Selected quad for the lemma: law_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
law_n	pay_v	priest_n	tithe_n	4,836	5	10.3389	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41388	Firmianus and Dubitantius, or, Certain dialogues concerning atheism, infidelity, popery, and other heresies and schisme's that trouble the peace of the church and are destructive of primitive piety written in a plain and easie method for the satisfaction of doubting Christians / by Tho. Good.	Good, Thomas, 1609-1678.	1674 (1674)	Wing G1029; ESTC R23950	83,883	174

their lives and conversations very scandalous the greatest Nonconformists of all others not true to our Church and her injunctions in the most weighty matters placing all their Conformity in outward Ceremonies and neglecting what is most necessary for their own salvation and of those poor Souls which are committed to their charge which are in great danger to perish through the ignorance negligence and evil example of such blind guids Dub. But is not the poverty of many of them and the poor pittances allotted for their subsistence as great a cause of their contempt as any Firm. 'T is very true and 't were a work worthy of the Defendor of the Faith and a Religious Parliament to redress this very great grievance by uniting Little Churches by finding out some effectual means for restoring of Impropriate Tithes and Glebs to their respective Ministers which Impropriations are the very dregs of Popery and a grand Sacriledge in any one that shall detain them from the Church Dub. I do a little wonder why you should c●ll Impropriations Popish seeing many of those who took up arms against King Charles the First di● it upon th● account of opposing Popery and hindering the gro●th of i● in this ●●nd and yet some of them are no ●mall I●p●op●ia●ors Firm. Certainly there was never a more manifest peic● of hypocrisy in the world for men to be so seemingly zealous against the superstitions of Rome and yet be so deeply in love with her Sacriledge Sur●ly there is some marvellous sweetness in Tiths and Church lands that prelatical Presbyte●ians all parties can swallow down such morsels without any scruple but let them take heed they prove not like that little Book Rev. 10.9 sweet to the palate but bitter in the belly Dub. Indeed I have heard that the Popes of Rome were the first and cheifest Authors of Impropriations and that they did alienate Ti●hs and Glebes from their respected Parish Churches for the maintenance of Abbies Priories Nunneries c. Firm. 'T is ve●y certain that these alienations were made by the Authority of the Bishop of Rome for those uses and at the demolishing of those places those Impropriate Tiths and Church lands were either given or sold to Courtiers and other of the Nobility and Gentry which has proved the ruine of many Antient and flourishing Families and a very great hinderance to the growth of Religion for want of an able Ministry in many poor Parishes where according to the old saying Scandalous livings have made a scandalous Clergy and nothing would be a more effectual redress of this grievance then as was said before the Uniting of litle Parishes the restoring of Impropriate Tiths and Glebes to the Church together with a diligent inspection of the Bishops into the lives and learning of all those whom they shall either Ordain or Institute Dub. I am fully perswaded that the paying of Tiths is no oppression or injury to any man but the Independents and other Sectaries imagine that Tiths are a Levitical maintenance and therefore to be abrogated under the Gospel that Ministers now are to be maintain'd by a voluntary Contribution or at best to have a set stipend Firm. That Tiths received not their beginning from the Levitical Law is evident to any unbyased judgment from the example of Abrahams paying them to Melchisedeck of Iacobs vowing to give the Tenth of all that the Lord should bless him with from the Apostles large discourse about Abraham and Melchisedeck Heb. 7. By all which 't is evident that Tiths had not their Original from the Levitical ●aw and were not at first affixt to the Ar●nical but to the Melchisedechian Priesthood As to that of Stipend and Voluntary Contribution 't is a meer plot of the Devil and Popish Emissaries to render Ministers contemptible by ●aking them Stipendiaries or Eleemosynaries directly contrary to what St. Paul has laid down The Elders that rule well are worthy of double honor which sufficiently evinceth that they ought to have an honorable maintainance and not to depend upon the cold and frozen Charity of the people I am sure St. Paul found his Corinthians very backward to supply the Ministers necessity in better times then these we live in like so many Stipendaries or Alms-men by which they will be force● to Preach placentia or starve and suit their Doctrine to the humor of every Mechanick What a strange piece of non-sense is it that amongst our Congregational men the Minister should be the only poor Dependent 'T is most certain and evident to all that can make use of their reason that Gods way for the Ministers maintenance is the best which both before and under the Law given by Moses was by Tiths at least by God's approving of Ab●aham's paying them to Melchisedeck ' ●was strongly insinuated that the great Lord of Heaven and Earth would in after times order and appoint that Tiths should be the maintenance for the Priest and Levite which has continued for many hundreds of years under the Gospel and there are many fair proofs from holy Scripture that they are due by Divine Right they are established by Civil and Ecclesiastical Laws are the most convenient and rational way for the Ministers support who by this meanes when the earth brings forth plen●ifully shares with the people in that blessing when less fruitfully as in times of scarcity suffers with them in this Calamity and thus partaking with them in blessings and affli●●ions will be the fitter to Stir them up thankfulne●s● for the one and to press upon them the great duties of Patience and Humiliation under the other Dub. I did not doubt of the lawfulness and reasonableness of Tiths before we entred upon this discourse but now there is not the least scruple in me concerning them Firm. Therefore let us now proceed to another gross error maintaind by the Independents and other Sectaries about the electing of gifted Brethren into the office of Ministers Dub. That any gifted Brother any one that perswades himself that he has the Spirit and through a strong imagination conceives himself fit to Speak in the Congregation may without any farther tryal or lawfull call take upon him the office of Publick Preaching and Ministring in the Congregation which is the most sacred and weighty of of all other This is nothing less then a presumptuous usruping of the Priests office This I know to be the Opinion and practise of Independents and other Sectareis let me have your judgment of it Firm. That you shall most willingly And herein my judgment is that this is one of the most wild and Fanatick opinions that ever entred into the minds of men that it opens a wide gap to all Schisms and Heresies a certain cause of all manner of disorder and confusions in the Church upon this account Priests and Jesuits and all manner of Sectaries have had so fair an opp●rtunity to vent their poysonous Tenents in the●● Independent Congregations Dub. I am fully

