Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
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A50383
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Unity restor'd to the Church of England by John Mayer.
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Mayer, John, 1583-1664.
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1661
(1661)
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Wing M1426; ESTC R28824
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26,506
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53
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Unity Restor'd TO THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND By JOHN MAYER D. D. Minister of the Church of Roydon in the County of Suffolk and Author of the Exposition of the Church Chatechism and the Comentary on the Old and New Testament contained in Six Volumes Matth. 5.9 Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the Children of God Psalm 122.6 Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem they shall prosper that love her LONDON Printed for A. Rice and are to be sold by Book-sellers 1661. Unity Restor'd TO THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND Matth. 5.9 Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the Children of God Psalm 122.6 Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem they shall prosper that love her LONDON Printed for A. Rice and are to be sold by Book-sellers 1661. To the KING 's most Excellent Majesty CHARLES the Second of England Scotland France and Ireland King Defender of the Faith c. Grace and Peace in Jesus Christ MOst Gracious and dear Sovereign so soon as I saw Your Majesties Declaration of October 25. I could not but rejoice greatly for Your Care and holy Solicitude expressed therein and wisdome like the wisdom of Solomon about setling unity and uniformity in the Church of England and devising the means of effecting it And whereas some have in writing cast aspersions upon Your Sacred person I could not but be greatly grieved at it and to see how that notwithstanding this Your Majesties most serious profession to have inform'd your self what you could by consulting with many both grave and learned beyond Sea and of your own Land by what means most probably Vnity may be restored to the Churches under your Majesties Dominion yet may remain unsatisfied who although they are not reverse from Episcopal Government reformed yet at hearing of Suffragens and rural Deans they are much troubled as at Officers not formerly heard of either in the time of Queen Elizabeth King James Your Grandfather or of King Charles Your Father And as for the book of Common Prayer although the Prayers therein contained are most pithy and pious yet the multitude of them and often repetitions of some c. are offensive and above all the Ceremonies therein prescibed which they will never abide to see used although they be not urged upon them and so the seeds of dissention will still continue in our Churches which will in time spring up again the peace and unity desired will never be setled for to settle it must be as but on God so but one way under one Vice-gerent of God upon earth and that must be the best approved of by the word of God which being so and Your Majesties gracious inclination such that you have condescended so far as to consult with some of your own Subjects what way might be best to introduce Vnity about matters Ecclesiasticall which hath been so long wanting My Humble Sute unto your Majesty is that You would vouchsafe to cast Your favourable aspect upon this little book which I a Subject of yours as loyally affected to your Majesty as any other man have written in concurrence with Your Majesty in the earnest desire of Vnity to be restored to our divided Churches before the comming out of your Pious and Learned Declaration having no opportunity hitherto to present it to your Royall view being 78 years of age and full of grievous Diseases so as that I cannot Travell And in this little Book I hope your Majesty shall see good reason to be inclined to go the way therein pointed out to prevail for the restoring of Vnity so much desired and indeed so necessary to promote a setled and lasting peace which God grant unto us under Your Majesty Our Supream Head next unto Christ Jesus And to this end that you may live Usque ad miraculum gloriously reigning upon earth as you have been miraculously brought to this Throne of Your Fathers continuing constantly zealous for the propagation of the true Religion to the end of your days and finally be Crowned in Heaven with a never fading Crown of Glory Your Majesties most Humble and Obedient Subject and dayly Orator before the Throne of Grace IOHN MAYER How Vnity may be restored to the Church of England WE having now by God's singular blessing Unity restor'd to this our Commonwealth under one Head in whom for his gracious disposition and undoubted right to this Diadem we all agree What remains now so much to be desired as Vnity in our Churches also for want of which such bloudy dissentions hath been so long amongst us to the great disgrace of our most true reformed Religion and to the setting of these three Nations in a most fearfull Combustion Upon this consideration therefore I though the least able among many of my Brethren An. Dom. 60. Jacobus frater Domini fuit Episcopus Hierosolymitanus illo inter fecto Simeon Cleophae filius Hieronimus in Catalogo cap. 23. Marcus Praesul Alexandriae an 67. ibid. post Petrum linus Epist 2. Romae an 70. lib. 3. cap. 3. huic successit annacletus vel Cletus an 89. Crescentius Episcopus Moguntinis an 72. Euseb l. 3. c. 4. shall endeavour to shew my good will to restore this desirable Unity amongst us The main differences I suppose at this day are about Ecclesiasticall Government and the Liturgy or Book of Common Prayer For the first there will not be I perceive any great relucting against Episcopal Government because it hath so ancient and such pregnant proofe hereof is brought from holy Scripture and the practice of the Catholick Church ever since the Apostles dayes and whilst they lived and ordered the Government of the Church of Christ if we will give any credit to the most ancient and most credible History-Writers touching Church-matters But about their election to this high and weighty Office who are to govern herein and what power they ought to have above other Bishops or Presbyters their Brethren and what Assistants they ought to use in exercising their power and whether by any other means they ought to have power to punish notorious Offenders than by delivering them to Satan and not by imprisoning or any pecuniary punishment and whether a Bishop may deliver any over to Satan for any other cause but scandalous living or blaspheming and lastly whether there ought not to be a Bishop in every City and great Town that is for the more Churches therein as a City with the Villages about it and so large Diocesses to the putting both of Clergy and People to such tedious travell to have their Causes heard First touching the electing of a Bishop what better President can there be to follow than that of the first Assembly of Apostles and Believers Acts 1.23 being 120 to chuse one into the room of Judas who was chosen by praying first and propounding two known men amongst them and casting lots which was done by the Apostles and the whole congregation of Believers For let an Election be made