An Apology for the Nonconformists Ministry, Treatise · Part 1 · Objection 6
6 Obj. But all this while you lived in Sequestrations upon other mens estates, and eat other mens bread, of which you never made restitution; and how then can you think your merits are such as may plead for your readmission: and in particular, Mr. Durel and many others have told the world and your self, that as a reward for your military service you had a good Benefice, out of which another only for his fidelity was cast out; with what conscience this was done, see you to it.
Ans. Reader, seeing it's the pleasure of Mr. Durel, and so many more to call out the man, and cull out the matter with which the world must be thus troubled, I intreat thee to pardon my personal narratives, for which were it not that they lay the interest of so many of my Brethren, of my writings and office upon it, I could not pardon my self.
1. Let the world then know that these Ministers whom we succeeded were cast out by the Secular power that bore sway, and not by those that succeeded them. If you know of one Minister of a hundred that was the agent in that work, let that one, and not the innocent hear of it.
2. That the people of each Parish, or some of them, were the accusers, witnesses, and sollicitors of the cause; who beg'd for deliverance, and a better Ministry, as if it concerned the benefit of their souls.
3. That it was somewhat an excusable error in the Ministers that succeeded them, to think that if the Parliament or any Usurpers, did turn out the former Ministers of any place, the people should not therefore be left as Heathens, and all Gods Worship be forsaken, and the doors shut up as in the Venetian and other Interdicts by the Pope, and this for ten or twelve years together, yea almost twenty; and that if the Parliament had cast out the overseers of the poor, or the nurses of your children, it's hard that all they that after relieved them, and saved their lives, must be accused as so greatly injurious; and that it's hard that when the love of souls doth make them unweariedly spend themselves for the peoples good, that this should be one of their unpardonable crimes! How different are mens judgments of vice and virtue? and they did think also that really before God and man the Salary was for the work. And if they had a lawful calling to the work of the place, they thought they had so to the Salary. They thought that if a Pilot of a Ship were on pretence of insufficiency and utter ignorance cast out by usurpers of the power, that all Shipping must not therefore stand still, nor all men be proclaimed sinners that take the place and maintenance. I justifie not their reasons; but I may tell you my opinion, that being young men (mostly) in the Universities, that had little or nothing of their own, they could not well otherwise have got bread and clothing, much less Books, Fire, House-room, &c. nor long have Preached without bread and clothing. And I knew few of them that when they were cast out, were able to refund or restore that which bought them bread and fire, and clothing; unless you would sell them as slaves to work it out.
And to speak truth, many of them thought it a good work, yea very good, to cast out those (how many such there were I meddle not now), that were utterly unable for the work of that office, or grosly (and long-uncurable) vicious.
But I am called by Mr. Durel to speak for my self.
And, 1. Mr. Durel did you ever know either me or the man you speak of that was cast out, or ever hear or see the articles against him? If not, fye man, what doing is this for a French Divine of so much learning, and a Preacher of the Word of Truth!
But because you talk to the world of things that you never knew, let your patience bear while I trouble you and the Readers with the story which you extort.
When the Long Parliament sate 1640, and shewed a forwardness to reform the Clergy, the people of all Countrys fled to them with Petitions, that thought they greatly needed better Pastors; and too many in dislike of Altars, and Rails, and Lords-day dancing, which they judged hardly of. And among others many people of Kiderminster drew up Articles against their Vicar, under three general Heads, Insufficiency, and Negligence, Scandal and Innovation. (True or false I am not now telling you), With these their Agents go to London, and the Vicar after them, where seeing how matters went, he got the people by the mediation of Sir Henry Herbert to yield to this agreement, That they should chuse a Lecturer to preach to them, and leave the Vicar in his place and Vicaridg to read Common-prayer, (not forbidding him to preach when he would, so he hindered not the Lecturer.) For which he bound himself in a Bond of 500l. to pay the said Lecturer Threescore pounds a year. After this agreement, the Bayliff and Improp…iator, and others of the people, sent to me to Bridgrorth where I lived, to invite me to accept this Lecture. At last I came and Preached there twice every Lords-day, and a Thursday-Lecture every fort-night, besides Funeral-Sermons, &c. for about a year and half; in all which time I never heard or knew that the Vicar Preached above twice, (though indeed before and since he Preached once a Quarter, or at least once in half a year; (I am not now concern'd to tell you how.) Being driven away at the end of a year and half by the Wars, I came again by the peoples importunity, when the War was ended, (about four years after.) For all that time I never asked the Vicar for a farthing according to his Bond, though I was forced away. But before I came back to them (without any concurrence of mine) they had again Articled against the Vicar as before, (That he was utterly insufficient; that when he did preach once a Quarter, his own Wife (though fully conformable) would not hear him; and a great deal of such stuff; to which certain Witnesses, (well accounted of for veracity by the people) took their Oaths: Whereupon the Vicar was sequestred by the Committee, and the Vicaridg put into the hand of several of the neighbours to receive the profits, and pay it to one to officiate the cure. After this the people importune me to take it: I absolutely denied it. They followed me at Coventry, and elsewhere, with importunity; and I still refused it. Only I told them that by an augmentation which I procured, making my 60l. a hundred, and a House, I would come to be only their Lecturer as before. When they could not move me, they consented. And lest any misinterpretation should be after made of it, (or any Mr. Durel have a pretence of accusation), I got all the Magistrates and chief of the whole Town together, and in the Town-Hall openly, they subscribed an agreement with me to pay me 100l▪ per Ann. as their Lecturer, and that no part of this should accrew from the Vicaridg. Which writing I think I have yet to shew. After this they chose an Assistant to do the rest of the work; and the Sequestrators gathered the Tythes, and never gave any account to me of it, nor had I any title to them; till at last some one put it into the peoples heads that some other would get in and take the place: Whereupon to keep out others they went privately and got the Committee to give them an Order to put me in the sequestred Vicaridg, which they kept privately to themselves for their own Indemnity. And I never once saw it, till just the day that the Kings Majesty now reigning went into Worcester, and the Town was full of Soldiers of both sides; one of them came and brought me the Order, and intreated me to keep it as my own. I told him I would not take it, nor keep it as my own, but they might leave it in the house for safety for their indemnity. And these men thus used my name only for their security; And when I knew it, and asked them whether any of the money they gave me came out of the Tythes, they told me that the 60, which was my due by bond before, and an Augmentation granted by the Parliament to a Chappel, was more than I had. And they used my name in letting their Tythes; which when I knew what they had done, I consented to for their Indemnity. And this was my taking the Sequestration.
