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A25920
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Articles exhibited against Benjamin Spencer, minister of S. Thomas Parish in Southwarke, in the right honourable and high Court of Parliament for which his living was sequestred together with a charge grounded thereupon, and his answer thereunto, with his reasons of printing the same.
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1642
(1642)
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Wing A3819; ESTC R10474
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7,471
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10
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Articles exhibited against Benjamin Spencer Minister of S. Thomas Parish in Southwarke in the right Honourable and high Court of Parliament for which his living was sequestred Together with a charge grounded thereupon and his answer thereunto With his reasons of printing the same Gentle Reader WHoever thou art for Gods love let me intreat thee to reserve a good opinion of this my action For I protest in the sight of God I present not this sheet to thee out of any vain glory to vindicate my selfe from any aspersions nor out of malice to my accusers to render them odious to the world much lesse out of any heart-burning against the sentence of my judges who proceed Secundum allegata probata according to allegation and proofe but to shew how much one man may be misconstrued by another in the deliverance of his minde and how free I am from Popish doctrine or such ill manners whereby to sleight orders of Parliament or to let fall any loose speeches in the Pulpit of which three things the Articles consist however I may be mistaken by men who come to heare me with prejudicate mindes And I hope you will not blame me for this considering the malignity of such a scandall doth not only like a dead flye corrupt the ointment of a good name which I thank God till this time he hath honoured me withall among all men who doe truly know me but also is the greatest blot that can be to my profession and a just hindrance of my preferment and therefore I can doe no lesse then print a few sheets to satisfie my friends but not to sell in this businesse because I find my Articles read to many but not my answers to them by which my friends affections may be diverted from me as well as their mindes corrupted You are therefore to understand that after I had answered one Iacksons a Scotch-mans Articles against me before my Lord Major of which I could never get a copie I was in good hope to have been at rest when suddenly my name appeared in a black bill among 66 scandalous it may be some will prove scandalized ministers This bill made by whomsoever I am sure I was never called to a reckoning about it before any of those Citizens who drew it up and presented it to the Lord Major The blow I received by this browne bill almost stunned me having no warning to provide an Helmet The ground of this bill was the complaints of parishoners to some Citizens who were authorized by an order of Common Councell dated the second day of December to inquire of all malignant scandalous seditious Ministers whom I pray God bring to light so that the Wolfe may be known for all his sheepes-skin The next trouble I heard of was by one Quartermaine who warned me before the Committee of examination of which the right worshipfull Sir Gilbert Garrat was the Chaire-man to answer to 10 Articles alleadged against me The Articles were as followeth Inprim THat Master Spencer wilfully refuseth to give the Communion to those that will not kneele at the Sacrament 2 The said Mr. Spencer did publikely averre in his Sermon that water in Baptisme did absolutely cleanse away originall sin 3 He did averre that the Church of Rome is the true Church and lacks nothing out qualification and did not erre in any fundamentall point but in matter of circumstance 4 Certaine honest then informing the said Mr. Spencer that his superstitious gestures were burthensome to some good Christian consciences in his Congrogation he thus replyed Am I vile abusing the words of the Prophet David I will be more vile yet And whether the railes be taken away or not I will bow to the Table yea I will dance about the Table he also abuseth all those that stand neer or lean upon the Communion Table or lay their hats upon the Table in the time of prayer or sermon 5 He hath uttered these words in the Pulpit the times are evill and dangerous for we may fear great judgements upon the land because we do not know whither to go for justice And these words were spoken in the time of Parliament 6 In S. Mary Overies Church he most basely abused honest Ministers in his Sermon saying these Iack-dawes that formerly durst not shew their faces now did appear every where And where did they now shelter themselves but under the eaves of the Parliament-house Consider whether these two Articles do include a Scandalum Parlamenti Or not 7 He not only presumptuously neglects to pray for good Magistates such as my Lord Major of London as also not praying for the army that is gone forth for Religion King and Parliament which is too great an evidence of malignity but also a presumptuous abuser and scoffer of the Orders of Parliament 8 Instance namely one Sabbath day there came an order from the Parliament to be read in his Church for the restraining the superstitious bowing at the name of Iesus in the reading whereof the said M. Spencer used these disdainefull words For any thing I know this that I do read might have come from a Ballad-monger I know not which Iesus is signified here whether Ioshuah or Iesus the son of Sirach or lesus Christ 9 This was M. Spencers divinity in the Pulpit that women now adayes were not so holy as the Virgin Mary was For she conceived the holy Ghost before she conceived Christ but women now took in men before they took in the holy Ghost and were coupled together by the tayles as Sampsons Foxes were 10 That the said M. Spencer after he had published the Ordinance of Parliament for the reliefe of poor maimed souldiers said that it may be the said souldiers went out with a zealous intent but it was a blinde zeale or it may be out of malice and envie to be revenged of some of their enemies or it may be to rob and steale and so to inrich themselves but I hope the misery they feele and your charity will make them desire peace His Answers to these 10 Articles before the Committee 1 TO the first he answered thus If he had refused any the Communion as he remembred none he did it not because he thinks kneeling more necessary but because of the Statute of uniformity which bindeth him to observe it which statute for direction is bound with the Book of Common prayer 2 Vpon the second Article the witnesses disagreed His answer was that being the plaintiffes did instance no next upon which he so preached nor time when he could not say what he preached but his opinion was that the outward signe without the thing signified was of no validity and as it is expressed further in the 27 Article of our protestant doctrine published and of late protested by himselfe and others To the third he answered thus I know not that ever I preached any such thing nor doe they prove it by either place time or Text but I hold the
