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<DATE>2012-02-21</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Amanda Flynn</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed.</ITEM>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>The humble PETITION OF THE MINISTERS Of the Church of <HI>England</HI> de&s;iring Re|formation of certain Ceremonies and abu&s;es of the Church: with the ANSWER Of the Vicechancelor, the Doctors, both the Proctours, and other the Heads of Hou&s;es, in the Vniver&s;ity of OXFORD.</P>
<P>Printed <HI>Anno,</HI> 1641.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="petition">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>To the Kings mo&s;t <HI>Excellent Maie&s;tie.</HI></HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">The humble Petition of the Mini|&s;ters of the Church of <HI>England,</HI> de&s;iring <HI>Reformation,</HI> of certain <HI>Cere|monies</HI> and abu&s;es of the <HI>Church.</HI></HEAD>
<DIV2 TYPE="preface">
<P>_MO&s;t Gracious and dread Sovereigne, &s;eeing it hath plea&s;ed the divine Maje&s;ty, to the great comfort of all good Chri&s;tians, to advance your Highne&s;&s;e, according to your ju&s;t title, to the peaceable government of this Church and Commonwealth of <HI>Eng|land:</HI> wee the Mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pell in this Land, neither as factious men, affecting a popular Paritie in the Church, nor as Schi&s;maticks ayming at the di&s;&s;olution of
<PB N="2" REF="3">the State Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall: but as the faithfull &s;ervants of Chri&s;t, and loyall &s;ubjects to your Maje&s;tie, de&s;iring and longing for the redre&s;&s;e of divers abu&s;es of the Church, could do no le&s;&s;e, in our obe|dience to God, &s;ervice to your Maje&s;ty, love to his Church, then ac|quaint your Princely Maje&s;ty with our particular griefs. For as your Princely pen writeth, <HI>The King as a good Phy&s;ician, mu&s;t fir&s;t know what peccant humours his patient natu|rally is mo&s;t &s;ubject unto; before hee can begin his cure:</HI> And although divers of us that &s;ue for Reformation, have for|merly in re&s;pect of the times &s;ub&s;cribed to the book, &s;ome upon Prote&s;tation, &s;ome upon expo&s;ition given them, &s;ome with condi|tion, rather then the Church &s;hould have beene deprived of their labour and Mini&s;tery: yet now we, to the number of more then a Thou&s;and, of your Maje&s;ties Subiects and Mini&s;ters, all groan|ing as under a common burden of humane Rites and Ceremo|nies, do with one joynt con&s;ent humble our &s;elves at your Maje|&s;ties feet, to be ea&s;ed and relieved in this behalf. Our humble &s;uit then unto your Maie&s;ty is, that the&s;e offences following, &s;ome may be removed, &s;ome amended, &s;ome qualified.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>1 In the Church Service.</HEAD>
<P>That the Cro&s;&s;e in Bapti&s;me, Interrogatories mini&s;tred to In|fants, Confirmation as &s;uperfluous, may be taken away. Bapti&s;me not to be mini&s;tred by Women, and &s;o explaned. The Cap and Surplice not urged. That examination may goe before the Com|munion. That it be mini&s;tred with a Sermon. That divers terms of <HI>Prie&s;ts,</HI> and <HI>Ab&s;olution,</HI> and &s;ome other u&s;ed, with the <HI>Ring in Marriage,</HI> and other &s;uch like in the book, may be corrected. The long-&s;omne&s;&s;e of &s;ervice abridged. Church-&s;ongs and Mu|&s;ick moderated to better edification. That the Lords day be not prophaned. The re&s;t upon Holydayes not &s;o &s;trictly urged. That
<PB N="3" REF="3">there may be an uniformity of doctrine pre&s;cribed. No Popi&s;h o|pinion to be any more taught or defended. No Mini&s;ters charged to teach their people to bow at the Name of Je&s;us. That the Cano|nicall Scriptures onely be read in the Church.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>2 Concerning Church Mini&s;ters.</HEAD>
<P>That none hereafter be admitted into the Mini&s;tery, but able and &s;ufficient men, and tho&s;e, to preach diligently; and e&s;pecially upon the Lords day. That &s;uch as be already entred and cannot preach, may either be removed, and &s;ome charitable cour&s;e taken with them for their reliefe: or el&s;e to be forced, according to the value of their livings, to maintain Preachers. That Non-re|&s;idency be not permitted. That King <HI>Edwards</HI> Statute for the lawfulne&s;&s;e of Mini&s;ters marriage be revived. That Mini&s;ters be not urged to &s;ub&s;cribe, but, according to the Law, to the Arti|cles of Religion, and the Kings Supremacy onely.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="3" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>3 For Churchlivings and maintenance.</HEAD>
<P>That Bi&s;hops leave their <HI>Commendams:</HI> &s;ome holding Prebends, &s;ome Par&s;onages, &s;ome Vicarages with their Bi&s;ho|pricks. That double-beneficed men be not &s;uffered to hold, &s;ome two, &s;ome three Benefices with Cure, and &s;ome two, three, or foure dignities be&s;ides. That Impropriations annexed to Bi&s;hopricks and Colleges, be demi&s;ed only to the Preachers Incumbents, for the old Rent. That the Impropriations of Laymens fee, may be charged with a &s;ixt or &s;eventh part of the worth, to the maynte|nance of the preaching Mini&s;ter.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="4" TYPE="point">
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<HEAD>4 For Church Di&s;cipline.</HEAD>
<P>That the Di&s;cipline, and Excommunication may be admi|ni&s;tred according to Chri&s;ts own in&s;titution. Or at the lea&s;t, that enormities may be redre&s;&s;ed. As namely, That Excommunication come not forth under the name of lay per&s;ons, Chancellours, Of|ficials; &amp;c. That men be not excommunicated for trifles and twelve peny matters. That none be excommunicated without con|&s;ent of his Pa&s;tor. That the Officers be not &s;uffered to extort un|rea&s;onable fees. That none having juri&s;diction or Regi&s;ter places, put out the &s;ame to farm. That divers Popi&s;h Canons, (as for re|&s;traint of marriage at certain times) be rever&s;ed. That the long|&s;omne&s;&s;e of &s;uits in Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall courts, (which hang &s;ometime two, three, foure, five, &s;ix or &s;even years) may be re&s;trained. That the Oath <HI>ex Officio,</HI> whereby men are forced to accu&s;e them&s;elves be more &s;paringly u&s;ed. That licen&s;es for mariage without Banes asked, be more cautiou&s;ly granted.</P>
<P>The&s;e with &s;uch other Abu&s;es yet remayning and practi&s;ed in the Church of <HI>England,</HI> we are able to &s;hew, not to be agreeable to the Scriptures, if it &s;hall plea&s;e your Highne&s;&s;e further to heare us, or more at large by writing to be enformed, or by conference among the learned to be re&s;olved. And yet we doubt not, but that without any farther proce&s;&s;e, your Maje&s;ty (of who&s;e Chri|&s;tian judgement we have received &s;o good a ta&s;t already) is able of your &s;elfe to judge of the equity of this cau&s;e. God wee tru&s;t hath appointed your Highne&s;&s;e our Phy&s;ician, to heale the&s;e di&s;ea&s;es. And we &s;ay with <HI>Mordecay</HI> to He&s;ter, <HI>who knoweth, whe|ther you are come to the Kingdome for &s;uch a time?</HI> Thus your Maje&s;ty &s;hall do that, which we are per&s;waded, &s;hall be ac|ceptable to God, honorable to your Maje&s;tie in all &s;ucceeding ages, profitable to his Church which &s;hall be thereby encrea&s;ed, comforta|ble
<PB N="5" REF="4">to your Mini&s;ters, which &s;hall be no more &s;u&s;pended, &s;ilenced, di&s;graced, impri&s;oned for mens traditions: and prejudiciall to none, but to tho&s;e that &s;eeke their own quiet, credit, and profit in the World. Thus with all dutifull &s;ubmi&s;sion, referring our &s;elves to your Maje&s;ties plea&s;ure, for your gracious an&s;wer, as God &s;hall direct you, we mo&s;t humbly recommend your Highne&s;&s;e to the di|vine Maje&s;ty; whom we be&s;eech for Chri&s;t his &s;ake to di&s;po&s;e your royall heart to doe herein, what &s;hall be to his glory, the good of his Church, and your endle&s;&s;e comfort.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your Maje&s;ties mo&s;t humble Subjects.</SIGNED>