but leaving them to their own simple fancyes Enthusiasms let us proceed to the Presbyterians to which party I first adhered when I forsook the Church of England and and of all dissenters from th●t Church in my opinion they have the greatest shew of reason for their separation Firm. In my judgment they have less reason to separate then any other because they agree with us in Doctrinals and are divided from us because of some Ceremonies which are confessedly things indifferent and for some modes of Government viz. the Episcopal and Presbyterian of which tho the former be the best and most antient yet learned and most moderate men of both parties do acknowledg that neither of these Forms of Government are so essential to the being of a Church but that it may subsist and be a true Church under either of them potius ad bene esse quam simpliciter ad esse but more of this hereafter But before we begin our discourse about Presbyterie let us speak a few things concerning Independency for I have heard that you were somtimes of that perswasion Dub. True I was once an Independent or Congregational man bu● seeing all Sectaries are in respect of Church fellowship Independe●ts and that these men for the most part have the same objections against the Church of England as the Independents make use of I thought it superfluous to trouble you with any particular discourse ●oncerning them Firm. There are Three things belonging to Independency which we have not discoursed upon as yet neither will they properly fall under debate in our intended Dialogue about Presbyterie if you please we will take a breif survey of them Dub. I willingly embrace this motion DIALOGUE VI Against Independency Firm. THe first thing that I except against in the Independency is the goverment practised in their particular Congregations without any jurisdiction one over another so that every of their Assemblies is absolute within it self without depending upon any Classical Diocesian Provincial National Church or general Counsel whence they have the name of Independents Dub. Is it true that they will no● admit o● any Superior power over their respective Congreg●tions nor appeal in case of divisions among themselves unjust and injurious sentences given in their partial Judicatories Firm. They admit of no appeals or no coercive po●er over them in any Consistories Classis or Counsel One Congregational ●hurch may advise exhort or admonish another as brethren or equals but not punish or correct as Judges o● Superiors What do you say to this new knack of Church Government Dub. I think it to be Anarchical and confused the Natural Parent of all Schisms and Hereses I do not no● so much wonder how England of late years since this headless faction prevaild amongst us became a second Amsterdam What error what heresy so gross so damnable what injustice what oppression never so greivous which might not go unpunisht in such assemblys from which there lies no appeal how must they be broken into infinite fractions especially where the fear of a Common enemy does not unite and peice them together Firm. You rightly apprehend for all these dangers and inconveniences are the necessary consequents of Independent Congregations where any Popish Wolf in Sheeps Cloathing has a fair opportunity to sow the seeds of Anabaptism Quaquerism Socianism or any poysonous Heresy whatsoever to spread the principles of Sedetion and treason as has been of late to much practised in this Nation I wish such Tares be not still scattered in our separating Conventicles to this very day 'T was the observation of Sir Rob. Cotton above three-score yea●s since that Priests and Jesuits did put on the habits of Captains Merchants c. that that they might deceive poor ignorant people under that disguise opera Posthu Pag. 148. Dub. You have said enough against this headless Church Goverment and the sad consequences of it I pray you proceed to the second thing you promised to debate concerning Independency Firm. The second error does concern tiths which generaly the Independents with other sectarys would perswade the world are a great oppression upon the people meerly Levitical and not due or lawfull under the Gospel Dub. I desire to hear from you what may be replyed to these cavils for I believe they are no better Firm. The paying of Tiths is no oppression upon the people no injury to them at all for if no free-holder Farmer or Tenant whatsoever ha's any legal or equitable right ●r title to the tenth part by purchase donation inheritance lease or by any other imaginable conveiance then the paying of Tiths can be no injury at all but the free holder Farmer or Purchaser ha's no legal right to the tenth part no more then the Minister has to the other nine because for many hundred years it has been invested in the Church by as good laws as any layman has right or title to the free hold Farm or lease which he has Purchased or pays rent for so that the tenth part cannot discend to any m●n by inheritance gift or puchase neither does any Tenant pay one Penny of rent to his Land lord for that part of the increase of Fruits Grain Grass or any other Commodity whatsoever Dub. Truly Sir I have heard as much and if Tithes were taken from the Church no question Landlords would raise their Rents and Fines and Purchasers would quickly find the price of land rais'd proportionably to a tenth part Firm. This is so plain that nothing but gross ignorance Envy and Malice against the Clergy can entertain the least doubt of it Dub. Sir you put me in mind of one thing which I have often thought upon and much wonderd at that generally those that go under the n●me of Protestants in your Church have little respect for their Ministers whereas Papists and Presbyterians shew great respect to theirs Firm. You need not wonder at it the true reason of this contempt is for want of Zeale to that Religion which th●y profess where●s Papists and Presbyterians are Zealous in theirs But your meer formal Protestants of which number there are too many is a formal nothing one that is so far from the power of Godliness that he has not the naked formality of it Now there cannot be a greater sign of an irreligious Atheist then contempt of the Clergy for where they are despised God cannot be honoured nor Religion had in esteem if the Gentleman that has assigned reasons for the Contempt of the Clergy had thought on this t' would have been worth all the reasons in his whole Book but it may be he was so much a stranger to his own heart that he thought not of it Dub. But are not many Ministers themselves a chief cause that they are so contemned Firm. I was about to tell you so 't is much to be be wailed that too many in holy orders are through ignorance negligence in the duties of their calling loosness in