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A26965 The nonconformists plea for peace, or, An account of their judgment in certain things in which they are misunderstood written to reconcile and pacifie such as by mistaking them hinder love and concord / by Richard Baxter. Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691. 1679 (1679) Wing B1319; ESTC R14830 193,770 379

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a Christian Civil Governour of a Christian People that are his Subjects We daily pray that the Kingdoms of the world may all be Christian and we believe that their Kings are the Governours by the sword of all the Clergy as well as others 3. Nor is the question whether Kings may call all their Kingdoms into a holy Covenant with God by lawful means giving them an example first themselves 4. Nor do we contend about an Equivocal Name whether a Christian Kingdom as such may be called a National Church 5. No nor whether a Christian Nation governed by a Heathen or Mahometan King may be called a Christian Church or Kingdom or a Protestant Nation ruled by a Papist King is to be called a Protestant Kingdom or Church for this is but about bare names 6. Nor do we question whether a Christian King may make such accidental disparity between the Pastors as we have before described 7. Nor yet whether the Pastors of one Kingdom may associate and hold Synods for Unity and Counsel and be named a National Church as they are such Associations obliged to Concord §4 But our doubts are these 1. Whether it be in it self specially instituted by God that every Kingdom or Nation of Christians shall have One summam Potestatem essentialiter Ecclesiasticam or one Priest-Head whether a single person or an Aristocracy or a Common Synod as a constitutive part of the National Church 2. Whether this Priest-Head whether High-Priest or Council stand in subordination to the King as part of the same formal Church as a General or a Vicerov that maketh not a distinct Kingdom though he may make a distinct subordinate Society as an Army City c or is he Head of a coordinate different species so as that the same Kingdom shall be two Policies formally viz. a Christian Kingdom or Royal Church and a Priestly Church each being supream in their proper species and both made coordinate by Christ and so they are formally two Churches National About the Jews the Controversie is made by Dissenters e. g. Galaspie Coleman Selden c. exceeding difficult 3. Whether the very Jewish Church Policy be established by Christ for the Christian Church or be repealed 4 Whether the said Ecclesiastical Head must be One as the High Priest or an Aristocracy of many or a Synod of the whole Clergy or whether it be left indifferent which 5. Or whether God hath ordained such a National Church-form only by the general Command of doing all things in Order and Unity and to Edification 6. Which is the Priestly-Head or highest Governour of the Church of England which is a constitutive part as a King in a Kingdom 7. Who is it that chooseth or authorizeth the National Priestly Head that we may know when we have a lawful Chief Pastor and when an Usurper 8. Whether the King or he is to be obeyed in Circumstances or matters Ecclesiastical if they differ and make contrary Laws Without the solution of these questions the name of a National Church will not be understood nor of any practical importance Our own thoughts of them are as followeth § 5. It is certain that the Mosaical Law made for the Jews peculiar republick as such is abrogate not only the Ceremonial part but all All that was not then made for all the world is ceased 1. Because the Common-wealth is ceased for which it was made 2. The Holy Ghost expresly and frequently determineth it so even of that Law that was written in stone as such 2 Cor. 3. 7 8 9 10 11. Heb. 7. 12. 19. Gal. 4. 21 o. 3. 24. The natural part and that which was instituted positively long before for perpetuity were both of them God's Laws before Moses's time and as such obliged other Nations and so do still The matter written in stone except some few mutable particulars as the seventh day Sabbath c. is such as we are still obliged to 1. By Nature 2. By Christ But not as it was part of the Jews peculiar Mosaical Law Much less doth it bind all the world to its Policy § 6. If the Jewish Law either as such or as stablished by Christ for his Kingdom did bind all the world to this day then it would bind them to their Civil Policy as much at least as to their Ecclesiastical But few Christians think that it binds them to their Civil Policy For if it did then 1. All Nations that have varied from it to this day have sinned 2. No diversity of Governments could be lawful 3. Then it would perplex men to be sure whether it be the old Mosaical form by Judges or the later Regal form that bindeth 4. Then such a Civil Council or Sanhedrim as was appointed the Jews would be a Divine Establishment and not variable at the will of Kings or People Many other things would follow which Kings would not easily believe § 7. There may be much more said for the continuance of the Jews civil Policy than for their Ecclesiastical For there is much more forbidden of the latter than of the former Though all nations be not bound to their civil policie they may set it up if they please They are not prohibited For Christ hath not made new Laws for civil states as such But he hath made new Church Laws and thereby altered yea prohibited much of the old § 8. We know no more reason why the Jewish form should bind us than that which was before the Jews and particularily Melchezedeks who was a King and Priest God owned both and commandeth us neither at least as in conformity to them § 9. The Holy Ghost saith expresly Heb. 7. 11. 12. That perfection was not by the Levitical Priesthood and that the Priesthood being changed there is made of necessity a change of the Law which is called the Law of a carnal Cammandment verse 16. and that there is a disanulling of the Commandement going before for the weakness and unprofitableness of it for the Law made nothing perfect v. 18 19. the Covenant or Law being not faultless a new one doth succeed it v. 7. 8. 9. 10. The first Tabernacle is not standing which had their ordinances of divine service and a worldly sanctuary Heb. 9 1. 8. 11. He taketh away the first Law and Priesthood that he may establish the second Heb. 10. 8 9 11. 16. 17 c. § 10. Whilest it is agreed on that the essentials of the work or office of the Jewish Priests is ceased as Heb. 7. and 8 9 and 10 shew and their Title by birth and the appropriation to one Tribe c. it followeth that the Jewish Priesthood is ceased But yet we confess that Christ if he had pleased might have setled a High Priest and Council like theirs in every nation for his own work But if the old form bind us not we are left only to enquire what new one is setled by Christ and whether he have done so or not § 11.