<SIGNED>The Mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pell, that de&s;ire not a di&s;orderly <HI>Innovation,</HI> but a due and godly <HI>Reformation.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="answer to petition">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>The An&s;wer of the Vicechancelor, the Doctours, both the Proctours, and other the Heads of Hou&s;es in the Vniver|&s;ity of OXFORD, <HI>To the Petition of the Mini&s;ters of the Church of</HI> England <HI>de&s;iring Reformation.</HI></HEAD>
<DIV2 TYPE="introduction">
<P>In their <HI>Petition,</HI> there are three principall parts.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1 <HI>A Preface.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>2 <HI>A Complaint con&s;i&s;ting of foure &s;peciall points; In every of them they de&s;ire, that certain Ceremonies and Abu&s;es may be, &s;ome of them removed, &s;ome amended, &s;ome qualified.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>3 <HI>A Conclu&s;ion.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>For an&s;wer whereunto:</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="section">
<PB N="7" REF="5">
<HEAD>1 <HI>In Generall.</HI></HEAD>
<P>_WE mo&s;t humbly be&s;eech his mo&s;t excellent Maje&s;ty, that it may be con&s;idered, how inconvenient and un&s;ufferable it is in Chri&s;tian poli|cie, to permit a long and well &s;et|led &s;tate of government, to be &s;o much as que&s;tioned, much more to be<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Ip&s;a mutatio con&s;uctud. nis ctiam quae adju|vat utilitate, novitate pertur|bat Augu&s;t. ad I anuar. ep. <HI>118.</HI> cap. <HI>5.</HI></NOTE> altered, for a few of his &s;ub|jects: e&s;pecially con&s;idering the matter, pretended to be the cau&s;e of the&s;e mens grief, and of their de&s;ired Reformation, unju&s;tly &s;o called. For it is either the <HI>Ceremonies</HI> of the Church, or <HI>Abu&s;es</HI> in the Church, as they alleage. Wherein wee humbly recom|mend to his Princely remembrance.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, concerning Ceremonies, that they are either &s;u|per&s;titious; and then no ways to be admitted. Of which &s;ort it &s;hould &s;eem by the Petitioners, (and we are ready to prove) that the Ceremonies of our Church are not. Becau&s;e the&s;e men confe&s;&s;e, that in re&s;pect of the times they did &s;ub&s;cribe unto them: or if they were &s;uch, with what co~&s;cience did they &s;ub&s;cribe, in re&s;pect of the times?</P>
<P>Or el&s;e, things in them&s;elves indifferent. And then the &s;upream Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate hath lawfull<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Melan. in <HI>13</HI> ad Rom. Pecca|tum mortale e&s;t violare edicta Magistrat. &amp;c. Heming. in Syn|tag. c. de A|diaph. Qui vio|lat Eccle&s;iasti|cam politiam peccat multis modis, &amp;c. Bez. Epist. <HI>24.</HI> ad artic. <HI>7.</HI></NOTE> authoritie to forbid, and wee mu&s;t forbeare: to command, and wee mu&s;t obey; not onely for feare, but for con&s;cience &s;ake. Of which kind if the&s;e Ceremonies be (as we will ju&s;ti|fie, and they cannot deny) where is then their pretended obedience? Where is their applau&s;e of his Maje&s;ties peaceable government? Why doe they trouble both Church &amp; Commonwealth, in re&s;pect of matters which in duty and con&s;cience they may well, and ought willing|ly to &s;ubmit them&s;elves unto?</P>
<PB N="8" REF="6">
<P>Secondly concerning Abu&s;es, be it con&s;idered: fir&s;t of what quality they are; &s;econdly, of what degree.</P>
<P N="1">1 Touching the nature or quality of them, whether they are in the very Con&s;titutions of our Church, or ra|ther in the Execution of the &s;aid Con&s;titutions. If not in the Con&s;titutions them&s;elves, (as when wee de&s;cend to the particulars it will appeare:) there is no cau&s;e why the government &s;hould be changed; or the&s;e men &s;uffered thus to calumniate the State, wherein there is nothing <HI>Po&s;itive,</HI> that is worthy of blame. If in the Execution; (which as we will not ab&s;olutely deny, &s;o the&s;e men can|not ea&s;ily prove,) that may be remedied by amending or removing of &s;ome certain offendors, without alteration of the State.</P>
<P N="2">2 Touching the degree or grievou&s;ne&s;&s;e of the&s;e a|bu&s;es, (whether in the con&s;titution, as they &s;uppo&s;e, and we deny; or in the Execution, which &s;imply and in every particular,<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Calv. adv. A|nab art. <HI>2.</HI> Vtri|que (&s;c. Cathari &amp; Donati&s;tae) in eodem errore fuerunt, Quo i&s;ti &s;omniatores; Ec|cle&s;iam quaeren|te, in qua nibd po&s;&s;et de&s;iderari, &amp;c.</NOTE> no Church in <HI>Chri&s;tendome</HI> is able to ju&s;tifie, and yet none, &s;o much as this of ours:) we undert<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="OXF" EXTENT="1+ letters">e to prove again&s;t the Thou&s;and, that maske unknown under that generality, that they are not &s;uch, nor &s;o heynous, as de&s;erve this their bitter reprehen&s;ion: much le&s;&s;e &s;uch an alteration, in the Church and Common wealth, as would en&s;ue; if the&s;e Petitioners might have their de&s;ire.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="section">
<HEAD>2.<HI>In Particular.</HI></HEAD>
<DIV3 TYPE="subsection">
<HEAD>Concerning the Preface.</HEAD>
<P><HI>We doe but note.</HI></P>
<P N="1">1 WHat reckoning (in truth) the men doe make; of <HI>ju&s;t titles unto Kingdomes,</HI> who favour them
<PB N="9" REF="6">&s;o<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">De jure reg. apud Scot. De jur. Magi&s;t. in &s;ubd. Vind. cont. tyr. Hotto. Francog.</NOTE> much that were wont to &s;ubject all Kin gstitles unto popular election and approbation.</P>
<P N="2">2 What comfort (indeed) the Petitioners take in the <HI>peace of his Maje&s;ties government;</HI> who in the very entrance thereof, by &s;eeking this, and the like dangerous alterati|ons, doe di&s;quiet and di&s;turbe the &s;ame. Were other men as little inured to peace and &s;ubjection, it might occa&s;ion &s;ome inconvenience.</P>
<P N="3">3 How&s;oever in words they decline the imputation <HI>of factious men affecting popular parity in the Church, and of Schi&s;|maticks ayming at the di&s;&s;olution of the &s;tate Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall;</HI> yet it is too well known in this Kingdome, and by experi|ence it hath been felt in that of<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg"><GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, pag. <HI>39.40, 41,</HI> &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Scotland,</HI> what manner of men they be: as al&s;o, what have been the lamentable effects of their Reformation there, and would have been likewi&s;e here, had not the prudent fore&s;ight and con|&s;tant re&s;olution of our late gracious Sovereigne conti|nually repre&s;&s;ed their attempts.</P>
<P N="4">4 The&s;e men might have performed better, <HI>Their obedience to God, their &s;ervice to his Maje&s;ty, their love to his Church,</HI> (as in the particulars will appeare) if they had forborn to trouble his Maje&s;ty, the Church of God, and this Common-wealth, with the&s;e their cau&s;ele&s;&s;e griefs and di&s;contentments. They have thereby made &s;uch a breach as will not ea&s;ily (without much wi&s;dome and patience) be cured. For what are the&s;e men, that they &s;hould a&s;&s;ume &s;o much? or what are the whole Clergy of <HI>England</HI> be&s;ides, that they &s;hould be &s;o aba&s;ed and contemned?</P>
<P N="5">5 That which they alleage out of his Highne&s;&s;e <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, is a childi&s;h fallacy; ab&s;urdly taking that for granted, which is the mayn que&s;tion. They mu&s;t prove
<PB N="10" REF="7">(and not a&s;&s;ume) that the&s;e are the <HI>peccant humours of this Church,</HI> which in truth is the<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Iuel. Apo. <HI>170</HI> Acce&s;&s;imus quantum maxi|me potuimus ad Eccle&s;iam Apo&s;t. &amp;c. Et <HI>46.</HI> Ea omnia quae aut &s;uper|&s;titio&s;a, &amp;c. Aut cum &s;acris literis pugnan|tia, aut etiam &s;obriis homini|bus indigna, &amp;c. pror&s;us &s;ine ulla exceptione repu|diavimus.</NOTE> lea&s;t <HI>peccant</HI> of any in the World, and would be much le&s;&s;e <HI>peccant,</HI> if it were cleane purged, of the&s;e unquiet and malecontented hu|mours.</P>
