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A26914
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The difference between the power of magistrates and church-pastors and the Roman kingdom & magistracy under the name of a church & church-government usurped by the Pope, or liberally given him by popish princes opened by Richard Baxter.
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Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.
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1671
(1671)
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Wing B1241; ESTC R3264
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44,016
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63
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were a Leaden unpowerful Sword which Christ hath put into their hands and Excommunication were invalid when the Sword forceth not the impenitent to dissemble Repentance and Submission When great worldly baits have enticed worldly men into the Sacred Office as to a worldly preferment and Trade they will judge accordingly and manage it like themselves which is and hath been the Churches Pest We would beg on our knees of Kings and Magistrates if it would prevail to leave Church Censures to our Lords intended use and valeant quantum valere possunt and to keep their Sword out of Church-mens hands and to punish men in their own Courts for every crime that deserveth it but not quatenus excommunicate or meerly because the Clergy hath judged them unmeet for Church Communion He that taketh Excommunication alone for no punishment is not fit to be in the Communion of the Church and therefore should not be driven for fear of a Prison to that which he hath no right to So that you must not charge the acts of Princes nor of ambitious Cardinals c. neither on Calvin Beza or any such as them And as to Lay-Elders or Lay-Chancellors I am no more for them than you are that is as the Magistrates Officers or as the Churches Sub-Officers circa sacra non in sacris But sure those of them who are introduced on a mistaken conceit of Divine right and do no more than the Pastors do are no Usurpers of Coercive power You see by the late Acts of King and Parliament in Scotland that all External Church power is declared to be in the King And what would you have more No doubt the meaning is not All power about external things For the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lords Supper and the persons baptized c. are external objects Nor can it be all power that is exercised by the external parts of the body For the Tongue of the Preacher and the Hand of the Baptizer as well as the Ear of the Hearer is an external part But in these two senses it is true and commonly consented to by all that I remember of my acquaintance that are Christians 1. That all the power of the Sword or of forcing by Mulcts or bodily punishments as distinct from the power of the Word that worketh directly upon the soul alone by the senses is in the King and not in any of the Clergy though it be about the matters of Religion 2. And that all power in Church matters and Religion Extrinsecal to the Pastoral Office as instituted by Christ is of right the Kings and his inferiour Magistrates And what would you or any man have more 4. And as to the exercise of our Office we all confess except the Papists that we are responsible to the King and Magistrates for our faults yea for our injurious mal-administration And that though the King be not the Chief Pastor nor hath the power of the Keys which Christ gave to his Ministers yet he is the Ruler of all Churches and Pastors by the Sword as well as of all Physicions And is not all this enough to satisfie you that we claim no part of the Magistrates Office As you say our power is but Perswasive It is 〈◊〉 By the Word It is but on the Conscience It is under the Magistrates coercive Government And so it is like a Physicions or a Tutors in a Colledge But that I pray you leave not out 1. That it is not under the Magistrates as to the derivation of the office or power that is It is no office which the Magistrate made or may unmake 2. That it is as immediately of Divine Institution as the Magistrates And therefore in your similitude you must suppose your Physicion and Tutor to have a Commission from God 3. That God hath described our office and limited the Magistrates office so that he hath no power from God to hinder the Ministry 4. But if he do it injuriously we must not resist but patiently suffer for obeying God So much of the nature of the office II. Now that it is certain that God hath committed to Pastors such a Government of his Church by the Word as to stated commissioned Officers because I have past by the proofs in my following Propositions I will add some here Supposing what Dr. Hammond hath said of the Power of the Keyes and that no man with common sense can take the Power of the Keyes for any thing less than a power of Church Government or Authoritative Guidance and so a Power of receiving in and putting out as there is cause It is plain in that Christ first reciteth his own Commission and Power Matth. 28. 18 19 20. and thence dateth the Commission of his Apostles as it was to endure to the end of the age or world See Isa 22. 22. Rev. 3. 7. 1. 18. compared with Matth. 16. 19. John 20. 23. The word Presbyter and Bishop can signifie no less as Acts 4. 8 c. compared with Acts 14. 23. 15. 2 4 6 22 23. 16. 4. 20. 17 28. Titus 1. 5. James 5. 14. 1 Pet. 5. 1. Rev. 4. 4 c. And nothing less can be meant by 1 Tim. 5. 17. The Elders that Rule well are worthy of double honour c. Heb. 13. 17. 24. Obey them that have the Rule over you for they watch c. 1 Thess. 5. 12 13. Know them that labour among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you 1 Tim. 3. 1 4 5. If a man desire the office of a Bishop he desireth a good work One that Ruleth well his own house having his children in subjection For if a man know not how to rule his own house how shall he take care of the Church of God So Tit. 1. 7 c. 1 Pet. 5. 1 2 3 4. Many other I pass by And for the act of excommunication or excluding unmeet persons from Christian Church Communion it would be tedious to stand to vindicate all those plain Texts from any mens exceptions 1 Cor. 5. per totum Titus 3. 10. 2 John 10 11. 2 Thess. 3. 6 14. Rev. 2. 14 15 20. But while I am writing this I remember that I have long ago written a small Book called Universal Concord in which I have described all the Pastoral Office and Work If you can prove it less than I have there named in any one point you will so far ease us and take nothing from us at all that gratifieth our flesh If you can deny none of that we are agreed And in the Preface to the same Book I have given you twelve Reasons of the great use of Church Discipline which shall save me the labour of the third point which I intended next to speak to save only that I will briefly ask you III. Would you have any difference made between the Christian Church and the Pagan and Infidel world If not If you would it must be such a
