Apology for Indulging Just Christian Liberty, To the reader – Epigraph
To the Unprejudiced Readers.
SElf-Vindication, against ignorant aGiles Widdows and Mr. William Page, Anno 1630.1631.Calumniators; Self-preservatien, against potent bBishop Laud and others.Prosecutors; seasonable Satisfaction, to p…ivate Friends, and open Enemies; publick Instruction, to all sorts of Persons; Christian Compassion, to tender Consciences, and Evangelical Moderation in the free use of corporal gestures, which God the Father, and Christ his only Sonne have left cSee Augustine ad Simplic. l. 2. qu. 4. an excellent full place, for the free use of sitting, standing, as kneeling, in the act of Prayer it self, and other parts of divine wo…ship; and Antonius Walaeus on M…t. 26. & Mar. 11.indif…erent to all Christians in their own divine worship, (presc…ibed by, reserved to themselves alone) were the orginal grounds of compiling these Three s…rious and sober Inquiries in the years 1630, 1631. and his Majesties most gracious Indulgences to tender Consciences, promised in his Royal Declarations from Breda, before; and punctually performed in his Declaration to All his loving Subjects of his Kingdom of ENGLAND and Dominion of WALES, concerning Ecclesiastical Affairs, after His miraculou… and most Gloriou… Restauration to his Royal Throne (especially in relation to Bowing at the Name of IESVS, *See my L…me Giles his Haltings, 1630.and KNEELING in the Act of Receiving the Lords Supper, which some have publickly violated, by denying the Lords Supper to those who kneeled not, though Members of the Commons House) engaged me in point of Conscience, Duty, Honour, Iustice (in regard of my interest and transactions in that happy un-opposed Deliverance of our King and Kingdoms from worse than Aegyptian bondag… ) the only cause of their present Publication.
The over-rigid enforcing and sad vexations prosecution of dSee Canterburies Doom, p. 94, 152, 361, &c.sundry consciencious godly Ministers and People in our Episcopal Visitations, Consistories, High Commissions, and Suspentions of them from their Ministry, and Lords Supper heretofore, for not conforming to these and other Ceremonies, Innovations, out of real scruples of Conscience, grounded (as they humbly apprehended) upon Scripture, reason, the examples of Christ himself, his Apostles, and the Primitive Churche…, as they were the true original occasions of our late unhappy Schismes, Troubl…s, Confusions, Tragedies, Wars and Desolations, out of which we are so lately rescued, (like ` Ezech. 3.2.brands out of the fire) by the omnipotent miraculous hand of fPsal. 118.23.…4.God alone; So the over-violent re-infor…ing of them on mens Consciences by severe Laws and new Injunctions against his Majesties most indulgent Declarations, in the judgement of many moderate, sober Well-wishers to our Churches, Kingdoms Peace, Vnity, Prosperity, may prove very dangerous, especially in this juncture of tim…, when the universal decay of all sorts of Trade, the dearth of Corn, multiplicity, variety of publick Taxes, have much afflicted the whole Body of the Nation; and the discontents of several Sects, Interests, have administred j…st fears of new Distempers at home, and Emnityes, if not Enemies from abroad.
Upon which consideration, I apprehended the best service I could now perform to his Majesty, our Church, and State, was, to present this Moderate, Seasonabl… Apology to the view of all our Civil and Ecclesiastical Governours, conteining the true Reasons, Grounds of Non-conformity to these two Ceremonies, by such sober Ministers and Members of our Churc…, who not out of Scisme, humour, discontent, but a sincere desire, with the Apostle St. Paul, to gActs 24.…6.have and exercise a Conscience alwayes void of offence towards God and towards men h1 Tim. 3.9.to hold the my…ry of Faith in, and i2 Tim. 1.3.to serve God with a pure conscienc… : either cannot or dare not in point of judgement or conscience submit unto them. Which if duly pondered by the Greatest Zealots …or them, will I trust (through Gods blessing) so far prevail upon their Spirits as to see just reason, if not totally to Disuse th…m in their own practise, yet at least not to enforce them so far upon their native Christian Brethren as to drive them from, instead of continuing them in our Churches b…some. I shall therefore most humbly and heartily beseech all Civil Christian Magistrates, (whose Power is principally confined by God, lRom. 13, 3, 4, 5. 1 Pet. 8.12▪ 14. Tit. 3.1. 1 Tim. 1.9, 10. Prov. 20 8.26. Ps. 101.4. to the end.to be terrors to evil Workers, and Mi…isters of God, to punish evil doers, which disobey his Laws; not to restrain or punish their Subjects …or following Christs or his Apostles examples in the use of mere indifferent Gestures in Gods worship, and to enjoyn only things necessary as well as decent, m1 Cor. 7.1, 8, 9, 15, 23.27, 18, 36, 37, 38. Rom. 14. throughout. 1 Tim. 4.3, 4 Col. 2.20▪ 21, 22.23. M…t 1.6. Gal. 5.1, 2.not merely indifferent in themselves, left fr…e and arbitrary by God and Jesus Christ himself to all his People) together with all the Reverend Bishops and Clergie of our Church, seriously to ponder, and pursue this sacred, solid, true Christian advice of the antient, famous Bishop and Martyr St. Cyprian, in his most excellent Epistle to Caecilius, in relation to the manner of celebrating the Lords Supper, and imitating Christs own example therein, without any Humane inventions or new Ceremonies super-added thereunto, (which the Bishops and Church of Rome, with other Churches, Prelates have over-much forgotten, transgressed, to the prejudice of Christianity) worthy to be perpetually ingraven in their very Souls.
