The Grand Debate Between Bishops and Presbyterian Divines, Letter – Document 2
To the moſt Reverend ARCHBISHOP AND BISHOPS And the Reverend their Aſſiſtants, Commiſſioned by his Majeſty, to treat about the Alteration of the Book of Common Prayer.
Moſt Reverend Father and Reverend Brethren;
WHen we received your Papers, and were told that they conteined not onelyonly an anſwer to our Exceptition againſt the preſent Liturgy; But alſo ſeverall Conceſſions, wherein you ſeem willing to joyn with us in the Alteration and Reformation of it; Our expectations were ſo far raiſed, as that we promiſed our ſelves, to find our Conceſſions ſo conſiderable, as would have greatly conduced to the healing of our much to be lamented Diviviſions, the ſetling of the Nation in Peace, and the ſatisfaction of tender Conſciences, according to his Majeſties moſt gracious Declaration, and his Royal Commiſſion in purſuance thereof: but having taken a ſurvey of them, we find our ſelves exceedingly diſappointed, and that they will fall far ſhort of attaining thoſe happy Ends, for which this meeting was firſt deſigned; as may appear both by the paucity of the Conceſſions, and the inconſiderableneſſe of them, they being for the moſt part, Verbal and Literal, rather then Real, and Subſtantial; for in them you all allow not the laying aſide of the reading of the Apocrypha for Leſſons, though it ſhut out ſome bundreds of Chapters of Holy Scripture, and ſometimes the Scripture it ſelf is made to give way to the Apochryphal Chapters; you plead againſt the addition of the Doxology unto the Lord's prayer, you give no liberty to omit the too frequent repetition of Gloria Patria, nor of the Lord's Prayer in the ſame publick Service, nor do you yield the Pſalmes be read in the new Tranſlation, nor the word Prieſt to be changed for Miniſter or Presbyter, though both have been yielded unto in the Scottiſh Liturgy; you grant not the omiſſion of the Reſponſals, no not in the Let any it ſelf, though the Petitions be ſo framed, as the people make the prayer, and not the Miniſter; nor to read the Communion ſervice in the Desk, when there is no Communion, but in the late Form inſtead thereof, it is enjoyned to be done at the Table, through there be no Rubrick in the Common Prayer book requiring it; you plead for the bolineſſe of Lent, contrary to the ſtatute; you indulge not the omiſſion of any one Ceremony; you will force men to kneel at the Sacrament, and yet not put in that excellent Rubr. in the v. and vj. of Edw. 6. which would much conduce to the ſatisfaction of many that ſcruple it. And whereas divers Reverend Biſhops and Doctours, in a paper in Print before theſe unhappy Wars began, yielded to the laying aſide of the Croſſe, and the making many material alterations you after xx. years ſad calamities and diviſions, ſeem unwilling to grant what they of their own accord then offered; you ſeem not to grant that the clauſe of the fourth commandement in the Common Prayer book (the Lord bleſſed the ſeventh day) ſhould be altered according to the Hebr. Exod. 20. the Lord bleſſed the Sabbath day; you will not change the word Sunday into the Lord's day, nor adde any thing to make a difference between Holidaies that are of Humane Inſtitution: and the Lord's day, that is queſtionleſſe of Apoſtolicall practiſe; you will not alter Deadly Sin in the Letany into Heynous Sin, though it hints to us that ſome ſins are in their own nature Venial; nor that Anſwer in the Catech. of two Sacraments onelyonly generally neceſſary to ſalvation, although it intimates that there are New Teſtament Sacraments, though Two onelyonly neceſſary to ſalvation; you ſpeak of ſinging David's Pſalmes, allowed by Authority, by way of contempt calling them Hopkins Pſalmes; and though ſinging of Pſalmes be an Ordinance of God, yet you call it one of our principal parts of VVorſhip, as if it were diſclaimed by you. And are ſo far from countenancing the uſe of conceived prayer in the publick VVorſhip of God (though we never intended thereby the excluding of ſet Forms) as that you ſeem to diſlike the uſe of it even in the Pulpit, and heartily deſire a total reſtaint of it in the Church; you will not allow the omiſſion of the Benedicite, nor a Pſalm to be read inſtead of it; nor ſo much as abate the reading of the chapters out of the Old Teſtament, and the Acts for the Epiſtles; But rather then you will gratifie us therein, you have found out a new device, that the Miniſter ſhall ſay (for the Epiſtle) you will not ſo much as