Canterburys Doom, Branch 1 · Evidence 1 · Floating text 23
Die Lunae, viz. nono Die menſis Februarii Anno Dom. 1637. coram Commiſsionariis Regiis ad cauſas Eccleſiaſticas apud Hoſpitium Advocatorum &c. Iudicial: ſeden. preſentibus Stephano Knight Deputato & Iohanne Greenhill Notarto publico.
Officium Dominorum con. Laurent Snelling Cleric. Rectorem de Paulſcrai in Com. Kantii; Dr. Ryues.
The Cauſe is to be informed in, and finally ſentenced out of the ſaid Maſter Snellings anſwer, and he is to appeare this day to heare and receive the finall order and judgement of the Court. at which day and place the ſaid Lawrence Snelling being publiquely called for, appeared perſonally in whoſe preſence the Articles in this cauſe exhibited againſt him with his anſwers made thereunto, were publiquely read, and then Mr. Doctor Ryues his Majeſties Advocate preſſed and enforced the proofes againſt the ſaid Maſter Snelling according as they appeared confeſſed out of his anſwers, and after that the ſaid Mr. Snelling was heard what he could ſay in his owne defence, and after a mature and deliberat hearing of this cauſe, it appeared to the Court;
That the ſaid Mr. Snelling was here charged, for that he being a Miniſter in holy orders of Prieſthood, conſtituted by the Authority of the Church for theſe 20. yeares laſt paſt and upwards, Rector of Paulſcray aforeſaid for all that time and upwards, was within theſe foure or five yeares laſt paſt made acquainted that a certaine Booke intituled, The Kings Majeſties Declaration for lawfull recreations after Evening Prayers on Sundayes and Holy dayes, was come forth and *There was no ſuch command of his Majeſties.commanded by NOTE.his Majesty to be read by all Miniſters in their reſpective Pariſh Churches, and preſented to Mr. Doctor Wood Chauncellor of Rocheſter, his Ordinary, on the 20th. of November 1643. for refuſing to read and publiſh the ſame in his Pariſh Church of Paulſcray.
That upon the ſaid preſentment, he was by his ſaid Ordinary perſonally moniſhed to read the ſame within three weekes following, That on the eleventh of December, 1634. aforeſaid, he the ſaid Laurence Snelling being againe Convented before his ſaid ordinary, was primo, ſecundo, & tertio, perſonally and Judicially moniſhed in Court to read and publiſh the ſaid Booke in manner aforeſaid, which he refuſing, was ſuſpended ob officio & beneficio, and hath ſo continued untill this preſent, and doth ſo ſtill continue unreleaſed, that on the third of Aprill 1635. the ſaid Laurence Snelling being preſent in Court before his Ordinary was 10. 20. and 30. Judicially admoniſhed to read and publiſh the ſaid Booke for Lawfull recreations as aforeſaid, but did againe utterly refuſe to publiſh or read the ſame, & was thereupon then excommunicated by his ſaid Ordinary, and hath ſo continued NOTE.ever ſince & doth ſo ſtil continue excommunicated: that within the time articulate the ſaid Mr. Snelling hath divers times omitted to read the Lerany, and ſome other Theſe were but meere additements to his Charge, he being only queſtioned and excommunicated for not reading the Booke of Sports.parts of Divine ſervice, and to weare the Surplice, & further, that he hath not bowed his body, nor made any corporall obeyſance at the reading or hearing read the Bleſſed name of our Saviour Ieſus.
All which the premiſes appearing to be true in Subſtance and in effect out of the ſaid Mr. Snellings anſwers, the Court proceeded to the giving of their ſentence in this Cauſe, and for the preſent, did order, that unleſſe the ſaid Mr. Snelling ſhall conforme himſelfe to the aforeſaid requiſitions of his Ordinary, and read and publiſh the ſaid Booke for lawfull recreations, &c. and do all due obeyſance and Reverence at the bleſſed name of our Saviour Ieſus, betwixt this and the ſecond Court day of the next Terme, he ſhould be ex nunc, pro ut extunc, &c. deprived of his Rectory of Paulſcray aforeſaid, but pay no coſts of ſuit in caſe he be deprived; and to this end and purpoſe, he the ſaid Mr. Snelling being preſent in Court, was Juditially admoniſhed NOTE.to read and publiſh the ſaid Booke, and to make corporall reverence at the name of our Saviour Jeſus ſub pena Iuris, & deprivationis. And to the end that he may ſafely repaire to his Pariſh Church to practiſe, & certifie of his conformity in the premiſes in caſe he ſhall be willing to conform accordingly, it was by the Court referred to the foreſaid Ordinary Mr. Doctor Wood to abſolve the ſaid Maſter Snelling from the ſaid ſentence of Excommunication, under which he now ſtands, in caſe he ſhall come and deſire it of his ſaid Ordinary, and take his oath de parendo Iuri, & ſtando mandatis Eccleſia, &c. according to the forme in this caſe provided.
