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lord_n	day_n	speak_v	time_n	11,715	5	3.7591	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B01449	The defence of the people called Quakers: being a reply, to a book lately published by certain priests of the county of Norfolk, under the pretended title of The Quakers challenge. And containing, some brief and modest animadversions upon the book it self. Several certificates, which detect the errors in those of West-Dereham, and clear the people called Quakers of the said challenge. The letters that passed between them and the priests.	Ashby, Richard, 1663?-1734.	1699 (1699)	Wing A3939; Interim Tract Supplement Guide 4152.f.20[18]; ESTC R1295	32,665	56

of your Terms Yet they proceeded according to what they wrote in their Letter dated the 16th of November in these words Pray trouble us no more with your Letters for our Measures are fix'd and you may chuse whether you will meet us upon the Terms resolved upon or no. Rel. p. 1. And our Charge according to their desire sent to them as appears by our first Letter Animad They sent us a Charge indeed but not according to our Desire for we Desired a Particular of the Blasphemies they Charged us with together with the Authors Names Titles of the Books and Pages as may be seen by the Three last of our Letters But this they constantly Denied us In our first Letter we were not so express as we were afterwards when we saw in what General Terms they Charged us but we Thought it had been enough to let them know our Freedom to take their Charge and stand a Publick Trial desiring only the Common Priviledges to such Occasions belonging Now what are these Common Priviledges but a Particular of their Charge with Author Title Book and Page considering they told us in their Letter dated the 3 d. of November 1698. We intend to Charge you with Blasphemy out of your own Books Rel. p. 1. And on the day appointed viz. December the 8th 1698. the Quakers and We met in West-Dereham-Church in the County aforesaid and took our Places before prepared We first read the Service of the Day near the Beginning of which they coming in staid it out not to joyn in the Duty but rather to affront it carrying themselves Irreverently all the Time Animad 'T is true We met them on the 8th of the 10th Month 1698. in West-Dereham Steeple-House but We neither appointed the Day nor the Place nor agreed to their Terms for we looked upon their Terms as Unreasonable And therefore our Appearing there was not to joyn Issue with them and to Answer their pretended Charge but to demand at this Meeting what we had so often in our Letters Insisted upon before and they had Refused us namely a Copy of their Charge and to acquaint the People whom the Priests had Misinformed that we were not the first Challengers Our coming in while they were at their Service was by the Direction of their Warden and a Watch-man sent as we Suppose for that Purpose And when we were come in tho' we did not joyn with them yet we offered no Affront nor carried our selves Irreverently unless a Silent and Serious Deportment all the Time of their Service may bring us under that Imputation Rel. p. 1. As soon as our Service was ended one of their Speakers began to Pray whereupon all of them immediatly pulled off their Hats and carried themselves as at a Religious Worship Animad We hope that was no Offence and if they could say in Truth they were for that Time Sober and Quiet as we were during their Service as they rightly call it we think it would have been more to their Reputation than to Cry out A Conventicle a Conventicle a Thing strange to hear of in a Steeple-House while our Friend was on his knees Praying to Almighty God as if there was a Law against Praying to Him which we know nothing of and besides it 's Allowed by their Liturgy Rel. p. 1. We insisted that they were our Challengers and repeated to them their own Letter of Challenge They told us they were provoked by certain Carriages of ours to write that Letter Animad True it is we did and do deny that we were the Aggressors and first Challengers and we Proffered several Testimonies to Clear up that Matter but being then Obstructed by our Adversaries We have now Printed them and leave the Judgment and Decision thereof to the Impartial Rel. p. 1 2. And after many long Harangues of several of their Speakers they desired that all the Letters which passed between us might be read to the Auditory not as if they could get any Advantage by reading them but as appeared to us afterwards meerly to divert us an Hour or more from prosecuting our Charge Animad It was very reasonable the Letters should be read that the People might understand First that they were the first Challengers and Chargers which they now grant by Complaining they were Diverted from prosecuting their Charge Secondly That we had several Times Requested the Authors Names the Titles and Pages of the Books out of which they did intend to Charge us that we might have been duly Prepared to Meet them and Give proper Answers to their several Charges For there is a common Justice due to every Man that he should have the Liberty to Explain his own Words and if the Author was Dead or could not be there that his Meaning by other Words or Sentences relating to the same Subject might be Explained and if they could not then it was Time enough to Disown those Words and Sentences but not without due Examination for otherwise we should be Unjust to our Friends and Injurious to our Selves Rel. p. 2. We answered we had Law and Equity against such an