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A25199 An orthodox plea for the sanctuary of God, common service, white robe of the house being writ for the good of all, but more especially intended for the common sort, being composed in a stile fittest for their capacities / by G.A. Sometime of Oxford, of St. Johns. Alsop, George, b. 1638. 1669 (1669) Wing A2902; ESTC R16186 26,026 98

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form so exactly couch't and fore-thought on as may be fit in an humble manner to be offered up unto the God of Order therefore when we prepare for the House of God we must also prepare in a fitted readiness what we shall have to say unto God when we come before him If for pardon of sin and begging of supplies if for giving of thanks for blessings and mercies received deliverances obtained why all this and whatever we shall or may have need of to put up to God must be seriously and devoutly forethought of to which intent there hath been and is at this very day fitted for our occasional wants holy and profitable Supplies the Divine-Service of the Church planted for a stable Worship and Service to God for ever So that none might rush into his sacred presence and there pour out before the God of Order and Holiness a long and tedious oration the most None-sence These were the common effusions of Olivers Saints Blasphemy and Rebellion with hum's and haw's coughs and impertinent fetches Now God of old to prevent this strange and irregular boldness prescribed a Set-form of Worship that men might not take up that boldness to speak any thing before him rashly especially the Guiders and Pastors of his People And the Lord spake unto Moses saying Speak unto Aaron and his Sons Thus shall they bless the people 1 The Lord bless thee and keep thee Numb 6.24 25 26. 2 The Lord make his face shine upon thee God himself did frame to his Priests the very speech wherewith they were charged to bless his people and be merciful unto thee 3. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace Not leaving the blessing to their own extemporary effusions 't is plain enough known and that beyond the reach of contradiction that the ancient People of God the Jews had a particular Liturgy a Form of Divine-Service extracted out of the Holy Scripture as a constant Service for their approach to God upon all occasions their Benedictions being pen'd by the Masters of their Synagogues See Dr. Hamonds Practic Catech. Now this their Form of Worship as it was ordained for an exact Service to God so was it also intended to prevent the true Religion from all corruption in Doctrine that God might be served in all places with one and the same Order and Form of Divine Worship And as the Jews had their Forms of Divine Service so had and have the Christians also Luke 11.1 John the Baptist taught his Disciples to pray by Form and our blessed Saviour himself left us a Form of Prayer to signifie his allowance of that way of Worship and to prevent all temeritious effusions as also to take off all quarrels that might arise by the spirits of contradictions Our Saviour doth as it were stand up and speak to his Disciples to whom he was to leave the government of his Church after his Ascension my friends to take away all disputes that may be amongst you what kinde of worship my Church shall be served withal when ye pray say Our Father c. Luke 11.2 And as the Christians had their Set-forms of Prayer so had they also their Psalms and Hymns 1 Cor. 14.26 and all to make up a compleat Liturgy Matth. 26.3 For when they had sung a Psalm they went up into the Mountain and as the Jews had their Songs of Moses and Daniel Luke 1.46 so have the Christians the Songs of the Virgin Mary Luke 1.68 Zacharias and Old-Simeon Luke 2.29 And these are those which the Apostles doth so often say 1 Cor. 14 15. I will pray and sing with the Spirit And again Eph. 5.19 in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual Songs making melody to the Lord with my whole heart Now we know that Hymns and Psalms and such kinde of Prayer and Praises are not to be canvised on the sudden but to be premeditated and framed aforehand I but will some say all that St. Paul performed in this kinde he did it by the Spirit he prayed and sung by the Spirit All this we own God forbid else for know he that ventures upon any Form of Prayer or Hymn Psalm or Benediction without a devout and holy Spirit prepared for the work doth rather prattle than pray howl than sing Psalms All Gods Prayers must be prayed with the Spirit or else they fall under the scandal with those that the Apostle so long ago corrects That they use a Form of Godliness but deny the power thereof They therefore do very ill and uncharitable to the sacred Prayers of Gods Church to stigmatize it with that infamy crying of it down that it is barely carried on by Form without any power as if all Service and Devotion dwelt onely upon external performances but they that speak it without book they know not what they say for indeed how dare any take up that boldness to themselves to judge the heart of man when none knows it but God If our Worship be onely formal and hypocritical as many say it is I ask the Question how they know it Our words in our Service are Gods words our gestures and carriages with our habits are decent and comely when we perform our Worship Now what is within us none but God knows for let the worst of our enemies stand and behold our Order they must if they will speak truth When our service is performed with musical voyces devout hearts according to the old Latine verse Non von sed votum non chordula musica sed cor Non clamor sed amor cantat in aure Dei say that surely this is the place where God dwells I must confess we cannot free our Church altogether from sinful Pastors as well as refractory people for there hath always been Mixtura Ecclesiae from the beginning and will so continue Kain and Abel are the Churches Representatives who shows a mixt temper and composition of the Church from the beginning substantial and false-hearted attenders on the Altar of God Aug Ep. 145. Ad huc arca continet corvum columbam Clean and unclean birds the Dove and the Raven are both in the Ark and House of God And this hath been of old and will continue until the great Shepheard shall come and separate the good from the bad till then they feed together in the same pasture But however though there be and must be a mixture of good and bad Ministers and People yet the pure Worship and Service it self is unspotted Prayer and Praises have no errours Humanum est errare but Gods Service hath none And moreover in reference to the foregoing relation it hath been and is always the industrious care of the Fathers of the Church that none should be admitted to holy Orders to attend upon Gods Altar without they did seem and appear to be as well grounded in Grace as Learning that their offerings
