Fair-Warning, Part 2
The excellent Reasons of the Honourable House of Commons against Indulgence; with Historical Observations thereupon.
BUt to what end do we trouble the World with our inconsiderable Reasons, now we are all concluded by the common reason of the Kingdome (at least that part of it wherein we are included) represented by the most Honourable the Commons of England assembled in Parliament, then whom the Sun scarce beheld a more noble, a more resolved, a more unanimous, a more loyal and Orthodox Assembly, and Assembly as that excellent Bishop said, quo nihil videt orbis augustius: their famous Vote which may satisfie all your Reasons,— their Vote—at which your conclave at Rome may tremble, all the Conventicles in the World shake; a dejected and forlorn Church raiseth up its selfe; decayed Religion is recovered, the soules of the first reformers (if they have any sence of things here below,) rejoyce; (O if there be joy in Heaven at the recovery of one sinner, what is their at the Recovery of a Nation!) millions of unstable Soules are setled: the many breaches of our Church are close, that threatning evill of schisme and separation is checked, —the loose hopes of dangerous men are bounded: the callapsed Honour of England is restored; former miscariages are expiated, for which our gracious King the Defender of the true Ancient, and Apostolick Faith heartily thankes them. In which the Nobles if they have any sence of their Ancestors Honour, will concur with them; the reverend Clergy will be bound to pray for them; and we with our posterity that are yet unborn will stand up and call them blessed:—their famous Vote to which we must submit is this;—
The Vote.
That it be presented to the Kings Majesty as the humble advice of this House, That no Indulgence be granted to the Dissenters from the Act of Vniformity.
And that you may know that this is not an Act of power but—of reason, not what they think they may, but what they think they ought, you have added their reason too—Ordering.
That a Committee be appointed to collect and bring in the Reasons of this House for this Vote upon the present Debate, to be prescuted to his Majesty; and that the nominating of the Committee be adjourned till to morrow morning.
But reason is not reason untill it be resolved on, it was therefore resolved, &c.
That in the close of the Reasons to be presented to His Majesty for the Vote of advice; it being also added, That this House will assist His Majesty with their Lives and Fortunes, and That the Comittee appointed to bring in the Reasons do pen an Address for that purpose to His Majesty.
Do you observe their reasons against your suggestions 1. As to the promise of Breda you urge,—they say you should not trouble his Majesty further with it.
Reas. 1. Because it is not a Promise in it selfe, but only a Gracious Declaration of your Majesties Intentions, to do what in You lay, and what a Parliament should advise Your Majesty to do; and no such Advise was ever given, or thought fit to be offered; nor could it be otherwise understood, because there were Laws of Vniformity then in being, which could not be dispensed with, but by Act of Parliament.
They who do pretend a Right to that supposed Promise, put the Right into the hands of their Representatives, whom they chose to serve for them in this Parliament, who have Passed, and Your Majesty consented to the Act of Vniformity. If any shall presume so say, that a Right to this Declaration doth still remaine after this Act Passed,
It tends to dissolve the very Bonds of Government, and to suppose a disability in Your Majesty and the Houses of Parliament, to make a Law contrary to any part of Your Majesties Declaration, though both Houses should advise Your Majesty to it.
Against Indulgence that most Honourable House saith,
1. That it will establish schisme by a Law: In the 24.25. and 26. year of Queen Elizabeth the Non-conformists especially of Kent bestired themselves, and procured the Lords of the Councell to write to Arch-Bishop Whitgift to take charitable consideration of their causes, that the people of the Realme might not be deprived of their Pastors, being diligent, learned and zealous, though in s…me points Ceremoniall, they may seeme doubtfull onelyonly in conscience, not in willfulnesse, Upon this, though onelyonly an intercession of the Councell: they are incouraged to separate from the Church, and upon the Earle of Leicesters Interest (what would they do if they had a Law of their side?) they are hardned to hold a solemne Councell at Cambridge I think to answer our Convocation; wherein they made decrees as they call them of such things as (do seeme) may stand with the peace of Gods Church: see Bishop Bancrofts danger pos. p. 46. they have a conference at Lambeth before the Lords of the Councell with the Arch-Bishops of Canterbury and York, and the Bishop of Winchester Cambd…el. 1584. and finding but favour (no Law all this while on their behalfes in Parliament) they erect a Presbytery at Wandsworth in Sunrey, Bishop Bancroft Engl. scot. 3. b. c. 1. Full. Cent. xvi p. 30 where Offices and rules are agreed on by 24. Presbyters in as much authority as our 26. Arch-Bishops and Bishops, this way they settle in London a while after; Altar against Altar, Post against Post:—they became violent Anno 1575. and left the sober men, Humphrey—,Fox, &c. they set up prophesying, Anno 1580. and private meetings, fasts and conferences; they meet at Cuckefield in Suffolke threescore Ministers almost enough to make a convocation, where they resolved what was to be Tolerated, and what was to be refused: again they meet at Cambridge, where were many things very solemnly enacted: in the year 1585.
