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<DATE>2013-09-26</DATE>
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<NAME>Mona Logarbo</NAME>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B130716.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P><HI>The true</HI> CHARACTER Of &s;uch as are MALIGNANTS in the <HI>Kingdome</HI> of SCOTLAND.</P>
<P>By way of Information and Direction to the Mini&s;tery of that <HI>Kingdome.</HI></P>
<P>ALSO The Indiction of a publike FAST the third Sunday of <HI>February</HI> next, and the <HI>Thur&s;day</HI> following.</P>
<P>By the Commi&s;&s;ioners of the generall A&s;&s;embly of the Church of SCOTLAND.</P>
<P>Wherein is &s;hewed their zeale to the glory of God, and the fellow-feeling they have of their Brethren, the Members of Chri&s;ts Body.</P>
<P>LASTLY, Lamenting the pre&s;ent Di&s;traction of the Church, and Kingdome of ENGLAND.</P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for HENRY OVERTON, and are to be &s;old at his Shop in <HI>Popes-head-Alley.</HI> 1643.</P>
</DIV1>
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<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="directions regarding religious dissidents">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>Directions to Mini&s;ters anent Malignants: By the <HI>Commi&s;&s;ioners</HI> of the generall A&s;&s;embly of the Kirke of SCOTLAND.</HEAD>
<P>_COncerning a &s;ort of Enemies, the Malignants, whether they be &s;uch as from the begining oppo&s;e the worke of Reformation of Reli|gion in this Land, or &s;uch as &s;hew them&s;elves upon what&s;oever pretence, backward and di&s;affected to the Reformation of Religion of <HI>England,</HI> &s;o much indeavoured by this Kirke from our zeale to the glory of Chri&s;t, our de&s;ire of the happine&s;&s;e of our Neighbour Kingdomes, our feares of apparant danger to the Religion here, if they be not made one with us in unity of Religion and uniformity of <HI>Church</HI> government: And our hopes by the ble&s;&s;ing of God, to have a patterne from the Word &s;et up in this I&s;land, for the example of other Kirkes abroad. Becau&s;e Enemies of this kinde may prove mo&s;t dangerous if they be not di&s;covered and avoyded, it is at this time our duty to make &s;uch Malignants known to the people that they be not deceived and drawn away from their own &s;tedfa&s;tne&s;&s;e, and from the love of Chri&s;t and of their Bre|thren: But in doing this duty we have great need of wi&s;dome, and the Spirit of di&s;cerning, that we neither take our friends to be our enemies, and by that mi&s;take di&s;courage the well affected and multiply enemies again&s;t our &s;elves, nor &s;uch as are indeed enemies to be our friends, and thereby wrong the cau&s;e of God and weaken our &s;elves in &s;eeking after Reformation: and ther|fore they mu&s;t not be taken for enemies who hope the be&s;t of the Kings Maje&s;ty, and profes that they love his honour (which is the calumnie of the Malignant, again&s;t the &s;eekers of Refor|mation) nor &s;uch as in the begining through want of per&s;wa&s;ion were not &s;o forward for Reformation, nor &s;uch as in debate
<PB N="2" REF="3"> of matters do po&s;&s;ibly differ in their judgements from others, about &s;ome Circum&s;tances, and <HI>mid&s;es</HI> which may leade to the de&s;ired end of unity in Religion, provided their conver&s;a|tion be &s;uch as be&s;eemeth the Go&s;pell of Chri&s;t; and for the &s;ub&s;tance and reallity of their Speeches and actions in private and publique, they be known to contribute their be&s;t endea|vours for Reformation.</P>