prosperity it still refresheth us more and more like Moses in his Communion with God on the Mount our faces shine by it our hearts are more clearly reviv'd I but say some this Common Prayer is so mean a thing that even a Childe may read it that can but read almost any thing it is so inferiour that we cannot esteem it with that worth as our Pastors would have us This sounds something like that sin of Corah and his complies to think meanly of the Service of the Church that any man is able to perform the Ministerial offices as the Priest particularly consecrated for the work but the punishment of Korah Numb 16. Dathan and Abiram to those that have read it should be a terrour and a sufficient warning to stave them off from such a cursed opinion I ask the Question do you think that a Butcher or a Slaughter-Man brought up to that Profession could not strike down an Ox with more slight and agility than a Priest or Levite Why yes no doubt but he could common reason answers this but this was not suffered in the Temple to be done none but those that have an express warrant must officiate in Gods House 't is true you may read the Prayers of the Church to the people but by reason you are not consecrated to that particular imployment it cannot be suffered by any Christian allowance Strange fire it is an abomination unto God The Jews Liturgy it was as plain and easie to be read as our Service do you think that the Laitie could not have read the ten Commandements the Song of Moses and Daniel the Prophesies the Psalms of David why yes no Question but those men might have read these words but not to any effect but Aaron and his lawful Successors appointed and set apart for the work by God for when the people are to be blest 't is Aaron and his Sons that must give them the blessing in Gods name 't is Gods Commandment Joel the 2. and the 17. Let the Priests the Ministers of the Lord weep before the Porch and the Altar and let them say Spare thy people Oh Lord. Malachi 2.7 By the Priests lips must the people learn knowledge He that heareth them heareth me saith Christ And he that despiseth them despiseth me See here then the true dignity of a Minister his Calling and Vocation is both sacred and eminent Now as Mr. Sandcroft observes there are a sort of men but of yesterday Mr. Sandcroft in a Sermon at the consecration of Bishops that would pretend to be wiser than their Forefathers the whole world yea even Christ himself which undertakes to thwart the ancient Decrees and Purposes of God as to the ordering of his Service and way of Worship a sort of men that know God and Religion no otherwise but by meer notion that are Christians from the shoulder and upwards that whatever their brain conceives their tongue talks it for infallible Revelations but in the Words of the Litany From all such good Lord deliver us They that deny the decent Order and Worship of Gods Church deny all that 's regular and good such think any thing will pass with God and serve his turn his Ministers Dunces and his Service Nonsence neither to be called nor appointed but to happen upon the office and performance by chance and so by guess accordingly officiate and perform but our God is a God of Order and must be worshipped in Order not in confusion his Priests must be consecrated and his Service premeditated or else it serves not his turn let us square but one proposal by common reason in reference to this discourse had we any business with an earthly King of some weight and concernment wherein if we should miscarry in the delivery of our message we should not onely lose our suit but incur the Kings displeasure how careful would we be to get words fit for our business how would we forethink of them be still premeditating writing correcting and getting them all exact that nothing might be mislik't Do you think our business with the King of Heaven ought not to be as carefully stated fore-thought and considered on knowing that all vain babling is abominable to him and that we can never think to be too exact in those words that must come before God in the behalf of our selves and others lest like Zebedy we be repulsed by our asking we know not what 'T is ill jesting with edg'd tools it is a strange presumptuous venture to step into Gods presence with unthought of words and expressions Eccle. 5.1 Be not rash with thy mouth saith Solomon nor let thy heart be hasty to utter a thing before God for God is in Heaven and thou art on Earth The White Robe CAvills about maters indifferent in themselves are too much the quarrel of the times and that which makes the animosities the stranger is this that order and comely decency in Gods Service makes the pure Worship of God despicable and that is objected too as one of the maine causes of it The Surplice which in it selfe is the embleme of vertuous innocency that that should keep so many off from serving God in publick as t is pretended is more then ordinary wonder Now this is a great grief to many that know the way to worship God aright to see so weake a prejudice live and do mischief and that upon no sure ground that it can keep footing on but let Antagonists vent their furious madness against that harmless Robe and we that weare it let them proclaim we are Idolaters because we serve the Lord in it in this we do appeal to God to judge between their cry and us thus much wee 'l condescend to satisfie the world we never do account our selves the holier when this white garment is upon us nor the unholier when it is off we owne this Ceremony as the body doth a fine garment for ornament sake or as a late learned Writer speaks The Ceremonies of the Church are as the body to the soul the body being enlivened by the soul is very amiable so Ceremonies with devotion is very comely We use this Ceremony in the Church for ornament sake and its significant resemblance being a habit fitted for consecrated Persons to draw near unto God withal for what more fit than white that suites with the affection of joy wherein God delights to have his Saints praise him Revel 7.6 Malachi 3.1 White it is the beauty that the Angels appeare before him in how then can any nay dare any deny the Church militant here on Earth that she may not signifie something by action and rite which the triumphant doth really performe in Heaven This wearing of the Surplice or White-Robe at D●vine-Service is an innocent harmless and good imitating Ceremony a thing more for order sake than for any absolute necessity of Worship is receiv'd into the Church and made use of We usually have at