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A31425 A serious exhortation, with some important advices, relating to the late cases about conformity recommended to the present dissenters from the Church of England. Cave, William, 1637-1713. 1683 (1683) Wing C1603; ESTC R5516 27,975 48

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persons then those of his own Family nor Administer Baptism or the Lords Supper or Marry any persons or use the Book of Common-Prayer or the Forms of Prayer therein contained upon pain that every Person so Offending in any of the premisses shall be proceeded against as by the said Order is provided and directed There needs no Comment upon these Proceedings they do not only Whisper but speak aloud to the present Generation of Dissenters to tell them how little reason they have to complain X. Lastly We beg of them that before they pull down any further Trouble or Suffering upon themselves they would Consider Whether the Cause they engage in be such as will bear them out with Comfort before God another Day 'T is not Suffering for refusing to comply with the External Circumstances of our Religion that can be said to be a Persecution for Righteousness sake it not being the Suffering but the Cause that makes the Martyr Then I Suffer as a Christian when the Honour of Christ or something that offers Violence to my Religion and Christianity is concerned in it when I Suffer for that which I cannot avoid without disowning my self to be a Christian and making Shipwrack of Faith and a good Conscience But where the Case is not evidently this a Man may draw Miseries upon himself and yet not Suffer as a Christian because it may proceed from Humour or Interest or the Conduct of a misinformed Judgment mistaking things for what they are not Men very often place Religion in doing or not doing what is no part of it and then think they may safely Suffer upon that account when there is more it may be of Passion or Prejudice of Fancy or Opinion of Humour or Mistake then of the real Concerns of Piety or Religion I am very sure neither the Ancient Christians would have passed through the Fiery-Tryal every Day nor the Holy Martyrs in Queen Mary's Days have thought themselves obliged to Forfeit their Estates much less their Lives had no more been required of them then there is of us to come to Church or to Kneel at the Sacrament but would rather have Blessed God and thankfully owned the Favour of the Governours under which they lived might they have enjoyed both upon the same Terms as we do In Cases that only concern indifferent things and meer Circumstances of Worship stiffly and obstinately to stand out is rather for a Man to be a Martyr to his own Humour and Opinion then to the Cause of Christ Whether this be not the Case of our Dissenting-Bretren they themselves might quickly see would they but lay aside the unreasonableness of their Prejudices and lay no more stress upon things then they ought to bear Let us hear what Mr. Baxter in a late Book says to this matter I am One that have been first in all the Storms that have befallen the Ministry these Twenty Years past to look no farther back and yet my Conscience commandeth me to say as I have oft done that many through mistake I am persuaded now Suffer as Evil-doers for a Cause that is not Good and Justifiable I shall leave with them the Wise and Excellent Counsel which was given by one in the time of the Elder Puritanes Follow true Antiquity and the general Practice of the Church of God in all Ages where they have not Erred from the evident Truth of God If thou Sufferest let it be for known Truth and against known Wickedness for which thou hast Example in Gods Word or of the Holy Martyrs in Church-Story But beware of far-fetched Consequences or for Suffering for new Devices and for things formerly unto all Ages unknown seem they never so Holy and Just unto Man All that now remains is to call upon our Dissenting-Brethren by all the Considerations of Love and Kindness to themselves of Tenderness for the Honour of Religion the Edification of their Brethren and the Peace Security and Welfare of the Church and State wherein they Live that they would duely and impartially Weigh and Consider things put a stop to the Separation wherein they are engaged return to and hold Communion with us and keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace Let them bethink themselves