<P>Upon the other part, &s;uch as be enemies indeed may be known, fir&s;t, by their malicious Cen&s;uring and calumniating of the civill and eccle&s;ia&s;ticall meetings of this Kirke and Kingdom which are held for con&s;erving of peace betwixt the Kingdomes, and for endeavouring by all good meanes the unity of Religion, as if they tended to the diminition of the King his greatne&s;&s;e and Authority in <HI>England.</HI> 2. By their di&s;pi&s;ing or mi&s;regard|ing of the publique re&s;olutions agreed upon for &s;o good ends. 3. By their notable injuring the Kings Maje&s;ty in his honour, in attributeing to his Maje&s;ty what&s;oever is plotted by bad Coun&s;ellors, or acted by the Popi&s;h and Praelaticall party, as if there were not a difference betwixt the King and them, or be|twixt the King and his Authority, and the pretence and abu&s;e thereof. 4. By &s;landering and traducing all &s;uch as labours to promote the reformation, in <HI>England,</HI> not &s;pareing them who are in places of Government, and whom God hath honoured to be worthy in&s;truments in our own reformation, as if they were enemies to the Kings honor, and were &s;erving their own privat ends, without re&s;pect to the publique. 5. By their going about &amp; endeavoring to make the hearts &amp; hands of others to faint in the worke of reformation, and if it were po&s;&s;ible to make them as Malignant &amp; di&s;affected as them&s;elves. 6. By laboring to bring the Parliament of <HI>England</HI> in &s;u&s;pition, as if they intended to <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 chunk">&s;t the yoke of royall Authority, or intended not the refor|mation of religion, and unitie with this Kirke. 7. By their in|&s;ol<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">ncy an<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> boa&s;ting when they heare of the &s;ucce&s;&s;e of the Popi&s;h and Pra<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="2 letters">aticall party, and their readine&s;&s;e to a&s;&s;i&s;t them according to their power, whereby they bewray their feare of reformation of religion, and their hope to &s;ee the day when they &s;hall be avenged upon &s;uch as they maligne at home.</P>
<P>When they are knowne by the&s;e and the like practi&s;es, we &s;ought to warne the people to beware of their Company, Coun|&s;ells
<PB N="3" REF="3"> and &s;educements; and becau&s;e &s;uch Malignants &s;hrow<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> under the fal&s;e pretence of Loyalty to the Kings Maje&s;ty, with|out re&s;pect to religion or the good of religion, we ought in all our Speeches and Praiers to te&s;tifie our faithfullne&s;&s;e and high re&s;pects to the Kings Maje&s;ty, and al&s;o to pre&s;&s;e and pray for the unity of religion, and for the pro&s;pering all the good waies that may conduce for &s;o ble&s;&s;ed a worke, as &s;erving for the honour of God, and for the King his greatne&s;&s;e, and the true peace of his Kingdoms, declaring all &s;uch as oppo&s;e the unity of Religion to be enemies to God, to the King, and to the peace and pro&s;perity of the Kingdoms.</P>
<P>Now &s;ince it is incumbent to us by our calling, and commit|ted to us by the generall A&s;&s;embly according to our calling, to u&s;e all lawfull and Eccle&s;ia&s;tick waies for furtherance of refor|mation and unity of Religion, for continuance of our own peace at home, and of the common peace betwixt the King|doms, a nece&s;&s;ity is laid upon us.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, to give warning to the people of the danger of the Prote&s;tant religion, through the Popi&s;h Armies in <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Jreland,</HI> pretending that they are better and more dutifull Sub|jects then the Prote&s;tants, but intending no le&s;&s;e then the ruine of the reformed Religion, and the planting of their Heri&s;ie, Idolatry, and Tyrannie in a more compendious way then could have bin, don by the late Service-booke, and Booke of Cannons in which cour&s;e if they &s;hall by their power prevaile, it &s;hall be impo&s;&s;ible for the Kings Maje&s;ty to &s;uppre&s;&s;e Popery, and main|taine the true religion, conforme to the many promi&s;es con|teined in his Maje&s;ties Declarations; They will &s;oone ca&s;t off their profe&s;&s;ed Allegiance and &s;ubjection, and it will be no ea&s;ie matter for this Church and Kingdome, whence they con|ceive all their troubles and di&s;appointments to have i&s;&s;ued to re&s;i&s;t that violence, e&s;pecially con&s;idering what a di&s;affected and di&s;contented party we have at home in our own bo&s;om.</P>