And as for the riches of it, and the reward of my military service, the last is a putid falshood: and the case of the former is this: I was offered in my native Country a Parsonage accounted worth 500l. per Ann. and my choice of others not much worse. I never had any thought of taking them, but of returning to my former work. The Agreement was made by the Vicar himself; and the Articles against him first that moved him to it, could not be for his fidelity about the War; for they were long before the King and Parliament disagreed, and a year and half before the Wars. When I returned, instead of the 100l. which they agreed to pay me and an house, I had usually but 90l. and sometimes 80l. and a few rooms in the top of another mans house. And I never asked them for more. The Vicaridg they told me they used to let at Sevenscore or Eightscore pound almost, (now worth more); of this my Assistant was to have threescore or more, but seldom had near so much; 6l. per. Ann. went to the King and chief Lord, (as they then spake.) The Fifths the Vicar had; and they told me they gave him more, about 40l per Ann. 10l. a year an old conformable Curate at a Chappel had; and Taxes, and the poor, &c. had something. This 80 or 90l which I had, was far from defraying my necessary charges. I kept no family but one servant. I spent as little on my self as most men of my calling. When I had kept usually one boy or more at the University, and paid for Bibles, and other Books, and teaching some poor peoples children to read, with other necessary helps to the poor, and particularly my poor Relations, my Stipend was spent before my charges were defrayed. And for the Vicaridg-house (which was large and private) I know not what is within the doors. From the first day of its Sequestration till my coming away, which was about fourteen years, I never set my foot within the doors, much less disturbed the Vicar in his possession, even when Cromwell published a Declaration for the removal of all sequestred Ministers from the Parsonage or Vicaridg-houses, and two miles from the place; but I contented my self with the rooms aforesaid. And so much for Mr. Durels better information against the time of his next invective against a stranger, and of a case unknown.
But he further signifieth to the world how hardly I parted with it at the last.
And such usage is very useful to believers, that they may know what to expect, even from some great Pastors of the Church in this present evil world. Therefore Reader, seeing such men will have it so, if I weary thee with one more of my own stories, forgive it as a necessary trouble. The truth is this.
When General Monk came up to London, I came away from the place I was at before the Sequestration revolved to the Vicar: When the King was restored, and his Declaration about Ecclesiastical Affairs was published, the Lord Chancellor moved me to accept a Bishoprick (of which more anon); which when I refused, (in a manner not displeasing to him), I told him that if he had any kindness for me, I should accept of my continuance with my ancient flock, as a satisfying expression of it, sobeit he would give the old Vicar a better place, that is, some Prebendship which required no Preaching, or some sine Cura, (for I durst motion him to no other.) To which my Lord Chancellor expressed readiness and resolution. Sir Ralph Clare was used by him (who liveth in the place) to treat about it with the Vicar; but it was so ordered that the Vicar refused unless he had another place: no place could be found▪ My Lord Chancellor would not put such a man (pardon his censure), into a Prebendship, lest it should dishonour the Church. I told him that in a Pastoral Cure it would be much worse. At last my L. Chancellor wrote a Letter with his own hand to Sir Ralph Clare, expostulating with him that it was not done, and telling him that it was his Majesties Desire; and speaking more of my desert and his Majesties favour than I will recite; and promising that his own Steward should pay yearly to the Vicar the full value of the Vicaridg if he would resign it to me. And he gave me the Letter unsealed, and I took a copy of it. But the Vicar was not to take this for security. At length that I might satisfie my conscience and people to the utmost that I did not forsake them, I moved the Lord Chancellor that I might be but the old Vicars Curate, and preach under him as such, for any thing or nothing. And at last this also was refused, and Sir Ralph Clare plainly told me, that I was the fittest man in England for the place if I would conform, and the unfittest of all others if I would not, because of my interest in the people. (And at the parting I thank him, he sent me a purse of money, which I returned him as it came.) And so long a time was spent in attendance of my Lord Chancellor before this business came to an end, that I suppose it is all the occasion of Mr. Durels conclusion, how hardly I let go a good Benefice so ill gotten. So that Reader, to accept of a poor Curateship for nothing, under an old Reading Vicar, when I might have had a Bishoprick easily at the same time; and to be denied even that after all these expectations and attendance, is a heinous crime in a poor silenced Minister of Christ in our age, and worthy to be published to the world, and left on record to posterity as a brand of a mercenary man, by one that hath at least more Promotions than one. And thus goeth the History of this age.
And for Restitution, the Vicar himself is so well satisfied of my dealing with him, that he gave the Sequestrators or Trustees, (who indeed did meddle with his Tythes (and I verily believe more to their loss than gain) a full discharge of all matters that he could call his due to that day. And my Lectureship, which he was by his Bond to allow me in without impediment, and to pay me 60l. per Ann. I never once claimed, (though I thought by forbidding me to Preach, he had forfeited his Bond) which was to others, not to me.)
And now if their own Rule hold, ex uno disce omnes, you see how the Ministers of England are to be judged of.