leges legum poenae quibus pro meritis graviter exerceantur Modò ne interim Evangelium Dei ob scelestorum hominum nequitiam male audiat and hitherto there hath beene none such in your Kingdome there are lawes and penall statutes to represse them severally according to their deserts so that in the meane while the Gospell of God be not defamed for the malice of wicked men And after many just complaints to the King for the fearefull executions used against his partie Ibid. Sin vero ita aures tuas occupant malevolorum susurri ut nullus sit reis pro se dicendi locus importunae vero illae Furiae te connivente semper vinclis flagris equuleis sectionibus incendiis saeviunt Nos quidem ut oves mactationi destinatas ad extrema quaeque redigemur sic tamen ut in patientia nostra possideamus animas nostras manum Domini fortem expectemus quae indubie in tempore aderit he endeth thus We indeed like sheepe kept for theslaughter may be brought to any extremity yet still we will possesse our soules in patience and looke for the mightie hand of God which certainly will assist us in due time These are the armes the forces and the munitions which the Church of that time opposed to their Soveraigne in time of persecution And not to loade this Epistle with testimonies of the late French Writers The Churches of France have lately declared to his Majesties Ambassador there their utter dislike of the insurrection of Scotland under pretence of a Covenant with Christ But I see an objection comming which as farre as I can ghesse hath prevailed with many to draw them to the present insurrection That let the French Churches give never so good counsell of obedience yet their actions give to the Scots a president to take armes for the defence of their religion And this is likely that which made the Covenanters say in one of their Petitions to his Majesty Pag. 417. of his Majesties large Declaration that the neighbour Churches would approve all their proceedings I might answer that the case is not alike the two Courts of Great Britaine and France being so different in Religion and the Scots not being prest to alter their Religion as the French were for a long time But because there can be no just cause to take armes against a lawfull Soveraigne two things may be said to that objection First that to take counsell of a friend you must take him when he is in cold blood not when he is drawing his sword Looke to the opinions and behaviour of their Divines not to the actions of some rash heads Next if you look how they have done you must look also how they have sped and you shall have little encouragement to follow their example But not to wrong my Countreymen If you read their History from the yeare 1560. when the civill warres begun you shall finde that most part of the time their warres had such and so important occasisions as your party cannot bring for the present disorders Henry the II. of France died about the yeare 1560. leaving foure sonnes under age the eldest whereof Francis the II. raigned little above one yeare and his brother Charles the IX was some ten yeares old when he began to raigne During the minority of these Kings the Queene mother by the assistance of the house of Guise excluded the Princes of the blood from the protection of the Kings person and kingdome which was their right The Princes being Protestants and finding a discontented party who for the space of wellnigh forty yeares had suffered a most fierce persecution easily drew to their side all the Protestants of France and so twisted their interests with the interest of Religion that they never made a peace for themselves alone but for the whole party By which severall peaces they got Edicts in their favour and places of defence and grew a considerable party King Charles the IX being come to age and finding a troubled State sought to quench with blood the fire kindled in his kingdome and by a treacherous match of his sister with the young King of Navarre got the Heads of the Protestants to Paris and there slew them This was the famous feast of S. Bartholomew 1572. upon which and some moneths after there was above fourescore thousand of the Protestant party killed in cold blood throughout all the kingdome This usage though it cannot justifie the Protestants for taking armes afterwards for their defence yet it taketh away great part of the reproach it being no wonder if those that have suffered more than nature can beare will doe more than duty can justifie Charles the IX being dead two yeares after the Massacre Henry the III. succeeded who being of a milder temper than his brother the Protestants enjoyed some quiet for a while which his Popish subjects disliking or rather his mother whose ordinary course was to keep her authority by publike divisions the League began presently for the extirpation of the Protestant party without the Kings consent yet the King being a timorous man was drawne to it perforce in the end In the meane while the King of Navarre and the rest of the Protestants stood upon their defence I will not determine whether they ought to have yeelded their throats to the slaughter the persecution being not raised against them by their Soveraigne but by a Covenant of his subjects with the Pope and the King of Spaine before the King had given way to it But the King himselfe soone justified their armes for perceiving that the League was a yoke upon his owne necke which devested him of his right and brought into the kingdome another authority than his own he renounced the League and called the King of Navarre and the Protestants to his aid who did him faithfull service with great alacrity and valour till the King being dead in the yeare 1589. the right of the Crowne fell to the Head of their party the King of Navarre whom by Gods blessing and their valour they raised to the Throne and helped him not onely with their sword but maintained him with their purses and did him such services as could not be repaid King Henry the IV. having removed from the League all pretences of bearing armes against him as an Hugonot by forsaking the reformed Religion to our infinite griefe and losse And seeing his Protestant party justly discontented granted them liberty of Religion and a lease for yeares of certaine places of safety which as the French Protestants expound it would have been to no purpose had it not been to defend themselves by way of armes when they should be vexed So they did afterwards when King Lewis now reigning redemanded those places and would continue the lease no longer Till the reigne of King Lewis the armes of the Protestants were either justifiable or excusable But their wars in his time were neither and they prospered accordingly