<P N="6">6 That <HI>diver&s;e of them have formerly &s;ub&s;cribed to the booke,</HI> (as skornfully they tearme it) doth manife&s;tly evince, that either our <HI>Liturgie</HI> is ju&s;tifiable, them&s;elves being Judges; or els that they did liberally di&s;pence with their own con&s;ciences, which is not the part of hone&s;t men. To doe that <HI>in re&s;pect of the times,</HI> which in it &s;elfe is not lawful, proveth little le&s;&s;e then hypocri&s;ie: to alledge unknowne <HI>Prote&s;tations, expo&s;itions, and Conditions</HI> in their &s;ub&s;cription, doth argue no &s;incerity; and upon due examination, will fall out to be nothing but meere fal|&s;itie.</P>
<P N="7">7 As for their <HI>labours in the Mini&s;tery,</HI> be they &s;uch as they are. This Church of England had been happy if it had not beene troubled with their factious Sermons and<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Mart. Mar. P. Miles monop. Hay any work and the rest of that &s;pirit.</NOTE> &s;currile Pamphlets: which have given the Adver&s;ary much matter of advantage, di&s;tracted the minds of many weake ones, and quite turned &s;ome other from the love of the Truth.</P>
<P N="8">8 The number of <HI>more then a Thou&s;and,</HI> is but a vizard, which we humbly intreat, may be pulled from their fa|ces, that we may &s;ee and know the men, that thus <HI>groane</HI> under the yoke of a Chri&s;tian and commendable govern|ment; which (maliciou&s;ly and injuriou&s;ly) they would have reputed, <HI>a mo&s;t heavy burden of humane Rites and Ce|remonies.</HI> The vanity of which their complaint, comes now more particularly to be di&s;cu&s;&s;ed.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 TYPE="subsection">
<PB N="11" REF="7">
<HEAD>Concerning the matters of their Complaint:</HEAD>
<DIV4 N="1" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>1 <HI>Of the Church &s;ervice.</HI></HEAD>
<P N="1">1 IN the Church &s;ervice we are ready to maintain, (but they mu&s;t object fir&s;t and prove the contrary) that the<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Tert. de Cor. mil. cap. <HI>3.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Cro&s;&s;e in Bapti&s;me,</HI><NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Aug. Ep. <HI>23.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Interrogatories mini&s;tred to In|fants, and</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Hieron. cont. Luc.</NOTE> <HI>confirmation,</HI> are mo&s;t ancient, ju&s;tifiable, and convenient Ceremonies, and therefore to bee con|tinued.</P>
<P N="2">2 That the Church of England, nor the booke of Common prayer doth not pre&s;cribe, that <HI>Bapti&s;me &s;hould be admini&s;tred by women.</HI> Though we deny it not to be<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Chytrae. de Bap. &amp; in Lev. Sneph de Bap. Zuingl de Bap. Hicrbr. in Comp. Theol.</NOTE> Bap|ti&s;me, if perchance <HI>de facto,</HI> it be by them admini&s;tred. <HI>Fi|eri non debuit, factum valuit.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3 That the <HI>Cap and Surplice be not urged,</HI> it is an ab|&s;urd &s;peech and implies confu&s;ion. For &s;o every man &s;hould be &s;uffered in that behalfe to doe what him liketh. Again, do not their own words import that they may wel be u&s;ed? but they mu&s;t not be <HI>urged.</HI> why? what is there in a Cap or in a Surplice that &s;hould<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Buc. de revest. pag <HI>707</HI> Pet. Mart. Ep. ad Hap. Aug. Ep. <HI>154.</HI> Calvi. in Ex. <HI>23.</HI></NOTE> offend any man of judgement.</P>
<P N="4">4 That <HI>Examination</HI> where need is &s;hould <HI>goe be|fore the Communion,</HI> who di&s;liketh? Or that it <HI>be mini&s;tred with a &s;ermon?</HI> But that it &s;hould not bee mini&s;tred with|out a &s;ermon, is ab&s;urd; and hath bred in many a vain and fal&s;e opinion, as if, not the word of Chri&s;ts in&s;titu|tion, but rather the word of a Mini&s;ters expo&s;ition, were a<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">T. Cl. <HI>1.</HI> p. <HI>158</HI></NOTE> nece&s;&s;ary and an e&s;&s;entiall part of the Communion. Be&s;ides he that readeth our Communion booke, &s;hall &s;ee that therein the whole manner, end, and u&s;e of that holy In&s;titution, is &s;o excellently de&s;cribed, as may be in&s;teed of many Sermons. Al&s;o that none &s;hould be admitted to
<PB N="12" REF="8">that ble&s;&s;ed Sacrament (of what age, &s;tate, or condition &s;o ever) except they were fir&s;t examined after the Con|&s;i&s;torian fa&s;hion, were in&s;olent, injurious, and in many re|&s;pects mo&s;t in convenient.</P>
<P N="5">5 The terms of<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 66.21. Where the <HI>Ge|neva</HI> note doth &s;hew, that the Mini&s;ters of the new Te|&s;tament are to be tearmed Prie&s;ts.</NOTE> <HI>Prie&s;ts</HI> and <HI>Ab&s;olution: the</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Bucer. in Cen|&s;ur. cap. <HI>20.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Ring in Mariage and &s;uch other,</HI> which they have heretofore tradu|ced in their unlearned di&s;cour&s;es, are by divers of our learned Divines, and &s;hall be ju&s;tified. As contrariwi&s;e by the Petitioners they will never be evicted worthy to be aboli&s;hed.</P>
<P N="6">6 Their de&s;ire <HI>to have the long-&s;omne&s;&s;e of &s;ervice abrid|ged</HI> doth well befit their great Devotion. Who not|with&s;tanding are wont to &s;pend an houre &s;ometimes or little le&s;&s;e, in extemporary, incon&s;equent, and &s;en&s;le&s;&s;e prayers conceived ra&s;hly by them&s;elves. From hence, their di&s;like of &s;et and &s;tinted formes of prayer, it doth proceed, that &s;ome of them omit, &s;ome refu&s;e to repeat, &s;ome condemne the u&s;e of the Lords Prayer; from hence hath <HI>Barrow</HI> and <HI>Greenewood</HI> taken their beginning, and fetched the premi&s;&s;es of their pe&s;tilent and bla&s;phemous Conclu&s;ions.</P>
<P N="7">7 <HI>Church</HI><NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Iust Mart. in quae&s;t. ad Orth. q. <HI>107.</HI> Aug Confe&s;. lib. <HI>10.</HI> cap. <HI>33.</HI></NOTE> <HI>&s;ongs and Mu&s;ique</HI> are much beholden to the&s;e men now: in as much as they can bee content to di&s;ge&s;t them, &s;o they <HI>be moderated to better edification.</HI> The time was when wee have heard them &s;peake in this point after another &s;ort. <HI>Meritricious Church Mu&s;icke, To&s;sing of tennis bals,</HI> and &s;uch like were their phra&s;es of Gods divine &s;ervice: but thanked be God that his Maje|&s;ties devout affection in this kind hath forced from them this moderation.</P>
<P N="8">8 <HI>That the Lords day be not prophaned,</HI> hee is verie prophane that de&s;ireth not from his heart. But what man|ner
<PB N="13" REF="8">of lawgivers are they that lay downe their cou&s;titu|tions in &s;uch Negatives, in &s;uch Comparatives? for who can divine what they would have, when they de&s;ire <HI>that the Re&s;t upon</HI><NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Pet. Martyr. Epi&s;t. ad Hoppe|rum.</NOTE> <HI>Holy dayes be not &s;o &s;trictly urged?</HI> Would they have men upon &s;uch dayes goe to plough and cart, as &s;ome of their humor have cau&s;ed their &s;ervants to do, on the very fea&s;t of Chri&s;ts Nativity? Or do they mean, that we &s;hould take to our &s;elves &s;uch liberty therein, as certain per&s;ons lately have done; who being comman|ded by lawfull authority to celebrate the fifth of <HI>Augu&s;t,</HI> with joy and thanksgiving for his Maje&s;ties mo&s;t &s;trange and wonderfull deliverance upon the &s;aid day, did not|with&s;tanding &s;pend the &s;ame (as we are credibly infor|med) in fa&s;ting &amp; mourning and &s;uch like works of their obedience? Nay, the&s;e and the like experiments do cau&s;e us, humbly and in&s;tantly to de&s;ire, that both Sundays and Holydays may be religiou&s;ly ob&s;erved, and the intollera|ble prophanation of them, which is the rather brought in by the&s;e mens preachings and examples, may be very &s;e|verely puni&s;hed.</P>