1. A Parliament meets, 2. Convocation sits, 3. an Assembly of Ministers vying with the Convocation, gets together, they admonish, they threaten, they plot, they get a 16. fold Petition drawn up for them Anno 1587. el 30. they Libel,— they met at a Synod in Coventry 10th. of the 4. MonethMonth as they write,—where they resolved thirteen points against the Church, Full. xvi Cent. 194. and drew up a discipline and form essential at all times, which was tendered to all the classes far and near in England;—they humble themselves at Northampton for their former Conformity to the Church,—John test p. 6 Full. p. 196. they refuse Oaths tendred to them,—they talke of a bickering and then a battle; as one Wiggington words it, they sollicit the King of Scots assistance May 2. 1591.—Hacket and Coppinger, grow outragious and threaten the Queen and the Privy Councell, at last they grew so odious at Court as Mr. Fuller writes that none durst appear in their behalfe, and so they continued all King James his time—and King Charles when we had peace untill at last this Schisme in the Warre was established by a pretended Law,—and England knowes very well what it is to establish Schisme by a Law.—
In the latter end of King James his Reign there was a Toleration propounded, and immediately the Popish policy and Government was set up in opposition to ours,—they had Archbishops to our Archbishops, Bishops to our Bishops, their meeting of Priest to our Convocation,—their Masse to our Common Prayer: And so Cromwell told his Cronies in a thing called a Parliament in his loose time, that they had their Hierarchy setled, and that they had an orderly Government within his Government;—this, this it is to have a Schisme established by Law.—
2. The Honourable House of Commons are against Indulgence to dissenters, because it will make the Government of the Church precarious, and Contemptible: What can a Bishop do, if there be parties to which all the guilty will betake themselves, to elude his Authority, he excommunicates, they seperate and excommunicate themselves: He cites, they undervalue him; He threatneth, they (as the Church wardens of Saint Anne Aldersgate) say they will try it with him, he would turn out a Parish-clark like him of Black-fryers, he goeth to Law with him: The Indulged Party will be the receptacle of all the discontented, ambitious, turbulent, and guilty Persons which the Law threatneth, discipline correcteth: and justice punisheth.
3 The Honourable House of Commons are against Indulgence, Because,
It will no way become the Gravity or Wisedome of a Parliament, to pass a Law at one Sessions for Vniformity, and at the next Sessions (the reasons of Vniformity continuing still the same) to pass another Law to frustrate or weaken the execution of it.
The most happy constitutions are they that are maturely, debated, resolvedly enacted, and not without great reason, and much time repealed. The first Parliament that ever was in England ordered that the same Assembly should not repeale and make Laws: A Parliament Hen. the thirds time refused to alter a most inconvenient Law, because they thought no inconvenience greater then Alteration of Laws, so in K. H…n. 7. Hen. 8. Q. Eliz. Reign.
4 The Honourable House of Commons are against indulgence. Because,
It will expose His Majesty to the restless Importunity of every Sect and Opinion, and of every single Person also, who shall presume to dissent from the Church of England.
It will be a cause of increasing Sects and Sectaries, whose numbers will weaken the true Protestant Profession so far, that it will at least be difficult for it, to defend it selfe against them: And, which is yet further considerable, those Numbers, which by being troublesome to the Government, finde they can arrive to an Indulgence, will, as their numbers increase, be yet more troublesome, that so at length they may arrive to a generall Toleration, which His Majesty hath declared against; and in time some prevalent S…ct, will at last contend for an establishment; which, for ought can be foreseen, may end in Popery.
It is a thing altogether without Precedent, and will take away all means of convicting Recusants, and be inconsistent with the method and proceedings of the Laws of England.
You know there is no end of humor and faction, Hooper procures K. Edw. 6. letter for a dispensation from certain Rights and Ceremonies offensive to his conscience, as the letter runs; The nonconformists in the beginning of Q Elizabeths reign, are onelyonly for alteration of some things offensive: The later nonconformists were against the Common Prayer, and most of the usage of the Church; at last they are against all Church government, discipline, orders and forms of worship, the people will have it so? and what will ye do in the end thereof.
5 The Honourable House of Commons are against Indulgence, to dissenters. Because,
It is humbly conceived, That the Indulgence proposed will be so far from tending to the Peace of the Kingdom, that it is rather likely to occasion great disturbance. And on the contrary, That the asserting of the Laws, and the Religion establisht, according to the Act of Vniformity, is the most probable meanes to produce settled Peace and Obedience throughout Your Kingdom: Because the variety of Professions of Religion, when openly indulged, doth directly distinguish men into parties, and withall gives them opportunity to count their numbers; which, considering the animosities, that out of a Religious Pride will be kept on foot by the severall Factions, doth tend directly and inevitably to open disturbance. Nor can Your Majesty have any Security, that the Doctrine or Worship of the severall Factions, which are all Governed by a severall Rule, shall be consistent with the Peace of Your Kingdom.
When Master Cartwright preached at Saint Maries in Cambridge the Church could not hold the people, when Doctor Gouge preached at Black-fryers, it was too little for him, when Master Dod preached, people were almost througed to death; If a nonconformist preach, the whole City is in a tumult; if a man be but a little inclined that way, how great is his Auditors? If Orthodox, how thin his Congregation, which, considering the animosities, that out of a Religious Pride will be kept on foot by the severall Factions, doth tend directly and inevetably to open disturbance. Nor can His Majesty have any Security, that the Doctrine or Worship of the severall Factions, which are all Governed by a severall Rule, shall be consistent with the Peace of Your Kingdom.
What security have we that the Papists will not teach the Popes power as well as his Religion: that they will not absolve men from their allegiance to the King of England, as well as they absolve men from their obedience to the Church of England; that they will not disobey, as well as not obey for Conscience sake,—how know we but they have all taken a solemn Covenant to defend the Kings Majesty onelyonly in the maintenance of Religion; i. e. of their severall wayes:—
Be wise therefore O ye Kings, be instructed O ye Judges of the Earth.—
Habet aliquod ex iniquo omne magnum exemplum quod contra singulos, utilitate publica rependitur—
Tac. An 14.
Ne timeas contrà Charitatem esse si unius scandalum multorum pace compensaveris.—
Bern. Ep.
FINIS.
End of the text · Richard Baxter, Fair-Warning (1663)