Justification of Separation from the Church of England, Treatise
Of the Authours Advertisements, called by him Christian, & counsels of peace.
THe subiect whereof Mr Bern. treats in this place (being peace) is very plausible, the name amiable, the thing both pleasant and profitable. And as †2. Cor. 13 … Thes. 5. 13God is the God of peace, so are not they Gods children, nor borne of him, which desire it not; yea even in the middest of their contentions.
But as all vices vse to cloth themselves with the habites of vertues, that vnderunder those liveries they may get countenance and finde the more free passage in the world, so especially in the Church all tyranny and confusion do present themselves vnderunder this colour, taking vp the politick pretence of peace, as a weapon of mere advantage wherewith the stronger, and greater party vseth to beat the weaker. The Papists presse the protestants with the peace of the Church and for the rent which they have made in it, condemn them beyond the heathenish souldiours, which forbare to devide Christs garment; as deeply do the Bishops charge the Ministers refusing conformity and subscription, and both of them vsus. But the godly wise must not be affrighted eyther from seeking or embracing the truth with such buggs as these are, but seeing†Iam. 3. 17. the wisdome which is from above, is first pure, then peaceable, he must make it a great part of his Christian wisdome to discerne betwixt godly and gratious peace, and that which is eyther pretended for advantage, or mistaken by error, & so to labor to hold peace in purity. Let it then be manifested vntounto vsus that the Communion which the Church of Englād hath with all the wicked in the Land, without separation, is a pure communion, that theyr service book devised and prescribed in so many words and letters to be read over and over with all the appurtenances, is a pure worship, that their goverment by Nationall Provinciall and diocesan Bishops according to their Canōs, is a pure govermēt, & then let vsus be blamed if we hold not peace with them in word & deed; otherwise though they spake vntounto vsus never so oft both by messengers and mouth of peace, and agayn of peace, *as Iehoram did to Iehu, yet must2 King. 9. we answer them in effect, as Iehu did Iehoram, what peace whilest the whoredoms of the mother of fornicatiōs the Iezebel of Rome do remayn in so great number amongst them?
And I doubt not but Mr Bern. and 1000 more Ministers in the land, (were they secure of the Magistrates sword, and might they go on with his good licence) would wholly shake of their canonicall obedience to their Ordinaries, and neglect their citations and censures and refuse to sue in their Courts, for all the peace of the Church which they commend to vsus for so sacred a thing. Could they but obteyn license frō the Magistrate to vse the libertie which they are perswaded Christ hath given them, they would soon shake off the Prelates yoke, and draw no longer vnderunder the same in spirituall cōmunion with all the profane in the land, but would break those bonds of iniquitie, as easily as Sampson did the cordes wherwith Dalilah tyed him, and give good reasons also from the word of God for their so doing. And yet the approbation of men and angels, makes the wayes of God & workes of religion never a whit the more lawfull, but onelyonly the more free from bodily daunger. Wherevpon we (the weakest of all others) have been perswaded to embrace this truth of our Lord Iesus Christ, though in great and manifold afflictions, & to hold out his testimony as we do, though without approbation of our Sovereigne, knowing that as his approbation in such points of Gods worship, as his word warranteth not, cannot make them lawful; so neyther can his disallowance make unlawful such duties of religion, as the word of God approveth, nor can he give dispensation to any person to forbeare the fame, Dan▪ 3. 18. Act. 5. 29.
These things I thought good to commend to the reader that he may be the more cautelous of this and the like colourable pretences, wishing him also wel to remember, that peace in disobedience is that old theam of the false Prophets, whereby they flattered the mighty, and deceaved the simple, Ier. 6. 14. & 8. 11.
Let us now come to consideration of the counsels themselves so fr…ndly given, and so sagely set downe. And therein to approve what is good and wholsome, to interpret in the best sense what is doubtful, and to passe by unrequited such contumelies as wherewith Mr B. reprocheth vsus, as in all places, so here in his rhyming Rhetorick, wherein he labours to rowl …s even as may be, betwixt the Atheisticall Securitant, and Anabaptisticall Puritant, the carelesse Conformitant, and th… preposterous Reformitant, and so forth,Rules for peace. as the rhyme runneth, I wil come to those ten Rules or Canons praescribed by him, pag. 3. 4. 5. for the praeservation of peace in the Church or state ecclesiasticall, for that alone we oppose, humbling our selves vnderunder the hand of the Magistrate as much, and more truely then himself.