<P N="9">9 <HI>That there may bee an Vniformity of Doctrine pre|&s;cribed: That no Popi&s;h opinions may be any more taught or de|fended.</HI> What imputations are the&s;e? how prejudici|all? How injurious? Not only unto the Church governe|ment, but unto the Chri&s;tian faith e&s;tabli&s;hed in this Realme? What advantage do the&s;e men in the&s;e &s;hame|le&s;&s;e &s;ugge&s;tions reach unto the Papi&s;ts? as if there were no<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Wee refer to the Articles of Religion a|greed upon &amp; e&s;tabli&s;hed in Convocation. Anno 1562.</NOTE> vniformity, no con&s;ent of doctrine among us: (&s;o ye except them.) As if there were &s;ome popi&s;h opinions taught &amp; defended in our Liturgy? (as they deem who are ready to make every thing<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Zanch. conf. cap. <HI>24.</HI> de Eccl. Milet. Aph. <HI>19.</HI></NOTE> Poperie which they doe not fancie) The&s;e are the weapons with which <HI>Bellarmine</HI> and
<PB N="14" REF="9">that Brood, are wont to wound, or rather fal&s;ly to re|proach our faith and profe&s;sion. Good had it beene that the&s;e men had never beene able to write, rather then to write thus, to the &s;candall of Gods Church, and his &s;a|cred truth.</P>
<P N="10">10 <HI>Reverence done at the name of Ie&s;us,</HI> is no &s;uper&s;titi|on, but an outward &s;igne of our inward &s;ubjection to his divine Maje&s;tie, and an apparent token of our devotion. Why doe they not likewi&s;e fin I fault with kneeling, &s;igh|ing, weeping, lifting up of eyes, knocking of brea&s;ts, hol|ding up of hands unto heaven? All which good men may u&s;e in Gods &s;ervice with great piety, though Hypo|crites doe otherwi&s;e.</P>
<P N="11">11 They are gro&s;ly ignorant if they know it not, or wilfully malicious and turbulent, if knowing it to be law|full, they yet oppugne <HI>the reading of the Apocryphall Scrip|tures or Writings in the Church. Non ad confirmationem fidei, &s;ed ad reformationem,</HI> or <HI>in&s;titutionem morum,</HI> as the Ancient<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Hiero. Praef. in Pro. Cypr. in Symb. Pellic. praefan Apocr.</NOTE> fathers &s;peak and approve. As al&s;o the Articles of con|vocation, and the Prefaces before the <HI>Apocryphall</HI> books in the Engli&s;h Bibles, doe directly &s;hew: adding that hey give light, to the divine &s;tory.</P>
</DIV4>
<DIV4 N="2" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>2. <HI>Concerning Church-mini&s;ters.</HI></HEAD>
<P N="1">1 WEE heartily de&s;ire <HI>that able and &s;ufficient men bee admitted into the Mini&s;tery. That they preach diligently, and that on the Sunday e&s;pecially.</HI> But who &s;hall judge of their &s;ufficiencie? Or doth not the &s;uf|ficiencie of Mini&s;ters <HI>Su&s;cipere magis &amp; minus?</HI> Were the Mini&s;ters of the Primitive Church, all of them able to preach? Did not &s;ome of them preach the Go&s;|pell,<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Chry&s;o&s;t in <HI>1</HI> Cor <HI>1.</HI> Pet. Martyr. in <HI>1</HI> Cor. <HI>1.</HI> Gualtan <HI>1</HI> Cor. <HI>1</HI> Cal. in <HI>1</HI> Cor. <HI>1.</HI> Bucer. in Eph. a.</NOTE>
<PB N="15" REF="9">and other &s;ome reade the Scriptures, and admini&s;ter the Sacraments? Or hath not the urging of that &s;trange doctrine, viz. <HI>That he is no Mini&s;ter that cannot preach,</HI> fir&s;t forced men to take upon them to expound Gods Word, that thereby have brought the Word of God, and the &s;acred exerci&s;e of preaching into lamentable contempt, through their ab&s;urde, &s;encele&s;&s;e, and irreligious glo&s;&s;es, and paraphra&s;es, and di&s;cour&s;es: whiles they have cho&s;en rather &s;o to doe, then to be accounted, <HI>Idol-&s;hepheards, Dumbe dogges, No Mini&s;ters,</HI> and &s;uch like? Secondly hath it not made the <HI>Browni&s;ts</HI> confidently to reproach us, that our<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Barrowes bookes, &amp;c. Perpetuall go|vernment of the Church. Pag. 339.</NOTE> Church is no Church, our Sacraments no Sacra|ments, our Prince and people infidels, as not being bap|ti&s;ed at all, our Chri&s;tian Congregations prophane mul|titudes, &amp;c. onely becau&s;e &s;ome in the Mini&s;tery could not nor did not preach? But in this point it would be con&s;idered e&s;pecially, fir&s;t that it is not po&s;&s;ible to have all Mini&s;ters men of worth, till all Church-livings be very &s;ufficient to maintaine men of worth. Secondly, that the way to invite men of be&s;t parts to take upon them the Mini&s;tery, is not to expo&s;e and &s;ubiect that calling to want and beggary, which in the third part of this their complaint, the&s;e men do principally intend. And la&s;tly that how&s;oever the&s;e men doe plea&s;e them&s;elves in their extemporary gift; yet many of them, though in &s;hew very audacious, doe to with&s;tanding de&s;erve for their gro&s;&s;e ignorance, to be blotted out of the number of preachers, truely &s;o called.</P>
<P N="2">2 How charitable the&s;e men are, that would have men<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Har conf. ex Helv. Post. De Mini&s;t. ca. <HI>18</HI> Agno&s;cimus, &amp;c. Vnde ne hodie quidem rejicimus &s;implicitatem quorundam pro|bam, &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>removed out of the Mini&s;tery,</HI> becau&s;e they cannot preach; (whereas &s;ome of them were intreated to take that function upon them, when men more able could not
<PB N="16" REF="10">be gotten; and others in their yonger yeeres, have beene of more &s;ufficiency, then now their age, &s;ickne&s;&s;e, or other in|firmity, will permit them to be:) And how judicious, that would have them <HI>to maintaine preachers,</HI> who (for the mo&s;t part) have not wherewith for to maintaine them|&s;elves, we leave to the con&s;ideration of the wi&s;e. How much better hath our Church devi&s;ed, to &s;upply the de|fects of &s;ome men, in &s;ome places of meane valew, by o|ther meanes? As namely, 1. By the frequent reading of the Scriptures: A matter more<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Zanc. Conf. ob&s;. in cap. <HI>15.</HI> Aph. <HI>10.11.</HI></NOTE> availeable unto faith and godline&s;&s;e, then the Petitioners doe imagine; and would be much more, if it were not brought into contempt, by their &s;ugge&s;tions. 2. By a mo&s;t religious and excellent<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">B. Ridley to M. Grindall then beyond the &s;eas. Alas that brother Knox could not beare with our booke of common pray|er, &amp;c. The rea|&s;ons he maketh again&s;t the Letany, &amp;c. I doe marvell how he can or dare avouch them, &amp;c.</NOTE> forme of Common prayer. 3. By Sermons and Homilies printed and appointed to be read, both for the confirma|tion of the faith, and for reformation of manners. All which in a Church not new to be planted, but now &s;etled and well grounded in the profe&s;&s;ion of the truth, are ordi|nary effectuall meanes, to continue and increa&s;e them, in the true faith and feare of God. Hereunto may be added the manifold provi&s;ions in our Church, for &s;ermons quar|terly, or more often, in tho&s;e Cures, where the Incumbents cannot preach.</P>
<P N="3">3 <HI>That Non-re&s;idency be not permitted.</HI> It is a matter of wi&s;e and &s;ound deliberation: fir&s;t,<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">The bounds of Pari&s;hes are not <HI>de jure di|vino.</HI></NOTE> what Non-re&s;iden|cie is; for many men in our Church, have two pari&s;hes committed to their charge, which both will not make one living. Againe, many have but one pari&s;h under them, which yet would require more then two, or tenne men to &s;peake at once to all the Congregation. Secondly it is, and long hath beene permitted, by wi&s;e and godly Magi&s;trates, that have given way to it, by their po&s;itive