Lord God they are the formost in persecuting of thee that seeme to love primacie in thy Church It is the lesse wonder then if after the fearefull executions at Cabrieres and Merindol by the instigation of some Popish Bishops they were afraid of their very name II. It is most considerable that the reformation began in France among the people but in England it began in the Court The French reformers were Priests but the English reformers under the King were Bishops and the French Priests could not prevaile with their Bishops as the King and Bishops of England over their Clergie For the higher spheres are not carried by the inferiour but the inferiour by the superiour It was much that the French Priests could get some retrogradation by their owne course against the rapidity of the higher sphere The reformation began among the people and inferiour Clergie and there it stayed Therefore the Discipline is popular and it was not easie for them that were opposed by Bishops to make Bishops In England the sacred oyntment of the Gospell was powred upon the head and thence it fell about upon all the limbs and to the hemmes of the garment In France it was powred upon some limbs onely whence because it could not mount to the Head the Discipline also wants a Head Neither could that holy dew spread so well because it descended not from the hils Certainly the Discipline of France deserveth rather compassion than invectives And to speake properly they refuse not Bishops but they want Bishops If you say that the reformation in Scotland began also among the people You know that the worke was never perfected till your late great King put the last hand to it by reforming and restoring Bishops Which if you will not acknowledge for a perfecting I am sure the French with whom you claim conformity would in the like case III. Besides the reformed Churches of France want means to maintain Bishops and with much adoe maintaine poore Lectures For although the Episcopall power be spirituall yet without temporall means it cannot keep either power or respect and not so much as subsistance Whence they gather that it is better to want Bishops than to expose Episcopacie to the scorne of adversaries IV. Also it would provoke envie and jealousie if there were two Bishops in one Dioecesse and would but draw oppression upon the weaker side V. And if a generall conversion happened which God in his mercy bring to passe two Bishops should meet in one See and neither would yeeld to his fellow A consideration which would ever keepe the erroneous Bishop from his conversion VI. The reformed Church of France living under the crosse and expecting the generall conversion is better without Bishops for it is a body prepared for obedience whensoever the Popish Bishops shall reforme the Church and themselves And once they were brought to that tryall as you may read in an Epistle of Peter Martyr to Beza The Bishop of Troyes who was borne Prince of Melfe having abjured Popery began to preach the pure Word of God in his Cathedrall Church and sent for the Elders of the reformed Church to know whether they would confirme and acknowledge him for their Bishop Which they all with one consent did and submitted themselves unto his authority There is none I dare say of all the Churches of France but would doe as much in the like case None but would obey Bishops if Bishops would reforme and obey God Till God extend so much mercy upon that Kingdome the poore Churches will stay for the leisure of the Bishops and keepe themselves in an estate fit for obedience VII Neither would their King suffer them to chuse Bishops of their own if they would attempt it For since their Synods provoke jealousie a Bishops Court would provoke more jealousie and authority continued in one man would be more obnoxious to envie and obloquie then consultations of amultitude intermitted from Synod to Synod and under severall Presidents et ad tempus Had our gracious King Charles and his Counsell the same necessitie to tolerate the Papists as Henry the IV. of France had to reward the Protestants that were a strong body and by whom he had beene promoted to the Crown yet I think not that his Majestie would suffer them to have Bishops or admit of any jurisdiction but immediately depending upon him The reformed Churches of France have no jurisdiction and looke for none and if your Presbyteries of Scotland would containe themselves in the same modestie the Covenant would go down and the King should be obeyed Of all these reasons there is none that can serve your turne wherefore our want of Bishops cannot be a president for your putting down of Bishops Since you live under no crosse and have such a gracious Defender of the faith for your Soveraigne and both the Kingdoms of this Island professe the same holy Doctrine to frame another Ecclesiasticall Discipline besides that which his Majestie alloweth and the Church hath kept for many ages it is framing two livers in a body that hath but one head and one heart For of this Island the King is the head and Religion is the heart both the which would have but one Discipline as it were one liver to disperse blood and spirit into the severall parts of the whole body with one and the same Oeconomie eyere where Certainly if France had but one heart for Religion I am perswaded they would never sticke for a different Oeconomie of Discipline And the truth is neither you nor they have a setled Discipline and therefore both need lesse to stand upon it This is the last Article of the French Discipline These things which are here contained concerning the Discipline are not so decreed but that if the benefit of the Church do require it they may be altered Neither doe the French busie their heads about points of Discipline else it would be seene in their writings But wheresoever they like the Doctrine they embrace the Discipline In the yeare 1615. my reverend Father was sent for by King Iames of glorious and blessed memory some discontented brethren in London seeing him highly favoured by his Majesty came to him with a bill of grievances to be represented to the King which my Father having perused returned it unto them againe saying That their exceptions were frivolous For Ceremonies and other points of Discipline I doe not finde you conformable with the French Whether you celebrate the holy Communion with such reverence as they do in France let your owne consciences answer You know there are two gestures of praying practised from the beginning in the Church kneeling and standing The English pray kneeling at the Communion the French standing For they sit not at the Table like the Dutch wherein the French Church of London consisting most of Wallons followeth the Dutch but walke to the holy Table and there with a reverent congey receive the Sacrament which the people taketh not