<P>Secondly, &s;ince unity in the truth hath bin our &s;trength &s;ince the begining, we ought by all good meanes in publick and pri|vate, to prevent and remove all divi&s;ive motions which by ma|licious and crafty &s;ichophants are endeavoured by &s;preading of Calumnies and I&s;landers again&s;t the pre&s;ent Government, and putting a&s;per&s;ions on &s;uch, whether of the Nobillity &amp; Gentry,
<PB N="4" REF="4"> Burroughs and Mini&s;try; as the Lord hath honoured to be faith|full and happy In&s;truments in his worke, from the begining having endured the heat of the day, and re&s;olved to be con&s;tant unto the end.</P>
<P>Thirdly, that &s;ince by the providence of God the two King|domes are &s;o &s;trongly united, and there be hopes of a more &s;trong union by unity of religion. It is our duty to labour to remove and prevent all occa&s;ions of jealou&s;ies and &s;u&s;pitions betwixt the two Kingdomes, and to do or &s;ay nothing that may breed mi&s;under&s;tandings, breake off corre&s;pondence, weaken the confidence or infringe the Union and Peace betwixt the two Kingdomes, &s;o happily e&s;tabli&s;hed in his Maje&s;ties pre&s;ence and with his royall con&s;ent in both Parliaments.</P>
<P>Fourthly, becau&s;e when we &s;peake for the Kings honour and for obedience to civill Authority in all things lawfull, our &s;peeches are wre&s;ted by perver&s;e men to their corrupt ends, as if we loved not the reformation of religion in <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Ire|land;</HI> and when we &s;peake of reformation, we are traduced as enemies to the King and to royall Authority, which may make a great mi&s;taking and worke dangerous effects among&s;t the peo|ple, who love both reformation of religion and the Kings ho|nour: Therefore in this difficulty we ought to &s;hew in our Do|ctrine, that there is no repugnancy, betwixt the Kings Autho|rity, and the reformation of religion, that nothing can &s;erve &s;o much for his Maje&s;ties glory and the greatne&s;&s;e of his King|domes, as doth the reformation of religion in all his dominions, and that &s;uch as are oppo&s;ite to the reformation, are greate&s;t enemies to the Kings honour, what&s;oever they profe&s;&s;e or &s;weare to the contrary, and al&s;o to explaine the difference be|twixt the Kings power and ju&s;t authority, and the pretending and abu&s;ing thereof by &s;uch men for their own private ends; and to &s;hew that oppoi&s;iition to &s;uch men and their waies, is a true te&s;timony of faithfullne&s;&s;e and loyalty to the King.</P>
<P><HI>That the Pre&s;biteries be carefull to di&s;cern and try the&s;e Malignants and to reclaime or cen&s;ure them according to the Acts of the A&s;&s;em|bly, and to make report of their dilligence to the next A&s;&s;embly.</HI></P>
<P>In end, becau&s;e much every way doth depend upon us of the Mini&s;try, we have need to &s;tir up our &s;elves and the people in truth and unity, which by the ble&s;&s;ing of God will be a powre|full
<PB N="5" REF="4"> meane to pre&s;erve our Religion, and to propagate the fame to other Churches groaning under thier &s;everall burdens and panting for &s;uch a reformation as the Lord in mercy hath gran|ted unto us.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="indiction for a public fast">
<HEAD>Indiction of a Publike FAST, by the <HI>Commi&s;sioners</HI> of the Generall A&s;&s;embly of the <HI>Kirke</HI> of SCOTLAND.</HEAD>