In Sacrificio quod Christus obtulit, non nisi Christus sequendus est: Et quod Christus solus debeat audiri, Pater etiam de coelo testatur, dicens, oAd Caecil. De Sacramento Dominici Calicis Epist. 63… Edit. Pamelii p. 86, 87.Hic est Filius meus dilectissimus in quo benè sensi, ipsum audite: Quare, si solus Christus audiendus es…, non debemus attendere quid alius ante nos faciendum putaverit, sed quid, qui ante omnes est Christus prior fecerit. Neque enim Hominis (nor yet Ecclesiae) consuetudinem sequi oportet, sed Dei veritatem, &c. as he there excellently proves at large; concluding, Quod f… pMat. 8.19.non minima de mandatis dominicis licet solvere, quanto magis tam magna, tam ad ipsum Dominicae passionis & nostrae redemptionis Sacramentum pertinentia, f…s non est infringere, …ut in aliud quam quod divini…us institutum sit, Humana traditione mutare. Nam …i Iesus Christus Dominus obt…li…, & hoc fieri in sui comm…morationem p…aecepit: U…ique ille Sacerdos vice Christi vere f…ngitur, qui Id quod Christus …cit imitatur; & Sacrificium unum & plenum tunc offert in Ecclesia Deo Pat…i, …i …ic incipiat offerre, secundum quod ipsum Christum videat obtulisse. Caeterum omnis Re…igionis et veritatis Disciplina sub…ertifur nisi id quod spirituali…er praeceptum fideliter reservetur. Religioni igitur nost…ae congruit & timori, & ipsi loco atque officio Sacerdotii nostri, in Dominico calice miscendo & offerendo custodire traditionis Dominicae veritatem, et quod prius apud quosdam videtur er…atum, Domino monente, corrigere, ut cum in claritate …ua & majestate coele…ti venire caeperit, inveniat nos tenere quod monnit, observare quod docuit, facere quod fecit.
The non-observance whereof hath transformed the Lords Supper it self, instituted by Christ as … q1 Cor. 10 16, 17 c. 11, 20, 23.badge and prime instrument of Christian Peace, Vnity, Communion, Amity amongst all Professors of Christianity, as St. rTract 26 i… Ioan. c 6 Epist 59. in Paulinum, O Sacramen…um Pietatis¶ O signum unitatis▪ O … charitatis l. 1.Augustine, An…i…u Conviv…l. 1. c 3. f. 7, 8.Gulielmu… Stuckius & other… prove at large, tEusebius Eccl. Hist. l 5. c. ….from whence it was called PEACE it s…lf in the Primitive Church, and uAntiqu … l 1. c 3. f. …sent by Members of one distinct Church to an…ther as a token of Peace, and Christian communion) is now become the greatest Subject of Seism, Contention, Discord, and Persecution too: so as we may well take up that lamentation of v Stuckius, as well in relation to our own, as most Churches of Ch…istendom, Quam ver… dolendum e… perditis hisce nostris temporibus atque moribu… sacrosa…ctum & salutare illud convivium, mutuae illiu… nostr… cum Christo pariter & nobiscum invicem Communionis Sacramentum tot & tantarum rixarum, contentionum, inimicitiarumque acerbussimarum inter Christianos, seminarium extitisse: by reason of human Inventions, Traditions, Ceremonies, Innovations superadded thereunto, by the pretended power and custome of the Church; which in matters of Divine Worship and this Sacrament, ought with St. Paul to deliver and prescribe nothing to the People x1 Cor. 11.1.23but what they received from the Lord; and to say with him, yEphes. 5.1, 2.Be ye followers of me as I also am of Christ; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, The best and only means to silence all Controversies, prevent all Scismes, and establish Unity and Unanimity in our Church; which God gran… we may all henceforth cordially zPhil. 34.1…pursue. Amen.
Tertulliani Apolog…ticus adversu… G…tes. c. 24.
Videte ne & hoc ad Irreligiositatis Elogium concurr…t, …imere Libertatem Religionis, & interdicere optionem Divinitatis, ut non lice…t mihi colere quem velim. N…m… se ab invito coli vellet, ne homo quidem.