Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	apostle_n	day_n	lord_n	2,118	5	4.6587	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47052	Nonconformity not inconsistent with loyality, or, Protestant-dissenters no seditious or disloyal sectaries evidenc'd in a sober discourse upon those statutes, by which the Protestant-dissenters are prosecuted at this day : humbly offered to the candid consideration of all Protestants, whether conformists or nonconformists / by James Jones ...	Jones, James, fl. 1683-1684.	1684 (1684)	Wing J958; ESTC R17214	32,964	24

live a Holy Life and Conversation suitable to such a Holy Profession and therefore ought to be deemed good Protestants though in some things they differ from the Church-Protestants especially considering that those things in the Protestant Religion wherein both Parties do agree are greater than those things wherein they do differ and yet those things wherein they differ are such as each Party cannot Conform to without wronging of their Consciences and doubtless the Church-Protestants would think it hard measure if they should be forced to Conform to the Dissenters even as the Dissenters think it hard measure to be forced to Conform to the Church-Protestants And therefore each Party should labour to walk by that Golden Rule that Christ hath given in Mat. 7.12 Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you do you even to them for this is the Law and the Prophets 2. The Protestant Dissenters cannot fairly be deemed Disloyal Persons forasmuch as they do acknowledg the King to be Supream Governour of this Realm and all other His Majesties Dominions and Countries in opposition to the Pope and all Forreign Jurisdiction and are ready with their Purse and Persons to maintain the Kings Person and Crown against all Murdering Conspiracies among any sort of persons whatsoever And though it may be objected that some under the name of Protestant-Dissenters have been charged with and have been found guilty of the aforesaid Wickedness God forbid that this should be charged upon the whole Party for as much as it is well known that the generality of the Protestant Dissenters do abhor such Principles and Practices and do as heartily desire that the King may injoy his Crown and Kingdom free from all violence as they desire to injoy their own Habitarions and other their Lawful Concernments What though some Gentlemen some Knights some Peers of the Realm be charged and found guilty of Disloyalty yet it would be very unrighteous to charge or deem all of such Degrees or Titles to be so guilty of the like Disloyalty However Non-Conformity barely of it self cannot be fairly accounted Disloyalty they that will say so may well be counted such as condemn the Generation of the Righteous in all Ages even the Apostles and Disciples of our Lord Jesus they were the Non-Conformists of that day and yet they were Loyal Subjects under all those Governments where the Providence of God did cast them and the Apostle Paul tho' he did Preach up Subjection to Authority yet he did maintain his Non-Conformity in matters of Religion and the Christians in queen Maries days did maintain their Non-Conformity in not submitting to the Religion as it was Established by Law and yet they were Loyal Subjects and so it may be truly said of the French Protestants their Non-Conformity doth not destroy their Loyalty Thus it is evident that Nonconformity is consistent with true Loyalty Yet it may be further Demonstrated that Non-Conformity may be attended with the greatest Loyalty when Conformity may be attended with the greatest Disloyalty as doth appear in that famous instance of Morde●ai who was a Notorious Non-Conformist in not submitting to the Established Worship of that Kingdom and yet such was his Loyalty that he discovered the Treason of two of the Kings Chamberlains who may well be concluded to be the Conformists in Religious matters and yet designed to deprive the King of his Life but Mordecai the Non-Conformist did save the Kings life though he went some considerable time Unrewarded for that his Loyal Service 3. Consider that the Punishment of this Statute is too great for the Offences viz. of not coming to Church to hear Common-Prayer of frequenting Conventicles if by Conventicles are meant only such Meetings where there is the Exercise of Religion as it is now among the Protestant Dissenters the Punishments provided by this Act being of several sorts 1. Imprisonment 2. Abjuration 3. Death if Abjuration be Refused 4. Loss of all Goods for ever 5. Loss of all Lands Tenements and Hereditaments during the Life of the Offender and all this for not coming to hear Common-prayer and frequenting of such Religious Meetings as are called Conventicles Now it