Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	allow_v	civil_a	great_a	86	3	2.0926	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43640	The third part of Naked truth, or, Some serious considerations, that are of high concern to the ruling clergy of England, Scotland, or any other Protestant nation and also a discovery of the excellency of the Protestant religion as it stands in opposition to papistical delusions, being a representation of what is the true glory of Protestants, and what are the base, contemptible and ridiculous principles, on which those that are called Roman Catholicks do build, as upon the sand being very necessary for all Protestant families in this present juncture of time.; Naked truth. Part 3	Hickeringill, Edmund, 1631-1708.	1681 (1681)	Wing H1830; ESTC R2673	42,995	50

all men as men have by Nature unto God as unto their Supreme Lord and Creator Wherefore in as much as it is clear that all Laws which command men to forbear that Worship which they as Protestants do in their hearts judge and believe to be agreeable to the Mind Will and Word of God or which commands them to conform to such a Worship as they judge according to their own Understandings and connot but believe it to be disagreeable to the said Mind Will and Word of God are of this nature that is First they are such Laws as have a manifest Inconsistency either with the Law writ in the heart it self which is That God is indispensably to be worshipped in some manner or another Or Secondly they are such Laws as have an Inconsistency with the Law writ in the Word of God which is That he will reward all such as shall obey him according to the Rule which he hath given them in his said Word and will punish such as shall do the contrary Or Thirdly they are such Laws as have an Inconsistency with the Rule of the Reformation it self which is that all Worship which is Christian and foederal is to be given to God according to the Scriptures and that whatever IS NOT read in the Scriptures nor may be proved by the Scripture IS NOT to be required of any man that it should be believed as an Article of Faith Which are the very words of the sixth Article of the Church of England and which Article if wounded the rest of the thirty nine Articles must be wounded equally with it seeing they are judged to be founded mainly upon it I do therefore with all humbleness say that all such Laws in any Protestant Government whatever which restrain such a Worship as is agreeable to the Word of God or is really believed to be such by them that practise it I say all such Laws are entirely against that Prior Law or preceding Obligation which men as men have by Nature indispensably unto God as to their Immediate Creator and Lord above any which they have or can have unto man how lawfully soever he may be the Superior of them And consequently that all Non-obedience or Non-conformity to any of the said Laws though it be in a sence voluntary yet it is neither elective nor indeed truly or properly free And therefore that such Non-obedience is not any the least breach of affection Nor any the least forfeiture of a mans Duty to his Prince or to the Government Because it is a Non-conformity or Disobedience that is absolutely constrained compelled and of an inevitable and indispensible nature in its self by reason of the Prior Law or of the preceding and indispensible Obligation which we have both as Men and as Christians unto God And have above and beyond any Obligation that we have or can have possibly to any person as the Prince or Superior of us And all men that maintain the contrary and that either out of a Luxury of Wit or out of a Super-foetation of Vanity Insolency or Pride do seek to baffle this Argument or to evade the force of it from or under the pretence of the Capriciousness Humoursomness and affectation of Singularity that may be in some Persons may with as good Reason and with as solid a Judgment make a meer Mock or Ridicule of all the Martyrs that have ever been since the World stood and may as well call Daniel and the three Children and all the Primitive Christians and the Apostles who suffered for God and for the Testimony of his Word and of Christ Revel 6.9 Revel 1.9 men that were only capricious humourous and persons that did affect a Singularity as call all men so at this Day whoever they are that do not conform to the Laws Nationally made about Worship and Religion For if their bare Allegation that all men that do not conform are men only of humorous and capricious Tempers and men who meerly affect a Singularity and Disturbance shall be taken for a sufficient Evidence against them By as just a Law the Testimony of any Atheist may as well be taken against all the Martyrs that ever were And the Testimony of any common Person may be taken against them themselves that alledge this that they are Atheists And if this last be not reasonable neither is the first For if anothers bare Allegation is not to be taken against them nor ought to be allowed as an Evidence So neither is their bare saying to be taken against others By all that I have said then it will appear that there is a clear difference between the Authority of a Prince in things Civil and in things relating to Worship and Religion For as a Princes Authority in things Civil is unquestionable and enterferes with no Law of God whatever and can have no pretence therefore to intrench upon the Conscience or upon any prior Obligation or Duty that a man oweth unto God and as it must for all these Reasons be necessarily and indispensably obeyed and submitted unto by all his Subjects So on the contrary a Prince especially as a Protestant can put out no Law about Divine Worship but his Subjects so far as they are Protestants are bound in Conscience and by the very Principles of that Religion which they profess not only to Consider it But to Examine it whether it be agreeable to the Word of God or not and if it appear not to be such at least according to the best of their Understandings As they will have a Plea always not to submit to it by Reason it intrencheth upon a Prior Obligation So this Plea cannot well with Justice be denyed them if no Crime whatever in their Conversation can be proved against them NOR can men in this Case be actually punished and proceeded against without the Sence and Grief of that Wrong or Oppression that is manifestly done to them and suffered by them especially seeing their Non-conformity to the said Laws proceeds not as we said either from their Election or Liberty Nor yet from any breach of Duty or Affection to their Prince But only from what appears to them to be an Inevitable or Indispensable Necessity that ariseth and is occasioned from their meer Profession as they are of the Protestant Religion To this end I shall therefore offer one Argument more which shall be taken from The Character of a Papist The thing which doth Essentially distinguish a Protestant from a Papist more than any Note Mark or Character whatever besides is That a Papist by his Principles as a Papist may not and indeed cannot dispute any Law whatever relating to the Worship or Service of God provided it be declared and established by what he acknowledgeth to be the Church Because he takes the Authority of the Church for the whole Argument or for the only Foundation of all his Obedience unto God rather than the Divine Authority of the Scripture or Word And because

