occasion offered so is it on the otherside a Babylonish presumption for any man vnder any praetence whatsoever to enterprise the preaching of the gospell or any other work disorderly The Apostle speaking especially of prophecying expresly commaunds that all things be done according to order how then dare any petty Pope or proctor of Babylon dispence with or plead for disorder in this or any other ministration in the Church The last and highest degree of our vncharitablenes he reckons this that we are sorry and envious that the good things of God do prosper with them that the more religious men be in their way the more are we greived and to this end he pretends Mr Barrowes abusing and scoffing at the graces of God and holy exercises in such persons As we hold our selves bound to acknowledge all good things in all men and to honour them accordingly 1 Pet. 2. 17. So must I here demaund of Mr B. as another hath done before me what those good things are which so prosper Onely the Prelates prosper in the kingdome who with theyr ceremonious hornes canons beat batter down all that stands in their way Of their prosperity against the truth we are sory but not envious being taught not to envy the works of iniquity considering what suddayn and certayne desolation shall fall vpon them Psal. 37. 9. 10. And by the way where Mr B. takes it for graunted that the reformists are the most religious in the way of the Church of England it is cleane otherwise The most absolute Formalists most strict vrgers of conformity are the most religious in the way of the Church of England And as for the reformists theyr zeale to speak as the truth is and as shall hereafter more fully be manifested is not in nor for the way of the Church of England but a by path from it which the Church of England considered in the formall constitution of it accounteth schism and rebellion but rather the same way in effect which we walk if they were true to theyr own grounds and durst practise what they have professed in theyr supplications and admonitions to the Prince and Parliament other their vnder hand passages wherein they do playnly condemn the Prelacy for Antichristian the service book as superstitious the mixture of all sortes of people as confused and so of the rest And this Mr B. iustifyeth the obiections which you would so gladly prevent pag. 57. made by your brethrē in the faith for so are the worst of them the prophane and secure worldlings and Athiests that men paynfull and conscionable in their Ministery and lives do breed and further as you speak Brownistes and Brownisme For proof hereof I will here insert a few things written published both in former and latter tymes by such men as I dare say Mr B. reckens amongst the painefull conscionable Ministers Their words are these We have an Antichristian Popish ordering of Ministers strange frō the word of God never heard of in the primitive Church but taken out of the Popes shop to the destruction of Gods kingdome 2. Adm. to the Parl. The names and offices of Archbishops Archdeacons Lordbishops c. are together with their goverment drawen out of the Popes shop Antichristian divelish and contrary to the scriptures Parsons Uicars Parish Preists Stipendaryes c. be byrds of the same fether 2. Admo to the Parliament The callings of Archbishops Bishops with all such be ra●●er members and parts of the whore and strumpet of Rome then of the pure Uirgin and spouse of the immaculate Lamb. Mr Ch. Serm. vpon Rom. 12. The calling of Bishops and Archbishops do onely belong vnto the Kingdome of Antichrist Discovery of D. Ban. slaunders pag. ●0 Our Diocesan and Provinciall Churches vsing Diocesan and Provinciall goverment and officers are contrary to Gods word and simply vnlawfull Mr Iakob for reformation Ass 1. There is no true visible Church of Christ but a particular congregation onely Christian Offer Prop. 4. Every true visible Church of Christ or ordinary assembly of the faithfull hath by Christs ordinance power in it selfe imediately vnder Christ to elect to ordayne deprive and depose theyr Ministers and to