<PB N="17" REF="10">prudent Laws, as nece&s;&s;ary, in &s;ome Ca&s;es, in a few men, and them (generally and by intendment) of the be&s;t de|&s;erts. Thirdly that it is ab&s;olutely unlawfull, and in<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">The an&s;wer to the 2. trea|ti&s;e of the Ab|&s;tract.</NOTE> no &s;ort to be &s;uffered, neither hath beene proved, nor ever will, by all the Sci&s;maticks in the Land. Fourthly, in what congruity may he be counted an idle <HI>Non-re&s;ident,</HI> that is alwaies pre&s;ent and taketh paines, in &s;ome part; and often in every part of his charge; Fiftly, there are not more intollerable <HI>Non-re&s;idents</HI> in England, then &s;ome of tho&s;e, that are either included in the <HI>Thou&s;and</HI> afore mentioned, or that favor this their attempt: E&s;pe|cially if they &s;hall bee mea&s;ured by tho&s;e places of Scrip|ture, which they are wont to alledg again&s;t <HI>Non-re&s;idents</HI> after the Texts be well examined. La&s;tly, it is not po&s;&s;i|ble (as Church-livings are now* allotted) that &s;imply no <HI>Non-re&s;idency</HI> &s;hould be permitted,<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">To alter the precincts of pa|ri&s;hes, is a mat|ter of greater con&s;equence, then the Ab|&s;tractor, or ma|ny moe &s;uch &s;hallow heads can po&s;&s;ibly conceive.</NOTE> and yet withall a learned Mini&s;tery mainteined, Princes and Peeres of the Land attended, Colleges and Cathedrall Churches continued, the Univer&s;ities pre&s;ent, and hope of &s;ucce&s;|&s;ion in them for hereafter, pre&s;erved, propagated and &s;upported.</P>
<P N="4">4 <HI>The Marriage of Mini&s;ters</HI> wee doe not di&s;like, but maintain the lawfulne&s;&s;e thereof again&s;t the Church of Rome: and humbly de&s;ire (if there be neede) that the &s;upreme Magi&s;trate, will add thereunto, by his royall authority and the law of the Land, &s;uch farther &s;trength and confirmation, as &s;hall &s;eem fit to his high wi&s;dom.</P>
<P N="5">5 Wee know of <HI>no Sub&s;cription that is urged, which is not agreeable to law,</HI> required by the orders of our Uni|ver&s;ity, nece&s;&s;ary in a Chri&s;tian Common-wealth, pro|fitable for the Church of God, approveable by all judici|ous learned men, and di&s;liked of none, but of a few folk,
<PB N="18" REF="11">that are overmuch addicted to their own opinions. Who notwith&s;tanding, where<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">The lawes and &s;tatutes of Gen. In the form of Oath, which the Mini&s;ters receive. Sect 2. Beza in veta Cal. pag. 910.</NOTE> they beare the &s;way, it is worth the con&s;ideration, how &s;trictly they tie all them that will live among them, to the ob&s;ervation of their Church go|vernment. And in truth (&s;o the things in them&s;elves be not intolerable) better &s;o, then that which is here pro|po&s;ed. For the not urging of a conformity in Church di&s;cipline, is to to &s;et open the high way to all di&s;order and Confu&s;ion.</P>
</DIV4>
<DIV4 N="3" TYPE="point">
<HEAD>3. <HI>Concerning Church maintenance.</HI></HEAD>
<P N="1">1 <HI>THat Bi&s;hops leave their Comme~dams.</HI> In ca&s;e &s;ome of the ancient revenue might be re&s;tored to their Bi&s;hopricks, he were utterly unworthy to be a Bi&s;hop, that would de&s;ire a <HI>Commendam.</HI> But, as now the mo&s;t of them are impaired, to take away from all Bi&s;hops all manner of <HI>Commendams,</HI> is (in truth) to tie the Kings hands, that he &s;hall not be able, though he would, (and where he will not, no <HI>Commendam</HI> can be gi|ven;) to make his mo&s;t faithfull &s;ervants, or other men of be&s;t de&s;ert in the Mini&s;tery, able to maintain their pla|ces and callings, by his Maje&s;ties favor, and gracious di&s;|pen&s;ation, when otherwi&s;e their Bi&s;hopricks are not &s;uf|ficient &s;o to doe. So as if it be well wayed, they doe not &s;o much intend in this particular to impoveri&s;h &s;ome few Bi&s;hops, as indeed utterly to overthrow them, and ge|nerally to re&s;traine the Kings Prerogative.</P>
<P N="2">2 Of the &s;ame nature is that which followeth. For no man, except he be the Kings Chaplaine, may hold <HI>three Benefices with Cure;</HI> and tho&s;e of his Highne&s;&s;e own gift. So that here al&s;o they de&s;ire to limit the Kings fa|vour.
<PB N="19" REF="11">Againe, it is not known, that there be five in all this Land, that hold three &s;uch Benefices. And then what good dealing is this in the Petitioners, to make the world beleeve, that it is a common fault, which is &s;carce to be found in a few?</P>
<P N="3">3 <HI>Their di&s;po&s;ing of Impropriations,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">The Eccle&s;i. a&s;ticall di&s;cipl. pag. 114.</NOTE> doth notably be|wray their lacke of Con&s;cience, their little love to lear|ning and Religion, their temporizing and fitting their motions to the Laieties good liking. For who &s;eeth not that it would be the certain overthrow, and utter ruine of <HI>Bi&s;hopricks, Colledges,</HI> and <HI>Cathedrall Churches,</HI> if their <HI>Impropriations &s;hould be demi&s;ed to Vicars or Curats, the Incumbents, at the old rent,</HI> without fine, without im|provement? Againe, who be they, and how many, that by this meanes would be provided for? A few, and tho&s;e the meane&s;t of the Clergy. But the inconveniences that would hereof en&s;ue, are very many, and intolerable. Therfore we re&s;erve that di&s;cour&s;e to a fit opportunity. On the other &s;ide, who doth not know, that for a Lay|man to hold an impropriation <HI>(which is a Tithe)</HI> is origi|nally unlawfull, and cleane contrary to the fir&s;t in&s;titu|tion? Yet the&s;e men in all their purity, zeale, and con&s;ci|ence, can content them&s;elves, and their preaching In|cumbents, with the &s;eventh part onely of an Impropriati|on, in a Lay-mans fee.</P>
<P N="4">4 Are the&s;e all, or the be&s;t meanes, that <HI>a Thou&s;and me~, &s;uch as they would be reputed,</HI> can propo&s;e to his High|ne&s;&s;e for the bettering of the Church maintenance? If we might know, that it would &s;tand with his Maje&s;ties good liking, and &s;hould not be imputed unto us as a breach of duty; It were very po&s;&s;ible, that the men whom they &s;o much contemne, would be able to propo&s;e &s;ome other
<PB N="20" REF="12">cour&s;e for the bettring of the Church maintenance, with out the alteration or injurie of any other &s;tate.</P>
</DIV4>
<DIV4 N="4" TYPE="point">
<HEAD><HI>4</HI> Concerning Church Di&s;cipline.</HEAD>
<P N="1">1 UNder the name of their <HI>Di&s;cipline,</HI> we have bin hertofore taught by the&s;e men to under&s;tand, <HI>The kingdom of Chri&s;t upon earth. A thing of no le&s;&s;e importance then the</HI><NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;. Di&s;ci. pag. 13. T.C. Epi&s;t. to the Church of England.</NOTE> <HI>Go&s;pell of Chri&s;t Je&s;us; An e&s;sentiall part of the Go&s;pell. A matter of faith to be recei|ved upon paine of damnation: An e&s;sentiall marke of the true Church without the which our Church was no Church, our faith no faith, our Go&s;pell no Go&s;pell, &amp;c.</HI> And it is now come to be &s;o indifferent, that it may bee admini|&s;tred accordingly; <HI>Or el&s;e at the lea&s;t, that the&s;e enormities may be redre&s;sed?</HI> Will it now &s;uffer &s;uch an <HI>Or el&s;e, at the lea&s;t.</HI></P>
<P>Were we per&s;waded that their <HI>Di&s;cipline,</HI> their <HI>Pre&s;|bytery,</HI> the life and being of their <HI>Di&s;cipline,</HI> were indeed of Chri&s;ts in&s;titution; were we per&s;waded it were <HI>a part of Gods Word, an e&s;sentiall part of his Word;</HI> could we be contented to bee without it? Could wee content our &s;elves to live any where but under it? Would we not re|deem it with much perill and paine? With certain lo&s;&s;e? And that willingly?</P>
<P>But the experience that his mo&s;t excellent Maie&s;ty hath had, of the manifold mi&s;chiefs and mi&s;eries that at|tend their pretended <HI>Di&s;cipline,</HI> doth make them not dare to &s;peake plainly for it. They therefore faulter in &s;eeking to obtain that, which yet in heart they do affect, and &s;pecially de&s;ire.</P>
<P>But to the&s;e <HI>Enormities;</HI> the&s;e <HI>heinous Enormities.</HI> Is
<PB N="21" REF="12">it not well, that now at length, the&s;e quick-&s;ighted men can e&s;pie no fouler <HI>Enormities</HI> in our Church govern|ment?</P>
</DIV4>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 TYPE="subsection">
<HEAD>Enormities.</HEAD>