For not doing whereof, he was accordingly deprived; and continued ſequeſtred excommunicated, and deprived of his living divers yeares, to his intollerable oppreſſion and prejudice.
When the Archbiſhop had thus privily by ſecret Inſtructions to his Viſitors enjoyned the reading of this Book of ſports to Miniſters, and ſuſpended, cenſured, moleſted divers of them for not reading it, he then conſpiring together with many other popiſh Prelates, to ſuppreſſe all painful preaching Orthodox Miniſters by colour of it, encouraged, directed, if not enjoyned them and their Archdeacons to inſert this clauſe into their printed Viſitation Articles, to be inquired of, and preſented by Church-wardens upon Oath, Whether the Kings Declaration for ſports had beene read and publiſhed among them by the Miniſter? To prove this we ſhall inſtance only in the Viſitation Articles of Matthew Wren Biſhop of Norwich, printed at London, 1636. and in Richard Mountague his ſucceſſors Viſitation Articles for the ſame Dioceſſe, printed at Cambridg, 1638. both which preſcribe this following Interrogatory to be inquired of upon oath, the later clauſe whereof, contradictes the former, Sect 7. Do any in your Pariſhprophane any Sunday or holy-day by any unlawfull gaming, drinking or Tipling in Taverns, Innes, or Ale-houſes, in the time of Common Prayer or Sermon, or by Working or doing the worke of their Trades and occupations? Do any in your Pariſh buy or ſell, or keepe open their Shops, or ſet out any Wares to be ſould on Sundayes or holy dayes by themſelves, their Servants or Apprentiſes, or have they any other wayes Prophaned the ſaid dayes? And hath the Kings Declaration concerning the uſe of lawfull ſports and recreations been publiſhed among you, yea, or no? If ſo, when was it don, NOTE.in what manner, and by whom?
The like Interrogatories in effect, if not in terminis, we find in Biſhop Pierces, Biſhop Curles, Biſhop Skinners, the Arch-Deacons of Middleſex, with other Viſitation Articles, which for brevity we pretermit: How many hundred Godly Miniſters in theſe & other Biſhops Dioceſſe were ſuſpended from their Miniſtry, ſequeſtred driven from their Livings, excommunicated, Proſecuted in the High Commiſſion, and forced to leave the Kingdome upon theſe Articles, for not publiſhing this Declaration, is ſo experimentaly known to all, that We ſhal pretermit it without any enumeration of their names or caſes. Only we ſhal diſcover what hand and influence the Archbiſhop had in their ſeverall ſuſpentions, perſecutions, by theſe enſuing Accounts, given up to him by other Biſhops of their proceedings herein, found in his Study endorſed with his owne hand and witneſſed by Mr. Prynne who ſeized them. In Biſhop Wrens account to the Archbiſhop December 17. 1636. (which begin thus. In the name of God, Amen: An account touching the Royall Instructions given by the Kings moſt Excellent Majesty, to the moſt Reverend Father in God VVilliam Laud Archbiſhop of Cant. his Grace, Primat and Metropolitan of all England, concerning Orders to be obſerved by all the Biſhops of that Province. To the ſeverall Articles of which Jnſtructions, I Matthew Lord Biſhop of Norwich thus humbly make Anſwer and in Order,) VVe finde this obſervable Anſwer given.
To the 12. Article. That upon enquiry at my Viſitation, whether the Kings Majeſties Declaration for lawfull ſports had beene publiſhed? I found it had not beene done in NOTE.very many places of the Dioceſſe, having therefore about 60. Bookes at hand, I cauſed them to bee propoſed to ſuch perſons, as I had moſt doubt of, but many of them refuſed to publiſh the ſame, and were ſuſpended for their refuſall: yet divers of them preſently promiſed conformity, and ſo were abſolved. So that now in the whole Dioceſſe (conſiſting of about 1500. Clergie men) there are not paſſing twice 15. Excommunicated or ſuſpended; whereof, ſome ſo ſtand for contumacie in not appearing at the Viſitation and Synod, and ſtill refuſe to ſubmit, ſome for obſtinate denying to publiſh the Kings Declaration.
