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A01039 An ansvvere to M. I. Forbes of Corse, his peaceable warning Calderwood, David, 1575-1650. 1638 (1638) STC 11143; ESTC S102458 22,575 36

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Kirk and Estates which hath approved and ratified it You say that short Confession hath humane privat authoritie and is respected for the Penner and many well affected christians subscribers But that in this regard wee are no more tyed to this Confession then any part of Augustin Ambrose Luther or Calvins workes approved by manie good Chistians nor that the obligation of the subscribers can be extended beyond their owne persons and lifetimes But wee have told you already that it is the Confession of the Kirk of Scotland approved by the Kirk of Scotland and subscribed universally by direction of authoritie at two sundrie times which is more than to bee penned by M. Craig and subscribed by many good Christians or hath beene done to any part of Aagustine Ambrose Luther or Calvins workes Beza set forth a notable Confession of faith which is approved by many good Christians yet is esteemed only as a private worke But so is not the generall confession of the Kirk of Scotland The orthodox confession of a reformed kirk deserveth greater respect than the treatises or works of Ambrose Luther c. Sunt enim hae Confessiones orthodoxae tanquam tabulae authentica privatorum Doctorum scriptis anteponendae as is said in the Latine preface to the Confessions of faith There is good reason for it for humane authoritie admitteth degrees The publick is more valide than a private Sententia communi omnium assensu recepta longé probabilior erit sententia ea quam unus alter statuit One man speaking according to Scripture is to bee prefered before a great assembly of doctours speaking without criptures But then his judgement is preferred because of Gods authoritie not for his owne B●r wee are now comparing private men with a whole Kirk ceteris paribus in regard of themselves and consider humane testimony or judgement qua tale in so far as it is humane To conclude this point Wee are aswell tyed to the generall Confession as to that which you call the nationall for the generall is nationall aswell as the first In the meane time you have showne litle respect either to the penner or subscribers for you call it the negative Confession the short negative Confession The supreme authoritie civill you distinguish in royall or legall and the legall you make also royall So then the royall power is royall or legall Or you meane the royall power is either conjunct with the Estates as in making Lawes because ne civiles quidem leges ex fua solius authoritate ferre potest as saith Burthillus contra Becani controvers pag. 66. or without their concurrence as in giving remissions c. But this you may call the royall Prerogative The power legall you should call legislative or law giving power which Polititians call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for the power of execution or administration of justice shuld bee also legall and ruled by the lawes This short Confession you say had never authoritie legall for it was never ratified by act of Parliament but all the civill authoritie it had was only royall by the Kings mandat You would say imposed by vertue of his royall prerogative I believe that his Majestie professing lately in his Declaration that hee would not urge the Service booke farther but in a legall manner would not impose upon us subseription to the Confession of Faith by his royall mandat but in a legall manner I am sure there is as great reason for the one as for the other But wee have shewed already that it hath beene ratified by act of Parliament universally recived subscribed which is equivalent to a Parliament But more of this anone You saye Authoritie ecclesiasticall was given to this Confession by two nationall Synods But I have cited moe which you have omitted whether of set purpose or otherwise I referre to your owne conscience You saye the Authoritie synodicall immediat was that approbation whereby these Synods declared this Confession to bee a true Christian faithfull and godly Confession and that such as truely professe Iesus Christ ought to agree thereto That by this reason it tendeth to manifest a divine authoritie of the confession of the doctrine thereof and in respect of the matter so approved doth equallie oblish all Christians Wee have already cleared that point of divine authoritie wherein you have fumbled As for the other point wee doe think that all good Christians should embrace our Confession Wee beeing persuaded when wee subscribe that it is the undoubted trueth grounded upon the written Word But our intention was not to set downe a Confession of faith whereunto all Christians in the world should bee tyed but only such as will bee members of this Kirk and to make knowne to the world what wee professe For as it is well observed in the preface to the harmonie of Confessions If every man bee commanded to make Confession of his Faith so often as Gods glorie the edification of the Kirk shall require what a wonderfull and strange thing ought it to seeme if Cities if Provinces if whole Kingdomes have made profession of their Faith When they were falselie charged by the Popish sort that they had gone from the doctrine of the true Kirke You acknowledge you are obliged to reverence the judgment of a nationall