Justification of Separation from the Church of England, Treatise · Section 123 – Section 124
And first, it is erronious…y written by him, and the scriptures Act. 13. 1. 2. & 14. 23. sinfully perverted to the justification of his errour, that †Separat. schism. pag. 138.by the Church which, is to chose officers …s meant the guids, and governours thereof. That which I hauehave formerly noted out of both his books, espetially his quoting the latter of these scriptures for the peoples liberty in chusing their ministers, doth give greatMr B. cause of suspition, that in this case he thus writes for his purpose, againstAnsw. his conscience, and is in deed condemned of himself. And for the other place, which is Act. 13. 1. 2. I may as justly (yea & much more) reprove Mr B. for bringing it for the governours chusing of Paul, and Barnabas, as he Mr Smyth for bringing Act. 1. for the peoples chusing of Mathias.
For, first Barnabas & Saul were Apostles, as well as Mathias: and therefore not to be called to their office by man but by God, Gal: 1. 1. and so were of *Act. 13 1 2. & 1. 24. 26.the Holy Ghost as immediately separated by name, as was Mathias by lot.
2. Mathias was at that time first called to the office of Apostleship, which before he had not: but Paul, and Barnabas were *Act. 9. 1 Cor. 9. 1. 2. 6.Apostles long before, and at that tyme designed onelyonly to a speciall work, but not called to any office.
3. It appeareth that Paul, and Barnabas were not separated, & sent by the governours onelyonly, but by the Church with them, wherin they ministred, and which joyned with them in prayer, and fasting, and so consequently in dismissing, or letting them go, ver. 2. 3. though most like the ceremony of imposition of hands was performed onelyonly by the Teachers, and Prophets, but with the foregoing consent of the Church, according to the expresse direction of the holy Ghost. And that, not the governours severally, but the Church with them, separated and sent them, vnderunder the Lords expresse nomination, appears evidently, Act. 14. 27. where vponupon their return▪ they made relation, not to the officers, but to the Church gathered together for that purpose, what things the Lord had wrought by thē, that so not onelyonly the grace of God towards the Gentiles might be taken knowledge of, and magnified, but also that their service, & ministration might be approved to the Church, which sent them.
And thus all may see how injurious this man is to the right, and liberty of the brethren, as formerly in the censures, so here in the choise of officers: making the governours alone the Church both in the one, and the other. And being both of them Church matters, and parts of the publique administration of Christs kingdom, the same scriptures which demonstrate the peoples interest in the one, do conclude the same in the other.
In the beginning, the Lord Iesus, and his Apostles by his spirit, appointed none other true visible Churches but particular cō gregations of faythfull people; (for of the vanity of representative Churches in the new testament I have formerly spoken) but as †1 Cor. 8. …knowledge puffeth vp▪ so within a few ages, the officers and governours of the Church (being men of knowledge) began to swell with that poysoned humour of pride, & ambition, wherewith Antichrist had infected them, especially when they were once setled in peace, and plenty; and taking withall, partly advantage, by the peoples negligence in themselves, and superstitious admiration of their guides; and partly occasion by the abuse of their liberty) have been bold to engrosse the liberties of the whole Church into their own hands, and with them, the name. They alone must hauehave the keyes of the kingdome of heaven hanging at their girdell, for the opening, & shutting of heaven gates: which is all one as if in playn termes they should affirm, that to them alone were committed the oracles of God, the gospel of salvation, see Rom. 3. 2. Iude, 3. They alone must *1 Cor. 14 3.speak in the Church to adif…ing, exhortation, and comfort: and so all the brethren must be silenced in the exercise of prophecying. To them alone must the complaints of sinns be brought, and they alone must be heard in the reforming of them: and thus must the bottomles gulf of the governours authority svvallovv vp the brethrens liberty in the reproving, and censuring of offenders. They alone are to separate, and chuse the ministers: and of this branch of the povver of Christ amongst the rest, must the body of the Church be stript. And as there is no end of errours, vvhere they once begin, especially of those, vvhichwhich tend to the advancement of the man of sin in his Ministers above all that is called God, so hath this iniquity prevayled yet further, even to the bereaving of the people of the cup in the Lords supper, and of the very scriptures in their mothers tongue: the Preists alone communicating in both parts of the supper; and inclosing the scriptures themselves vvith in the Romish, or Latine language, vvhichwhich they alone, to speak of▪ vnderstood. Yea, to conclude, so effectuall hath the delusion of Satan been this vvay, that it hath been vniversally taught, and beleeved, that an implicite faith vvas sufficient in the lay people, & that no more vvas required of them then to beleeve, as the Church (that is, the (guides, and governours of the Church) beleeved, though they were vtterly ignorant what their fayth was. And what lesse in effect doth M. B. affirm in his “pag. 145.2. book, where he writes, that, if the cheif do voluniarily receive, professe, & proclaym a faith, or religion, it is to be accounted the act of all, though the inferiours come not to consent? he might as well hauehave added, though they be ignorant of it, or what it meanes. Yea doth not this conclusion follow vponupon the former ground, that the officers are the Church. Mat. 18. for the reproving & censuring of offenders, and for the binding, & loosing of sinns? If the Officers be the Church for one religious, or spirituall determination, why not for an other? And if the censures agreed vponupon and ministred by the Officers, be by way of representation, the censures of the Church, without the actuall consent of the people; why is not the faith agreed vponupon, and published by the officers the fayth of the Church, by way of representation, before the peoples distinct knowledge of it, or actuall consent vntounto it? Put the case the officers change their auncient fayth in some mayn point, wherein the body of the Church still abideth, and so differeth from them; and that they take occasion to excommunicate some brother, or brethr…n, that most opposes them: if this excommunication of the officers be the excōmunication of the Church representatively, without the peoples consent; then is this new faith also of the officers, for which this excommunication is practised, the faith of the people notwithstanding their not onelyonly not consenting vntounto, but their vtter dissenting from the same.
