Selected quad for the lemma: nation_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
nation_n	call_v	church_n	national_a	2,044	5	11.4074	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A75805	The Catholiques plea, or An explanation of the Roman Catholick belief. Concerning their [brace] church, manner of worship, justification, civill governement. : Together with a catalogue of all the pœnall statutes against popish recusants. : All which is humbly submitted to serious consideration. / By a Catholick gentleman.	Birchley, William, 1613-1669.	1659 (1659)	Wing A4242B; ESTC R42676	68,166	129

those above onely this I can say of some of them whom I have conversed with that they seeme to grant that Sequestration of Papists Estates upon the sole account of Religion is not in their opinion warranted by Gods word but rather the contrary And yet these men continue their employments which I feare will expose them to the censure of worldly minded and avaricious selfe-seekers And I pray God that whilst they charge others with Idolatry they bee not found guilty of it themselves since the Scripture sayes expresly that a Covetous man is an Idolater But it being apparant that the Oath of Abjuration is the wrack which torments so many Consciences I did therefore in the former part of this Discourse propound some Quaeries upon that Oath and shall now humbly add as not improper for this subject what the before mentioned Sir Alexander Irving lately said in answer to Master Iohn ●ut Moderatour of the Presbytery of Aberdeen concerning constraint of conscience and enforcing Oathes his very words are these I doe acknowledge 〈◊〉 which you say concerning Oathes that God is honored by them yet that must receive some limitations or else it would prove very false they must be taken in Iudgement in truth and upon necessity Now I appeale to your owne Consciences whether yee have observed these Conditions in your urging so many dreadfull Oathes upon this miserable Nation these years by-past not onely in the Covenant but in your solemn League with your Presbyterian brethren of England whereby yoe enforced all men to swear to establish by Armes that Tyranny there as yee had done here how many have yee enforced by threatning and Execution of your Kirk censure and the severity of the Civill Law following upon them depriving men of their Estates to swear and subscribe to all ye injoyned or could invent albeit yee knew them to be of far contrary Iudgements wherein yee did imitate that feigned and false Mother who before Solomon was contented to have the Child divided whereby her Hypocrisie was found out by that bre●e Prince By which meanes yee have made this Nation guilty of perjury besides many other heynous sinnes I wish to God you had remembred or would yet remember how much you cryed out against the Tyranny of Bishops when they were urging some of your number who were refractory to Episcopacy that there should be had some regard to tender Consciences which were of another Iudgement But so soon as ye had got the power into your hands neither Minister nor Laird Man Woman or Child was spared nor any regard had unto them whatsoever quality or condition they were of all were forced not onely to obey you but which is the greatest tyranny over mens Consciences they were made to swear that they thought as yee would have them albeit to your owne knowledge many thought the contrary c. The whole Answer which beares date 20. Ianuary 1651. is worth the reading and is Printed in the Diurnall Numb. 118. I pray God a great part of the same arguments may not be turned against us for enforcing this Oath of Abjuration so positively against mens Consciences And since we all say that wee abhorre to violence and force any ones Conscience farther then to secure the publick peace and that onely as necessity shall really appeare and not upon any Voluntary or Counterfeit pretence I cannot see how the taking of this Oath availes to make a man either a better Neighbour or a better Subject and should be glad to know whether the Parliament will trust honest Sir Richard Minshew Dr. Iohn Frier c. any more now then before they tooke that Oath and became outward Conformists Since t is but too probable they doe it not upon any Conviction of Conscience but rather against Conscience meerely to save their Estates from Sequestration And if so none can deny but that it is the highest degree of perjury and a spirituall Murther of the Soule Then let us sadly consider how disadvantagious to the worke of the Lord and scandalous to the eyes of men it will be for us to fill up our Congregations with such unsanctified Members The ingenious Author of Mercurius Politicus Numb. 99. page 1554. hath an admirable Discourse upon this Subject If wee seriously reflect sayes hee upon the designe of God in bringing Christ into the World we shall finde it was to set an end to that pompous administration of the Iewish form that as his Church people were formerly confined within the Narrow Pale of a particular Nation so now the Pale should be broken downe and all Nations taken into the Church Not all Nations in a lump nor any whole Nations or Nationall Bodies to be formed into Churches For his Church or people now under the Gospell are not to be a body Politicall but Spirituall and Mysticall not a promiscuous confusion of Persons taken in at adventure but an orderly collection a picking and choosing of such as are called and Sanctified c. Not a company of men forced in by commands and constitutions of wordly power and prudence but of such as are brought in by the power and officary of Christs Word and Spirit For he himselfe hath said My Kingdome is not from hence My Kingdome is not of this World c. And therefore that hand which hath hitherto presumed in most Nations to creat a power called Ecclesiastick in equipage to the Civill to ●ear sway and bind mens Consciences to certain Nations ordained for Orthodox upon civill penalties under colour of prudence good order discipline preventing of heresie and advancing of Christs Kingdome and to this end hath twisted the spirituall power as the call it with the worldly and secular Interest of State this I say hath been the very right hand of Antichrist opposing Christ in his way whose Kingdome being not of this world depends not upon the helps and devises of worldly wisdome Thus that excellent Pen And a quick sighted and judicious member of Parliament in my hearing being made acquainted as with a supposed grateful newes that some such indiferent Christians as Sir Richard and the Doctour had taken the Oath of Abjuration and conformed said Truly our purchase therein is very little and the Bapists lesse much lesse And it may be worth the observation whether these persons do amend their lives or grow wor●e after such change I am sure I have heard some discreet and precious people say they would much lesse trust them now then when they were constant to their professions Upon a belief that those who will not according to the inward dictates of their Conscience keepe faith with God will much lesse doe it with men In confirmation of this assertion I may here ci●e the case of Mr. Anthony Roane who was executed at Usk in Monmouth sheire on the 4th of Aprill 1650 for poisoning his Wife This Gent. the very home before his execution made a publique confession to this purpose That hee had

