Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	body_n	lord_n	soul_n	15,609	5	5.1843	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A37348	A Declaration from the people of God called Quakers against all seditious conventicles, and dangerous practises of any who under colour or pretence of tender conscience, have, or may contrive insurrections, the said people being cleer from all such things, in the sight of God, angels and men.		1670 (1670)	Wing D594; ESTC R41342	3,191	1

A Declaration from the People of God Called QUAKERS AGAINST All Seditious Conventicles and dangerous Practises of any who under colour or pretence of tender Conscience have or may contrive Insurrections the said People being cleer from all such things in the sight of God Angels and Men. WHereas there is lately published an Act entituled An Act to prevent and supress Seditious Conventicles The words in the Preamble of which Act are as followeth For providing further and ●●●ore●●●eds rem●d es against the growing and dangerous practices of 〈…〉 Sectaries and other disloyal Persons who under pretence ● of tender Consciences have or may at their Meetings contrive Insur●●ction● as late experience hath shewen THe People of God in scorn called Quakers are all free and clear from th●se Actions above or before mentioned and it doth not concern them for Quakers Meetings ●●e not seditious Conventicles and therefore ought not to be suppre●t neither have been or are our Practice● dangerous but have alwayes been found peaceable and clear of such things and though we have been accused as Plotters c. and though we have been numbred amongst seditious Persons yet nothing of that kind could ever be justly charged or proved against us And as for the word Disloyal to the King We have alwayes paid our Taxes and Assesments and other Dues and Duties more th●n any People according to our abilities and so the thing that belongs to Caesar we give to Caesar and that which belongs to God we give to God his Worship in Spirit and Truth which is his Due and we have kept our Meetings on our parts peaceably who have been gathered together by the Lord in the Name of Jesus And we do not meet together under a colour or pretence of tender Consciences to plot and contrive Insurrections against the King but meet together in the Power and Spirit of the Lord without any such pretence but in reallity to Worship and Glorifie God in our Bodies Souls and Spirits which are his and for so doing it hath cost many of our Friends and Brethren their lives by imprisonment exile and otherwise neither dare we forsake the assemblings of our selves together as the manner of some was c. And ●●r meetings have been peaceable all along on our account though rude People have come and railed against us and abused us And our Principle is and ever was against such practices as Sedition or contriving Insurrections but it leads us to the peaceable Truth and to seek the peace of all men and to Christ Jesus who is the Way to God who is the Authour of Peace And so we are by Christ Jesus taught to deny all Sedition Conspiracy and Insurrection and he doth teach us to deny all such things who was before all such things and seditious Sects were and will be when they are all gone for he is the same to day yesterday and for ever And if any should pretend tenderness of Conscience and Religious exercise and under that colour intend a quite contrary thing as to contrive Insurrections c. this is gross hypocrisie and dissimulation which our Souls ever did and do abhor and deny and such are unlawful Meetings And were not the Magistrates as Mayors Justices and other Officers c. enjoyned by their Oathes before to look after the preservation of the peace against all such seditious Meetings as much as this Act doth require And if any Magistrate should take hold upon any that are innocent of these Actions mentioned in the Title and Preamble of the Act Then whether or no the innocent Person being defamed besides his suffering and spoyling of his good the Lord will not take notice to defend the Innocent and judge for such things Now if four besides the Family may meet that are seditious spirits may not many such little Meetings do more hurt then if there were two or three hundred together for then they may speak out their minds to one another which they could not before hundreds of mixt People Now if Caesar must have his Due must we not meet together to give God his due And if such an Act should have been made by the Jews in the dayes of Christ would it not have taken hold of Christ and his Apostles for had not he twelve with him and seventy and sometimes hundreds and thousands And was there not many Sects amongst the Jews yet all profest God And are there not several Sects in Turkey do not Jews and Turks and Christians keep their Meetings on several dayes distinct And in the Mogul's Country are there not several Religions And in Germany and the low Countries and in many parts of Christendom and other parts of the World are there not several Religions and yet they have their peaceable liberty And did not God let Adam have liberty in the Earth and Abraham let Ishmael have liberty of the Wilderness So why should not they have liber●● that be Innocent to wait upon and worship God who are clear from Sedition and contriving Insurrection under pretence of tender Consciences for any pretence whatsoever concerning which we that are called Quakers can say in the Presence of God we are free and clear from and testifie to all men though we have been so accused and have been tryed by imprisonment to death and banishment and spoyling of Goods yet were alwayes innocent and so we are the same to this day who do excercise a good Conscience towards God and towards all men And are any to be credibly informed against or supprest but such as are known to be seditious and are of that Spirit that under a pretence of tender Conscience plot and contrive Insurrections If so Then whether innocent and peaceable People that meet really to worship God in the Spirit and in the Peaceable Truth which all plotting is out of these are concerned according to the title and reason of this Act. And whether the Liturgy doth not allow of People to meet together to worship God in Spirit and Truth without limitation of Time Place or Number For ought not men at all times and in all places to perform their bounden duty to God and to pray to him and to give thanks for his Benefits which they daily receive And doth not the Lord say In every place Offerings shall be offered to my Name Mal. 1. And doth not the Apostle say I will that men pray every where lifting up holy Hands without wrath and doubting And doth not the Apostle say As every man hath received the Gift even so minister the same one to another at good Stewards of the manifold Graces of God Pet. 4 10. And did not Christ to incourage his little Flock say Wheresoever two or three are gathered together in my Name I am in the midst of them Not limitting them to that number and no more as you may see how Christianity after spread as the Epistles to the Churches declare So this is not to hinder them that be peaceable in Christ Jesus from meeting either in a Barn House Field Back-side or any other place for they met thousands with him in the Wilderness And doth not the Prophet say The holy One must not be limitted And doth not the Liturgy allow of the same Worship and Meetings as the holy Scriptures allow of A Postscript The Terms of the Title and Preamble Explained SEditious is Contentious Factious loving Discord Conventicle is A little private Assembly commonly for ill commonly so taken the Doors being shut defined by the Law such wherein many do impart to others their meaning to kill a man c. as also where Conspiracies Confederacies are See Lamb. 173 177. And such are unlawfull Assemblies or Conventicles as consist of a number of People gathered together disorderly for the cause of some one or of a few Persons that are Riots against which these Statutes were provided 13 H. 5. cap. 8 19. and 19 H. 7. cap. 13. and before them were the Statute of Nort. 2 E. 3. cap. 3. laid upon them 2 R. 2. cap. 6. Seditious Conventicles are little private factious Assemblies where Discord Rebellion or Insurrection is contrived plotted designed or intended Disloyal Persons are such as are Treacherous Trayterous False Deceitful Breakers of Promise and the like Seditious Sectaries are taken for such people as are Factious and Rebellious being of a different Profession from the ancient Truth or such as therein are divided into Sides and Parties following such as are Leaders in Faction Rebellion and Schism From all these evil things the People of God called Quakers are clear and freed by the Power of God which was before all such things were who are Professors of Christ Jesus the ancient Truth before Sects were So our desires are in tenderness to all Magistrates for their good that they may put a difference between the Precious and the Vile and such as serves God and such as serves him not and so that they all in the pure Wisdom of God from above may mind and take notice of these things from them that desires the Kings and their everlasting good and prosperity in the Truth which the Devil is out of