leave out in the Collect for Chriſtmas day theſe words (this day) though at leaſt it muſt be a great uncertainty, and cannot be true ſtylo veteri, & novo. In publick Baptiſm you are ſo far from giving a liberty to the parent to anſwer for his own child (which ſeems moſt reaſonable) as that you force him to the uſe of ſureties, and cauſe them to anſwer in the name of the Infant, that he doth believe, and repent, and forſake the devil and all his worke, which doth much favour the Anabaptiſtical opinion for the neceſſity of an actual profeſſion of Faith and Repentance in order to Baptiſm; you will not leave the Miniſter in the viſitation of the ſick to uſe his judgment of diſcretion in abſolving the ſick perſon, or in giving the Sacrament to him, but enjoyn both of them, though the perſon to his own judgment ſeem never ſo unfit; neither do you allow the Miniſter to pronounce the abſolution in a Declarative and conditional way; but abſolutely, and conditionately. And even in one of our conceſſions in which we ſuppoſe you intend to accommodate with us, you rather widen then heal the breach, for in your laſt Rubr. before the Catech you would have the words thus altered, That Children being baptized, have all things neceſſary for ſalvation, and dying before they commit any actual ſin, be undoubtedly ſaved, though they be not confirmed, which aſſertion, if underſtood of all Infants even of Heathen, is certainly falſe, and if only of the Infants of Chriſtians, is doubtfull and contrary to the judgment of many learned Proteſtants, and will give little ſatisfaction to us or others; ſome more we might name, which for brevity ſake we omit: All which conſidered we altogether deſpair of that happy ſucceſs which thouſands hope & wait for from this his Majeſties commiſſion; unleſs God ſhall incline your hearts for the peace and union of the Nation to a more conſiderable & ſatiſfactory alteration of the Liturgie. In which that we may the better prevail, we here tender an anſwer to your Reply, both againſt our general and particular Exceptions, of which we deſire a ſerious peruſal and candid interpretation. We have divided both your Preface and Reply into ſeveral Sections, that ſo you might more eaſily underſtand to which of the particulars both in the one and in the otoer our Anſwer doth refer.
THE PAPERS That paſſed between the COMMISSIONERS Appointed by His Majeſty for the Alteration of the COMMON PRAYER, &c.
THe ſtrain of theſe Papers we fear is like to perſwade many that your deſign is not the ſame with ours: Being aſſured, that it is our Duty to do what we can to the peace and concord of Believers, eſpecially when we had the paſt & preſent Calamities of theſe Nations to urge us, and His Majeſty's Commands, & gracious Promiſes to encourage us, we judged the fitteſt means to be by making known the hinderances of our Concord, and without reviving the remembrance of thoſe things that tend to exaſperate, to apply our ſelves with due ſubmiſſion to thoſe that may contribute much to our recovery, and without perſonal reflections to propoſe the Remedies which we knew would be moſt effectual, and humbly and earneſtly to petition you for your conſent. But inſtead of Conſent or amicable debates in order to the removal of our differences, we have received from you a Paper abounding with ſharp accuſations, as if your work were to prove us bad, and make us odious, which as it is attempted upon miſtake, by unrighteous means, ſo were it accompliſht, we know not how it will conduce to the Concord which ought to be our common end. If we underſtand Chriſts Commiſſion, or the Kings, and our duty as Chriſtians, or as Miniſters, our work now aſſigned us, was not to ſearch after & aggravate the faults of one onother, (though of our own in ſeaſon we are willing to hear) but to review the Liturgy, and agree upon ſuch alterations, diminutions, and enlargement, as are needfull to our common unity & peace. What is amiſs in us we ſhall thankfully accept your charitable aſſiſtance to diſcover, but we take not that for the queſtion which his Majeſty called us to debate: nor do our judgements or diſpoſitions lead us to recriminations, nor to caſt ſuch impediments in the way of our deſired accord: And were it not that our Calling and our Maſters work are concerned ſomewhat in our juſt vindication, we ſhould not trouble you with ſo low, ſo private, and unneceſſary a work, but leave ſuch Cauſes to the righteous Judge, who will quickly, impartially, infallibly and finally decide them.