Synod of our Kirk in matters substantiall Why not in matters also rituall and disciplinarie for these I suppose you oppose to matters substantiall Yet in matters substantiall you professe you are no more oblidged to hearken to those two Synods than to the preceeding or following or to the Synods in forraigne Kirks or to the ancient Councells that is only by restriction Yet you ought to depart from us if you bee not of us if your judgement bee not conforme to the judgement of our Kirk The ecclesiasticall authoritie mediat given by these Synods to this Confession you make to bee their injoyning Ministers to give obedience to his Majesties commandement anent the said Confession Is the ordinance of the Assembly ecclesiasticall media●e authoritie You vanish in your distinctions An ordinance of an Assembly floweth immediatly from the ecclesiasticall authoritie or power of the Assembly But you prove your mediat authoritie ecclesiasticall thus Nothing is spoken in these statutes but in relation to the Kings Majesties mandat and for a time but that doth not make the power ecclesiasticall mediate but only adj●vant or concurrent I will tell you more the Proclamation had taken small or no effect if it had not beene seconded with the authoritie of the generall Assembly Yea it had beene a dangerous preparative to command Ministers to crave subscriptions to a Confession of Faith not approved by the Kirk The worke was good but the order preposterous In the yeere 1589. the assembly began and desired Commissions to be given to that effect and gave in a roll of such as they had nominat to bee Commissioners which was performed by the secret Counsell You must knowe
th●ir authoritie and jurisdiction The assemblyes of Ministers and Gentlemen called by you a popular confusion is called in the Scriptures by Christ himself the Kirk and by the Apostle Paull presbyterie or eldership Elders that labour not in the word but censuring manners are called rulers and governours to which office Gentlemen and other qualified persons who are not Ministers maye bee ca●led This presbyterie conveened in the name and authoritie of the Lord Iesus hath a spirituall power proceeding immediatly of God and neither of Angell or man to rule his Kirk to reason de liberate and conclude in matters ecclesiasticall whose conclusions resolutions and deliberations are of such sort that what they bind or loose on earth according to Gods word is bound or loosed likewise in the heavens and whosoever contemneth the authoritie thereof should bee esteemed among the children of God as an Ethnick or publican The author of a learned Dialogue written likewise in these times reporteth that the same usurping Prelate had approved this order by his owne hand writt He protested himselfe before God afterward when hee made his recantation that hee was commanded by the Chancelour and Secretar for the time to set foorth the Declaration and promised if God spared his life to write in defence of the forme and order of the Presbyteries established In the Assembly holden in May 1586 we have these conclusions 1. It is found that all such as the scripture appointeth governours of the Kirke to Wit pastors doctors elders may conveene to the generall assembly and vote in ecclesiasticall matters all others that have any sute or other things to propone to the assembly maye bee there present to give in their sutes propone things profitable for the Kirke vnd heare reasoning but shall not vote 2. There are foure ordinarie office bearers set downe to us by the scriptures to wit Postors Doctors Eiders and deacons and that the name of Bishop ought not to bee taken as it hath beene in time of Papistrie but is common to all Pastours and Ministers In the assembly holden in August 1590 it was ordained that all that did then beare or were hereafter to beare office in the ministerie subscribe the heads of discipline set down in the booke of policie under the paine of excommunication speciallie to the heads controverted 2nd opposed by the adversaries to our discipline and consequently to the constitution of presbyteries consisting of Ministers and ruling Elders I wonder that any should doubt of the meaning and practise of our Kirk seeing they are not ignorant that Elders have place in sessions or elderships of particular Kirks in generall assemblyes the lowest and the highest judicatories but that that they should likewise have place in presbiteries and provinciall Synods seing presbyteries are made up by the particular elderships and provinciall Synods by presbyteries One minister maye governe like a Pope his parish without Elders if fifteene or sixteene ministers may governe fifteene or sixteene parishes without them The affaires of the Kirke and matters of Religion are a common cause which Ministers ought not to engrosse to themselves Our Elders have not sit in prebyteries these many yeeres not by law annulling or abrogating the former constitutions but partly through their owne negligence partly through the pride or ill conscience of some ministers in some part so that is fared with us as with the Kirke of old of which Ambrose complaineth writing on 1 Tim. 5. Vnde synagoga postea ecclesiae seniores habuit quorum sine consilio nihil agebatur in ecclesia Quod qua negligentia obsoleverit nescio nisi forte Doctorum desidia ant magis superbia dum soli volunt aliquid videri FINIS Icr. 3.11 Contra Faust. l. 13 c. 15. Polan syn lib. cap. 25 De Ieiunio c. 4.