so great a penalty as the Sequestration of their Estates to do that which we will not do our selves all the relief and hopes that Smith and others in his condition who have both gone to Church and taken the Communion and Oath of Abjuration have received at the said Hall is that the said Commissioners have promised to move the Parliament to know what shall amount unto a Conformity and it might also be desired to know what Religion the Papists in case they be forced to leave their own shall conform unto since we have three severall Religions that at present seems to have an equall power or influence the Prelaticall or old Protestant as some call it is establisht by law the Presbyterian carries the vogue in the Pulpit but the Independent has the power and Countenance of the State Certainly the abovesaid strange proceedings must needs appear both to all reformed Churches abroad and to very many conscientious people at home as savouring of a design to make sure of the Papists estates whatsoever becomes of their souls And all this while we hold forth meeknesse and all this while we cry up Liberty of Conscience Is it possible we should so far forget our principles as to seize the estates of our neighbours and kindred for Religion and at the same time professe to venture all our own to purchase freedom of Religion is it possible we should expose our own lives in so long and dangerous a War to establish and secure Liberty of Conscience and at the same instant of time hang draw and quarter men for their Consciences how shall we answer at the day of Iudgment our shedding so much blood to deliver our Country from cocrcency im●matters of belief if as soon as the power is in our hands we imbrue them in the blood of our Countrymen meerly for their Religion have we so soon forgot those sharp reproofs of the Apostle Rom. 2. Behold you are called Iews and rest in the Law and make your boast of God you know his will and approve the things that are more excellent you are confident that your selves are guides of the blind and lights to them that are in darknesse instructers of the foolish and teachers of Babes who have the form of knowledge and of truth in the Law you therefore who teach another teach you not your selves you that preach a man should not steal do you steal you that abhor Idols do you commit sacrilege In the day when God shall judge the secre●s of men by Iesus Christ how can we answer that excellent and self-evident precept of nature Do as you would be done unto God is not mocked he promises indeed that the meek shall inherit the Land but surely means not such as seem meek only to inherit the Land Thus sharply went on my angry Presbyterian and I confesse I was extremely ashamed to hear him say so much reason that used to speak nothing but passion and to see my self so confounded by one that I have alwaies overcome with ease upon any other subject and should have liked far better his observations which with grief I acknowledge to be too true and open to all the World if they had come from an indifferent and unfactious spirit because I suspect they may perhaps proceed rather from envy towards the gainers than pity upon the losers for during the violent and therefore short dominion of the Presbyterians never were more cruel torturers of the Conscience than they never a more tyrannical Tribunal than their Iure divino Assembly and classical High-commission but the hand of the Lord stopt them in their full cariere and by wofull experience they now find the truth of Gods threatnings If you bite and devour one another take heed you be not consumed one of another Gal. 5. 15. Wherefore it shall be my dayly prayer to our great and good God that he would graciously inspire his servants who now sit at the Helm to prevent the like heavy judgments upon themselves and seriously considering that both their allegiance to Reason their duty to God their Engagement to their own Principles call so loudly upon them they would fulfill now our joy and compleat the good worke so happily begun by putting the tender-conscienced and peaceable-minded people of this Nation into a condition of perfect security for matters of Religion which cannot be effected without a generall Act of Conscience-indempnity firmly to be established as a fundamentall Law of the Land for all that professe the Gospell of Christ Postscript SInce there is scarce one whom something in these few sheets will not please nor very many whom something will not displease they therefore freely submit themselves not only to the Iudgment of the Civil Magistrate but of every civill man and I have according to the Order of Parliament hereunto subscribed my name William Birchley Persecution for Religion condemned c. IN the precedent part of this Discourse I have demonstrated according to that light which the Lord Christ hath infused into my Soul how much coercency in Religion is repugnant to the Law of Nature and by many evident and unanswerable Texts of Scripture shewed how displeasing it is to God how improper to advance the power of godlinesse and how extremely disagreeable to the sweet Spirit which guided our Lord Iesus in the propagation of his Gospel And after in the same little treatise I proceed to prove by the expresse words of the Parliaments and Armies Declarations that the great Principle wherein we glory wch we have so long fought to establish is a perfect Gospel-freedom absolute deliverance of the Conscience from all Tyranny and Oppression Which Discourse as I composed in all humblenesse of spirit and afterwards offered to the gracious Redeemer of our Souls who gave me the strength and power to finish it to his glory So I find not only my self for which I humbly thank the bounty of my God confirmed in my former judgement but others in some measure convinced in theirs of the unreasonablenesse and sinne of Conscience-Persecution Concerning which pious and modest temper of mutuall forbearance I shall only add to what I have mentioned in the former part this plain and familiar Observation That as the surest marke of a tender conscience in our selves is a tender spirit to others so the most infallible sign of a hard stony heart in our own brests is when we slit in pieces and shipwracke the Consciences of all that touch upon us But praised for ever be the Name of our God who still proceeds to guide and illuminate his Chosen graciously disposing them neither to presume upon themselves for their knowledge nor be cruell against others for their ignorance but humbly adore and wait upon the Divine Providence in the disposure of all things which fills my soul with exceeding joy when I consider it to be the generall sense of all the truly Godly and well-affected in this Nation that no quiet and