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A26499 A Letter from a gentleman in Grayes-Inn, to a justice of the peace in the countrey explaining the Act of Uniformity in that part which doth concern unlicensed preachers. F. A. 1662 (1662) Wing A7; ESTC R12369 3,307 10

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A LETTER FROM A Gentleman in Grayes-Inn TO A Justice of the Peace in the Countrey EXPLAINING The Act of VNIFORMITY In that part which doth concern UNLICENSED PREACHERS Printed in the Year 1662. A LETTER FROM A Gentleman in Grayes-Inn TO A Justice of the Peace in the Countrey Explaining The Act for UNIFORMITY in that part which doth concern Unlicensed Preachers Honoured Sir YOurs of the 20th instant I did receive I am glad to hear of your welfare and cannot but be most ready to gratifie your desire in any thing within my power you are pleased to require mine opinion concerning that part of the late Act for Vniformity which doth impower Justices of the Peace to commit Preachers unto Prison upon the Certificate of a Bishop Sir my private opinion can be of little weight yet your Request is to me a Command and my Conjectures may point you unto more convincing expositions on the Act. This Statute doth assign Imprisonment in two Cases Vnlicensed School-Masters and unlicensed Preachers the last is that concerning which you do enquire and the branch of the Statute doth run thus And be it further Enacted by the Authority aforesaid That if any person by this Act disabled to Preach any Lecture or Sermon shall during the time that he shall continue and remain so disabled Preach any Lecture or Sermon That then for every such offence the person or persons so offending shall suffer three months Imprisonment in the common Gaole without Bale or Main prize and that any two Iustices of the Peace of any County of this Kingdom and the places aforesaid and the Maior or other chief Magistrate of any City or Town Corporate within the same upon Certificate from the Ordinary of the place made to him or them 〈◊〉 the offence committed shall and are hereby required to commit the person or persons so offending to the. Gaole of the same County City or Town corporate accordingly I shall not insist on the hardness of the Case that men should be sent to Prison on a bare and blind Certificate without any due and fair Conviction or ever being heard in their own Defence But on the serious view of this Clause and consideration of this Act mine opinion is this The Subject of this penalty is not every Unlicensed Preacher but only an unlicensed and therefore disabled Lecturer Men might Preach as Parsons or Vicars any constant or cursory occasional Sermon and not be lyable to this Penalty and if any of the Bishops shall make Certificate against any man so Preaching the Justices have no Authority to commit them or him to Prison but if a Justice of the Peace or Maior of any Corporation shall commit any person on such Certificate the Prisoner may have his Habeas Corpus and remedy against the Maior or Justices Sir That my opinion may not come to you naked and without proof be pleased to observe the reason on which I ground mine opinion The person shall be committed to prison for doing that which he was disabled to do but the person is only disabled to Preach any Lecture or Sermon i. e. Lecture-Sermon Sir This Law doth resolve a threefold disablement upon Ministers 1. Such who are not Episcopally Ordained and do not in all things conform are disabled to hold any Living or Ecclesiastical promotion 2. The not Episcopally Ordained consecrating the Lords Supper are disabled to be made Priests for one whole year after 3. Lecturers not Licensed as is directed are disabled to Preach any Lecture or Sermon and the doing this after disablement is that which is punishable with Three months Imprisonment Now Sir that you may see Lecturers Preaching fixed stated Lecturers are the only persons disabled and to be punished observe 1. Ministers in all other Capacities are compelled to Conformity by other pains and their non-preaching is provided for by other Remedies The law prescribeth not two punishments for one offence but there being a sort of Ministers under the notion of Lecturers not barred by any prescription to Parsons or Vicars the Law maketh special provision against them and this penalty compels them to Conformity or puts them to Silence 2. The persons disabled and work to which they are disabled is best discovered by that appellation by which they are discriminated in the Statute and that is not the name of Minister Preacher Parson or Vicar who were all provided against in the foregoing part of the Law but the name of Lecturer which I observe is affected and all along this part of the Statute is used to predicate the person to be disabled and on doing what he is disabled to be imprisoned It beginneth No