the Church is the Pastors And these are the shortest plainest and least ambiguous terms and more clear than Internal Ecclesiastical and Civil which have all much obscurity and ambiguity Pag. 238. Princes only be Governours in things and Causes Ecclesiastical that is with the Sword Bishops be no Governours in those things with the Sword Pag. 240. We confess Princes to be Supream Governours Supream bearers of the Sword We give Princes no power to devise or invent new Religions to alter or change Sacraments to decide or debate doubts of faith to disturb or infringe the Canons of the Church But of these two last I must tell you what we Puritans as they call us hold 1. That the King may and must decide doubts of faith in order to execution by the Sword as who shall be banished or imprisoned as a Teacher of Heresie 2. And that Canons circa sacra not takeing the Pastors proper work out of his hand may be made by the Magistrate even if he please without the Prelates And if Pastors make Canons the◠are but in order to their proper way of execution Pag. 252. And if Princes shall not bear the Sword in things and Causes Ecclesiastical you must tell us who shall Since by Gods Law the Priest may not meddle with the Sword the consequent is inevitable that Princes alone are Gods Ministers bearing the Sword to reward and revenge good and evil in all things and causes be they Temporal Spiritual or Ecclesiastical unless you think that disorders and abuses Ecclesiastical should be freely permitted Page 256. This then is the Supream power of Princes which we teach That they be Gods Ministers in their own Dominions bearing the Sword freely to permit and publickly defend that which God commandeth So may they with just force remove whatsoever is erroneous vicious and superstitious within their Lands and with external losses and corporal pains repress the broachers and abetters of Heresies and all impieties From which subjection to Princes no man within their Realms Monk Priest Preacher or Prelate is exempted And without their Realms no mortal man hath any power from Christ judicially to depose them much less to invade them in open field least of all to warrant their Subjects to rebell against them These be the things which we contend for and not whether Princes be Christs Masters or the functions to preach baptize impose hands and forgive sins must be derived from the Princes power and Laws or the Apostles might enter to convert Countreys without Caesars delegations These be jests and shifts of yours Page 261. To Bishops speaking the Word of God Princes as well as others must yield obedience But if Bishops pass their Commission and speak besides the Word of God what they list both Prince and people may despise them Page 258. His Word is Truth and therefore your Bishops cannot be Judges of the Word of Christ but they must be Judges of Christ himself that speaketh by his Word which is no small presumption My Sheep hear my voice They be no Judges of his voice Page 259. If you take judging for discerning the People must be discerners and Judges of that which is taught Page 271. Ph. If General Councils might err the Church might err Th. As though none were of or in the Church but only Bishops Or all the Bishops of Christendome without exception were ever present at any Council Or the greater part of those that are present might not strike the stroke without the rest See pag. 350 351 352. Et seq That only Magistrates may touch body or goods Page 358. The Watchmen and Shepheards that serve Christ in his Church have their kind of Regiments distinct from the temporal Power and State But that Regiment of theirs is by Counsel and perswasion not by terror or Compulsion and reacheth neither to the goods nor to the bodies of any men Page 366. As for your Episcopal Power over Princes if that be it you seek for and not to take their Kingdoms from them I told you If they break the Law of God you may reprove them If they hear you not you may leave them in their sins and shut Heaven against them If they fall to open Heresie or wilful impiety you may refuse to communicate with them in prayers and other divine duties yea you must rather yield your lives with submission into their hands than deliver them the Word and Sacraments otherwise than God hath appointed Say you so I promise you Sir if Kings must be dealt so strictly with though it cost you your lives I will be a Non-conformist a little longer though it cost me my livelihood rather than give Baptism the Lords Supper Absolution and the justifying assertions at Burials as commonly as I must do if I conform P. 525. Pastors have their kind of Correction even over Princes but such as by Gods Law may stand with the Pastors Vocation and tend to the Princes salvation and that exceedeth not the Word and Sacraments Other Correction over any private man Pastors have none much less over Princes Princes may force their Subjects by the Temporal Sword Bishops may not force their flock with any corporal or external violence Pag. 526. Chrysostom saith For of all men Christian Bishops may least correct the faults of men by force Judges that are without the Church may compell But here in the Church we may not offer any violence but only perswade We have not so great authority given us by the Laws as to repress offenders And if it were lawful for us so to do we have no use of any such violent power for that Christ crowneth them which abstain from sin not of a forced but of a willing mind Hilary teacheth the same Lesson If this violence were used for the true faith the doctrine of Bishops would be against it God needeth no forced service He requireth no constrained confession I cannot receive any man but him that is willing ☜ I cannot give ear but to him that intreateth I cannot sign that is baptize any but him that gladly professeth So Origen For all the crimes which God would have revenged he would have them revenged not by the Bishops and Rulers of the Church but by the Judges of the world Bishops by vertue of their Callings cannot command others or authorize violence or arms Pag. 541. Parliaments have been kept by the King and his Barons the Clergy wholly excluded and yet their Acts and Statutes good And when the Bishops were present their Voices from the Conquest to this day were never Negative By Gods Law you have nothing to do with making Laws for Kingdoms and Commonwealths You may teach you may not command Perswasion is your part Compulsion is the Princes Page 245. Far better St. Ambrose saith If the Emperour ask for Tribute we deny it not The Lands of the Church pay Tribute If he affect the Lands themselves he hath power to take them no man among us is any let to