Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
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A56411
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The fire's continued at Oxford, or, The decree of the convocation for burning the Naked gospel, considered in a letter to a person of honour
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Parkinson, James, 1653-1722.
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1690
(1690)
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Wing P494; ESTC R1197
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18,231
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16
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whose honour the Writer professeth to advance and upon this account they think it more reasonable that those Expressions which exalt our Savior's Person to an Equality with the Father should stoop to those which speak him Inferior than that those which speak him Inferior should be strained up to those which speak him Equal And however this is the safer Way since it will lead us to such a Belief as will suffice for that end for whose sake alone Belief it self is required pag. 59. of the Interpolated Edition ' To this Question Whether any promise of God does necessarily import a restitution of the same numerical matter ' He answers That the Words of St. Paul Thou fool that which thou sowest c. plainly deny the Resurrection of the same numerical particles ' To another Question Whether it be more honorable to God and more serviceable to the design of the Gospel that we believe the Contrary ' He answers That it is the same as to ask Whether it be more honorable to salve all his Perfections or to robb one that we may clothe the other Answ To this and the other two following Paragraphs I answer That they relate to the Differences of those Times wherein the hot Bishops on both sides eagerly contended with one another to the unspeakable Detriment of the Church and Disturbance of the Empire But wise and stay'd Men such as the Emperor Constantine and those Bishops that were his Counsellors had such an esteem of those Controversies as our Author But 2. as to our Times and the Question about the Athanasian Creed I see not but that they who hold it so stiffly and persecute their Brethren on that score have no mind to remove Occasions of Difference and Separation but to continue them which one may be tempted to believe they would not do but for the sake of some secular and base Interest See more in the Judgment of one of our most eminent Bishops summing up that Letter of Constantine which this Author pressed Infra p. 14. This Persecution of the Author of the Naked Gospel and the manner of it is so threatning both to those of the National Church and the Dissenters from her that a fiercer Persecution may reasonably be expected than any we have seen in the late Reigns The Example is clear in those that being of the Church have any thing to lose pertaining to it And for Dissenters the Burners and other their Brethren do well know that none of 'em can give assent to the Athanasian Creed except some Presbyterians and non-assent let 's loose all the Penal Laws hungry Chancellors peevish or bigotted Justices and rascally Informers against them Is this the Temper that was promised If it should come to this How much worse would the Protestant National Church of England deal with her Children than the Papal Church of Rome This prohibits 'em to read the Bible and so prevents the occasion of questioning her Doctrines but that gives us the Scripture to read but will persecute us if we believe not and profess more than or contrary to what is therein contain'd contrary to the common Principle of Protestants and most expresly of this Church her self in her Sixth Article which saith ' The Holy Scripture containeth all things neeessary to salvation so that whatsoever is not read therein nor can be proved thereby is not to be required of any one to to believed as an Article of Faith or of necessity to Salvation If they do not mean by proved thereby proved to the satisfaction of every sober Man the Church of Rome will prove all her Articles in the same way and manner Thus Sir I take the freedom of telling you my thoughts upon this occasion but now I must return and ask you whether the Learned Assembly of Burners have proved that the Naked Gospel does not only deny the Godhead of our Lord Jesus Christ but ostentui habet as their Phrase is expose him to scorn or make a shew of him Do all their Exscriptions prove any part of their horrid Charge As for his denying the resurrection of the same numerical Particles you know that since the newer Philosophy got Credit that Doctrine is often taught in our Pulpits and I am inform'd even at St Mary's in Oxford too besides in divers learned Mens Writings Good God! when shall the Spirit of Persecution be cast out when will Christians learn to be just as Men not to say loving and tender-hearted as Brethren They boast of the truth of their Faith but it is not such as worketh by Love What is it to honour Christ in their Words and dishonour him in their Lives Fourteen Hundred Years experience has taught the World that Men contend for Opinions and Speculations in Religion for the gratification of their Pride Covetousness Revenge and the like worldly Interests Though my Letter has been so long I 'le venture still to entertain you Sir with something considerable about Dr. Bury the supposed Author of the Naked Gospel of which I am credibly inform'd To have a Book condemn'd long after 't was printed nay when its Author and his Colledg were strugling against heavy Oppression in their Rights and Priviledges will put the World upon enquiring into the Reasons and Motives of such an Action as well as the Life and Conduct of the Author The Rector of Exeter Colledg then having done what lay in his Power for his King was expell'd from his Fellowship for refusing to submit to the Visitors in 1648 and the only Person who had courage to read the Prayers of his then distress'd Mother the Church of England in the Colledg when extempore Ones were in fashion for which he was led by a Fileof Musqueteers to the next Port turn'd out and forbid entrance again upon pain of Death and he never after ran counter to so good a beginning Would not one think Sir this sufficient to procure him the respect and veneration of those who are his worst Enemies Had any of them fallen into Circumstances less troublesome what out-cries I sancy would there have been what writing of Letters what trumpeting of Praises what noise of Loyalty and past Sufferings not a Figure in Rhetorick but must have been drawn dry by one Wit or other and had that fail'd the World must have been hector'd into a good Opinion After he was made Rector he never did any thing that look'd as if he had forgot his first Loyal Principles but led a quiet sober and unblameable Life given very much to good Works as may be prov'd by his Buildings in the Colledg his large Contributions to the Company for Relief of Clergy-mens Widows and Orphan besides other less visible Instances not fit to be mentioned while he 's alive All which none indeed can deny that will not basely wrong him He was so strict an observer of what he thought the Will of his Founder that he would have declar'd his own Son's Fellowship void staying some time longer
