Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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B10013
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Advice to readers of the common prayer, and the people attending the same. With a preface concerning divine worship. Humbly offered to consideration, for promoting the greater decency and solemnity in performing the offices of God's publick worship, administered according to the order established by law amongst us / by a well-meaning (though unlearned) layick of the Church of England. T.S.
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T. S. (Thomas Seymour)
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1691
(1691)
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Wing S2829; ESTC R183777
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88,165
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210
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the highest dignity at the right hand of God I say he that considers this I hope will think as I do I know prejudice hinders Men from observing what is excellent in any thing but especially in such things they are not used to but as I suppose none will deny that God is thus to be worshipped so where Men are not prejudiced I verily believe they will think that in no Way they can do it better There is something also to be inferred as to this matter of God's Worship from the plentiful effusion of the Spirit in Gospel-times and our Fellowship and Communion in that Spirit There are some Phrases in the New Testament which I think have been perverted to a wrong sence such as Praying in the Holy Ghost Worshipping God in the Spirit and in Spirit and Truth which I think may better be referred to the worshipping God as revealed by the Gospel which is called the Ministration of the Spirit in the respect forementioned or else to our worshipping God in Faith and Fervency in Vnity and Vnanimity without distinction of Jew and Gentile in spirituality without legal Types and Figures and carnal Ordinances in the vertue of Christ's Merits which was the truth of all the bloudy Sacrifices of Atonement for acceptanceâ— with God in the legal Worship and this according to the Revelations whereof the Spirit of Christ is Author and by whose Gifts and Powers they were confirmed I say better refered to these things than to praying without study or a prepared Form onely by help of the Spirit It seems to me that if those Expressions had any relation to praying by any extraordinary and supernatural assistance of God's Spirit as was their praying in Languages they had never learnt or in Expressions that were above any attainments they could be supposed to have by ordinary means it must be appliable only unto that time For however an Opinion hath been insinuated of late of a miraculous and supernatural assistanceâ— for the performance of that Duty which hath given considence to many who are naturally unable for the same to venture on it and that even in publick Administration to the great dishonour of Religion and just offence of all wise Men yet I think none will dare to affirm that any Christian or Minister hath any promise from God of such assistance of the Spirit as may make it to be truly said that be prays in the Spirit in the sence above-mentioned But now praying in the Spirit as I first interpreted it of praying as the Revelations of the Spirit of Christ in the Gospel requires is appliable to all Times and Persons and this I think to be done as in the forementioned respect of worshipping the Trinity in Vnity and our Lord and Saviour as God-man so also when our Prayers are ordered for the greatest advantage of Faith and Fervency and of the Unity and Fellowship of the Spirit and so I think ours are ordered For in the first place our Faith is helped by the assurance that we ask such things as are pleasing to God and secondly by the frequent mention of the merits of Christ When we pray in the words which our Lord and Saviour himself hath taught us and use such Forms as have been composed by Men famous in the Church and approved by multitudes of Christians and that for many Ages when our Prayers are ordered with great advice of those that are most learned among our selves being also such as are orderly called to direct the publick Ministrations in Sacred Things and when they are approved by all the Christians united into one National Church under one Civil Government which approbation is declared by the Representatives of both Clergy and Laity with whose advice they are by Law established and when we ourselves may consider and weigh the same before we use them having them in our Books to read at any time certainly we may on all these accounts he more assured that we pray for such things as we ought than when we joyn in a Prayer we never heard before and such as is the sudden conception of a private Minister as the use is with those that are against our Way And finally the frequent mention of the Merits of our Saviour at the conclusion of our brief Collects is more helpful to our Belief that we shall find acceptance for Christ's sake than when it is only once at the end of a long continued Prayer if my own experience and that of wiser Men do not deceive me And secondly for Fervency we have great help also having nothing to do but to apply our minds to earnestness in praising God and praying to him no need of attending to hear what is spoken that we may judge whether it be fit for us to joyn in it or not and when we know the Prayers before-hand we can joyâ— with the Minister and Congregation though wâ— hear not every word that is read And the briefness of the Prayers being composed of such weighty and comprehensive Expressions helps more to true Fervency than long Prayers though the Novelty and Variety may more work on Mens fancies Then thirdly the Vnity and Fellowship oâ— the Spirit is hereby assisted I mean that Vnity and Fellowship which that Spirit of Goâ— hath constituted by whom we are all baptized into one Body and made to drink in to one Spirit and so are obliged to all possible Concord and Agreement both external and internal For first We agree with the Saint of all Ages in this That the publick Worship of God is to be administred by a prepared Form and not by the present Conceptions of the Administrator For I cannot understand that either the Jewish Church or the Christian did ever administer their publick Worship in any other way except what those Persons did who were divinely inspired as many were among the Jews and in the first Ages of the Church who therefore were said to Prophecy when they uttered such excellent Psalms or Prayers Extempore of which this is a sufficient demonstration to me That in the Jewish Synagogues all things at this day are administred by Forms and in all the Christian Churches that have not been accounted Enthusiastical the same Way was ever observed or at least none can deny that it now is so in all the Christian World except those Congregations united in some odd Opinions that do separate from the Body of Christians the only considerable Body of these that ever admitted the other Way of Administration being the Scots formerly and the English in the late Distractions but on many accounts that Admission cannot be esteemed an orderly Settlement or excuse them from Schism though it were by the prevailing Party Now since it hath scarce ever been known in Matters sacred and of long custom that great Alterations have been made but with great Oppositions and Commotions I conclude that if in the beginning of the Jewish Worship in their Synagogues or of the Christian Worship in