<P N="1">1 <HI>THAT Excommunication come not forth under the name of Lay per&s;ons.</HI> Fir&s;t, it may truly be &s;aid, that though it did come forth under the name of a Chancellour or a Commi&s;&s;ary, yet came it not forth under the name of Lay per&s;ons. For a Chancellor or a Commi&s;&s;ary is not a Lay-man in this ca&s;e: The Or|dinary and He are but <HI>&V;nus Judex.</HI> Or rather, what&s;o|ever the Chancellor doth in this behalfe, he doth it in the authority of the Ordinary, according to the power that is committed unto him. A thing not unu&s;uall in the Civill &s;tate, wherein the Lord Chancellor doth di&s;po&s;e of many things, which are originally in the Crown; and againe, writeth <HI>Te&s;te meip&s;o</HI> unto many particulars, that never pa&s;&s;e by bill a&s;&s;igned.</P>
<P>Secondly, No Lay-Chancelor or Comi&s;&s;ary what&s;oe|ver doth at any time excommunicate any man; or &s;end|eth out in his <HI>own name</HI> any exco~mmunication. But this is the practice of the Church of England. In<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Con&s;t. Eccle. 1597. cap. de Exce&s;&s;. circa Excom. refor.</NOTE> the cen&s;u|ring of notorious and more grievous crimes, the Arch-Bp, the Bi&s;hop, the Deane, the Arch-deacon, or a Preben|dary that is a Prie&s;t, pronounceth the &s;entence of Exco~|munication in his own per&s;on. And in matters of le&s;&s;e offence, as contumacy in not appearing, and the like, the <HI>Vicar-generall, Officiall or Comi&s;sary,</HI> that is not in holy orders, holdeth this cour&s;e. Fir&s;t, upon knowledg and e|xamination of the cau&s;e, he adjudgeth the party worthy
<PB N="22" REF="13">to be excommunicated; then the Mini&s;ter (a&s;&s;ociated un|to him by expre&s;&s;e authority from the Ordinary) doth pronounce the &s;entence of Excommunication again&s;t him; La&s;tly, the Chancellor &s;endeth to the Pa&s;tor of the Pari&s;h where that party dwelleth, requiring him, pub|likely to declare the &s;aid party to be a per&s;on excommu|nicated by the &s;entence of the Mini&s;ter his a&s;&s;ociate. And all this, according to the forme of the Articles &s;et forth by her Maje&s;ties authority, <HI>Anno</HI> 1597.</P>
<P>Thirdly, are not the&s;e execellent <HI>Enormity makers,</HI> that can finde &s;uch an <HI>Enormity</HI> in the <HI>Name of a Layman</HI> (in who&s;e name notwith&s;tanding, the excommunication never commeth forth) when yet, if it did come forth in his name, the nature of the thing it &s;elfe is &s;uch, as ju&s;tly cannot be reproved? They are not ignorant, that ex|communication doth proceed as is afore-&s;aid; if not in the name, yet in the Authority and Juri&s;diction of the Bi&s;hop, or &s;ome other chiefe Clergy-man, to whom the power of the Keyes doth belong, and unto whom the Church of England hath a&s;&s;igned the execution of that part of our Di&s;cipline. Who, if they u&s;e the advi&s;e and Mini&s;tery of a wi&s;e and religious Civilian, in decreeing who is to be excommunicate, (whereupon tho&s;e<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Perpetuall govern, of the Chu. pa. 320.</NOTE> out|ward penalties doe en&s;ue, which attend the authority, and follow the &s;entence of Excommunication, in this Church &amp; Common wealth:) how doth that in any wi&s;e violate Chri&s;ts in&s;titution as touching exco~munication?</P>
<P>La&s;tly, if the Di&s;cipline they long for, were once on foot among us, we &s;hould then heare tell of certaine <HI>Lay-Par&s;ons</HI> that ought to have a principall hand in their ex|communications. Thus, as they are weake in judgment for matter of learning in this point, not being able
<PB N="23" REF="13">to re&s;olve of any thing in certaine; &s;o are they as partiall in pre&s;cribing their plots for matter of practi&s;e; whiles they reprove that in others, which in them&s;elves they doe allow. Except peradventure they will tell us (and we mu&s;t needs beleeve them) that their <HI>Lay-Elders</HI> be|come Clergy men <HI>ip&s;o facto,</HI> becau&s;e they are of their Con&s;i&s;tory; &amp; have voyces (according to their learning) in the&s;e Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall cen&s;ures.</P>
<P N="2">2 <HI>That none be excommunicated for</HI><NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">The order of Excom. &amp;c. in the Church of Scot. Printed June, 1571. Cap. 4. Thus any &s;mall offence may ju&s;tly de&s;crve Excommuni|cation, by rea|&s;on of the con|tempt &amp; di&s;o|bedience of the offendor.</NOTE> <HI>trifles and twelve penny matters.</HI> They are not. Contempt is then the grea|ter, when the matter wherein they &s;hew their contempt is of le&s;&s;er valew: As contrariwi&s;e, obedience is then more commendable, when it is &s;een in a matter of greater dif|ficulty. But the&s;e men are &s;o accu&s;tomed to di&s;obedi|ence, that they account it but a trifle; And therefore ca|lumniate us and our di&s;cipline; as if with us, men were excommunicated for trifles, when (in truth) they are cen&s;ured for their contempt.</P>
<P N="3">3 <HI>That none be excommunicated without con&s;ent of his Pa&s;tor. Without con&s;ent,</HI> is a captious tearm. For in our under&s;tanding, the Mini&s;ter of the Pari&s;h doth give his con&s;ent, when he publi&s;heth the excommunication; as al&s;o when he doth certifie what he hath done in denoun|cing the &s;ame. And this manner of con&s;ent we take to be &s;ufficient, and as much as is requi&s;ite in a private Pa|&s;tor, that hath no Juri&s;diction.</P>
<P>But what is it that the&s;e men doe meane? Would they (thinke you) that every Pa&s;tor &s;hould have a Negative in the excommunicating of his Pari&s;hioners? Undoubt|edly they would: threby intending the utter overthrow of the pre&s;ent Church government, and in &s;teed thereof the &s;etting up of a <HI>Presbitery</HI> in every Pari&s;h. Or rather,
<PB N="24" REF="14">that which is wor&s;e (if wor&s;e may be) the enabling of e|very particular Pa&s;tour to Excommunicate by him&s;elfe<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Perpetuall go|vernment of the Church, pag. 321.</NOTE> alone.</P>
<P>Except peradventure they will &s;ay, that the particular Pa&s;tor ought to be joyned in co~mi&s;&s;ion with the Chan|celour. And then behold what would en&s;ue. On the Mini&s;ter, a world of troubles: he mu&s;t be &s;ent for as oft as any of his pari&s;h is pre&s;ented, he mu&s;t attend the hea|ring and debating of the whole cau&s;e; he mu&s;t be pre|&s;ent as oft as the Chancellor &s;itteth, as long as the mat|ter dependeth, to his great travaile and pains, his exce&s;|&s;ive charge, and the cau&s;le&s;&s;e neglect of his calling. On the other &s;ide, if this Mini&s;ter will be wilfull, and in fine di&s;&s;ent from the Chancelor in opinion; then is all the la|bor lo&s;t; the Judge hath &s;pent his &s;kill and care in vain, and the Bi&s;hops Con&s;i&s;tory mu&s;t down to the ground: either <HI>Pa&s;tor</HI> mu&s;t prevaile, or nothing mu&s;t be done; To the intollerable hinderance of Ju&s;tice, and exce&s;&s;ive de|triment of the plaintiffe. The&s;e and the like, are the well advi&s;ed Propo&s;itions, wherof there is &s;tore in their Di&s;|cipline. By which it doth &s;ufficiently appeare, that as yet it is not throughly refined.</P>
<P N="4">4 <HI>Extorting of unrea&s;onable fees,</HI> who approveth? Who di&s;liketh not? Who would not have it redre&s;&s;ed, in any that offend? Be&s;ides there are very<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Con&s;tit. Eccl. 1597. cap. de Feodisquae off. Eccle&s;.</NOTE> &s;evere laws already made in that behalfe.</P>
<P N="5">5 <HI>Farming out of Juri&s;dictions and Regi&s;ters places,</HI> though we commend it not, nor greatly like of it; yet it is of it &s;elf a matter indifferent; neither good nor ill, but as it is u&s;ed.</P>
<P N="6">6 The re&s;traint of <HI>Mariage at certaine times</HI> (fal&s;e|ly called a Popi&s;h Canon) was<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Con&s;il. Laodi. Can. 52.</NOTE> anciently u&s;ed in the
<PB N="25" REF="14">Church of God; and being rightly under&s;tood, is now commendable in this of ours.</P>
<P N="7">7 The <HI>Long-&s;omnes of Suits in Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall Courts,</HI> is a matter of fact, not of Con&s;titution; nor is the fault of the Court, nor of the Judge nece&s;&s;arily (as the&s;e men would &s;eem to imply,) but &s;ometime error in pleading, &s;ometime the intricatenes of the cau&s;e, &s;omtime the per|ver&s;ene&s;&s;e of the Clyent, &s;ometime the cunning of the Proctors, are the occa&s;ion that &s;uits depend long. And when all is &s;aid, that they can &s;ay, this is none other fault than is incident to the cour&s;e of Ju&s;tice at the Common Law; and might befall their Con&s;i&s;tory, or a better and more equall kind of triall.</P>
