An Apology for the Nonconformists Ministry, Treatise · Part 1
1. WE do hold that the Sacred Office of the Ministry consisteth in an obligation to do the work, and authority to warrant us therein. And that both these are essential to the office.
2. That God doth not call men now immediately as the Prophets and Apostles were; but giving them necessary qualifications, doth commit it to the Ministry of men, first to discern and judg of those qualifications, and then by a solemn Investiture to put them in possession of the office; which is called Ordination, and is ordinarily necessary for order sake.
3. That yet the office it self is of Gods own institution; and from that Institution the Authority and Obligation resulteth directly to the persons lawfully ordained. So that God only giveth the office or power, though not without the act of man to fit the person to receive it, and then Ministerially by Investiture to deliver possession. It is not without man, but it is not of or from man, as the possessor of the power given, but only as a servant to give possession in the name of Christ. Even as men first chose (by the preparation and direction of Gods Providence) the line or family that should reign: But God only giveth the King his power. Or as the members of a Corporation may chuse their Mayor, and the Steward or Recorder may solemnly give him possession; but his power it self is immediately from the Charter of the King.
4. That though we be not called as the Apostles, yet when we are called, we are bound to fidelity as well as they were.
5. That it is not an office to be taken▪up on trial, and for a limited time, (as servants are bound to their masters by the year); but as Marriage, it is for life (unless God shall disable us), and as we say for better and for worse; and not to be laid by at pleasure. And therefore those Schoolmen that interpret the Indelible character of the Relation▪ seem not to differ from us at all.
6. That though Ordination be not, as the two Sacraments of the Covenant of Grace, and necessary to Salvation, nor generally to all the people; yet may it not unfitly be called, the Sacrament of Orders, or of our Ministerial Covenant with Christ, as a Soldiers Oath and Engagement was Sacramentum Militare.
7. That Kings and other Magistrates are not by Ordination to give this office, nor by Degradation to take it away.
8. But that Ministers are under the Government of the King, as well as Physicians, or any other subjects. And that he may use the sword to force them to the due performance of their office, and to hinder them from abusing it, to the mischief of the Church.
9. That this power is for the ends of the Ministry, which is for edification and the publick good. And therefore that the end it self is not put into the power of man (whether the Church shall be edified and happy, or not) nor yet the office of the Ministry it self (whether there shall be a Ministry or not) Nor the necessary work of that office, (whether the Ministry when necessary shall be exercised or not.)
10. We believe that those that ordain a Minister, cannot degrade him at their pleasure. As he that may baptize a child cannot unbaptize him again at pleasure; nor he that marrieth persons unmarry them.
11. Much less can every Bishop degrade at pleasure those whom other men ordained. Else every Minister might be degraded while there are so many disagreeing and angry Bishops in the world.
12. If the Magistrate forbid us to preach the Gospel, either our Preaching is necessary or unnecessary, and this is either notorious or doubtful. If our Preaching be notoriously unnecessary, we will obey him and forbear. If it be a doubtful case to us, we will use all the means which God hath appointed us to know the certain truth. And if yet it be doubtful, and our minds in suspence, we will stand to the judgment of the Magistrate and forbear. But if our Ministry be notoriously and undoubtedly necessary to the just ends, which is the edification of mens souls, we will obey God in Preaching as far as we are able, and humbly and patiently bear what is laid upon us by our Rulers.
13. But in this case we will not intrude into the publick Temple, much less lay any claim to the Tythes or publick maintenance, for these are all at the Kings disposal.
14. Nor do we take our selves bound by Christ to one place, or one time or manner of teaching, or to speak always to a great Assembly. But all these are circumstances which we must fit to the end and success of our work. And must take that course, and with that variation which tendeth to the Churches good. Christ, that bid his Apostles when they were persecuted in one City, fly to another, alloweth us to be where we may serve him best. If forbearing all Preaching for some days or weeks, would tend to the Churches good, (as by procuring us liberty afterward, &c.) it is lawful to forbear. If Preaching often to a few be more for the Churches good than to preach but once or twice to many, we may then lawfully chuse the smaller number. So that in such circumstances, that may be one mans duty which is anothers sin.
