Of National Churches, Chapter 9
Chap. IX. That Chriſt hath Inſtituted no true Eccleſiaſtical Government in Man, of any larger extent than National, much leſs Univerſal; nor of Foreign Juriſdiction: And that the French pretended Ariſtocracy, with the Popes Primacy and Patriarchate, is as bad or worſe than Papal Monarchy.
§ 1. POpery and Clergy Uſurpation which have corrupted, and broken and confounded the Chriſtian Churches, on pretence of Government, Unity and Order, have riſen out of the Ruines of Chriſtian Magiſtracy: The true Unifying Heads of Chriſtian Kingdoms and National Churches, being depoſed by the Pope and Clergy, their Power hath faln into the hands of the depoſers.
§ 2. The means by which this was accompliſhed were theſe.
1. When there was no Chriſtian Magiſtracy, the Chriſtians by voluntary conſent, to avoid Pagan Tribunals, made their Biſhops their choſen Arbitrators to decide their differences. And Conſtantine finding them in poſſeſſion of it, and having no Lay-men ſo wiſe, and good, and meet, continued them in it; yet without the Power of the Sword.
2. The pious Chriſtians were deſirous that their own freely choſen Paſtors ſhould rule them, having no others ſo fit.
3. The Princes were ſo taken up with Wars, and ſecular things, that they had no leiſure to mind it.
4. Princes and Rulers grew ſo ignorant, wicked and debaucht, that themſelves and all others almoſt thought them unmeet for ſuch holy work. They neglected the ſtudy of the Word of God, which ſhould have made them wiſe.
5. The Clergy not only took the advantage of the ignorance and viciouſneſs of Princes, but cheriſhed them herein, and told them Scripture and holy work, were for the Prieſts and not for Princes.
6. They debaſed and prophaned the Order of Magiſtrates, falſly pretending, that their Office was but for the Body, &c. for worldly Peace, and the Office of Prieſts only was for the Soul.
7. They by degrees turned the Communion and Concord of ſeveral Foreign Churches and Nations, into one Government over all.
8. When the Roman Empire was broken into many Kingdoms, the National pretence of the Pope or Councils could reach but to ſome one of them; and ſo the Pope ſlightly pretended to all, and turned the Imperial Univerſality, into a Terreſtrial Univerſality, and the Roman World into the whole World, or elſe they had fallen.
9. In all this they took the advantage of the Ignorance of Princes and Lords.
10. And of the Wars and Enmity againſt each other ſtriking in with the ſide that was likeſt to advance them.
§ 2. To this day Popery is upheld by the ſame means by which it was ſet up; eſpecially by the Ignorance, Ungodlineſs, and Slothfulneſs of Kings and Lords: Did they exceed the Clergy as much as Moſes, Joſhua, David, Solomon, Jehoſaphat, Hezekiah, Joſiah, Nehemiah, Zorobbabel, did the Prieſts, and as much as the Heathen Emperors, Titus, Trajan, Adrian, Antoninus Pius, Antoninus Philoſophus, Alexander Severus, &c. did their Prieſts, they would be honoured above the Prieſts as they were: The Emperors then were thought fit to be Pontifices Maximi; and as in the times of the Ancient Family-power, an Abraham, an Iſaac, and a Jacob, and a Job, and a Melchizedeck, were thought fit to have the higheſt Government in matters of Religion, ſo would it be ſtill. And a Samuel would be Prophet, and King. But as God will honour thoſe that honour him, ſo thoſe that deſpiſe him ſhall be lightly eſteemed.
§ 3. The true way therefore to put down Popery, is for the Prince and Magiſtrates to claim their proper Power (yet not to uſurp the Prieſthood) and to ſtudy, love, and practiſe the Law of God, and take their Power and Laws to be only and meerly ſubſervient to the Power and Laws of God: And to ſtrive to underſtand theſe ſo clearly, as to be able to judge ſound Preachers from unſound, and to know whom to countenance, whom to tolerate, and whom to ſuppreſs. It is Kings that have ſet up Popes, by putting down themſelves, and Popes have ſet in to pull them down, to ſet up themſelves: And it is Kings that muſt pull down Popes by reaſſuming their own Power and Work; and that muſt be by becoming fit for it.
§ 4. That Prince who granteth that his Office is but for the Body, and for Secular Ends, and the Prieſts only for the Soul, inviteth all his Subjects to honour every Prieſt before him, and to account him baſe as worldly things are to be accounted as dung in compariſon of the things of the Spirit and Eternity: Yea every good Chriſtian who is commanded to exhort each other daily, and to comfort one another with the remembrance that we ſhall be for ever with the Lord, would be far more honourable than a King; as the Soul is above the Body, and Heaven better than Earth.
§ 5. He is not worthy of Parental Honour from his Children, that careth only for their Bodies, and ſeeketh not to make them the Children of God, and the Heirs of Heaven, and to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord: And if Princes be below the work of Parents, they are below their Honour: And if they will not be included in the work of the Fifth Commandment, how can men give them the honour of that Commandment.
§ 6. They that will have a Univerſal Prelate or Council to Govern the matters of Religion through all the World becauſe of the unskilfulneſs of Kings and Magiſtrates ſhould in reaſon, alſo be willing on the ſame Grounds to have an Univerſal King or Parliament to Govern all Kings, becauſe ſome are Ignorant or Slothful; or an Univerſal Phyſicion, Philoſopher or Schoolmaſter.
§ 7. God hath given the World often ſuch Counſellors and ſuch Judges, as have been fit to judge in matters of Religion, and to Judge Biſhops and Preachers: Why elſe do our Laws ſubject them to Kings and Judges? Had all Lands but ſuch Judges as through Gods Mercy England hath now, or ſuch as were Sir Matthew Hale, and divers others in our Age, and ſuch Counſellors as Queen Elizabeth had for the moſt part, or ſuch Lawyers as France it ſelf hath had, and the Palatinate, and Holland, it would convince the World that Laymen may be fit to judge the Clergy, even in matters of Religion. And why may not Princes attain as much wiſdom and honeſty as their Counſellors and Judges? The Chriſtian Nations have been more beholden to a Conſtantine, Jovian, Valentinian, Theodoſius Senior, Theodoſius Junior, Marcian, Leo, Anaſtaſius, and many other ſuch; and Spain to Recaredus, and divers of his Succeſſors, and France to Carolus Mag. Ludov. Pius (ſave their compliance with the Pope) than to any Biſhops or Councils, even for Reformation, againſt Hereſies and Clergies Sins.