the fact is enough to warrant the execution Though a Judge may also pass a sentence if he see cause vid. Calv. Lexic Jurid And others commonly There are some others that go further and think it unlawful to have Communion with the Parish Churches because they thus excommunicate us first without more cause and because they take the Pastors to be scandalous by the foresaid Oaths Declarations and subscriptions and those that have not the peoples consent to be no true Pastors But these are herein disowned by the most and very few Ministers are of their mind that we know of though many of the people much incline to it especially they that live where the Priests are ignorant scandalous slothful or malignant because Pa●l saith W●●h s●c● no not to eat But others tell them that 1. It is not the Parish-Ministers that made the excommunicating Laws 2. And if they sin themselves it is ignorantly 3. And we have not a call and opportunity to hear and judge them XI Even those called Independents hold if Mr. Ph. Nyes Manuscript to that end may tell us their minds that it is lawful to hear the publick Parish Ministers because the Magistrate may set Teachers over the People and require them to hear them Though they hold that the People should choose their Pastors and that the Sacraments should be administred and received freely and not by force Yea such Anabaptists as Mr. Tombes as is visible in his Book hold that Communion with the Parish-Church is lawful in the Word Prayer and Lords Supper XII We commonly hold that men unjastly excommunicated are not thereby disobliged from publick worshiping of God and living under Pastoral oversight and Church discipline nor are bound to endanger their own salvation by neglecting such duties and losing such helps and priviledges and therefore must be of such Churches as they can if they cannot be of such as they would or as are allowed by the Magistrate XIII It is not in the power of our selves to escape such excommunications For we are not able to change our own understandings so far as to hold every thing before named to be lawful Some of us are able to say that we have with a willingness to see the truth studied the case of the old Conformity above forty years and the case of the New-conformity now above seventeen years and read almost all that hath been written for them which we thought might add to our information and prayed earnestly that God would not suffer us to erre and the longer we study it the more we are confirmed In this case we suffer publick and private obloquy and reproach and not only these seventeen years the loss of all Ministerial Maintenance but the danger of 40 l. a Sermon and imprisonment in common Gaols and the ruine of our estates and health And in reason it s as easie to think that they that hold their opinion on such terms are like to be as impartial in their studies as they whose way leadeth to preferment wealth and honour of which we were capable of a part We say therefore again that to Cons●●m or prevent the Canons Excommunication ipso facto is not in our power And they that say God will not condemn men for that which they were not able to avoid or help should not do otherwise themselves XIV When the 1800 or 2000 Ministers were silenced the far greatest part of them forbore all publick Preaching and only taught some few in private at such hours as hindered not the publick Assemblies and many of them lived as private men XV. To this day it is so with many of the Nonconformists Those that live where they find small need of their Preaching or else have no call or opportunity and cannot remove their dwellings do hold no Assemblies but as other men content themselves to be Auditors Those that live where are godly and peaceable Ministers in Publick who yet need help do lead the people constantly to the Parish-Churches and teach them themselves at other hours and help them from house to house This is ordinary in the Countries and even in London with many Ministers that hold no Assemblies yea many that were ejected out of City Parish-Churches XVI Those called Independents do keep up such Churches as they had gathered before when none of our present oaths declarations subscriptions or practices were imposed on them which is not therefore to be taken as new XVII As to the rest it was the great and terrible Plague in 1665. which made this change in their Assembling and Ministration When the publick Ministers forsook the City and the rich left the poor to misery and death and people lookt every day for their last when they that heard a Sermon one day were buried the next when death had awakened the people to Repentance and a regard of their everlasting state divers Nonconformable Ministers resolved to stay with them They begg'd money out of the Countries for the poor and relieved them They got into the empty Pulpits and preached to them And when Preachers and Hearers lookt every day for their last it is easie to conceive that there was serious Preaching and serious Hearing By this many that died were helpt in their preparations and through God's great mercies multitudes that survived repented and became the serious seekers of a better world The men that did this were mostly unmarried and could easilier venture their own lives than such as had families and some of them that had families yet trusted God and most did scape We know but of one pious Germane Minister that died of the Plague in the City and one of another Disease if not through want and two that fled from it in the Country And when God had blest these mens faithful labours with the conversion of many souls especially Apprentices and young people the experience so engaged their mutual affections that the Ministers resolved that they would live and die in such service as God had so blessed and preserved them in and their hearers resolved that they would not forsake their Teachers And thus the dreadful Plague began that which so much now offendeth men as a dangerous Schism XVIII And when some men out of excessive caution were ready to think that when that Plague was ceased having killed about an hundred thousand the Ministers should lay by that publick work and retire again into secret corners God confuted them by his next dreadful judgement burning down the City the next year 1666 So that there were neither Churches to go to nor Ministers in the Parishes to Preach nor rich men to maintain them And could any soul that hated not Christ and mens salvation have wished the Nonconformists then to desert the miserable people When they newly came from under the terrour of such a dreadful Plague and when success and Gods protection had so greatly encouraged them and when presently they were deprived of their worldly treasure and had not houses or