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A50759 A discourse of licenses to preach occasioned by a question propounded, viz., why many officers of the Church of England in the episcopal visitations urge the incumbents to take licenses to preach / replied to by Ja. Metford in a letter to the proposer ; published for the consideration of the clergy to whom it is of no small importance. Metford, James. 1698 (1698) Wing M1937; ESTC R27111 28,133 37

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A DISCOURSE OF Licenses to Preach OCCASIONED By a Question Propounded viz. Why many Officers of the Church of England in the Episcopal Visitations urge the Incumbents to take LICENSES to Preach Replyed to by Ja. Metford Rector of Basingham in the County of Lincoln In a Letter to the Proposer Published for the Consideration of the CLERGY to whom it is of no small Importance LONDON Printed for H. Hindmarsh at the Golden-Ball over against the Royal Exchange in Cornhil 1698. TO THE Righ Reverend Father in God JAMES by Divine Providence Lord Bishop of Lincoln My Lord WE can never be enough Thankful to his Sacred Majesty the great Patron of this Church that He was pleased to honour Us with a Bishop taken from among our Selves to fill the Chair of this Ancient See of Lincoln who is neither Ignorant of our Persons nor our Needs nor unwilling to Hear and Resolve our Doubts This small Dissertation therefore comes in all Humility and with most profound Respect to shew your Lordship the Sense of most of your Clergy about an odd Custom introduced in these later Ages of Obliging Incumbents to take Licenses to Preach And that even after they have received Ordination and Institution We believe that your Lordship intends not to elumbate the Dignity of Preisthood nor to divulse its Essential or at least Integral Parts from each other And accordingly that you will never permit any Consideration to gain that Ascendency in your Thoughts as to continue a Custom utterly unknown to the Primitive and middle times and unuseful in these And can furnish Us with nothing but Scruples in our Selves and Objections against us in our Adversaries We know that you have Kindness enough to forgive the Weakness of Management and Wisdom enough to strengthen its defects where it needs and therefore do humbly submit the whole matter to your sound Judgment in full assurance that you will add to the Blessing of our publick Peace by giving us private satisfaction in withdrawing this Custom or at least to Instruct us in the necessity of its Continuance who have no other Design but to be Dutiful whatever is determined and to be taught what we do not understand which will be abundantly obliging to All but more especially to My LORD Your Devoted Subject and most Humble Servant J. M. A Discourse of Licenses to Preach SIR THE Quaere last Night Propounded why Licenses to Preach are so frequently and vehemently urged to to be taken and Exhibited by Incumbents in our Episcopal Visitations being then Answered with some haesitation the help of a few hours Thoughts gives me the advantage of setting this matter in a clearer Light before you Which I think for want of a better Method may be done by elucidating these Seven ensuing Propositions First That Ordination to Priesthood gives Authority to the Ordained to Preach Secondly That the Church for 1400 years never required Incumbents of Benefices to take Licenses to Preach Thirdly That the Church Canons enjoyned all Incumbents to Preach under great Penalties Fourthly When Licenses were first Introduced they did not oblige Incumbents to take them Fifthly If the Canons did ever oblige Incumbents to take Licenses It was upon an accidental Consideration Sixthly That Licenses add nor diminish any thing to or from the Title to any Benefice Seventhly That the forcing Incumbents to take Licenses since the first Accidental Occasion was of no Benefit to the Church but to gain Fees These Propositions made good will infer the Truth of my Sudden Answer That these Licenses are pressed upon Incumbents upon very mean Considerations I shall therefore apply my self to clear them in Order I. First That Ordination to Priesthood gives Authority to the Ordained to Preach A Truth so well known and believed that few will List themselves in the Army of Opponents but such as Gain by it Most will wonder what Ordination means if it gives not Authority to Preach For it was used to fit the Presbyter for his whole Function of which Preaching was a very Considerable Part. When our Saviour ordained his Ministry He bid them go teach all Nations Math. 28.19 and Baptize them And in Conformity to Christs Institution the whole Catholick Church thus prepared Preachers by Ordination And so doth the Church of England in her Office of Ordination Require those that are to be ordained to Promise That they will give faithful Diligence alwaies to minister the Doctrine and Sacraments And to teach the People committed to their Charge And to drive away all Erroneous and strange Doctrines Without any previous Condition If they should be thereunto Licensed And farther the Ordainer saith at Imposition of hands Be thou a faithful Dispenser of the Word of God and of his holy Sacraments So that he is as much Authorized to Preaching as to Adminster Sacraments And therefore may be as well forced to a new License for Administring Sacraments as for the Preaching But in truth both these Functions are sealed to him under the most venerable Seal In the Name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost If all this be thought too little to Authorize him to Preach yet sure when the Ordaining Bishop delivers Him the Bible with these Words Take thou Authority to Preach the Word of God and to Minister the holy Sacraments in the Congregation where Thou shalt be lawfully appointed thereunto Who can doubt but that He is as much Authorized to Preach in that Place as to Administer holy Sacrament ' That is as much as all the Licenses in the World can give Him For here the Ordaining Bishop gives Him Authority to Preach and Administer under the most sacred Circumstances imaginable being in Cathedra in the presence of God and before the Assembly of Saints at the Holy Altar and Seals this Character with the most tremendous Body and Blood of Christ And what can a Scrole called a License do more than This Is a Bishop greater in his Study or Dining Room than at the Church or is his Table greater than the Altar or Himself and Secretary more venerable than the Congregation what pitty is it that Avarice or other unknown cause should run men into such Absurdities But They may say though this be true yet the Presbyter hath no Seal to Evidence this so that He can't make it appear to all People where He comes This we must Justly deny for He receives Letters of Orders under the Bishops hand and Seal by which this Authority is manifested as much as by the License So then we do with good Conscience and upon plain Evidence affirm the Presbyter hath License to Preach by his Letters of Orders and needs no more if Officers need no Money This Authority satisfied the holy Catholick Church for Fourteen Centuries amongst whose Records we find no Licenses to Preach besides their Letters of Orders We hear of St. Cyprian's Presbyter Didiensis but read no other Title to Preach besides his Letters of Orders And