<P N="8">8 <HI>The Oath ex officio,</HI> is u&s;ed as it ought, by men of place, of wi&s;dome, and experience; by men of Religion, learning, and con&s;cience. Unto whom the authority to admini&s;ter it as occa&s;ion is offered doth ju&s;tly belong, not by &s;peciall Commi&s;&s;ion only, but by the laws of this land, by the two Laws Canon and Civill; and by the war|rant of &s;undry examples of the word of God: as that wor|thy and learned Dean of the Arches <HI>(the ornament &amp; ho|nor of his profe&s;&s;ion in his time)</HI> in his judicious<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">The Apolog. 2 part, Cha 9. and &s;o &s;orth to the end of the &s;ame.</NOTE> Apolo|gy of certain proceedings in Courts Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall, doth prove at large,</P>
<P N="9">9 <HI>Licen&s;es for Mariage without Banes,</HI> are mo&s;t <HI>cau|tiou&s;ly granted;</HI> and that upon<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Con&s;t. Eccl. 1597. cap. de moder. indulg.</NOTE> &s;evere puni&s;hment to en&s;ue, if &s;o be the Con&s;titution be violated. But what will &s;atisfie the&s;e men, who thus intimate unto his High|ne&s;&s;e, that there is rigor in the former point, and negli|gence in this, when as all moderation and carefulnes is u|&s;ed in them both?</P>
<P>And are not the&s;e <HI>heynous enormities?</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 TYPE="subsection">
<PB N="26" REF="15">
<HEAD>Their Conclu&s;ion.</HEAD>
<P>THe ilde vaunt that the Petitioners make of <HI>being a|ble to &s;hew that the&s;e and other &s;uch abu&s;es</HI> (as they call them) <HI>remaining and practi&s;ed in the Church of Eng|land, are not agreeable to the Scriptures,</HI> doth appeare to be the more ridiculous; becau&s;e they have pa&s;&s;ed over in deep &s;ilence many learned<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">The perpet. gover of Chri. Chur. A&s;urvey of the pret. holy di&s;c. The an&s;wer to the Ab&s;tract. The Apol. of certain pro|ceed in Court Eccle. A treati&s;e of Eccle&s;. Di&s;cip. De Presbyt. e|ju&s;&abque; nova &amp;c. De div. Mini&s;t. Evan. grad, &amp;c. The Remon|&s;trance. Querimonia Eccle&s;iae. The 5 books of the laws of Eccle&s;. polit.</NOTE> Tracts publi&s;hed long &s;ince, wherein their vain fancies, and illiterate objecti|ons are refuted at large. If notwith&s;tanding they will yet venture to write, it will be an&s;wered; If they will needs argue and di&s;pute, there are ready that will either &s;atisfie them, or by argument &s;ilence them. And were it not in regard that we would not &s;eem as undutifull in ac|cepting, as they have been in the offering of this Chal|lenge: it is the thing we would urge, and in&s;tantly en|treat, that the&s;e matters might be debated between us in writing. But in the mean time, what motions are the&s;e for the reformers to make unto a mo&s;t prudent Prince in his &s;ettled and peaceable government; who for many years, hath had triall in that his other kingdome, of their pretended reformation; and in this al&s;o hath &s;een the gracious effects under her Maje&s;ties late hapy Raign of that Church Di&s;cipline, which they would ruinate and overthrow.</P>
<P><HI>God hath appointed his Maje&s;ty unto this Kingdome.</HI> It is true; and we magnifie the goodne&s;&s;e of God for it, and congratulate his Highnes in the pro&s;perous po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of it, from the ground of our hearts. But that God hath ap|pointed him to this kingdome <HI>for &s;uch a purpo&s;e as they conceite;</HI> what &s;pirit of divination is in them, that they &s;hould fore&s;peake it? Nay rather, &s;eeing almighty God hath ordained him as the great Phy&s;itian (next and im|mediately under him&s;elfe,) to take care of the body po|litique,
<PB N="27" REF="15">both of his Church and Common-wealth; he will &s;urely cure &s;uch di&s;ea&s;es, as the&s;e men are &s;ick of. (For turbulent and di&s;contented humors are like to breed ve|ry dangerous de&s;ea&s;es in a civill State:) And not be per|&s;waded (as they fondly imagine) by &s;uch &s;ugge&s;tions as the&s;e, to alter that &s;tate of the Church, which is accep|table to God, honorable to his Highnes, comfortable to many thou&s;and Mini&s;ters, the Nur&s;e of good learning, admirable to &s;trangers, approved by our<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The letters that M^r. <HI>Beza.</HI> hath written to the Arch. bi&s;h. of C. that now is.</NOTE> Oppo&s;ites, envied of our enemies, di&s;ta&s;tfull unto none, but &s;uch as know neither how to rule, nor how to obey.</P>
<P>The very names of puni&s;hments are unplea&s;ant indeed; but the things them&s;elves are nece&s;&s;ary &s;ometimes, and their effects good and profitable for pre&s;ervation of the whol; how&s;oever the induring of them, may be grievous in the particular. And he that will indifferently con&s;ider the true cau&s;es of the corrections here mentioned; &s;hall have ju&s;t cau&s;e to approve the Ju&s;tice,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Con&s;piracy for pretended Reformation.</NOTE> and commend the mildnes, that hath bin u&s;ed towards this &s;ort of men.</P>
<P>As for that clau&s;e of <HI>Mens traditions,</HI> it is too too odi|ous; and would imply Super&s;tition or Popery to be in &s;ome of them; But how vainly, and how injuriou&s;ly, hath in &s;ome &s;ort been heretofore declared.</P>
<P>That other of <HI>beeing prejudiciall to none but tho&s;e that &s;eek their own, &amp;c.</HI> is as injurious to all the re&s;t of the Min &s;ters of this land. Be we the men that are &s;o addicted to <HI>our own quiet, credite, and commoditie in the world?</HI> Where then be the the fruits of our covetou&s;nes, the ef|fects of our ambition, the marks of our idlenes? We be the men, that in the te&s;timony of a good con&s;cience, for the repelling of &s;uch a malicious contumely, and &s;landerous reproach, may truly &s;ay: We put not out our mony to u|&s;ury; we dete&s;t all filthy lucre; we contain our &s;elves with|in
<PB N="28" REF="16">our Vocations; we for&s;ake not our holy callings, we omit not to labour in our &s;everall charges; we &s;u&s;taine the places of great labour, travaile, and expen&s;e; we neg|lect not in publike, in private, in word, in writing, at home and abroad, to put to &s;ilence, and &s;top the mouth of the common Adver&s;ary, which the&s;e men have enlar|ged again&s;t us, and our mo&s;t holy faith.</P>
<P>To conclude, the thing they &s;eeke is &s;o <HI>prejudiciall,</HI> both to the Civill &s;tate in generall, and in particular, to &s;o many of the very be&s;t of the Mini&s;tery; that if it &s;hould take effect, but God of his mercy, and the Kings mo&s;t ex|cellent Maje&s;ty in his Chri&s;tian wi&s;dome, will not &s;uffer it) it would breed a &s;trange alteration in the One; and in the Other it would for the pre&s;ent, not only impoveri&s;h us, and our Univer&s;ities, but make both them and us, and the whol Clergy very ba&s;e and contemptible in the eies of our own people, as al&s;o a by-word and &s;corne to our neighbour Nations; And for &s;ucceeding ages, it would cut off all hope of a learned Mini&s;tery, and of that grounded learning, which as yet is, and heretofore hath been, the glory and honour of this kingdome.</P>
<P>For manife&s;tation of this point, look upon the face of all the reformed Churches in the world; and where&s;o|ever the de&s;ire of the&s;e Petitioners doth take place, be it duly con&s;idered; fir&s;t, how well their proceedings do &s;uit with the &s;tate of a <HI>Monarchy;</HI> And then, how poverty on the one &s;ide, and lack of learning on the other, doth creep upon the whole Clergy in tho&s;e Dominions.</P>
<P>As to the fir&s;t: would it not be&s;eem the &s;upereminent authority and Regal per&s;on of a <HI>King,</HI> to be him&s;elf con|fined within the limits of &s;ome particular pari&s;h; &amp; then to &s;ubject his &s;overaigne power, to the pure Apo&s;tolicall &s;implicity, of an over-&s;waying and all-commanding