Unreasonable Demand We told them the Law was their own 't was from Edward Burroughs who was a Son of Thunder and spoke all from the Mouth of the Lord whose Book used to be with them of as much Authority as the Bible Animad Our Demand was a more Particular Account than a General Charge But was this Unreasonable Or is there either Law or Equity that forbids it We know of none that doth but do Conceive we have both on our Side Their Allegation out of Edward Burroughs doth not reach the Case nor could his Authority Settle the Preliminaries of the Conference For he hath been dead about 35 Years and this was Published about 5 Years before that therefore what is a Challenge of near 40 Years Standing and by a Friend so long since dead to us Is it Reasonable that that should Affect us and Set us such Measures as these Partial Judges Pitch'd and Resolv'd upon Besides E. B. tho' he made an ample Offer to the Priests of that Day saying Let them appoint Time Place and proffer Terms at their own Pleasure Yet he did not thereby Oblige us by any Express Word or Consequence That he was Boanerges or a Son of Thunder and did Speak from the Mouth of the Lord we humbly Acknowledge and Bless God for Raising up and Sending forth so Eminent and Able an Instrument to Preach the Everlasting Gospel His Memory is Precious among Us and his Books of Esteem but not of Equal Authority with the Bible For though he had received a Measure of the same Spirit which was in the Holy Pen-men yet Dispensations Vary according to the manifold Wisdom of God and therefore we prefer the Bible before E. B's Books and all other Writings Extant whatsoever We do not Plead for any New Gospel Faith or Doctrine different from that which Christ and his Holy Prophets and

John Hubbard John Brown Dan. Phillips Phillip Tassill The Priests Answer to the Foregoing Letter Dated November the 3 d. 1698. Friends WE Observe in your last Dated October the 31st 1698. how apt you are to Catch at every little Escape tho' nothing relating to the Cause the omission of a Date We hope tho' we forgot the 27th of October we shall not forget the 8th of December You are offended we call your first Letter a Challenge to us tho' our betters have thought it the Boldest and Pertest that ever was sent to the whole Host of Israel viz. as you more than once in your Letter term it to us or any of us all and to any of our Cloth and that from the Hands of such whom we never took to be any great Goliahs But all this Anger it seems is because we so Zealously as you think Espouse Francis Bugg's Charge One may see how ready you are to take Fire when so small a Spark will kindle you For one of us was not there when he delivered his Charge Another of us came by meer accident and None of us were any other than as Witnesses to the Delivery of it which any Three of your honest Neigbours we suppose might have been without Offence As to the Books you mention'd to us to be Read which you conceive would have cooled our Zeal for Bugg and his so often as you say baffl'd Charge You may please to know that we have Read them and that Bugg is not Answer'd nor can be Answer'd any other way seeing the Charge is drawn from Quotations out of your own Books but by denying the Truth of Them which your pretended Answerers do not do but betake themselves to their usual Palliating and Painting Tricks to cover over and hide their Deformities We confess we had a better Opinion of your Principles before we saw your Books than now we have for indeed we have received more Satisfaction from your Answers than from the Books they pretend to Answer being confirm'd more in our Belief that they are Unanswerable And if you write in this manner we shall never desire to take the Pen out of your Hands for it will do us no Hurt but for your Gall that is in the Ink. Yet because you say he must be Rejected and you will have it so we have given you your Humour and have accepted of your Challenge without him Friends Your People have been ever ready to say Our Charges have been Lies Forgeries and every where have run with this Cry in their Mouths Lies all Lies because alas they never Read our Books or at least never Compar'd them with your Authors Therefore we perceive that Writing Books will not do but we must bring forth those that you have Written at a Publick Meeting and lay them open before your Deluded Followers and desire them to see with their own Eyes and perhaps they may see such a Frightful Sight as they little expected there You might easily have discerned that our Charge affects the whole Body of your People it relating to Blasphemies so long and so often Printed and yet never Contradicted or Censured but Asserted to be from Persons Infallible Blasphemies so often approved of by your Second Days Meetings where all your Books are Examined and by an Index Expurgatorius Corrected tho' written from the Mouth of the Lord. So that your Church hath owned them and we may justly Charge the Blasphemy of those Books upon it till they Disown them But you seem to be much Concerned for the Restraint we lay upon you so that you may not go out of this Diocess for your assistance But truly Sirs you see we have put the same Restraint upon our selves we will not go out of the Diocess perhaps but a little way from Home for ours we cannot think you can be at a want for help in such a Diocess where there are several Thousands of you Besides if you will have a little Patience the Persons you had probably designed for this Service may have work enough at Home ere long For we are Inclinable to believe that the like Charge