final Judgment c. are seldomer taught in their Pulpits than in those of the Conformists Or that the Dissenting Ministers less frequently urge the great duties of Godliness Righteousness Sobriety and a heavenly mind and life upon their Hearers Dos he not know that the Directory requires that ordinarily the Subject of the Minister's Sermon shall be some Text of Scripture holding forth some Principle or Head of Religion Nay dos he not know that the peculiar mysteries of the Christian Religion are so much more frequently inculcated in the Sermons of Dissenters as occasion'd some of 'em to reproach the Conformists with Preaching little but morality and borrowing their Discourses rather from Cicero and Seneca than from the Apostolical Writings and the Conformists to reproach them with turning all Christianity into mysteries and Preaching morality too little I do not recite these criminations as approving 'em for I abhor such general and blind censures but as an evidence that matter of fact is in the general opinion of both sides contrary to the Bp's representation of it Or dos he think it a good argument to prove that 't is hardly possible for our people to learn the necessary Articles of their Faith from our publick Teachings meerly because we are left to our choice as to the Subject we treat on Can he find any scriptural Rule or Example prescribing to ordinary Teachers the exact order in which they shou'd explain the mysteries of Christian Religion to the People and yet was it therefore hardly possible for the people in the first age to learn 'em all from their publick Teachings As if ordinary judgment and prudence were not sufficient to direct every Minister in this part of his duty And whereas he saith that hardly any one man in his life ever goes thro the necessary Articles of Faith or of Practice in his publick Sermons and appeals to our selves herein I must needs tell him all the Ministers that I have discourst with are amaz'd to think what shou'd tempt him to assert what all our Hearers know to be a groundless calumny And whereas he tells us That we have no summary of Principles enjoyn'd to be either read or taught in our publick Assemblys I might here enquire what precept or example he can produce from Scripture requiring our Reading or Teaching such a summary in publick distinct from the H. Scriptures Nay tho we shou'd grant him that the Apostle Paul intends such a summary by the form of sound words mention'd 2 Tim. 1.13 yet how will he certainly prove that it was to be publickly read and taught from Timothy's being charg'd to hold it fast The 39 Articles of Religion the Bp. no doubt takes to be such a form of sound words that is to be held fast and yet they do not think it necessary to be publickly read and taught any farther than the Doctrine of Ministers shou'd be conformed to it But if he intend hereby to accuse the Dissenters as careless of their peoples being instructed in such a summary of the Principles of Religion or as we commonly speak of their being catechiz'd I do not know any Ministers in the world whom he can less justly accuse in this matter And perhaps the Ministers of the North of Ireland and those in Scotland do speaking generally outstrip all others that we know of in the Christian world as to their unwearied diligence in catechizing those under their charge And indeed the Bp's accusations put me on the necessity of doing 'em justice in this point by giving the Reader some account of their general practice To that purpose I must premise that they divide all the persons in their Parishes grown up to years of discretion into Communicants and examinable persons For Communicants they do not only strictly examine them as to their knowledge when first admitted to the Lord's Table but also personally visit each of 'em once a year at least and particularly examin 'em as to their progress both in the knowledge and practice of Religion For examinable persons they divide their Parishes into so many districts and accordingly for every district once a year they publickly appoint the time and place when they intend to catechize 'em and accordingly go thro the whole of the Catechism with ' em Nay they are so punctual and exact herein that if any have been absent they publickly appoint another day for the catechizing ' em So that there is not one of these persons in their Congregations come to years of age who is not once every year constantly instructed in the principles of the Christian Religion and personally examin'd about his knowledge of ' em Now either the Bp. knows this matter of fact or he dos not If he do not Why will he pretend to censure so confidently what he is so entirely ignorant of If he do How can he excuse himself in asserting that there is no security or hardly possibility of the Dissenters learning from the publick Teachings of their Ministers all the great mysteries of their Religion or necessary Articles of their Faith when those very Ministers among whom he resides take so effectual a method that there is not one soul under their care but if he learn 'em not 't is grosly his own fault and cannot be imputed to the neglect of his Minister And if the subtilty of this charge lye in the word publick Teachings I shall only add that these catechizings of the persons contain'd in these several districts are publick Teachings and such days are publickly appointed for 'em on which the people can best convene for that end And I cou'd wish his Lp. cou'd give us as satisfactory an account of the diligence of the Conforming