person shall be or be received as a Lecturer or allowed to preach as a Lecturer It proceedeth every person licensed assigned or appointed or received as a Lecturer Again so long as he continueth Lecturer Again it shall be sufficient for the said Lecturer Again the Lecturer then to Preach this name doth note his office and work to which he is disabled viz. not simple Preaching but Lecturing or Preaching a Lecture 3. The Qualifications for defect of which he is disabled can square to no kind of Preacher or Preaching but to Lecturers Preaching Lectures for he must 1. Be approved and thereunto Licensed Thereunto is a Relative which hath for its Antecedent not Person Vicar or Preacher but Lecturer and Lecture this is not only plain by the Gramatical Connexion of the words but also by the express tearms subjoyned Every person licensed assigned appointed or received as a Lecturer to Preach on any day of the week Now Sir he is only disabled to do that whereunto he is not licensed 2. This person is required the first time he preacheth to read Common-Prayer and to declare his assent and consent and upon every first Lecture day of every Month so long as he continueth Lecturer there and for not doing the same he is disabled to Preach the said or any other Lecture or Sermon the work to which he is disabled is a stated Service which hath beginning and continuance in return of time not a cursory transient and occasional Act. 3. The Lecturer then to preach must be present at the reading Common-Prayer before he Preach his Sermon or Lecture Now Sir if the defect of these Qualifications disable and so dispose under the penalty he that shall be thus punished must be a person capable of these Qualifications and that is none but a stated Lecturer Sir I do not find the least ground for any Objection against my opinion save only in this that the word Sermon is used in the Statute and in this provision of the penalty and unto this I answer 1. Sermon is never used alone and by it self but ever conjunct with Lecture and inclosed in the same Comma but when the Printers mistake is visible 2. Sermon is joyned to Lecture with this discretive or not disjunctively but exegetically to explain the tearm Lecture and hereof there is good Reason for Lecture properly signifieth a Reading but hath been in Vulgar accepceptation referred unto and performed by Preaching That therefore the Law might not be evaded by an equivocal tearm the vulgar appellation Lecture is explained by the mode of performance Lecture or Sermon and that Sermon is thus exegetical is evident by these Observations 1. The Preacher hereby disabled is throughout this part of the Law praedicated a Lecturer and not known by any other appellation whatsoever 2. The qualifications before noted do square with no kind of Preaching or Preacher but Lecturer Preaching a Lecture-Sermon 3. Preaching or Reading are expresly mentioned as the specifical Acts of the Lecturers Lecturing So in the first Clause which relateth thereunto None shall be or be received as a Lecturer allowed to preach as a Lecturer or to preach or read any Lecture or Sermon i. e. any way speak openly any Lecture-Sermon for Lecture is the Genus existing in the Species of Reading or Preaching 4. Preaching is often expressed to be the only act of the Lecturer it may therefore well be called a Sermon the Statute saith expresly Every person licensed assigned appointed a Lecturer to Preach shall the first time he preacheth so long as he continueth Lecturer or Preacher 5. Lecture or Sermon are so conjoyned in the Qualifications prescribed they must be Synonimous and convertible and exegetical cannot be disjunctive thus it is menoned the place appointed for his Lecture or Sermon the reading Common-Prayer at the time of the day when his Lecture or Sermon is to be preached and declare his assent and consent before his Lecture or Sermon Now Sir they cannot be disjunctive in the disablement which are apparently exegetical in the required Qualifications 6. Preaching or Reading are expressed to be the different acts of Lecturing in Cathedral Collegiate and University Churches or Chappels though Preaching is retained as the Lecturing Act in common and ordinary Lectures So that there was great and just cause to connex Sermon to Lecture in directing a Lecture-Sermon Sir These things considered you cannot but see mine opinion is grounded on the plain and clear interpretation of the Law So that if any Bishops Certificate reduce you into the Dilemma you will hereby direct your course to commit Preaching Lecturers but pass by and leave at liberty all other Preachers whatsoever as those for Commitment of whom you have no Authority And so doing which you cannot but be sure all the Judges will determin against you I am Sir October 30th 1662. Your Servant to Command F. A. Pag. 87. Pag. 8● Paeg. 8● Pag 85. Pag. 86.