with me might have rectified all if so be they be fully perswaded that I spake as they have alleaged but I fear there is some leaven of ill wil in it which never speaks wel God be judge between us to whoÌ„ I refer my self After I had thus answered I was dismissed Diverse weekes after one Nicollson got a warrant for me from the Committee for the safety of the Kingdome A man who knew nothing of me except my face as I did bis By vertue of the warrant I was kept under Custody certaine dayes but found no charge appeare there against me But being in prison a warrant was brought to me to appeare before the Lords to answer to a charge drawne up against me with al sequestration of my living which charge though it consisted of fewer Articles by three than before was alleadged namely the 5.2 and 7. yet it is no whit lighter but doth in some words so much differ from the Articles that mee thinkes my adversaries themselves should consider where they spoke truest before the Committee or before the Lords they being witnesses both to the Articles and charge and especially one woman whose zeale against me was so smart that she blushed not to maintaine the ninth Article farther than was alleadged therein namely that I should say worse than that women tookâ— in men for she added these words Your Lordships know where O frons o facies Marke the charge and compare it with the Articles and you will finde that whatsoever Clerke drew it he hath made his building too heavie for the foundation viz. For the Articles upon which it is built The sequestration and charge Martij 16. 1642. WHereas Benjamin Spencer Stipendary Curate of the Church of Saint Thomas Hospitall in Southwarke in the County of Surrey hath endeavoured in his preaching to corrupt his people and Auditors partly with the leaven of Popish doctrin pressing upon them Articl 3 1. That the Church of Rome is a true Church saving only in Circumstances and not in fundamentalls Articl 4 2. And bowing to the Altar saying that if he were vile in that he would be more vile yet and whether the railes were taken away or not hee would bow to the Table and dance about it Articl 9 3. And partly by prophane doctrine that the Virgin Mary received the Holy Ghost before she conceived Christ but now women tooke in men first and were coupled together like Samsons Foxes Articl 5 4. And hath expressed great Malignancie against the power and proceedings of Parliament saying in Parliament times that now men knew not whither to goe for justice Articl 6 5. And that Reverend Orthodox Ministers whom he tearmed Iack-Dawes that formerly durst not shew their faces did now appeare and shroud themselves under the Eves of the Parliament 6. Articl 8 And reading in his Church the order of Parliament against bowing at the name of Iesus in contempt thereof said openly that for ought he knew it might come from some Ballad-monger and that hee knew not what they meant whether Iesus the Son of Sirach or Jesus Christ and that they that made it were best able to expresse their owne meaning Articl 10 10. And that in his publishing of the Ordinance of Parliament for the reliefe of maimed Souldiers informed his Auditory that it may bee these Souldiers went out with a zealous intent but â—t was a blind zeale or they went out of malice or envie to be revenged or it may bee to rob and steale Which the Lords and Commons in Parliament Assembled taking into consideration for the better supply of an able and godly Minister in the said Church and for the provision of fit maintenance for those that shall officiate therein doe Constitute and ordaine that Iohn Hardwicke Ioseph Collier Iohn Humphry Daniell Sowton Thomas Bennet Iohn Simes Iohn Winengton William Jackson or any three of them shall have power and authority and are hereby required to sequester all and singular stipends and Allowances Tythes Rents Fees or profits whatsoever belonging to the Cure of the said Church or heretofore payed to the said SPENCER and to appoint Collectors for the gathering and receiving of them as they in their discretion shall thinke fit and shall have power to pay the same unto Iohn Biscoe a godly learned and Orthodoxe Divine who is hereby appointed and required to preach every Lords Day and to officiate as Curate and to take care for the discharge of the cure of the said place in all the duties thereof untill further order shall be taken by both Houses of Parliament And if any shall refuse to pay unto the said sequestrators or any three of them or to the collectors appointed by them any of the Rents duties or lawfull sees acoustomed to be payed upon information thereof by the sequestrators or any three of them unto either House of Parliament The said Lords and Commons do hereby declare they will proceed against such refusers according to their severall offences and contempts I answered to the charge that first it differed much from the Articls that were laid against me first in the number for in the charg there were 3. wanting of the ten alleaged namely the first which charged me for doing what the statute of uniformity injoyned me The second which the witnesses being then examined severally did not agree upon And the seventh which seemed ridiculously to accuse me for not praying for my L. Major Secondly I said the charge differed in many words from the Articles as in that it chargeth me to endeavour to corrupt people with popish Doctrine and yet there is in all but one Article of popish doctrine in the whole charge which might be as well mistaken as not by my hearers Secondly It chargeth me that I bowed to the Altar whereas there was never any in the Church nor did the Table stand Altar-wise Indeed it was railed in by Mr. Lynne one of my accusers without command from any authority save himselfe that I know of Thirdly It makes these words that now in time of Parliament men knew not whither to goe for Iustice a part of the Article which in the Article it selfe is made only an insinuation of the accuser and therefore the witnesses could not as I suppose under favour maintaine rightly both the Articles and the charge However they swearing the Court enclined the rather to their testimony for an oath must bee the end of controversie Let the accusers look to it the Court is free I was committed to the fleete for a while for contempt where I petitioning for maintaining of my charge a Wife and many Children was by the Lords granted thirtie pounds per annum to bee resumed in the hands of the Governours of Saint Thomas Hospitall from the sequestrators to be payd to me or my assignes as formerly it had I was afterward upon petition released also from imprisonment But all this suffering could not quiet the spleene of mine adversaries For they would faine restraine the Governours so that they might not pay me my allowance of thirtie pounds aforesaid by reason whereof I and my family should be forced to live upon almes while one eates our bread who can neither well desire it and worse deserve it God forgive mine enemies open their blind eyes and soften their hard hearts that repenting they may escape the wrath to come through Iesus Christ Amen FINIS