15. We take it to be our duty in all such Preaching to take heed of any thing that tendeth to the division of the peoples minds, or to the hinderance of the lawful publick Ministry, or to their just discouragement. But contrarily to concur and live with such Ministers (If possible, and as much as in us lieth, Rom. 12. 18.) in peace and mutual love; and to do all that we can to promote their reputation with the people; and to work all unjust prejudice and partiality out of their minds. And not only to draw them to a due attendance in the publick Assemblies, but also as far as reason will allow us, to prefer still the publick Ministers labours, honour, and interest in the people, before our own; and to reprove all censorious whispers and obloquy which we shall hear against them behind their backs.
16. And as for maintenance, we expect not any; unless any Minister be so poor, as for food and raiment, and the necessities of life, to live upon the alms of others, (which is the case of very many.) In which case we hold it our duty not at all to be chargeable to censorious murmuring dissenters, but only to the willing; and that if God shall humble us to the begging of our bread, we should not be so proud as to disdain it, or to murmur at his Providence, nor yet so selfish as to forsake and change our calling, because we have no better maintenance. But rather be thankful that we are kept from the temptations of grandure and fulness, by which we see so many ruined, and so great a part of the Clergy throughout the Christian world to be blinded and drowned in those ways of idleness, sensuality, cruelty and contention, which prove the division, the defilement and the dishonour of the Church. For as we believe a life to come, and that the preferring of the pleasures of this world before it, is the thing that keepeth men from Heaven, and is the common cause of mens damnation; so we believe that no condition doth so much tempt men into this damning love of the world, as that wherein the world is made most pleasing and most lovely to them. And he that aboundeth in it with wealth and honour is liker of the two to overlove it, than he that meeteth with labour, poverty and reproach. Yet will we not as begging Friers, renounce Propriety, nor cast away any talent which our Master giveth us to improve; nor yet be so impudent as to be unnecessarily burdensome, or lose our liberty by making our selves beholding and dependent; but we take it to be our part to labour faithfully in our work, and leave it to God what provisions he will allow us. And those of us that want not, but have to spare, to contribute to the relief of them that want. And we may be the more patient while we remember in how much purity the Primitive Churches were kept in their poverty and low estate; as also the Churches of the poor Waldenses, and those in Piedmont to this day; and the [Hodie venenum, &c.] the corruptions, divisions and calamities that have followed the worldly exaltation of the Clergy both in East and West. Therefore we humbly submit to his gracious Providence, that thus saveth us from the love of the world, so inconsistent with the love of God, 1 Joh. 2. 15
17. We take it also to be our duty, the greater our restraints and sufferings are, the more to take heed lest any dishonour or murmuring at our Rulers, should thence arise and be cherished in our hearers minds; which though it be not absolutely in our power to cure, we must do our best. It is a humane thing to pity the sufferers. And if our Doctrine and our lives do make the people think well of us, they are so much the readier to think ill of those by whom we suffer. Which those well perceive who have the sight that their interest made it necessary to make us odious by voluminous reproaches. But that is not the way with any but strangers. For when those that know us, know that we are slandered, it doth but increase their dislike of the reproachers. And they can read our lives as easily as the revilers books. The only way to change their opinion of us were, for us to change our Doctrine and our lives, and to preach ill, and live ill. But that is a way that we must not take, to gratifie any that would build their ends and honour on our contempt. But yet the honour of our Rulers must be more precious to us than our own. For it is more necessary to the common good. And therefore we take it for our duty, not to blazon and aggravate our sufferings too much in the hearing of the people; much less to accuse our Rulers of them; but to take to our selves the blame of all, as far as is true; and to confess (which is the truth) that it is for our own and the peoples sins; we should have laboured harder while it was day, as foreseeing the night when none can work, Joh. 9. And the people should not have forfeited their food by fulness and neglect. And alas! how many sins of theirs and ours have had a hand in this calamity? We take it to be our duty, if we hear any speak a dishonouring word against the Powers which God hath set over us, to reprove them, and better instruct them in their duty, and to warn them that they make not any of their love or pity to us, an occasion of their sin. And to remember them how much the common good and all our peace is beholden to Magistracy, notwithstanding the sufferings of particular men.
