The Nullity of the Pretended Assembly at St Andrews and Dundee, Treatise 2 · Review 10
REVIEW.
THe Meeting at Edinburgh did not omit any thing that was in their power, for the hindering of the giving in of that Paper, ſuch of them as heard of it before it came in, ſhewed a great diſlike of it, and dealt as ſeriouſly as they could with the Gentlemen who gave it in, to forbear it; and when it came in the Meeting ſhew their diſlike of it, and did appoint ſome of their number to confer with him about it; who did accordingly confer with him, and endeavour to inform him of the errors contained therein, and in the Cauſes of the Lords wrath which were condeſcended upon by the Meeting at the ſame time; they did give a teſtimony againſt the matter of the errors contained in that Paper, though they did not expreſſe the particular words and articles thereof, conceiving it not fit ſo to do, ſeeing the Paper was not then publick, that it afterwards came in publick, was contrary to their deſires and endeavors, & alſo to the knowledge & intention of him who gave it in, if we may truſt his own teſtimony, which I believe the Author wil not queſtion in matters of fact. But the Author ſtumbles at this, that we have given no teſtimony againſt it to this day: If he hath read the teſtimonies which we have ſince that time given againſt all things in that kind, that may import any prejudice to Presbyteriall Government, or to any part of the Doctrine, Worſhip, Diſcipline and Government of the Church of Scotland, he doth us wrong to write ſo; & if he hath not read them, then he ſhall be pleaſed to do it, I hope in this he ſhal receive ſatisfaction: It becometh us not to boaſt of any thing that we do, it is through grace, and not of our ſelves; but when groundleſs imputations are born upon us, to render the integrity of our Profeſſion ſuſpected, indifferent men will bear with us a little in our folly▪ if we ſay that in this day of temptation we have not been behind the greateſt Zealots for the Publick Reſolutions, in bearing teſtimony for the Doctrine, Worſhip, Diſcipline and Government of the Church of Scotland, and for all things relating to our Religion and Liberty, and yet not we, but the grace of God in us.
VINDICATION.
SEventhly, taking upon them judicially to determine a Generall Aſſembly conveened, continued and cloſed, to be an unlawfull conſtitute Aſſembly, and judicially to condemne the Acts thereof, which no power on earth could do, inferiour to another Gen. Aſſembly, and to aſſume unto themſelves the authority of a Publick Judicatory in the Kirk, as having Commiſsion from another prior Aſſembly, before it was examined and determined by a judge competent, whether the interveening Aſſembly, (whoſe meeting, if lawfull, did extinguiſh all Commiſsion from a prior Aſsembly) was lawfull conſtitute or not, all the world ſhal not be able to clear this from uſurpation. I ſhal adde no more inſtances to this purpoſe, though I might a…de not a few; and as for theſe I have brought, the Reader may perceive that they do not belong directly and formally to the matter of the queſtions in controverſie between the Proteſting Brethren, and the late Judicatories of the Kirk, but that they are ſuch at ſuppoſe the late Judicatories had gone wrong in ſome of theſe matters in controverſie, yet they can never be cleared from contempt and wronging of the eſtabliſhed Government of this Kirk, which in their carriage to the General Aſſembly did appear, which was not ſtraight and according to their Profeſsion and the eſtabliſhed government, I leave it to be judged by what followeth in the examination of the Reaſons they alleadge for what they did.