Now as the governours did thus engrosse the power, and libertyes of the Church, so no marvayl, though with them, they assumed the name. Hence is it that they alone are called the Church, the Clergy, the spiritually: the prophane idiotish laity are excluded both from the title, and thing. Symon the Sadler, To…k… the Taylour, Belly pag. 197.the Bellowes-maker must be no Church men, nor meddle with Ch: matters. As though it were eyther not true, or to no purpose, which is written, that Christ himself vvas †Mar. 6. 3.a Carpenter *Act. 18. 3. " Math. 4. 18. 21.Paul a …en… maker, "Peter, Andrew, Iames, & Iohn Fishermen.
One onelyonly thing more I vvill adde, & so conclude this point; which is, that the Preists vvere not more eager at the first vponupon the people, till they had svvallovved vp their liberty, then they vvere afterwards one vponupon an other, till one had gotten all; from whom, as from the Catholick visible head, all power should issue, and be derived to the severall partes of the body. And hovv clean a vvay Mr Bern. and others (vvhichwhich knovving better have the more sin) make to this mischeif, in pleading that Paul alone, 1 Cor. 5. & the severall Angels alone in the severall Churches Rev. 2. & 3. vvere to reform, and censure abuses, let the vvise reader judge.
The 2. allegation made by Mr B. against vvhichwhich I except, is, that the Ministers vvith them have all things in substance required by the word Mr B.of God for their making, as presentation, election, examination, ordinatiō, with imposition of hands; and that the exceptions wee take are but about circumstances onelyonly, and same manner of doing: which do not make a nullity, or falsity of the deed done.
As we do except against the very office it self, and against theAnsw. mayn, and most principall works of it, by law required, as works of will-worship, and †Col. 2. 23.voluntary religion, so do our exceptions against the very calling, and enterance of your Ministers evince them sufficiently not to be the true Ministers of Christ. “Heb. 5. 4. 5.No man takes this honour vntounto himself, but he that is called of God, as Aaron. No, Christ himself took not this honour to be made the high Pr…st, but he that sayd vntounto him, thou art my sonne, this day begate I thee, gave it him. And if Christ the Lord of his Church did not take vponupon him the solemn administration of his office, till by the Father he was called thereunto from heaven, it is great presumption for any man (and he a bold vsurper, that so practiseth) to take vponupon him any office in the Church, not being chosen and called thereunto by them, which under the Lord, hauehave received this Charter, thus to call Ministers, which are onelyonly his Church, and people. And by this doctrine of Mr Bern: that faylings in circumstances, and manner of doing, make not a nullity, or falsity of the deed, it should follow, that if a company of Papists, Arians, Anabaptists, or of any other Haeretiques, or idolaters should chose, and call a minister, though it were a child, an idiote, yea a woman, & that after the most prophane, and superstitious manner that could be, yet this made no nullity, or falsity of the action, for all were but errours in circumstances, and manners of doing. Yea by this trifling, murther, adultery, and all the mischeifs in the world might be defended. If a private person should take upon him without lawfull authority to be a judge, and should condemn the inocent, and justify the guilty person, all the evill were but in the circumstances of persons judging, and judged. If a man gaue his body to the wife of another man, the evill were but circumstantiall, he might hauehave done it to another person, namely his own or proper wife. What cō fusion would these excuses of circumstances onelyonly, & manner of doing things, bring over all estates, if they were admitted of? Of this mischeif I hauehave spoken, pag. 21. 22. 23. 37.