Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	accuse_v	accuser_n	admit_v	19	3	6.5832	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09291	Th'appellation of Iohn Penri, vnto the highe court of Parliament from the bad and iniurious dealing of th'Archb. of Canterb. & other his colleagues of the high commission: wherin the complainant, humbly submitting himselfe and his cause vnto the determination of this honorable assembly: craueth nothing els, but either release from trouble and persecution, or just tryall.; Appellation of John Penri, unto the highe court of Parliament.	Penry, John, 1559-1593.	1589 (1589)	STC 19602; ESTC S101168	33,056	58

It nothing preuailed me to shewe the high commissioners that I was a suitor vnto the highest court in the land and therefore not to be troubled by any inferior vnto them during the time of their assembly for the supplication which I had thereunto preferred Neither did it any thing auaile me to manifest it to be dishonorable vnto this house to their honors therein met together that they should not be the judges of those suits whereof they were entreated to consider The injury which at that time they offered vnto the liberties of this honorable court to commit their tiranny to me wards had not bene so intollerable vnlesse they who vsurped vnto them selues the deciding of my cause had bene al of them members of this house The persons then in commission were these Th' Archb. of Cant. the Bb. of London Winchester and Lincolne D. Lewine D. Coosins all parliament men at that instant Now judge whether it be not against all right that some fewe of the inferiour members in that house of which number in respect of manye I might justly account the men before named should extort vnto their priuat censure the judgement of a cause preferred publikely vnto the whole parliament The time hath beene wherein this high courte woulde not haue taken a meaner injurie offered vnto their liberties at the handes of anye prerogatiue within this kingdome whether it stands not with the honor and credit of parliament men amongst posterities not to haue their liberties thus infringed and diminished by inferior and baser courts it behoues them that loue their countrie and endeuor to maintaine the welth thereof to consider But whether this be behoofefull vnto the state or no I am sure it concerneth me not to be judged by that court wherein I may not answer vnto mine accusers being the second head of the injurious and intollerable dealing of mine aduersaries but must be enforced vpon mine oath to accuse my selfe I am readie to aunswere whatsoeuer they can laye to my charge and therein desire no other fauour at your Hh. hands then Felix a pagan judge and an infidell offered voluntarily vnto Paule th'apostle that is to aunswere vnto mine accusers This equall maner of triall which fellons enjoy at euery bar in this land cannot be denied vnto me with any reason And because our law affoordeth this equitie vnto knowne malefactors the tyranie of the high commissioners is vnspeakable in constraining men to accuse themselues Porcious Festus an heathen idolator when the Iewes woulde haue judgement against S. Paule before they had by witnesses conuinced him of any crime answered as the holy ghoste noteth that it was not the maner of the Romanes being Gentils and ignorant of the true God for fauor to deliuer any man to death before that he which is accused haue his accusers before him and haue place to defend himselfe concerning the crime And may not the men who professe they know God be ashamed in their own cause for the fauor which they vnjustly beare vnto themselues to imprison their bretheren professing the same religion with them because they will not be their owne accusers And yet all the justice that poore christians haue at Lambeth is this You are now sent for by Lords grace here vs her Majesties commissioners we grant in deed that as yet we know nothing wherewith you may bee charged For accusers you haue none neither were you sent for to answere vnto thē For it is our maner to deliuer men into bonds yea and to death if the cause so require though they haue no accusers to conuince them of any crime And therefore you must here be deposed vpon your oath to reueal whatsoeuer you know by your selfe or any other of Gods children her Majesties subjects Whereby it shall come to passe that you shall escape vs narrowly but ere you depart the court we will finde sufficient matter to imprison you and if you refuse the oath to prison you shall goe For we administer it Ex officio and so vpon your refusall we may imprison you And will the high court of parliament suffer this bloodie and tirannous inquisition to be practized any longer within this kingdom What can the murthering inquisitors of Spaine do more then by this snare inueigle mens consciences constraine them to spill their owne blood It is wel knowne that no such maner of iniquitie can be warranted vnto the high commission by the positiue lawes of this land For in a criminall cause they inforce no man to be his owne accuser And against the law of God by which no man shoulde be punnished vnder two or three witnesses and of nature all men knowe this manner of proceeding to be For admit that the law of blasphemie were now in force among vs that a man in the dayes of his iniquitie had blasphemed the God of Israel were it not both against the lawe of God and of nature the Lorde hauing vouchsafed him repentance of his sinn and in his prouidence so disposed of the fact as no witnesses could be produced against him were it not I saye both against the word and against nature for him in this case to accuse himselfe And yet the Archb. and his fellow officers would either imprison a man ex officio for denying the oathe in this point or compell him to be his owne vnnatural murtherer O miserable judges before whom a man must needes either transgresse the lawes of God and of nature or thrust himselfe into inevitable daunger If they say it is to be presupposed that without just cause of suspition they will put no man to his oathe therein they protest no more then the Iewes did in accusing our Sauiour Christ and the inquisitors of Spaine draw with them in the same line For the Iewes they thought much that Pilate should demand of them what accusation they coulde laye to our Sauiour Christes charge and therefore said vnto him if he were not an euill doer we would not haue deliuered him vnto thee Where we may euidently see the wisedom and discretion of the enemies of God and his seruauts to be such as they neuer accuse any man contrary vnto right equitie conscience And as concerning the Spanish inquisition it is well knowne that that holy house conuenteth no man without great suspition of heresie No more doe the high commission offer an oath vnto anye without great cause at the least without vehement suspition of his enimitie to Lord Bb. and their gouernment And they are not only most injurious in them selues but they commit the execution of their tiranical proceedings vnto those very often whiche an honest man would be ashamed to entertaine in his family To haue a warrant for the apprehending and touching of whomesoeuer it please you to suspect is a charge of greate waighte and ought not to be committed vnto any but vnto such as are known to haue a rare and choise gouernment ouer them selues