Their first and greatest fault was in the yeares 1615. and 1616. when they joyned with the Prince of Conde to crosse the Kings match with Spaine yet by the perswasions of my reverend Father living then in Paris all the Churches on this side Loire that is one halfe of France kept themselves in the Kings obedience for which the Queene Regent gave him thanks But the injuriestuck so deep in the Kings stomack that five yeares after he would have all his places from the Protestants who when they stood stifly for the keeping of those places in the * The assembly of Rochell was a politicall assembly such as the Protestants were allowed then to keepe Assembly of Rochell my Father being at the same time President of the Nationall Synod at Alaix stood for obedience with much eagernesse and after the dissolution of the Synod The Copy of that Letter is by me writ to the Assembly a large letter to perswade them by reasons both of conscience and prudence rather to suffer for the Gospell than stand in Armes against their Soveraigne But the Assembly being ruled by violent men chose the counsels of warre and drew the Kings armes upon many that were most desirous of obedience What miseries we have suffered by the rashnesse of few men and the weak estate we were brought to by these violent courses we think on it with bitter grief Our wounds are fresh and are like to bleed till the poore Church bleed out her life if God be no more mercifull to us than we have been to our selves In one point I am afraid that you shall be like us if you go on in your course For whereas most of the Kings subjects in Scotland are misled and would gladly obey his Majesty if their Landlords and leaders would give them leave It is to be feared that the Kings artillery shall make little distinction between good hearts and false hearts I beseech you since you claime conformity with the French compare your case with theirs The French Protestants had to do with a King of contrary religion They were incensed by many wrongs and oppressions They were in danger in al likelyhood to lose with their townes and forts their liberty their religion and their life The priveledges which they enjoyed were rewards of their long services By the Charter of Rochell when they yeelded to Lewis the XI it was granted to them that they should bee no longer the Kings subjects then the King should maintaine their immunittes And yet these true reasons and just feares could not justifie their defensive armes against their Soveraigne but they were condemned by the best of their owne and of their neighbours and God shewed his dislike by the ill successe he gave them What approbation then of all good men what blessing of God may the Covenanters hope for by standing in armes against their good King a Prince in piety and clemency without parallell who never provoked them by any ill usage but rather favoured them above their fellow subjects It may doe you good to observe that the violent Counsellors of war in the assembly of Rochell soone after betrayed their party and sold their places Others turned Papists and were rewarded for it which sheweth that they were wonne before to thrust their party into a precipice whence there was no way to get out But the great Counsellour of peace my Reverend Father at that very time was forced to flie for his life out of the Kingdome and leave his meanes behinde him being maligned because by the respect of his presence and his powerfull perswasions he kept the people in the Kings obedience which was the greatest crossing of the designes of our adversaries who being fully bent upon our undoing wanted but a pretence I feare also that when God revealeth the secrets of the hearts Some fierce Covenanters shall be found Iefuites whose purpose was to make the King lose one way or other that supremacie which the Pope challengeth and howsoever to get profit by our harmes I would desire you also to learne by our faults and misfortunes that in a Covenant against a lawful and undoubted Soveraign there must needs be in the end a great deale of disunion Our Deputies in the Assembly of Rochell sent their orders over all the kingdome but they were not followed And when the King appeared with an armie many turned to his side and weakned their owne party Likewise when his Majestie shall come to you to make himselfe obeyed either with the terrour or the smart of his Royall sword be sure that you shall see the same disunion among you Neither shall your Covenant beable to keepe all together But the presence of their naturall Prince and his anger armed with strength will strike a greater awe in the hearts of his subjects than any order of your tables It is with Politicke bodies as with quick-silver which is easily stirred and divided But divide it never so much all the severall parts will of themselves meet in their center againe for it must be a very great violence that will quench nature and when you have done all the King will be King God give you all grace to learne wisedome by the faults of your neighbours And to the Churches of France so much blessednesse that for a full agreement in all points with their King and his Clergie there be nothing wanting on their parts but to receive Bishops If you dissent from me in these points of Discipline and Obedience you must beare with me for this tincture I have kept from the education which I received at home But I hope you will receive this advice of mine with the same minde as it is given that is with charity and a sincere desire to see God glorified and the Church at peace and the King obeyed Which is the subject of the daily prayers of Your friend and servant in Christ Peter Du-Moulin the sonne Chester March 1. 1639. 11. 1640.