The History of Scotch-Presbytery, Letter 1 – Letter 2
To the King's most Excellent Majesty,
The Humble Address of the Presyterian Ministers of his Majesties Kingdom of Scotland.
WE Your Majesties most Loyal Subjects, the Ministers of the Presbyterian Perswasion in your Ancient Kingdom of Scotland, from the due Sense we have of Your Majesties Gracious and surprising favour, in not only putting a stop to our long sad Sufferings for Non-Conformity, but granting the Liberty of the Publick and Peaceable Exercise of our Ministerial Function without any hazard: As we bless the Great God, who hath put this in your Royal Heart, we do withal find our selves bound in Duty to offer our most Humble and Hearty thanks to Your Sacred Majesty, the Favour bestowed being to us, and all the People of our Perswasion, valuable above all our Earthly comfort; especially since we have ground from Your Majesty to believe that our Loyalty is not to be questioned upon the account of our being Presbyterians, who as we have amidst all former tentations endeavoured, so we are firmly resolved still to preserve an entire Loyalty in our Doctrin and Practice (consonant to our known Principles, which according to the Holy Scriptures are contained in the Confession of Faith, generally owned by Presbyterians in all Your Majesties Dominions) and by the help of God so to demean our selves, as Your Majesty may find Cause rather to enlarge than diminish your Favours towards us; throughly perswading our selves from Your Majesties Iustice and Goodness, that if we shall at any time be otherwise represented, Your Majesty will not give credit to such Information, until you have due cognition thereof: And Humbly beseeching, that those who promote any Disloyal Principles and Practices (as we disown them) may be looked upon as none of ours, whatsoever name they assume to themselves. May it please Your most Excellent Majesty Gracio…sly to accept of this ou… most Humble Address, as proceeding from the plainness and sincerity of Loyal and Thankful Hearts, much engaged by Your Royal Favour▪ to continue our Fervent Prayers to the King of King's, for Divine Illumination and Conduct, with all other Blessings Spiritual and Temporal, ever to attend Your Royal Person and Government, which is the greatest Duty can be rendred to Your Majesty by
Your Majesties most Humble, most Faithful, and most Obedient Subjects. Subscribed in our Names, and in the Name of the rest of our Brethren of our Perswasion, at thei… Desire.
The King's Letter to the Presbyterians in his Ancient Kingdom of Scotland.
WE Love you well, and we heartily thank you for your Address: We resolve to protect you in your Liberty, Religion and Properties, all our Life: And we shall lay down such Methods as shall not be in the Power of any to alter hereafter. And in the mean time we desire you to pray for our Person and Government. To which may be added that kind Complement of the Chancellours. Gentlemen, My Master hath commanded me to tell you, that I am to serve you in all things within the compass of my Power.
These Gentlemen needed not to have been sollicitous, that those who avouch an Adherence to the Covenanted Reformation, and avow an opposition to Antichristian Usurpers (which they call promoting Disloyal Principles and Practices) might not be looked upon as of their Confederacy: For all that abide in the Principles and Practices of the Church of Scotland (which they have deserted) would count it a Sin and Scandal, to be reckoned of their Association who have thus betrayed the Cause and the Country. These mutual Complements between the professed Servants of Christ and the Vassals of Antichrist, if they be Cordial, would seem to import that they are in a fair way of compounding their differences, and to accomodate their oppositions at length: But if they be only adulatory and flattering Complements, importing only a Conjunction of Tails, like Samsons Foxes, with a Disjunction of Heads and Hearts, tending towards distinct and opposite interests; then, as they would suit far better the Dissimulations of Politicians, than the Simplicity of Gospel-Ministers, and do put upon them the Brand of being Men-pleasers rather than Servants of Christ, so for their Dissemblings with Dissemblers, who know their Complements, to be and take them for such, they may look to be paid home in good Measure, heaped up and running over, when such Methods shall be laid down as shall not be in the Power of any to alter, when such designs shall be obtained by this Liberty and these Addresses, that the afterbought Wit of the Addressers shall not be able to disappoint. However the Address is such, as makes the thing addressed for to be odious, and the Addressers to forfeit the respects and merit the indignation of all that are Friends to the Protestant and Presbyterian Cause; as may appear from these obvious Reflections.
1. It was needful indeed they should have assumed the Name of Presbyterians, and call it the humble Address of Presbyterians Ministers: For otherwise it would never have been known to come from Men of the Presbyterian Perswasion; seeing the Contents of this Address are so clearly contrary to their known Principles. It is contrary to Presbyterian Principles, to congratulate an Antichristian Usurper for undermining Religion, and overturning Laws and Liberties. It is contrary to Presbyterian Principles, to justifie the abrogation of the National-Covenant, in giving thanks for a Liberty whereby all the Laws are …assed and disabled, therein confirmed. It is contrary to Presbyterian Principles, to thank the King for opening a door to bring in Popery, which they are engaged to ex…irpate in the Solemn League and Covenant. It is contrary to Presbyterian Principles to allow or accept of such a vast Toleration for Idolaters and Hereticks, as is evident above. It is contrary to Presbyterian Principles to consent to any Restrictions, Limitations, and Conditions, binding them up in the Exercise of the Ministerial function, whereby this Liberty is loaded and clogged: So that they cannot enjoy it without great hazard of Sin, and incurring the Guilt of the Blood of Souls, for not declaring the whole Council of God, which Addressers cannot declare, if they Preserve an en…ire Loyalty in their Doctrin, as here they promise.