euen by vertue of their places cannot chuse but oppresse the church of God are the ready and direct waie not only to kepe my countrimen from eternal life but also to bringe the Lords wrath vppon vs our prince maiestrats people and the whol kingdome So that I am molested for soliciting the cause of God the cause of mens soules the cause of her maiestie and the State with whome the Lord with out speedy repentance is not likely to beare any longer for the manifold corruptions of our church I am molested because I cannot be content that my countrymen should want the means of their saluation and so run headlong to their owne eternall ruine and because I am not silent at the miserable prophanation of Gods sanctuary by swine and vncleane beastes I am molested because I suffer not without any shewe of dislike the holy ministery of the Lord and the sacred gouernment of his church to be a pray vnto such men as are not worthy to liue in any wel ordered common wealth much lesse in a reformed church I am molested because I hold it vnlawful for any man to take vppon him the care charge and ouersight of those soules whome he cannot possibly feede guide and direct in the paths and pastures of eternal life I am molested because with the holy Apostle Peter I think it vnlawfull for any minister to be Lord ouer gods heritage and thinke the judgment of our Sauiour to be sounde who held it vnlawful for his ministers to Rule like Lordes I am molested because I hold that which is set downe Heb. 3. 6. to be true whereby I am inforced to confesse that as non but Moses or some other prophet by the expresse commaundement of God was to ordaine th'officers of the church vnder the lawe So non but our Sauiour Christ or his apostles in the expresse written word are to ordaine the officers of the churche gouernement vnder the newe couenaunt I am also molested because being constrained by the former scripture Hebr. 3. 6. to acknowledge that our Sauiour lefte an externall gouernement of his Church and so is equall with Moses and such a gouernement as cannot be changed by any but himselfe and so is superior vnto Moses I am driuen to confesse this vnchangeable forme of externall church gouernement ordained by him to be a gouernment th' execution whereof is committed to these 4. officers namely Teaching Pastors Doctors gouerning Elders ministring Deacons because I finde non other officers or offices either expressed or included in the Newe Testament Apostles Prophetes and Euangelistes onely excepted which being remooued out of the Churche by the Lord himselfe the boldnes of our Bishops their defenders is intolerable in demanding why Pastors Doctors Elders and deacons should be permanent seeing Apostles Prophets and Euangelists were but temporarie As though the Lord himselfe were not of sufficient wisedome to ordaine what he thought good in the gouerment of his Church or as though he were bounde either to continue Apostles Prophets and Euangelists or to abrogate th'other 4. offices vnder the Gospell to haue no gouerment of his appointment muchlesse vnchangeable I am molested because I made it knowne that to maintaine a Churche gouernement which at the pleasure of man according to the diuers estates of the Church may be changeable is flatly to ouerthrowe the prerogatiue whereby Christe Iesus is aboue Moses in th'ordering of his owne house Th'outwarde regement whereof cannot be held chaungeable vnder the Gospell according to times places countries states but Christ Iesus must be made inferior vnto Moses contrary to th'expresse decree and counsell of th'eternall God Heb. 3. 6. Briefly I am molested because I made it knowen that the gouernment of the Church by L. Bishops and Archbishops being as they themselues graunt a temporarie gouernement fit for the Church in time of peace but not of persecution and neuer ordained by the Lorde but inuented by man to preuent schismes c. is intollerable in Gods Church because it maketh Christ Iesus to haue ordained either a changeable church gouernement of his owne house or none at all and so to be far lesse faithfull in Gods house then Moses was These and such like my Lordes are the causes why th'Archb and his are so bloodily affected towardes me And I haue as mine aduersaries themselues confesse alleadged vnto you the true cause of their hatred and enmitie For if th'Archb c. were demaunded by this honourable assembly why they imprisoned me why they rifeled my studie tooke away my writinges why they now seeke for me their present answere would be that I am an enemie to the present gouernment of the cleargie established by her Majesties prerogatsue and the consent of the State And what is this in effect but because I thinke Christ Iesus to be more faithfull in the gouernment of his owne house then Moses was I know in deed that for this cause they giue out that I am an enemie to her Majesties gouernment a seditious and discontented subject guiltie of many attemptes and practises against her royall prerogatiue and one that intendeth nothing els but the vtter innouation of the state wherein I doe acknowledge th' auncient and perpetuall slaunder of Gods trueth and his seruants in all ages For it hath bene the continuall course and practize of the diuell at all times to laye matter of state vnto their charge that haue gainsaid any of those corruptions which his instruments haue maintained in Gods holy seruice And if our Bishops should new refraine from this slaunder then could they not so manifestly discrie themselues as they doe to be their naturall successors whose roomes in this age they supplie in the defence of the kingdome of darkenesse and ignorance Our Sauiour Christe was guiltie of so many and so outragious practises against the State wherein he liued as Pilate the Iudge could not saue his life and be a friend vnto Cesar This did the high priest openly protest against him Iohn 19. 12. And can we then maruel that his trueth in this age among our high priests is subiect vnto the same obloquie Tertullus th'orator would not be tedious in accusing th'apostle Paule if Felix of his curtesie would but heare him a few words he would briefly lay forth the cause of the Iewes hatred towards the apostle in this sorte Certainly wee haue found this man a pestilent fellowe and a mouer of sedition among the Jewes thorough out the world and a chief mainteiner of the sect of the Nazarites The wicked Iewes also Act. 17. 6. 7. missing of Paul and Silas drew Iason with certaine other brethren vnto the heads of the city crying These are they that haue subuerted the State of the world and here they are that gainsay the decrees of Cesar saying that there is an other king on Jesus c where I do the lesse maruel that sedition and treason is laied to my