to this will go through many Diocesses in this Kingdom So that they may save their Powder and Shot till the Charge comes to their Door Friends tho' we intend to Charge you with Blasphemy out of your own Books yet we cannot think it fit to give you the Authors Names Line and Page for that were to send you our Arguments before the Day we shall use them that you may have time the more cunningly to Elude the Force of them It is enough to let you see we intend to Charge you with Blasphemy as expressed in our last tho' we should not be so Foolishly Generous as to tell you the very Place where we intend to Assault you Besides we our selves have not yet read over some of your Books out of which as we are Reading them there arises every Day new Matter for a Charge and so perhaps there may to the time of our Meeting For we can scarce open a Book of yours but presently we are even Frighted with such Apparition that sends us to our Prayers for a Poor Deluded People that are daily Haunted with them And further we may add that you have their Books as well as we and would you read them over as we do ye your selves could not but see those Blasphemies we Charge you with being too big to escape your sight But you think it is fit the Authors of those Books out of which we extract your Charge should be permitted to speak for themselves You cannot but know that most of those Authors are Dead and as for them that are Alive we have already heard them in your Prints to little purpose However they have no Reason to Challenge it as a peculiar Due to them to be the only Vindicators of their Cause seeing every particular Member of your Church is concern'd in it as well as they So that it is a Charge upon every one of you all as well as upon the Authors of those Books you having Espoused them till they be Disown'd and Condemn'd by you To conclude We cannot see how it can consist with either Justice or Prudence to alter our Method for the Reasons given We therefore think it but a vain thing for you to trouble your selves or us with any more such Letters Poor People that are going Blindfold to Samariah instead of Dothan The Lord open your Eyes to see where you are and whither you are a going is the Prayer of your best of Friends tho' you may possibly think us your greatest Enemies Hen. Meriton John Meriton Lau. Parke To Henry Meriton John Meriton and Laurence Parke a Reply to the foregoing Letter dated November 3. 1698. Friends YOURS of the third Instant we received wherein is the date of your former in Answer to which when we in Friendly Sort told you of that Omission it was not that we did

from the Quakers so call'd his mis-representing and abusing them in his Sermons was one great cause why some left him And whereas they say The Wife of one Becket a Quaker gave her self the trouble of going three Miles to the Ministers House on purpose to vex him with Quakerly Questions in a Quibling Way on Ascention day Morning 1695. To which take her Certificate This is to Certifie that I Mary Becket the Wife of Thomas Becket was much disatisfied in my Mind concerning some Religious Matters which I heard Laurence Parke the Priest of West-Dereham where I dwell preach in his Sermons where he use to preach frequently not only against the Quakers but other Dissenters at several times before I went among the said People called Quakers and for that reason I went to his House in Barton desiring to be satisfied by him touching those Matters they now call Quakerly Questions not designing to disturb him but to be instructed by him he told me he could not then resolve me but would endeavour to satisfie me in some of his Sermons if I would come to Church which I did but instead of being satisfied touching those Matters I grew more dissatisfied in my Mind until I heard some of the People called Quakers and then it pleased the Lord I came to be satisfied concerning those Matters And this was the true reason of my going to his House and not in the least to Vex or Disturb him Witness my hand Mary Becket And whereas they further say They remember the time that Becket the Husband himself watched their Minister in a Lane not far from the Church lined on both sides with People to Dispute him when his Spirits were exhausted with Preaching and his Strength weakened by performing the Duty of the Day Here follows Thomas Becket's Certificate This is to Certifie that I Thomas Becket was accidentally alone in my own Hired Ground which lies next the Steeple-House-Yard in West-Dereham when the Preist and the People were coming from their Worship and I had no intent to speak a Word to Laurence Parke the Priest but before he came near me I being by the Gate next the Road where he came he held up his Hand and said to his Hearers Look yonder stands a Man do not you think he looks as if he had seen God or to that purpose adding The Light is in him and then I replied If the Light be not within thee thou art in a Miserable Condition or Words to that effect When he came nearer he asked me how I did I asked him how he did and wished him to leave telling so many Lyes of the People called Quakers till he had heard the Truth of those Matters he reply'd When there was a Meeting at my House he would come to it and gave me his Hand to it but he never came although he had notice To the Truth hereof I Subscribe my Name Thomas Becket And whereas they further say that One Phillips a Quaker went to disturb their Minister at his own House one Munday in May last to Challenge and Provoke him to Dispute with the Quakers at a Meeting at Stoak that was to be held on