The English Nonconformity Under King Charles II and James II, Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII. IV, and V. Of subscribing and declaring Assent and Consent.
L.
WHat is your next exception to Conformity.
M.
Subscribing according to the Canon, that there is nothing in the book of Common-Prayer contrary to the word of God. and that we will use no other form. 2. And publickly declaring our Assent and Consent to all things contained and prescribed in and by it, and our Approbation of all the Forms, Orders, &c, as aforesaid.
L.
What have you against this Approbation of the Liturgy?
M.
Negatively, 1. We blame nothing in it that is good: And I take it for a good Book, in the main, but not faultless. As you said of the Canon of allowing Readers, so say I of the Liturgy; it was better immediately after Popery than it is now, that is, it was more congruous, and was a great Reformation, and we honour the Book and their Memory that made it.
2. We do not think that there is any such faultiness in it, as maketh it unlawful to joyn in the publick Worship, and ordinary Communion, with the Church where it is used, We honour them as true Churches of Christ.
3. I do not think it unlawful to read the ordinary Lords day Service, when the publick good requireth it, and we can have no better without greater hurt than benefit: Our objections being most against the by-offices, especially of Baptizing and Burial.
B…, 1. We think it unlawful to Covenant to use no other Forms in publick Prayer. II. And unlawful to subscribe and declare that it is faultless.
I. For the first we have these Reasons. 1. The Bishops themselves by the King's order, do upon special occasions of Fasts and Thanksgivings, prescribe, impose and use other Forms? and we must not covenant to disobey them. 2. The publick Ministers have and do in the Pulpits before Sermon use other Forms: And so break this Covenant themselves.
3. It belongs to the office of a Pastor, as well to word his own Prayers as his own Sermons: And it is sinful to renounce so much of the work of the Office which we are vowed and ordained to.
L.
These instances are a clear exposition of the Canon, and shew that by [no other Form] they intended not to exclude other Pulpitprayers, or other Forms, prescribed by the Bishops.
M.
1. If the whole Church of England here also can speak no more intelligibly, than by [no other Forms] to mean only [till the Bishop prescribe it, and except your own daily Form in the Pulpit] I would they would leave us to God's own Laws, and not take on them to be necessary interpreters of its great difficulties. If such men forbear that expounding, which they forbid others till they will do it better, the loss will be the less; Scripture speaketh plainlier than this.
2. But who giveth this exposition? To expound the Law by a common obligatory Exposition, is proper to the Lawmakers: He that maketh the words maketh not a Law if he make not the sense; Judges make not the sense but decide particular Cases by it as they understand it. The Canons are made by the Convocation, which he that denyeth to be the Representative Church of England, is Excommunicate. The Pulpit Preachers, nor the particular Bishops are not the Convocation, and therefore have not power to expound their Canons, by any Common obligatory exposition; much less contrary to the express words. Which way most of the Clergy went under Bishop Parker, Grindal and Abbot, is well known: And yet now they are so far from being taken for the Expositors of the Churches sense, that they are openly scorned, as popular fautorer of Puritans, and those of their mind called Grindalizers.
II. But it is the second, that is the Trojan horse whose name is Legion, I mean that hath many more evils in the belly of it, viz. that we must profess that the three Books, Articles, Liturgy and Ordination are so utterly faultless that there is nothing in them Contrary to the word of God, and that we Assent and Consent to all contained and prescribed in and by them.
L.
What have you against this? what is there in it that is contrary to God's word?
M.
God's word is perfect and forbids the least faulty errour, or defect. If we had never seen the Book, we know that men made it, and that every one that made it had ignorance, error and sin, and can a perfect faultless volumn be made by such faulty men? Operari sequitur esse. They renounce all pretensions to Infallibility in the Articles of Religion.
L.
You interpret the words rigorously: By [nothing contrary] they me…n nothing so contrary, as that one may not use the Books.
M.
If by [nothing] they mean not [nothing] and if by [contrary] they mean not [contrary] we will better know what they mean before we subscribe, else you may make it lawful to subscribe to any thing in the world, and say that the, Imposers mean better than they speak.
L.
And Assent and Consent is expresly confined to the use.
M.
1. I shall prove that that is not true. 2. That if it were true it no whit amends the matter, nor maketh it lawful to us.
I. It is not true: For. 1. The words of the declaration are as expresly universal as man can speak: And the foregoing words [to the use] do speak but de…fine, and the words of the Declaration de mediis: And all Lawyers agree that when the title of a Law expresseth the End, that limiteth not the sense of the words of the Law, because the Means may be larger than the End. As the Oxford Act of Confinement is in the title to keep Nonconformists from Corporations; And yet Lawyers resolve that it extendeth also to Conformists, if one of them should but once preach in a Conventicle. The Parliament and Prelates thought that the way to secure the Vse, was to oblige them to Assent and Consent to all in the Book contained and prescribed: 1. Therefore they ty all to declare in that same form of words, and to add no other, least they should make any exposition that limits them. 2. And the word Assent signifieth an Act of the understanding, which must have Truth for its object. 3. And it is after exprest by the word [Approbation] whereas a man may use that which he doth not approve of.
2. Oaths, Covenants and Professions must be taken in the most usual proper sense, unless another be exprest to be the Imposers meaning; which is not here done, and the words are most universal and without exception.