2. There is nothing sounds here like the Old Presbyterian strain; neither was there ever an Address of this stile seen before from Presbyterian Hands. It would have looked far more Presbyterian like, in stead of this Address, to have sent a Protestation against the new openly designed introduction of Popery, and subversion of all Laws and Liberties which they are Covenanted to maintain; or at least to have given an Address in the usual Language of Presbyterians, who used always to speak of the Covenants, and Work of Reformation: But here never a word of these, but of Loyalty to his Excellent, to his Gracious, and to his Sacred Majesty, of Loyalty not to be questioned, an Entire Loyalty in Doctrin, a resolved Loyalty in Practice, and a fervent Loyalty in Prayers: And all that they are Sollicitous about, is not lest the Prerogatives of their Master be encroached upon, and the Liberties of the Church be supplanted, and Religion wronged; but lest their Loyalty be question…d, and they be otherwise represented: And all that they beseech for is, not that the Cause of Christ be not wronged, nor Antichristian Idolatry introduced by this Liberty; but that these who promove any disloyal Principles and Practices may be looked upon as none of theirs, wherein all their encouragement is, that they perswade themselves from his Majestys Iustice and Goodness, that he will not give Credit to any other information until he take due cognition thereof. Here is a Lawless unrestricted Loyalty to a Tyrant, claiming an Absolute Power to be obeyed without reserve, not only professed, but solicitously sought to be the Principle of Presbyterians; whereas it is rather the Principle of Atheistical Hobbs exploded with indignation by all Rational Men. This is not the Presbyterian Loyalty to the King, in the defence of Christ his Evangel, Liberties of the Country, Ministration of Iustice, and punishment of iniquity, according to the National-Covenant; and in the preservation and defence of the true Religion, and Liberties of the Kingdoms, according to the Solemn-League and Covenant: But an Erastian Loyalty to a Tyrant in his overturning Religion, Laws and Liberties. This Loyalty in Doctrin, will be found Disloyalty to Christ, in a sinful and shameful silence at the wrongs done to him, and not declaring against the Invasions of his open Enemies. This Loyalty in Practice is a plain betraying of Religion and Liberty, in lying by from all opposition to the open Destroyer of both. And this Loyalty in Prayers, for all Blessings ever to attend his Person and Government, will be neither conformed to Presbyterian Prayers in reference to Popish Tyrants, nor consistent with the Zeal of Christians, nor founded upon any Scripture Promises, to pray for Blessings to a Papists Tyranny, which cannot be of Faith, and therefore must be Sin.
3. This Address is so stuffed with sheaking Flatteries, that it would more become Sycophants and Court-Parasites, than Ministers of the Gospel; and were more suitable to that Popish, Prelatical, and Malignant Faction to congratulate and rejoyce in their professed Patron and Head, and fill the Gazetts with their Adulatory Addresses, which heretofore used to be deservedly inveighed against by all Dissenters; than for Presbyterians to take a Copy from them, and espouse the Practice which they had condemned before, and which was never commended in any good Government, nor never known in these British Nations, before Oliver's Usurpation; Flattery being always counted base among ingenuous Men. But here is a Rhapsodie of Flatteries, from the deep Sense they have of his Majesties Gracious and surprizing favour; finding themselves bound in Duty to offer their most humble and hearty thanks to his Sacred Majesty, the favour bestowed being to them valuable above all Earthly comforts. One would think it behoved to be a very great favour, from a very great Friend, for very gracious ends: But what is it? In not only putting a stop to their long sad Sufferings; which were some ground indeed, if the way were Honest: But this not only supposes an also; what is that? But also granting us the Liberty; which is either a needless Tautology (for if all Sufferings were stopped, then Liberty must needs follow,) or it must respect the Qualifications of the Liberty; flowing from such a Fountain, Absolute Power; through such a conveyance, stopping all Penal Laws against Papists; in such a Form as a Toleration; for such Ends, as overturning the Reformation and introducing Popery. This is the Favour for which they offer most humble and hearty Thanks, more valuable to them than all Earthly Comforts. Sure, if they thank him for the Liberty, they must thank him for the Proclamation whereby he grants it, and justifie all his claim there to Absoluteness, being that upon which it is superstructed, and from which it emergeth; and so become a listed Faction to abet and own him in all his attemptings, engaged now to demean themselves as that he may find Cause rather to enlarge than to diminish his favours, which can be no other way but in assisting him to destroy Religion and Liberty, at least in suffering him to do what he will without controll. O what an indeliberate reproach is this for Ministers, who pretend to be yet for the defence of the Gospel, thus to be found betraying Religion, through justifying and magnifying a Tyrant, for his suspension of so many Laws, whereby it was established and supported!
4. It were more tolerable if they went no farther than Flatteries; but I fear they come near the Border of Blasphemy, when they say, that the Great God hath put this in his Royal Heart; which can bear no other Construction but this, that the Holy Lord hath put it in his Heart to assume to himself a Blasphemous and Absolute Power, whereby he stops and suspends all Penal Laws against Idolaters, and gives a Toleration for all Errors: If it be capable of any other Sense, it must be like that as the Lord is said to have moved David to number the People, or that Rev. 17. 17. God hath put it in their Hearts to fulfill his Will, and to agree and give their Kingdom to the Beast. But to bless God, and thank the Tyrant for this wicked Project, as deliberate and purposed by Men, I say is near unto Blasphemy. And again where they say, they are firmly resolved by the help of God so to demean themselves as his Majesty may find Cause rather to enlarge than to diminish his favours; this in effect is as great Blasphemy, as if they had said, They resolved by the help of God to be as unfaithful Time-serving and silent Ministers as ever plagued the Church of God; for no otherwise can they demean themselves so as he may find cause to enlarge his Favours towards them, it being no way supposable that his enlarging his Favours can consist with their faithfulness; but if they discover any measure of Zeal against Antichrist, he will quickly diminish them.
Thus far I have compendiously deduced the Account of the progress and Prosecution of the Testimony of this Church to the present State thereof.
FINIS.