the Morrow as himself confessed after he came Home And he and his Friends set abroad the Report some days before to call the Country together and then gave it out the Priest promised but durst not come Now here follows a Certificate of the said Phillips This is to Certifie that I William Phillips of West-Dereham being informed that Laurence Parke was much disturbed at a Meeting that was at our Town the beginning of the Month call'd May last and that he said If he knew where there was another Meeting he would come to it I thought fit to go to his House and let him know there was to be a Meeting the next day at Stoak he answered He could not or should not come for that he was not then ☞ provided but said that in a short time there would be Meetings enough when they had got the Books meaning our Friends Books and more Discourse we had together and he would have me sit down in his House and Drink and I did not think he was offended with me for my friendly going to his House for We parted as good Neighbours and I thought then in good Will to each other Witness my Hand William Phillips And whereas they further say This Phillips together with one Mason and Becket by speaking Profanely of the Ordinances of Christ and setting up a Conventicle contrary to Law c. This is a General and Proofless Charge and deny'd by them and till Prov'd needs no further Reply And whereas they further Certifie that their Minister Laurence Parke had many Provocations and Challenges One above all the rest say they we cannot forget which was given him in Writing when he was in the Pulpit by one Lilly in sight of the whole Congregation In Answer to which take the following Certificates This is to Certifie That about Five or Six Years ago I Phillip Tassill together with John Brown being at the Burial of a Relation at West-Dereham at which time some of the Parishioners being the hearers of Laurence Park told us that their Minister had Preached That the Quakers had not Read in a Bible these Forty Years and that they did not care if all the Bibles were Burn'd Now we hearing the Report of such a very Sad Wicked and most Uncharitable Abuse were concerned knowing our Innocency did therefore write a few Lines to him that he would admit us to a Friendly Conference that he might either Prove his Charge or Clear Vs before the People or to that Effect without Advising with any of our Friends Witness our Hands Phillip Tassill John Brown This is to Certifie That Mr. Park having Preached much against the Quakers and Discoursed that he would Prove them to be No Christians the Report thereof came to some of the said People and one of them gave me a few Lines to give him to desire a Friendly Conference with him about those Matters which I accordingly gave to the said Mr. Park and though I gave him them in the Church it was my own Doing and not by Direction of any one to give him them in that Place And I did not understand that more than One or Two of the said People wrote those Lines or that I might not give him them as Inoffensively in that Place as in any other being one of his Hearers This is about Five or Six Years ago as I remember Witness my Hand John Lilly And whereas they further Certifie That this and nothing but this made them and their Ministers willing to Permit Mr. Bugg to come amongst them to try if he could Conjure down that busie Spirit which possesses the Quakers and is so troublesome to us Reply First We may conclude by the Nature and Grossness of these words that you poor People know not what you have sign'd For you have given a Notable Reflection upon Fra. Bugg Is he indeed turn'd Conjurer But if it be so we know that Spirit the Sincere Quakers are led by has always been too hard for such Conjurers But pray wherefore are you so harsh in Reflections on your Neighbours as though they were led by a Diabolical Spirit This touches not them only but Christ also in whom they have Believed and that Spirit that dwelt in those that Persecuted our Lord dwells too much in you they call'd the Master of the House Beelzebub and also a Blasphemer no Marvel then if his Followers be called so We remember this Caution The Servant is not greater than his Lord we are sorry for your sakes that you should Offer that Injury to your own Souls but do desire you to Repent that God may shew you Mercy for you together with your Minister lie under that Wo spoken of in Isaiah 5. in calling Good Evil and Light Darkness Further whereas you confess That you and your Minister accompanied F. Bugg to one Quakers House and sent one of his Printed Charges in a Letter to Samuel Cater Answ This is a clear Confession here are Eighteen of you and your Minister have Espoused F. Bugg's Challenge and sent it not only to a Quaker's House but to S. Cater of Little Port in the Isle of Ely for him and Five more of his Brethren to come forth and joyn with your Minister and F. Bugg and Four more So now you have done well to be Ingenuous and Confess your Act for now the Challenge lies at your Door Here is a Printed Challenge you sent Dated August 10. 1698. And here is your Minister's Letter Dated August 28. 1698. And here is the 3 d of October fixt for the Day of the Dispute and if we do not Appear we must be judged Insincere and Cowardly And all this on your Part before the Quakers wrote their Friendly Letter Dated September the 7th 1698. ERRATA PAge 7. line 10. for laghed read laughed l. 29. f. ye there r. yet here p. 13. l. 13. f. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 20. l. 27. f. Office r. Office p. 48. l. 10. f. Preist r. Priest FINIS