PREFACE.
[BEfore we come to the Propoſals, it will be perhaps neceſſary to ſay a Sect. 1.word or two to the Preface, wherein they begin with a thankefull acknowledgement of his Majeſties moſt Princely condeſcention, to which we ſhall only ſay, that we conceive the moſt real expreſſion of their thankfulneſs had been an hearty compliance with his Majeſties earneſt and paſſionate requeſt for the uſe of the preſent Liturgy, at leaſt ſo much of it as they acknowledge by theſe Papers to be lawful: how far they have in this expreſſed their thankefulneſs, the world ſees, we need not ſay.]
The Reply to your Preface.
1. AS we hope it is no matter of offence to acknowledge his Majeſties gracious condeſcention, ſo when his Majeſty by his Declaration hath granted us ſome liberty as to the uſe of the Liturgy before the Alteration, and hath by his Commiſſion engaged us in a conſultation for the alteration of it, we conceive our Brethren (nor the world to whoſe obſervation they appeal) had no warrant to cenſure us as unthankful to his Majeſty, becauſe of our preſent forbearance to uſe it, or part of it before the intended alteration: At leaſt till they had heard us ſpeak for our ſelves, and render an account of the reaſons of our forbearance, and they had gone before us more exemplarily in their own obedience to his Majeſty's Declaration. As to our own Conſcience, if we thought not the Common-Prayer Book to be guilty of the general and particular faults which we have layd open to you, we durſt not have found fault with it; and while we took it to be a defective, diſorderly, and inconvenient Mode of Worſhip, it would be our ſin to uſe it of choice, while we may prefer a more convenient way, what ever we ought to do in caſe of neceſſity, when we muſt worſhip God inconveniently, or not at all. And as to our People, for whoſe Edification, and not Deſtruction, we have our Power or Offices, we have taken that courſe, as far as we are able to underſtand, which moſt probably tended to their good, and to prevent their hurt and ſeparation from the Church: and conſequently that courſe which did moſt conduce to his Majeſty's Ends, and to his real Service, and the Churches Peace: none of which would be promoted by our obtruding that upon our People, which we know them unable to digeſt, or by our haſty offending them with the uſe of that, which we are forced to blame, and are endeavouring to correct and alter. And we ſee not how it can be juſtly intimated that we uſe no part of it, when we uſe the Lords Prayer, the Creed, the Commandments, the Pſalms, the Chapters, and ſome other parts; And how much more you expect we ſhould have uſed, that we might have eſcaped this brand of Ingratitude, we know not. But we know that Charity ſuffereth long and thinketh no evil, (1 Cor. 13. 4, 5.) and that we have not attempted to obtrude any mode of Worſhip on our Brethren, but deſired the liberty to uſe things of that nature as may conduce to the benefit of our Flocks: And as we leave them to judge what is moſt beneficial to their own Flocks, who know them, and are upon the place; ſo it is but the like freedome which we deſire, we are loath to hurt our People knowingly. The time is ſhort, if you will anſwer our reaſonable Propoſals, it will not be too late at the expiration of our Commiſſion, or the date of the reformed Liturgy to uſe it: greater liberty hath been uſed about Liturgies in purer times of the Church, with leſs offence and accuſation.
[It can be no juſt cauſe of offence to minde them of their duty as they do Sect. 2.us of ours, telling us, it is our duty to imitate the Apoſtles practiſe in a ſpecial manner, to be tender of the Churches peace, and to adviſe of ſuch expedients, as may conduce to the healing of breaches, and uniting thoſe that differ; For preſerving of the Churches peace we know no better nor more efficatious way than our ſet Liturgy, there being no ſuch way to keep us from Schiſm as to ſpeak all the ſame thing according to the Apoſtle.]