<PB N="29" REF="16">Pre&s;bytery? Would it not do him much good, in a time of need, that his people &s;hould be rooted and grounded in this truth; viz. That his meeke and humble Clergy, have power <HI>to bind their King in chaines, and their Prince in lincks of iron?</HI> that is (in their learning) to cen&s;ure him, to enjoyn him penance, to excommunicate him? yea (in ca&s;e they &s;ee cau&s;e) to proceed again&s;t him as a tyrant?</P>
<P>We &s;peake not here of other points, as namely, that all appeales in cau&s;es Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall (and what doe they not make Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall?) mu&s;t finally lie, not unto the Prince, but unto the A&s;&s;embly Provinciall; That they a|low the &s;upreme Magi&s;trate, not <HI>pote&s;tatem juris,</HI> but on|ly <HI>facti;</HI> while they make him the maintainer of their proceedings, but no commander in them. The&s;e and the like, are but petty abridgments of the Praerogative Roy|all, while yet the <HI>King</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">T.C. l. 1. p. 180</NOTE> <HI>&s;ubmits his Scepter unto the Scep|ter of Chri&s;t, and licks the du&s;t of the Churches feete.</HI></P>
<P>Neither may it be truely &s;aid, that the&s;e are only Spe|culations. There are &s;ome of high place yet alive, and o|ther &s;ome are dead, that have felt the &s;mart hereof in their own experience, and have &s;een the wor&s;t of all this put in wofull execution.</P>
<P>As to the &s;econd. Do we not &s;ee it at this day verified among them, which hath been &s;o often truly &s;aid, and as often unadvi&s;edly denied, that <HI>honos alit artes;</HI> and con|trariwi&s;e, where due reward of learning and liberal main+tenance of the Mini&s;tery, is fraudulently impaired, or in|juriou&s;ly taken away,<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;ia&s;. dif|cipl. pag. 114.</NOTE> there Religion and learning com to decay? There Athei&s;me and Barbari&s;me and confu&s;i|on mu&s;t needs en&s;ue? It is too aparent, that as the reve|nues of tho&s;e Churches have been embeazled by men of corrupt mindes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 83.11.</NOTE> which &s;aid in their hearts, as it is in the P&s;alme, <HI>Let us take to our &s;elves the hou&s;es of God in po&s;&s;e&s;|&s;ion:</HI>
<PB N="30" REF="17">&s;o the remainder of that grounded learning, which was bred up in former times, is now through &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of time, almo&s;t cleane worne out.</P>
<Q>Nec bona tam &s;equitur, quam bona prima fuit.</Q>
<P>In&s;omuch, that there is neither &s;ufficient maintenance in tho&s;e parts, for any &s;tore of excelle~t learned men, nor yet many men brought up among them in this la&s;t refor|ming age, worthy of that wonted honorable mainte|nance.</P>
<P>God knows we &s;peak not this with a detracting Spirit but with grief of heart: to &s;ee the ruines of the Mini&s;te|ry in particular, and generaly of all profound learning in other reformed Churches. As likewi&s;e to &s;tirre up this whol nation to a thankfull acknowledgment of that &s;in|gular ble&s;&s;ing in this behalfe, which God of his goodnes hath long, and yet doth continue unto us of this Realm. And withall, to put to &s;ilence the malicious ingratitude of tho&s;e evill men, which looking upon us &amp; this Church through the colourd gla&s;&s;e of their prejudicate opinions; can &s;ee nothing among us <HI>but defects and deformities, and abu&s;es and enormities,</HI> and the like. And therfore in their high di&s;cretion, would have us reduced and made con|formable to the calamities of other places.</P>
<P>Whereas, in truth, if we &s;hall bring back the eyes of our minds from forrein parts, and indifferently (without either detraction or flattery) take notice of the pre&s;ent &s;tate of this Church and Comon-wealth; we &s;hall ea&s;ily di&s;cern, that it were an incomparable happines for them, if all that profe&s;&s;e the truth as it is in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, were in our condition.</P>
<P>We &s;hall &s;ee, how that our Church government is du|ly &s;ubordinate unto the &s;upreme civill &s;tate, and withall doth mightily &s;upport the &s;ame. That our reverend Pre|lates
<PB N="31" REF="17">(men of &s;ingular worth, not to be matched in any one kingdom) though preferred unto highe&s;t roomes, doe yet contain them&s;elves within &s;uch bounds as pre|&s;erves that e&s;tate from creeping to any Papal corrupti|ons. That our inferior Clergy, by their godly and pain|full labors in their vocation, have been and are the mo&s;t effectuall meanes to &s;ettle the tranquility of this land; by inducing mens minds to Piety towards God, Loyalty to their King, and civill hone&s;ty among them&s;elves. That our people generally (excepting &s;ome few malecontents of all &s;orts, whom wee leave to the mercy of the Magi|&s;trate) are inured unto Peace, accu&s;tomed to &s;ubjection, dete&s;t di&s;loyalty, and with all alacrity yeeld their obedi|ence unto their Soveraign.</P>
<P>That the Colledges, the Cathedrall-Churches,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Saravia de fa|crilegiis, ca. 9.</NOTE> the Bi&s;hops and other Mini&s;ters of this land, have yet remai|ning unto them (yet after the many and great &s;poyles of this Church; which notwith&s;tanding, never pro&s;pered with them that got them, but were as ru&s;t to the re&s;t of their &s;ilver and their gold, or as a Canker, that fretted out them&s;elves, their po&s;terity or their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions) that yet there is remaining unto them more competent and &s;ufficient maintenance; more comfortable and honorable encouragements, then there are to all other reformed Churches in Chri&s;tendom.</P>
<P>That an&s;werable therunto (to &s;top that mouth of ini|quity, which is wont to traduce us, for <HI>a dumbe, unlear|ned Idoll Mini&s;tery</HI>) there are at this day more learned men in this Land, in this one kingdom;<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 2 Cor. 13.</NOTE> then are to bee found among all the Mini&s;ters of the Religion in <HI>France Flanders, Germany, Poland, Denmarke, Geneva, Scotland;</HI> or (to &s;peake in a word) all <HI>Europe</HI> be&s;ides.</P>
<P>Which yet, may not ju&s;tly be imputed to us for vani|ty,
<PB N="32" REF="18">the Apo&s;tle that knew how to be aba&s;ed, and to make him&s;elfe of no reputation; yet when the impeaching of his per&s;onall gifts was abu&s;ed to the di&s;grace of his cal|ling; did without either arrogancy or folly, give his De|tractors plainly and roundly to under&s;tand, that he was not inferior to the chief Apo&s;tles, nay that hee labored more then they all; and &s;o by his own ju&s;t defence &amp; co~|mendation, did free him&s;elf, his worth and his vocation, from their ba&s;e and odious imputations. In a like ca&s;e (we doubt not) a truth may be averred of our &s;elves, even by our &s;elves, without any o&s;tentation at all; when it is &s;o in|juriou&s;ly impeached &amp; trodden under foote, to the high di&s;honor of God, the di&s;grace of his Go&s;pell, and to the &s;lander of this mo&s;t Chri&s;tian Comon-wealth.<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al 47.10.</NOTE> Yea the rich mercies that God hath continued unto us the&s;e 45 yeeres, ought to repleni&s;h our hearts with joy, and that our lips &s;hould break forth with thankfulnes &amp; &s;ing, <HI>Non facit taliter omni natione;</HI> neither have the Regions round about vs been made partakers of the like ble&s;&s;ings.</P>
<P>Now the father of Mercies, and God of all Con&s;ola|tion, enlarge the wi&s;e and under&s;tanding heart of our thrice noble King, noble in byrth, noble in wi&s;dom, no|ble in all manner of good learning; a&s;&s;i&s;t him ever with his holy Spirit, the &s;pirit of Councell, of Sanctification and of Truth: make him admirable in the &s;waying of this Scepter as was <HI>Salomon</HI> in all the world, as long as he walked in the fir&s;t way of his father <HI>David:</HI> That &s;o hee may long weare this mortall Crown, in all abundance of piety, peace and pro&s;perity, and hereafter obtaine that immortall Crown that Chri&s;t hath purcha&s;ed for them <HI>which by continuance in well doing &s;eeke glory and honor and immortality.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="18">
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
