Selected quad for the lemma: father_n
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A05171
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A sermon preached on Munday, the seauenteenth of March, at Westminster at the opening of the Parliament. By the Bishop of Bathe and Welles.
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Laud, William, 1573-1645.
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1628
(1628)
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STC 15305; ESTC S102879
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18,331
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48
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not seuered without violence Yea but for all this it needs keeping In the Church it needes keeping And therefore the Prophets and Gouernors of the Church are called Custodes Keepers Watchmen and Ouerseers Ezek. 3. Acts 20. And they must watch as well ouer her peace as her Truth And yet there are so many that scatter the tares of Schisme and Heresie that her vnity is not kept In the Common wealth it needs keeping too For her Gouernors are Custodes Ciuitatis Keepers of the Citty But there also there are not few that trouble the waters for their owne fishing And many times a Common-wealth is in danger to loose her Vnity iust as Ephesus did Act. 19 At which time all the Cittie was troubled but the greater part knew not why And the true Cause of the Diuision was no more but this Demetrius and his fellowes were afraid they should loose their gaine if Diana and her Temple kept not vp their greatnesse Now this noyse at Ephesus doth not onely tell vs that Vnity needs keeping but it informes vs farther of the way to keepe it The way to keepe vnity both in Church and state is for the Gouernors to carry a watchfull eye ouer all such as are discouered or feard to haue priuate ends For there 's no priuate end but in something or other it will be lead to runne crosse the publique And if gaine come in though it be by making shrines for Diana 't is no matter with them though Ephesus bee in an vproare for it And certainely there 's no keeping of Vnity in either Church or state vnlesse men will be so temperate when it comes to a lumpe at least as to lay downe the priuate for the publique's sake and perswade others to doe the like Else saith Saint Chrysostome Quicquid ducit ad amorem sui diuidit vnitatem whatsoeuer leads men to any loue of themselues and their owne ends helps to diuide the vnity And the Schoole applies it both to Church and state For in the Church they which seeke their owne and not that which is Christs who is publicum Ecclesiae the publique interest of the Church depart from the Vnity of the Spirit And in an earthly Cittie the vnitie of that is gone when the Cittizens studdie their owne not the publique good Why but when then is Vnity to be kept When why surely at all times if it be possible But especially it is to bee kept when Enemies are banded together against Church or state Then aboue all other times looke well to the keeping of Vnity Am I deceiued or is not this your Case now Are not many and great Enemies ioyn'd against you Are they not ioyned both against the Church and against the state Are they ioyned and are you diuided God forbid It cannot be that you should so forget the Church of Christ or the Bowels of your owne Countrey and your own Ioyne then and keepe the Vnity of the Spirit and I 'le feare no danger though Mars were Lord of the Ascendent in the very instant of this Session of Parliament and in the second house or ioyned or in aspect with the Lord of the second which yet Ptolomey thought brought much hurt to Common-wealths But suppose all danger ouer I would it were yet keepe Vnity at all times For Enemies are as Cunning as malice can make them And if Vnity be not kept at all times at that time when t is not kept they 'l make their breach And they 'l make it certainely For if the Vnity of the Spirit be gone the Spirit is gone with it And if the Spirit bee gone Christ is gone with him And if they be gone God the Father is gone with them And what misery will not follow when an Enemy shall come vpon a state and finde the whole blessed Trinity Father Sonne and Holy Ghost gone from it to accompany that Vnity which is banished out of it Yea but you will say If Vnity be lost we wil quickly fetch it backe againe Soft First t is more wisedome to keepe it then to bee driuen to fetch it backe Secondly before Vnity be thrust off it would be well thought vpon whether it be in your power to bring it backe when you will The Spirit I am sure is not and t is His Vnity And loose it when you will 't is like the losse of health in the naturall body Iust like For there euery Disease is with some breach of Vnity either by Inflammation in some noble or vitall part or by strife in the humors or Luxations in the loynts or by breaking veines or sinewes still with some breach ofVnity Well What sayes the Patient therewhile What Why He sayes he wil recouer his health then take care to keepe it Yea but what if Death seaze vpon Him before health be recouered What then Had it not beene better safer a great deale to keepe health while he had it And is not death a iust reward of his distempering his humors I will not apply to either Church or Common-wealth but certainely 't is better for both to keepe the Vnity of the Spirit then trust to the Recouery of it when 't is lost Keepe then the Vnity of the Spirit but know withall and it followes in the Text that if you wil keepe it you must Endeauour to keepe it For it is not so easie a thing to keepe Vnity in great Bodies as 't is thought There goes much labour and endeauour to it The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 studie be carefull to keepe it Saint Augustine reades it Satagentes doe enough to keepe it And hee that doth enough giues not ouer doing till it bee kept Nay the Apostle comes so home that hee vses two words and both of singular care for Vnity For He doth not simply say keepe it Nor simply endeauour it but studdie and endeauour to keepe it Now no man can keepe that is not carefull And no man will endeauour that is not studious Neither is it saith Saint Chrysostome euery mans sufficiency to bee able to keepe Vnity And the word implies such an endeauour as makes haste to keepe And indeed no time is to bee lost at this worke VVhy but if there be neede of such endeuouring whence comes it that that which clings so together as all Vnity doth is so hard to keepe Whence why I 'le tell you I presume you 'll endeauour the more to keepe it First then t is hard to be kept in regard of the nature of this Vnity For bee it in Church or bee it in Common-wealth t is Vnum aggregatum One by Collection and Coniunction of many And the Schoole teaches vs that this Vnity is Minima Vnitas A Vnity that is least One And therefore aptest to fall asunder Both because many are not easily kept at One And because euery one of the many by reason of the contrary thoughts and affections which diuide him is