THE THIRD PART OF Naked Truth OR Some serious Considerations that are of High Concern to the Ruling Clergy of England Scotland or any other Protestant Nation AND ALSO A Discovery of the Excellency of the Protestant Religion as it stands in Opposition to Papistical Delusions Being a Representation of what is the true GLORY of Protestants and WHAT ARE The Base Contemptible and Ridiculous Principles on which those that are called Roman Catholicks do build as upon the Sand. Being very necessary for all Protestant Families in this present Juncture of time 2 Thess 2.8 9 10 11. And that wicked shall be revealed whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his Mouth and shall destroy with the Brightness of his Coming even him whose Coming is after the working of Satan with all Power and Signs and lying Wonders and with all deceivableness of Unrighteousness in them that perish because they received not the LOVE of Truth that they might be saved and For this Cause God shall send them strong Delusions that they should believe a LYE LONDON Printed for Richard Janeway in Queens-Head Alley in Pater-Noster-Row MDCLXXXI THE PREFACE BY A Friend of the Author THough Falshood and Errors have need of a Veil or a Vizard to hide the naked Face of it because Falshood when it appears in its own Colours it is a very unpleasant and unlovely Object Yet on the contrary Truth appears most lovely and most desirable when the naked Face of it is most perspicuous when it appears without Veils or Vizards In this ensuing Discourse Truth is so nakedly discovered viz. those parts of Truth here treated of as the Ingenious Readers will certainly be as much enamoured with the Beauty of it as once they were with that worthy Discourse that first appeared in this Nation bearing that name of Naked Truth which now is stiled The first Part another Discourse bearing the Title of the Second Part of Naked Truth having been also some time since published for as in that first part of Naked Truth great Loveliness did appear to all ingenious and un-interessed Persons so assuredly this third part of Naked Truth will ingage the Hearts of many thousands to it that may have a view of it And though some Persons whose Errors and Evils that first part of Naked Truth did discover at lest by reflection were so impudent as to scribble against it yet what did they do in it but lay open their own Shame and Folly to all men So that if they had been publickly known they would have exposed their Persons as much to contempt and hissing as their dirty Papers were to Abhorrency In this third part of Naked Truth is a discovery of some of those parts of Truth as were not treated of in the first Part nor yet in that which is stiled the second part of Naked Truth but in this Discourse three things are performed First The Naked Truth is so laid open with reference unto some things which concern the Ruling Clergy of any Protestant Nation as will ingage the most Ingenious among the said Clergy to return solemn thanks-givings to God for this third part of Naked Truth Secondly the Naked Truth is made so conspicuous with reference to that which is the true glory of Protestants in opposition to Popery as hath never yet been done by any Pen. Thirdly the Naked Truth is so and in such a manner displayed as the Filthiness and the Odiousness of the Scarlet-Whore is made so Patent and Bare as may tend to the opening of the Eyes of the Kings of the Earth and of every ordinary and intelligent Person as may work in them a loathing and a detestation of her as Rev. 17.16 is said shall be wrought And it may be hoped that this very Discourse may prove to be such a Mirror or Looking-Glass to as many of that Scarlet Generation that are related to the Scarlet-Whore whose great thirstiness for Blood is so notoriously made manifest both formerly and lately as will but give themselves leave seriously to look upon their own odious Pictures I say this Mirror may so discover to them so much of their own Shame as they never saw before as possibly may work in them a loathing of themselves and a true Repentance of their evil Ways which have not been good according to Ezek. 36.31 and may ingage them to joyn with Protestants to hate the Whore and to make her desolate and naked and to burn her with fire For we have great ground to hope that the discoveries of naked Truth more and more will tend to the inlightening of all Nations professing Christianity both Protestant and Papistical for some Protestants have in some things erred also and to the Conversion of both from the Errors of their ways and to the bringing of all dissenting Parties to that sincere Love one to another and that true Peace one with another that becomes the Gospel Even to that perfect Unity of the Faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to which he hath determined to bring his Church in due time which time may be near even at the door To which all true Christians whatever their present Errors and Weaknesses may be will in Sincerity say Amen and Amen The Glory of PROTESTANTS And the Shame of PAPISTS HAving for some time laboured and travelled with desire of Soul to bring forth those things that have been given to me which may tend to Peace and Unity I shall in this short Discourse only touch at some few things in order thereunto And the first thing that I shall humbly present to the Consideration of the Protestant Churches both at home and abroad is That as the business of the Christian Religion is now a thing not capable to be separated from an Affair of State so considered as such it is far more difficult for a Protestant Prince upon some accounts to govern it than for a Popish Prince and that for the following Reason which difficulty when the Reason is considered may easily be remedied according to that Maxim Take away the Cause and the Effect ceaseth The Reason or Cause of this difficulty I shall here therefore endeavour to lay open and to manifest with all plainness and clearness I say therefore that the reason of this Difficulty is because the Prince having the Character or Repute only of a Secular Authority hath not that immediate Influence upon Religion it self or upon Religious People which the Clergy hath for as it is not to be expected that a Prince should have that knowledge so neither is it possible that he should be any way so Conversant in or so attendant upon the Affairs Controversies and Disputes which do relate to Religion as the Clergy may And by reason of this Though a Prince may in other things have never so great an ability of Judgment And though he be never so Absolute or Supreme Yet he is denied the Right of this Judgment as to the Matters of