18. And we take it also for our duty, to pray for the King, and all in Authority, not with dishonouring intimations, but in such a manner as beseemeth us to speak even to God (in the hearing of men) of his own Officers; and not that their favour may make us rich and great, but only that we may live a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty, 1 Tim. 2. 12. And this not seldom nor formally, but daily and earnestly. And we take it for our duty to preach against schism, sedition and rebellion, and all principles which tend to breed or feed them; and to use our opportunities and interest in the people, to promote their loyalty and the publick peace.
19. Also we judg it our duty to preach those plain and necessary things which the salvation of men doth most depend on, and the people generally have most need to hear; that is, the opening to them their Baptismal Covenant, and the Articles of the Creed, the Lords-Prayer, the Decalogue and the Gospel-precepts; or more briefly the Doctrine of faith in Christ, and repentance towards God, and of the love of God and man; to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this world, as looking and hoping for a better, Tit. 2. 12. And not to fill the peoples heads with needless controversies, or vain jangling, or contending about words which edifie not, but subvert the hearers; much less to perplex them with talking of the unrevealed Counsels of God; nor yet to corrupt their minds by talking against our Superiors, or against dissenters behind their backs, or by aggravating the faults of other mens manner of worshipping God, or breeding in them distaste of the publick Worship; or talking against Bishops, or Ceremonies, or Liturgy; nor by representing any sort of Christians who differ from us in points not fundamental, as odious to the hearers; whether Lutherans, Caelvinists, Arminians, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Independent, yea or Anabaptists; no, nor to injure the Papists themselves, by making our differences seem greater than indeed they are. Our office is to preach up love, and not to preach it down and mortifie it, which all those do, whatever they pretend, that attempt to represent their brethren as odious, and to hide or deny, or extenuate that in them which is good and amiable.
20. Lastly, we must profess therefore, that though we take not our selves bound to prefer our Preaching before other mens, nor to tye our selves just to numbers and circumstances of time and place, nor to draw a party from the lawful publick Ministers to our selves, nor to preach at all where there is not a real and notorious need; yet do we take our selves bound on pain of Gods displeasure, and of damnation, to exercise our Ministerial office as we are able in a pious, peaceable and loyal manner, as poor assistants to those faithful Ministers that have publick allowance and encouragement, notwithstanding any present prohibitions or unwillingness of those that are against it. And if this profession shall teach any to conclude that therefore bonds, imprisonment or banishment must restrain us, the will of the Lord be done; we are ready not only to be bound but to die, for preaching the Gospel of him that died for us, and seeking to save men from a sorer death. And we ought not to account our lives as dear to us, so that we may finish our course with joy, and the Ministry committed to us by the Lord, Act. 20. 24. But we ought to suffer without resisting or reviling; which we may the easier do, while we suffer not as evil doers, but for preaching the Gospel of Salvation, and teaching men to seek the happiness to come, and to forsake their lusts, and to love and obey their God and Saviour.
As we are the more unwilling that the Church should be burdened with unnecessary Ceremonies, because if they be used with understanding, the people must be taught their sense and use; which we scarce have leisure for, or pleasure in, while they are ignorant of so many greater things, and are so very dull of hearing; so it is not a little of our peace, that if we suffer, we be not found Preaching about Ceremonies or shadows, but Preaching that Gospel, which at our Ordination we solemnly promised to preach.
And now having told you truly our Principles, I shall next tell you the reasons why we cannot forbear our Ministerial work, till bonds or disability constrain us to forbear it.