seemeth very strange that so severe a Law should be made by a Protestant Queen and by a Protestant Parliament against any Persons that could not in Conscience Submit to that form of Religion Established by Law who notwithstanding were Protestants and did own approve and promote the Protestant Religion in the main and Substantial parts of it Especially considering how the said queen and those Assembled in the aforesaid Parliament did groan under the Government of Queen Mary because their Consciences were imposed upon by Reason of the Popish Religion which then was Established by Law and then the Poor Protestants were deemed no better then Sectaries Schismaticks and Hereticks and their Religious Meetings where-ever they could get together were accounted Seditious Conventicles and Rebellious Meetings and they were Prosecuted both by the Ecclesiastical and the Temporal Power even unto Death 4. Consider that though queen Elizabeth did give the Royal Assent unto this Act of Parliament she was greatly troubled when Mr. Henry Barrow Mr. John Greenwood and Mr. John Penry were put to Death for their Non-Conformity she being informed by some of whom she demanded an Account of their Death they being at that time present That they were very Eminent Christians and that if they had lived they might have been as worthy Instruments for the Church of God as hath been raised in this Age at which her Majesty sighed 5. Consider that though this Act hath been continued from time to time yet there hath been a cessation of the Executing of it from the latter end of Queen Elizabeths Reign to the Reign of this present Majesty 6. Consider that though some Justices of the Peace have attempted to put this Act in Execution since his Majesties Restauration whereby a considerable Number of Protestant-Dissenters were Convicted at Aylesbury and all their Goods in their shops and houses were seized and they were in great danger of being quickly hanged but thanks be to God his Majesty had Compassion Judging it too hard dealings for his Protestant Subjects and so he not only saved their Lives but Restored them all their Goods which Gracious Proceedings of the King was agreeable to his Royal Promise in his Royal Declaration from Breda in these words We do Declare a Liberty to tender Consciences and that no man shall be disquieted or called in Question for differences in opinion in matters of Religion which do not disturb the Peace of the Kingdom and that We shall be ready to consent to such an Act of Parliament as upon Mature Deliberation shall be offered to Vs for the full granting such Indulgence 7. Consider that the Lords and Commons Assembled in Parliament even of late years did take into their wise and serious Consideration this very Statute and by joynt agreement had prepared a Bill for the

ready way to make the Kingdom swim in Blood by reason of these Distractions that would attend such a bloody action Besides the greatness of the Sin in the sight of that God who will make inquisition for Blood And therefore though persons of contrary minds to the Government in matters of Religion may be greatly oppressed because of Laws made against them yet it is their duty to walk by these Following Rules 1. To be subject to the Higher Powers Rom. 13.1 2. To Render to all their Dues viz. Tribute Custom Fear and Honour Rom 13.7 3. To be patient in Tribulation Rom. 12.12 4. To Recompence to no man Evil for Evil Rom. 12.17 5. To Pray for them that Persecute them and despitefully use them Mat. 5.44 6. If it be possible as much as in them lieth to live peaceably with all men Rom. 12.11 7. Not to be overcome of Evil but to overcome Evil with Good Rom. 12.21 JAMES JONES A Table of the Principal Things contained in this Book 1. OF Government in General Page 1. 2. OF the Government of England in particular Page 2. 3. An Answer to those that object against the Protestant Dissenters because Venners Insurrection Page 3. 4. A Discourse upon the Statute of 1 Eliz. 2. concerning the Penalty of Twelve-pence for not coming to some Church or Chappel to hear Common-Prayer every Sunday and Holy-day P. 4 5. 5. A Discourse upon the Statute of 23. Eliz. concerning the Penalty of Twenty Pounds a Month for not Repairing to some Church or Chappel or usual Place of Common-Prayer p. 6. 6. A Discourse upon the Statute of 29. Eliz. and the third of King James concerning the same Offence page 7 8. 7. A Discourse of the Statute of the 35th of Queen Elizabeth commonly called the Abjuration Act. page 9 10 11. 8. A Discourse upon the Oath of Allegiance page 12 13. 9. The Oath of Allegiance it self and King James his Exposition of it page 14 15. 10. The Oath of Supremacy and Queen Elizabeths Exposition of it and the Act of Parliament Confirming the said Queens Exposition page 15 16. 