Clergy in instructing all the particular persons under their inspection and charge And I may add that in the Meetings of Dissenters here and in England 't is the general practice to catechize publickly on the Lord's-days and the Catechism is usually gone thro once every Summer And I am sure our Catechism is a far more comprehensive summary of the Doctrins and Precepts of the Christian Religion than that us'd in the Establisht Church So little reason reason has he to accuse those that rather set others a Copy worthy their imitation And what his Lp saith of 'em is so contrary to truth that if their people be as willing to learn as they are diligent to teach 't is scarce possible that any of 'em shou'd be ignorant of the necessary Principles of their Faith For the Assemblys Catechism he has some exceptions against it which I shall briefly consider 1. It no ways saith he answers the design of a form of sound words which shou'd contain only the first and necessary Principles of the Oracles of God in such words and method as may make it easily apprehended and attain'd by the weak and unlearned which make up the bulk of the people Answ How can the Bp. expect any Reply to so general a charge I
Authority the Church can appoint Ministers in her name to dedicate men to the service of a crucified Saviour by a Rite or Ceremony of their own when Christ has already appointed one of his own choosing for that end and purpose For if she cou'd why do we quarrel with the Roman Church for adding so many new Sacraments to those two which Christ has Instituted already Nay why do we blame the Romish Church for their additional rites of oyl and salt and spittle and annexing such spiritual signification and use to ' em And 't is yet more inexcusable to make such a human Invention a necessary condition of Christian Communion in this part of the Worship of God For that is to deny men the benefit of God's Institution to which all credible Professors of the Christian Religion and their posterity have a right by the charter of our common Lord because they dare not comply with a meer human Invention for which there is as little if not less to be said than for any of those other rites practis'd by the Roman Church in the celebration of this Ordinance And for the custom of Crossing themselves in common conversation practis'd by the Primitive Christians to distinguish themselves from Infidels we see not what pretence it can afford for this Religious use of the Cross as a dedicating sign in the publick worship of God especially as conjoyn'd with his own viz. Baptism For the use of God-fathers and God-mothers as exclusive of the Parents publick promise of the religious Education of their children there are these two objections lye against it 1. When the 6th Canon of the Church of Ireland ordains that no Parent shall be urg'd to be present nor admitted to stand as God-father for his own Child it plainly discharges the Parents from any publick engagement to a duty which God has most expresly enjoyn'd 'em 6 Deut. 6 7.6 Eph. 4. And can any thing be more unreasonable than to forbid them to bind themselves by a solemn publick promâ—se to a duty which God has so strictly bound 'em to by his own Authority when one great design of Baptism wherein we dedicate our selves or our offspring to God is to bring us and them under such external publick bonds to the dutys of God's Covenant 2. God-faâ—hers and God-mothâ—rs absolutely undertake a work that dos not belong to 'em unless upon supposition of the Parents dying and their adopting the child And what is far worse hereby the generality of such Sponsors are commonly involv'd in the guilt of heinous perjury by undertaking positively to do that themselves which not one of many ever performs For besides their Vowing in the child's name to renounce the Devil and all his works c. To believe the Articles of the Christian Faith and obediently to keep God's holy Commands As if such actual Faith and Repentance were requisite to the claim of Infants to the promises of God's Covenant and the Seal of 'em They are also told by the Priest what is their part and duty in pursuance of their promise viz. To see that the Infant be taught so soon as he shall be able to learn what solemn vow promise and profession he has made by them they are to call upon him to hear Sermons and chiefly to provide that he may learn the Creed the Lord's-Prayer and ten Commandments in the vulgar Tongue and all other things which a Christian ought to know and believe to his soul's health and that the child may be vertuously brought up to lead a godly and a christian life c. Now we may safely herein appeal to common experience how few make any more of this than a matter of meer Ceremony and Form And alas how few that seriously consider how hard it is to discharge these dutys aright for their own children wou'd willingly entangle themselves in such solemn engagements to do all this for other men's And yet Parents must have their children excluded from Baptism if they cannot prevail with others to enter into such unreasonable and rash Vows in which the most only trifle with the Almighty God and dissemble with men in so awful a transaction If indeed either these Sponsors were only engag'd conditionally to take care of the child 's holy education in case of the Parent 's dying or were only made witnesses of the credibility of the Parent 's profession of Christianity as some wou'd pretend to salve the matter There were something to be said as an excuse for this practice But 't is evident