3. And to put all out of doubt, the Parliament expounded themselves. 1. At the making of the Act, this was debated, and reasons given against the limited expressions, which prevailed. 2. Since then a new Act against Conventicles being made, it was moved in the Lords House, that seeing Non-conformists were thus far forbidden private worship, they should be so far invited to Conformity, as that a Proviso might be added to this Act, that the Declaration in the Act of Uniformity should be understood to oblige men but to the Vse of the things required: and the Commons rejecting that Proviso, it came to a debate or conference between the two Houses, where the Commons gave their reasons against that sense and proviso: In which the Lords acquiesc't. Though I was not present, the Parliament-men that were, reported this, and I never met with man that contradicted it, or questioned the truth of it.
II. But if it were otherwise, it were to us never the better. For, 1. It were an ignorant reproach of the Church of England, to say that they have put any thing in their Liturgy which is of no use. This will Include every syllable. They themselves tell you in their Prefaces, what use the very Calender, and every other part are of. The use of the Articles of Faith and Doctrines is our understanding, assent and belief of them in order to Love and Practice. The use of the orders in the Rubrick is to oblige us to obedient practice, and so of all the rest. And to Assent, approve and Consent to every thing contained and prescribed practically, even to the use of them, is more than a bare speculative assent.
L.
Wherein lyeth the sin of such a Declaration?
M.
1. In general it is incredible, as I said before, in consideration of the matter, and the Authors together: The Book of Articles, Liturgie and Ordination are a big Volumn, and contain great variety of matter, and that high and mysterious; The Authors were every one of them men of imperfection, that had ignorance, error and sin: And operation exceedeth not power. Who dare say that any Sermon, or Prayer that ever he maketh, hath nothing in it but what he may assent and consent to: Much less so great a Book.
2. The Articles which must be subscribed as faultless, say Art. 15. [Christ alone is without sin—But all we the rest (though baptized and born again in Christ) yet offend in many things, and if we say that we have no sin, we deceive our selves, and the truth is not in us] And Art. 21. [General Councils. For as much they be an Assembly of men whereof all be not governed with the Spirit and Word of God, they may err, and sometimes have erred, even in things pertaining to God]. And are our Convocation more infallible than General Councils? The Church must be exemplary in humility; and is it humility to say, we Bishops and Priests having written three Books; he shall not preach Christ's Gospel that will not declare that there is not a word in them that is faulty, or repugnant to God's word, and will not assent and consent to all therein.
3. The Papists hereby scandalized, do scorn us, and say, The question is not now of an Infallibility, or a Judge that all must assent to. It is but who this Infaliible Iudge is: whether it be the Pope and a General Council, or the English Convocation, which is liker to be of greater authority and infallibility; we require no greater assent and consent of you to the Canons of the Universal Church, than the State and Church of England require to their Books.
4. This seemeth to us to let the Articles, Liturgie and Ordination Book above the Bible. 1. God himself hath not made the assent and consent to every thing contained and prescribed in the Bible necessary to Salvation, or to the Ministry. 1. There are divers Books in our Bibles whose Divine authority, many have questioned, who yet were not for that degraded. The Apochryphal books are yet controverted by men tolerated on both sides. There are hundreds of various Readings, where no one is necessitated to determine for this or that. Translations are all faulty, being the work of faulty men: And no wise men will declare that this or that or any Translation hath nothing in it contrary to the Original Word of God. And are our Bishops Books more faultless?
5. It is a sin to Confederate with and Encourage such audacious Lording it over the Faith and Souls of men, and such ill Examples.
L.
Your instances shew that you expound them too strictly: Can you imagine them so insolent and impious as to impose their own Books more strictly than the Bible, and require more Assent and Consent.
M.
Call it what you will: I must suppose that matter of Fact which is undeniably evident to our senses: It's an ill argument [This is unreasonable and ungodly or inhumane. Ergo, It was not done] What is so false, absurd or impious that man may not do?
L.
Some say, They are Articles of Peace only, and not of Faith.
M.
Some Brains will be cheated with a meer noise of words, as Birds with a whistle: We deny not but Peace is one of the ends of the Impositions: but the question is what are the Means: Or whether they will take it for Conformity to promise [I will live peaceably] or [I Assent that I should live in Peace]. Are you not bound in order to peace, to Assent and Consent to all things in the Books? Say, [I Assent that some things are true and good, and some things false and bad, which yet for Peace I will use] and try how it will be taken?
L.
Well: What is there in these Books contrary to Gods Word, or which you may not Assent and Consent to?
M.
The number is greater than we would have them. I will come to the chief of them, which I before named to you.
L.
I forgat to tell you, that it is not all contained, that is Assented to, but all that is both contained and prescribed.
M.
1. A meer quibble to cheat Conscience: Ask the Bishop Morley and Bishop Gunning yet living, whether this was the sence, and I will take their answer.
2. Then [Assent and Contained] had been put in in vain and to deceive, if [Consent and Prescribed] signifie as much without them.
3. The word [approbation] in this Act, and [nothing contrary to Gods Word] in the Canon, confute this quibble.
4. I told you were it so it's never the better. All in the Book is prescribed to some use. They are outside men that think Vse reacheth but the Body: Are Articles of Faith Assertions of no use?