The FIRE 's continued at OXFORD OR The Decree of the Convocation for burning the Naked Gospel considered In a Letter to a Person of Honour Honoured Sir I Gave you in my last the state of the Controversy between the Bp. of Exeter and the Rector and major part of the Fellows of Exeter-Colledg at Oxford as well as I could collect it from the Relations I could meet with and from their Petition to her Majesty before whom the Cause is depending In the mean time the Gazette will inform you The University of Oxford in Convocation held Aug. 19. instant has past their Judgment and Decree against certain Propositions as Impious and Heretical cited out of a certain infamous Libel entituled The Naked Gospel which say they impugn and destroy the chief Mysteries of our Faith always held and maintained in the Catholick Church and especially in the English And in the Preface to their Decree they say it not only denies but exposes to scorn that very Lord Jesus Christ who is God blessed for ever Now Sir before I take into consideration the impious and heretical Propositions give me leave to give you a short Summary of the Tendency and Design of the Book and of the reputed Author's printing it at his own Charge as I am inform'd by some that know him for I do not know him my self nor ever had any communication with him And first of the Author's Design in writing it When the King had called a Convocation to reconcile as was hoped to the Church of England the several Parties in this Kingdom and to satisfy if possible the Consciences of those who differ from it this Author was willing to contribute to so good a Work But because a direct Address might appear too great a boldness as some that went that way afterward found he conceiv'd that a clear stating the first Principles of the Gospel would appear more suitable to so learned a Body and useful toward enlargement of the Mind to a comprehensive Charity He therefore got this Treatise printed with design to steal a Copy of it into the Hand of every Member of the Convocation without publishing it to the World No sooner was the Impression finished but he found the Hopes of the King and the Generality of good Men disappointed by the rigour of the prevailing Party in the Convocation and a great Noise made about this well-design'd Book whereof some sew Copies had gotten abroad The Author hereupon made some Changes in the middle of the Book leaving out such Passages as appeared most offensive and of this Impression he communicated more Copies than he had done of the former But now cometh out a stolen Impression of the first Book made at London by he knows not whom which put it out of his power to dispose as he pleas'd of a Book that was his own 1. By Writing and then by Printing and Altering wholly at his own Cost Thus it appears his Design was not to disturb the Peace of the Church but to promote it 2. The Design and Tendency of the Book I will presume to whisper to you out of hearing of the Convocation is such as partly by reconciling Controversies partly by distinguishing necestary Articles from those that are not necessary and cutting off Disputes about the Modes and Niceties of things in gross necessary by giving such a Scheme of Christian Religion as is clear and plain to vulgar Capacities and apt to remove Doubts and Fears and Uncertainties and to satisfy good Peoples Minds touching their being in the true way of Salvation notwithstanding the many Disferences and Disputes among conscientious Men which they are either not able to determine or not with full satisfattion to themselves to turn Mens Minds from the study of Opinions and Speculations to Practical Piety Devotion toward God and Christ and Love toward all Christians of all Perswasions in the mean time making Rents and Divisions Heats and Animosities about Matters hardly determinable to be dangerous and unbecoming sincere Christians This Book I say having this Design and Tendency were not People prejudiced against it by rash and presumptuous Decrees and Censures might be of as great benefit to the. World in general and the Christian World in special as perhaps any Book of that Subject that has been publish'd these hundred Years When you have read the Book I doubt not but you will be of my Mind But for all that I could have wished the Author had not by some elegant Figures of Speech either bordered upon Hyperbole's or made his Mind less intelligible to common Readers and laid himself more open to the Cavils of his fierce Enemies which he did not fear among so learned Men as our Convocation For except the manner of expression I make no question but your own Memory will suggest to you that as we say of the Holy Scriptures they contain in one Bundle all those excellent Precepts and Instructions which lie dispers'd some in one some in another of the Philosophers so die Naked Gospel contains nothing but what is found by Parcels in other eminent and allowed Authors whom the Oxford-Convocation dare not pass Sentence upon tho' they have appear'd of late Years presumptuous enough in that kind witness their famous Judgment and Decree past in Convocation July 21. 1683. declaring 27 Propositions to be False Seditious and Impious and most of them to be also Heretical and Blasphemous infamous to Christian Religion and destruction to all Government in Church and State And this at such a time when the Court sollicited that Judgment for promoting their horrid Design of introducing Popery and Arbitrary Government into these Kingdoms and rooting that pestilent Heresy of Protestantism out of all Nations to which that Oxford-Decree was greatly serviceable And had the Body of the People of England been throughly perswaded of the Truth Equity and Religion of that Decree in all the Propositions we could never have had the happy cause of blessing God for delivering us from French Tyranny and Popish Cruelty and Superstition by the glorious Courage and Conduct of his Highness the Prince of Orange nor could the Peers and Representatives of the Nation in Convention have sett'd the Crown upon their most Excellent Majesties William and Mary but we had in all likelyhood been for ever enslaved to a bigotted Popish King and the Lady of Loretto's Heirs For it is observable that the Vote of the Convention which declared K. James's Throne vacant was grounded upon his having broken the Contract between King and People And that there is such a Contract is the Proposition condemned as impious by the same Hand which now condemned the N. G. At this time we see that those Bishops and others that have throughly digested the Oxford-Principles of Passive Obedience and Non-resistanne can rather lose their Preferments than swear Allegiance to our King and Queen And since divers of the Clergy profess to swear to their Majesties as King and Queen de