Tragical Story as to the Worship of God But though Nature only teacheth the use of such Behaviour in worshipping God as is most expressive of our Reverence towards him and Custom may make some variation of those Expressions yet this Act of Bowing seems so naturally fit to express Reverence and so decent that it hath become Universally 〈◊〉 mary and is never like to be determined by contrary Custom or disparaged by hard Names except amongst such as themselves I know that it is also said that the Act of Parliament forbids the use of any other Ceremonies than what are mentioned in the Rubrick and that this being not mentioned it would be an act of Disobedience to use it To which I answer That the natural Expressions of Worship and Reverence to Almighty God cannot be there meant for then lifting up the Hands and Eyes to Heaven may be thought forbidden as well as this which I think none will affirm But as God himself hath not instituted any thing positively no not in the time of the Law when he was as it were the Temporal Monarch of the Jews about his Natural Worship such as was performed in their Synagogues so our Governours have not thought fit to institute anything in this Case but leave it to be done by every one as his Devotion moves him but certainly they never intended to forbid it as is here suggested It is also said by some that it may make the Service of God seem ludicrous by being done too much and every one hath not discretion to do it as he ought and will be apt to exceed that the Papists are grown to such an extream in this action of Bowing and such Gesticulations about it that their Service is ridiculous to Protestants c. To which I answer As to the Papists I can be no Judge in that matter because I never saw the full Order of their Service but I know that many esteem ill of things they are not used to without just cause the use of Musick and Artificial Singing of Responses and Alternate Readings in Divine Service seem ridiculous to some that have been educated in another Way Besides what the Papists are thought to exceed in is matter of Institution the time and place of their Bowing Crossing c. being directed by their Rubrick as I have read but that which I speak of is a matter of Liberty in which I never saw or heard that there was excess That People left at liberty should be too much in bowing their Heads and Knees in Adoration of him they worship in lifting up their Hands and Eyes to Heaven in expression of their fervent affection in Prayer c. seems to me no way to be feared 'T is like some few especially of the younger sort that are much affected by observing the decency of this in some Ministers that practise it being such as by the holiness of their Life and excellency of their Doctrine have obtained a great reverence with them I say they may seem and I think but seem too zealous in this matter but as the generality are far enough from that fault and more like to be ashamed to do what their Consciences tell them is very decent especially when done by grave Men than to exceed therein so I think the fear of it should deter no Man from recommending a due and decent Performance which is all this Paper aims at But supposing this to be true that Men do or may thus exceed it seems an ill way of arguing That because a thing may be over-done therefore it should not be done at all Some find fault with Extempore Prayers that they are too long and others with ours in the Common Prayer that they are too short Should any Man now say 'T is best then to have no Prayers at all yet 't is aâ— much reason in this case as the other Meâ— will never be of one mind in the measure of these things while they are of different affection the Formal will condemn the Devouâ— of Excess as they do them of Defect buâ— when Reason is consulted all will agree thâ—â— something of this kind is decent and therefore methinks after there hath been among uâ— so long a total omission of this way of expressing Devotion none should blame my Essay tâ— recommend it Though I have said thus much in favour of Bowing which our Church leave to every ones liberty yet I would not be thoughâ— so confident in my Assertions herein as to coâ—demn all that do not hold or practise as I do but I humbly offer this as other things to the consideration of the Wise being willing to reform any thing in my thoughts or actions that I shall be convinced to be amiss And do believe that those Church-men who use not this action have better reason for it than I am aware of or else on farther consideration may do as most Churches in the World and most of their Brethren have given them example I shall farther observe as to this matter of God's Worship That God expects such Worship from us as is sutable to the Revelations he hath made of himself It was cause of his great displeasure against the Gentile World that when they knew him to be God they did not worship him as God when his eternal Power and Godhead though invisible in itself was made evident by the Works of his Creation which they had continually before their eyes whereby they might have learnt to worship him as an infinite incorruptible Spirit yet they would worship him under the Resemblances of Corruptible Things which was a dishonour to the Eternity and Omnipotency of his Divine Nature But now our blessed Saviour hath farther revealed the incomprehensible Deity as subsisting in a Trinity of Persons in the Vnity of its Essence and as manifested in our Flesh in the second Person of that blessed Trinity which revelation of God requires something peculiar in the matter of Divine Worship from us Christians It hath been received as a matter of Faith by the Catholick Church That the Trinity in Unity and the Unity in Trinity is to be worshipped and that our blessed Saviour as God and Man is to be honoured as we honour the Father Now it seems to me that there is such an excellent Order in our Liturgy for the performance of the Worship of God and our blessed Saviour according to these Evangelical Revelations that 't is scarce to be equalled in any other Way especially that which is set up in competition with it And I doubt not all those that will impartially consider the Responses the Te Deum the Gloria Patri which we so frequently use because it is suitable to this Gospel-Worship of which yet some complain there is great defect in our Liturgy as also the Creed the Letany and the Communion-Service and how God in these is honoured as Three Persons and yet but one God and our Saviour invocated and acknowledged as God-man advanced to