what a mighty Evil Schism is and will be so found before God at the last Day and whether any thing can be meet to be put in the Ballance with the Peace and Unity of the Church and those Vastly-important Consequences that depend upon it Let us Consider a little what a deep Sence the Best and most Pious Christians that ever were had of it It 's better to Suffer any thing then that the Church of God should be Rent asunder it is every whit as Glorious and in my Opinion a far greater Martyrdom to Die for not Dividing the Church then for refusing to Sacrifice to Idols says Dionysius the good Bishop of Alexandria in his Letter to Novation And St. Cyprian speaks very severe things to this purpose That a Person going from the Church to Schismaticks though in that Capacity he should Die for Christ yet can he not receive the Crown of Martyrdom And how oft elsewhere doth he tell us That such a One has no part in the Law of God or the Faith of Christ or in Life and Salvation that without this Unity and Charity a Man cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and that although he should deliver up himself to the Flames or cast his Body to Wild Beasts yet this would not be the Crown of his Faith but the Punishment of his Falshood not the Glorious Exit of a Religious Courage but the Issue of Despair such a One may be Kill'd but he cannot be Crown'd He Rents the Unity of the Church Destroys the Faith Disturbs the Peace Dissolves Charity and Profanes the Holy Sacrament And were it necessary I could shew that the Ancient Fathers generally say the same thing And can we now be such Degenerate Christians if we can be said to be Christians at all as to make nothing at all of Schism and Separation Are not the Glory of God the Peace of the Church and the Good of Souls things as considerable as necessary and indispensable now as they were of old I beseech you Brethren return from whence you are fallen and let us all with one Shoulder set our selves to Support that Church with whose Ruin we are all likely to sink and fall Let us lay aside Envying and Strife Confusion and every Evil Work and let us follow after the things which make for Peace and things wherewith one may Edifie another FINIS ERRATA Page 30. l. 14. for Books r. Boots p. 39. l. 22. r. Obedience Amyrald de Secess ab Eccles R●m pag. 233. A Vindication of the Presbyterial Government c. 1649. p. 130. Institut lib. 4. Sect. 10 11 12. fol. 349. Vid. Aug. Epist 17● ad Crisp Edward's further Discovery p. 185. Idem Presbyter qui Episcopus antequam diaboli instinctu studia in religione fierent c. Hier. in Epist ad Tit. c. 1. Cont. Aer haeres 75. De vit Constant lib. 4. c. 17. In Sanctum Basilium Orat. 20. Bas Epist 63. Can. 18. conf Conc. Milev can 12. Conc. Carth. 3. c. 23. Serm. compend de Expos fid p. 466. adv Aer Haeres 75. Cypr. adv Demetr p. 203. de Vnit Eccl. p. 185. vid. de Laps p. 169. Bas. de Spir. S. c. 27. Tert. de Coron mil. c. 3. See Durels view of the Government and publick worship of God 1662. * p. 123 124 ctc. Epist Dedicat to Gangraen print 1646. Catal. and discov of Errors p. 15. c. vid. 2d Part. p. 5. 22. 24 27 105 110. fresh discov p. 115. 162. alibi passim View of the late troubles in Eng. cap. 43. p. 567 c. See also Edwards Gang. 3d. Part a little before p. 17. July 19. 1644. Further discov p. 187. 3d. Part p. 185 c. Fast Sermon Jan. 27. 1646. p. 29. Cat. and discov p. 73. 74 76. Vbi Supra p. 73. A Letter from a Noble Venetian to Card. Barbarino translated and Printed 1648. p. 19. Cat. and Discov Part 3d. p. 52. 53. 57. 70. Further Discov p. 195. 203. Foxes and Firebrands Print 1680. p. 7. c. Polit. l. 2. c. 18. Sect. 6. Octob. 23. 1642. vid. Collect. of the Kings works Part. 2. fol. 213. L'Historie des troubles c. p. 165. see the short view of the late troubles in England c. 43. p. 564. See Dr. Stillingfleets Preface to the imreasonableness of Separation p. 20. c. Coleman Tryal p. 101. Def. of his Answ to the Admonit p. 349. Bez. Epist 8. Sir G. Paul Life of A. B. Whitgift Numb 53. p. 29. Dr. Peirce New Discov against Mr. Baxt. 1659. Ch. 5. Sect. 12. p. 109. See a Book called The Protestation of the Kings Supremacy 1605. Numb 8 9 11. An Ordinance for putting in Execution the Directory August 11. 1645. 24 November 1655. Obed. Patience p. 79. R. Bernards Christian Advert Councels of Peace 1608. Ap. Euseb lib. 6. cap. 45. Epist 52. ad Antonian de Vnit Eccles fol. 181 184 c.