<P>WHereas by the late generall a&s;&s;embly, power is committed unto us, to con&s;ider and performe what we find nece&s;&s;ary by all lawfull and Eccle&s;ia&s;tique wayes, for furtherance of the union in Religion and unity in Kirke government, for continu|ance of our owne peace at home, and of the common peace in, and betwixt the two Kingdomes. We find it nece&s;&s;ary that there &s;hall be a &s;olemn fa&s;t and humiliation kept in all the Kirkes of this Kingdom upon the third Sunday of <HI>February</HI> next, and the <HI>Thur&s;day</HI> following, for the cau&s;es add motives following.</P>
<P N="1">1. Although within the&s;e few Yeares wee renewed the Covenant and Vowed &s;olemnely to &s;tand to the former reformation of Religi|on, and to reforme our &s;elves and our Families We have notwit&s;tan|ding fallen from the zeale and fervency of our affection at that time, many per&s;ons of all ranks and callings are growne luke-warm and are content with a meer formality and &s;hew of godlines, without inward power yea &s;ins and vices abound as in the time of corruption, Family <HI>wor&s;hip,</HI> mutual edification &amp; &s;tirring up on of another by information admonition, con&s;olation rebuke much neglected &amp; <HI>Mini&s;ters</HI> negligent in urging the &s;ame all which are &s;o much the more heynous becau&s;e of our unthankefullnes after &s;o great mercies &amp; breach of Covenant.</P>
<P N="2">2. The danger of this Church and Kingdome ari&s;ing partly from within; by the in&s;olency of Papi&s;ts in the&s;e trouble&s;ome times, and divi&s;ive motions of the Malignant Party, and creeping in if errors; and partly without, from the Popi&s;h Armies and Praelaticall party in <HI>England</HI> and <HI>Ireland,</HI> which aim undoubtedly at the di&s;turbance of our peace, and overthrow of the wi&s;h of Reformation: The con&s;ide|ration whereof &s;hould move us to pray to God to dir ct us in all law|full meanes which may &s;erve for unity among&s;t our &s;elves, that wee may be the more &s;trengthened again&s;t the common enemy.</P>
<P N="3">3. In re&s;pect of the fellow feeling which we ought to have with the
<PB N="6" REF="5"> Members of Chri&s;ts body farre and neere, wee have cau&s;e to lament the long ca&s;ting troubles of the Churches abroad in <HI>Germany,</HI> and el&s;e where, and e&s;pecially the combu&s;tions in <HI>England,</HI> and almo&s;t utter de&s;olation in <HI>Irela<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">d.</HI></P>
<P N="4">4. That the Lord may ble&s;&s;e all lawfull meanes to be u&s;ed for pre|&s;erving the union and peace betwixt the two Kingdomes, and procu|ring the unity of Religion, and uniformitie of wor&s;hip and Church Government within his Maje&s;ties Dominions e&s;pecially that God would grant a good &s;ucce&s;&s;e to the Treaty and travells of the Com|mi&s;sioners both of the Parliament and generall a&s;&s;embly.</P>
<P N="5">5. Becau&s;e the unhappy divi&s;ion; betwixt the King and Parliament of <HI>England</HI> is a great impediment to the wi&s;h of Reformation, and the &s;etling of a firm peace in his Maje&s;ties Dominions: It is our duty to recommend earne&s;tly to the <HI>Lord,</HI> that the differences may be com|po&s;ed in &s;uch a way as may mo&s;t conduce to the glory of God, and advance the &s;o much wi&s;hed for unity of Religion and uniformity of Church Government.</P>
<P N="6">6. Finally, that the Lord would di&s;cover and di&s;appoint all the con&s;piracies plots and machinations, which tend to the execution of the bloody decrees of the councel of <HI>Trent;</HI> the fountain from whence hath i&s;&s;ued all the troubles and per&s;ecutions to the reformed Churches; and quickly de&s;troy that Man of &s;in. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
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