11. The Statute of 17. Car. 2. chap. 2. considered Intituled An Act for Restraining Nonconformists from Inhabiting Corporations commonly called the Five-Mile Act page 16 17 12. Considerations upon the Statute of 22. Car. 2. chap. 1. Intituled An Act to suppress Seditious Conventicles c. Page 17 18 19. 13. An Acoount of the Proceedings of the Ecclesiastical Courts for not coming to Church and Receiving the Sacrament Page 19. 20. 14. The several ways of obtaining Absolution from the Sentence of Excommunication Ibid. 15. Reasons why Protestant Dissenters cannot Conform Ibid. 16. The Conclusion Ibid. NONCONFORMITY Not Inconsistent WITH LOYALTY OR Protestant-Dissenters no Seditious or Disloyal Sectaries Evidenc'd in A Sober Discourse upon all those Statutes by which the Protestant-Dissenters are Prosecuted at this Day I. GOvernment in Nations and Kingdoms is the Glory of this World for thereby things of all sorts and Persons of all Degrees are Regularly managed and disposed of and though some Governments are far better then others yet that Government that is not so good as it ought to be is far better then no Government at all for without Government there is nothing but dreadful Confusion each party striving to have his own Lust a Law for others Therefore it is far better for Common Good to be under a Government by setled Laws though in some things bad then to be under the Will and Pleasure of any particular Person or any Number of Persons whose Proceedings may be according to that Power and Might in a way of force as they are able to Exercise over each other and so as there may be an Uncertainty of Commanding there must needs be an Uncertainty of Obeying and so an Uncertainty of any Safety II. The Government of Nations doth very much differ from each other in the particular forms thereof some being governed by Kings and some by States and some by other Governours but tho there is a Difference in forms of Government and in the Titles of Governours yet they all agree in the Substantials of Government viz. To maintain a Publick Peace amongst themselves and to be so United unto each other as to defend themselves against Forreign Foes and to punish such as are Offenders in offering any kind of Violence to the Persons or Power of their Governours or to the Persons Priviledges and Properties of each other And in these and such like things those that differ in matters of Religion from what may be the Established Worship of the Countrey where they are Inhabitants yet they ought to behave themselves in all peaceable manner with Subjection to those that are in Authority For the People of God in the Primitive Times though in Religious matters they differ'd from those Countreys where they were Inhabitants yet they were taught by the Doctrine of the Apostles to maintain the Welfare and Grandure of the Government See Rom. 13.7 Render therefore to all their Dues Tribute to whom Tribute is due Custom to whom Custom Fear to whom Fear Honour to whom Honour And also to lead a quiet and peaceable Life in all Godliness and Honesty under Authority see 1 Tim. 2.2 III. And it may be truly said that England is most happy in its Government as it consisteth of King Lords and Commons by whom Laws are made for the whole Kingdom And the Law-makers are also under the Power of the Laws they make And this is most excellent that each Party of the Law-makers considered as King Lords and Commons cannot impose any thing as a Law upon the Subjects in General nor upon each other without a mutual Consent viz. The King cannot impose a Law upon the Peers The Peers cannot impose a Law upon the King The King and Peers cannot impose a Law upon the Commons The Commons cannot impose a Law upon the King and Peers but King Peers and Commons by a joint Consent do make Laws IV. And each Party who have matters one against another cannot Determine or Issue their Case according to their own Minds and Wills and at their own Pleasures but the Determination of all matters must be in a Legal Way being tryed before the Honourable Judges of the Realm who are Required by Law that they shall not deny nor delay Justice the whole Issue of matters in Controversy must be determined by a Jury of the Neighbourhood viz. Twelve men of Honesty and Wisdom that so the Kings Subjects may receive no Wrong by Knaves or Fools and in some great Criminal Cases the Prisoner or Accused Party is allowed by Law to except against a great Number of the Persons who are Summoned to be of his Jury without shewing any Reason but only because he doth not like them and may after that Number is Expired except against many others upon such Reasons as the Court can justly approve of So tender is the Law of mens Lives that good