By the Title and anſwer of which it is moſt evident; That the Archbiſh. ſent ſeverall Articles of Inſtructions in his Majeſties name, though made by himſelfe, to all the Biſhops of his Province, who were to return an Annuall account of them unto him in writing; whereof this was one: That they ſhould inquire, whether the Declaration for ſports had beene publiſhed in every pariſh Church by the Miniſter? and directed them to excommunicate or ſuspend all ſuch who refuſed to read it. Which how barbarouſly and unchriſtianly▪ it was executed in moſt places, needs no further evidence then that already produced, and what all men know.
Now wee appeale to all Eccleſiaſticall Hiſtories, from Chriſts Nativity till this inſtant, whether there was ever ſuch a monſtrous impiety or perſecution as this heard of in the Chriſtian world, that Archbiſhops, and Biſhops (who profeſſe themſelves the very Fathers of the Church, and Pillars of Religion,) ſhould thus impiouſly: Firſt of all abuſe a Chriſtian Prince ſo farre, as to publiſh a Declaration for the free uſe and encouragement of ſuch sports and Paſtimes on the Lords-Day, as are (ſome of them) unlawfull on any day, and conſtantly prohibited, condemned by Fathers, Councells, Imperiall Lawes, Edicts of moſt Chriſtian Emperors, Kings, Princes, States, and the whole torrent of Chriſtian Writers, as altogether unſufferable on the Lords Day. Secondly, to injoyne Bookes expreſly tending to the prophanation of the Lords day, by ſports and paſtimes, to be publikely read in Churches by the Miniſters to their Congregations on this very day, to encourage, authorize them (though over-prone thereto without any ſuch inſtigation) to prophane it. 3. To ſuſpend, ſequeſter, excommunicate, cenſure, perſecute, deprive, even hundreds of Godly Miniſters as capitall Offenders, for refuſing (meerely out of Conſcience towards God, and love to their owne and peoples ſoules,) to contribute their voyces or perſonal aſſiſtances to ſuch a publication, and againſt all Law, Juſtice, Piety, to ſilence Miniſters three or foure yeares together from preaching Gods Word to their people, for the ſalvation of their ſoules according to their duties becauſe they durſt not publiſh this Declaration for Lords-Day sports unto them to further the damnation of their ſoules, both againſt their duties and conſciences. Such a Monſter of moſt deſperate unparalled impiety, profaneneſſe, perſecution as this, was never borne in the Chriſtian world till this Ghoſtly Father, Archbiſhop Laud, begot and nouriſhed it in our Church: for which how well hee demerited the Popes Titles, of YOUR HOLINES and MOST HOLY FATHER, let the Vniverſity of Oxford, and Mr. Croxton ſeriouſly conſider, who beſtowed them on him ſeverall times. Doubtleſſe his more then Popiſh ſuperſtition in Conſecrating Churches, Church-Yards, Chappells, and prohibiting all prophannations of them by Enterludes, Dancing, Muſters, Leets, teaching of Schollers, and the like, might have leſſoned In his Metropoliticall Viſitation Articleshim to have beene as zealous againſt prophaning Sacred dayes as places, with unholie Paſtimes, or ſecular Negotiations: But becauſe the Lords-Day Sabbath was not hallowed by Biſhops themſelves (as Churches, Chappells, or Church-Yards were according to the Modell of the Roman Pontificall) but by Chriſt and his Apoſtles, who never authorized Biſhops or any elſe to Conſecrate Churches, or other places in this ſort; they preſume to authorize men thus openly to prophane the one without check or puniſhment, but not the other, under the ſevereſt Anathema Maranatha. Enough eternally to ſtigmatize this Arch-Prelate with the blackeſt brand of Arrogancy and Impiety, who made but a meere ſport of prophaning Gods owne day with ſports, and ſilencing Godly Miniſters for not being ſo prophane in this kinde as himſelfe was, (who uſed to play at bowles on this very day, a pretty Archipiſcopall Sabbath Recreation) or ſo prophane as he would have them to be, againſt the dictate of their owne Conſciences.
We have given you in a very full and copious evidence of the Archbiſhops endeavours, practiſes to ſubvert our eſtabliſhed Proteſtant Religion, and uſher in Popery among us, by introducing ſeverall Popiſh Innovations, ſuperſtitious Ceremonies, Idolatrous impieties, practiſes and prophanations into our Church, being all meere matters of fact notoriouſly viſible to the world, and eyes of all men.