from what I have already quoted that they enter into a solemn promise of all the dutys foremention'd I might have objected farther that the 14th Canon of the Church of Ireland forbids the Minister to refuse or delay to Christen any child brought to him on Sundays or Holy-days without any exception whereas he shou'd in all reason enquire whether the Parent be a Professed Christian unless it be suppos'd that the children of professed Infidels have a right to this mark of God's Covenant II. The Bishop has taken no notice of human Inventions in the Discipline of the Church about which he knows the Contest between the Establisht Church and the Dissenters chiefly lyes I speak not here of any lawful determinations of human prudence that relate to the exercise of that sacred discipline that Christ has instituted but of sinful corruptions of it by instituting such new Officers in the Church without any warrant as deprive his undoubted Officers of part of that Pastoral power he has invested 'em with and render true Church-government impracticable and by variety of Canons and Constitutions not only unknown to the Scripture but contrary to the Rules there laid down for the preservation of order unity and peace in the Church But since his Lp's discourse dos not lead me to enter on the particular examination of this subject and he may find these matters largely treated in Mr. Baxter's Treatise of Episcopacy the Terms of Christian Concord the Search for the English Schismatick and the Case of Non conformity stated and argued I shall not without greater occasion engage my self in a Controversy I have so little fondness for and expect so little good from any polemical debates about Only since his Lp. is pleas'd to request several things from the Dissâ—nting Ministers of Derry relating to their Discipline as well as Worship in order to the facilitating an Accommodation and begetting a more amicable correspondence I hope his Lp. cannot take it amiss if we use the like freedom in offering with all humility the following Requests to our Reverend Conforming Brethren especially those whose Authority renders 'em most capable to promote the Reformation desir'd in ' em 1. Since as we humbly conceive it was the most generally receiv'd Opinion of the first Reformers in England in K. Henry the 8th's K. Edward the 6th's and of the Conforming Divines in Q. Elizabeth's Reigns that a Bishop and Presbyter differ only in degree not
of Prayer And the words of our Lord seem to recommend it also as a fit Compendium and Summary of our Desires Tho that it was so strictly intended for a Form as that all alteration of the words in it shou'd be so dangerous as the Bp. suggests I do not see And 't is strange he shou'd no better ward off the common objection against this conceit viz. That the words of the Prayer are not the same in the 2 Evangelists For tho we shou'd allow him that trespasses and debts are the same in the Syriack yet sure he cannot be ignorant that not only are the words different in the 4th Petition but what is more material the Doxology is left out in the Evangelist Luke where our Saviour's words seem more express for the use of this Prayer Nay 't is pleasant that his Lp. shou'd to aggravate the danger of altering the words compare it to the danger of altering those of our Creed p. 35. As if he did not know that the words of it have been frequently alter'd that no writer in the 3 first Centuries has the Creed call'd the Apostle's in the same words that we have now and that the Forms we meet with in Ignatius Irenaeus Tertullian Origen Cyprian and Gregory Neocaesar are all in different words nay in some Forms several Articles are inserted that are not in others Nay in the Creed as we have it no doubt the Article of Christ's descending into Hell shou'd be alter'd as to the words of it because we do not commonly take Hell for the invisible state which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 was design'd to express I confess 't is something more formidable when he compares the danger of altering the words in the Lord's-Prayer to that of changing the word given by the General in a Battel p. 35. Tho where the wit or sense of the comparison lies I cannot imagine unless his Lp. thinks the bare words of that Prayer to be as frightful to the Infernal Fiends as some crafty Priests have pretended the Name or Psalter of the Virgin Mary is but apprehends those our spiritual enemies will resume their courage if we make the least change in ' em I shall only add here That his Lp. has not produc'd any other instance of a prescrib'd Form of Prayer in the New Testament besides this He dos indeed p. 50. tell us That Christ in his Agony repeated a verse of the 22d Psalm and as some believe says he the whole Psalm by which Act he recommends to us Forms of Prayer with his dying breath as the most proper means of expressing our condition to God and as most sutable to the divine Majesty To which I shall only return this brief Answer That his Lp. wou'd have done well first to have told us what grounds any have to believe that our Saviour repeated the whole Psalm and if he did not how the repeating one verse of it so applicable to his present case shou'd be a proof of his using a form of Prayer at all and much more how it shou'd prove his recommending such forms to us with his dying breath c. As if a man might not in a free prayer choose out and apply some scriptural expressions to his own case Indeed the words he quotes are not properly a Prayer at all and if they were look altogether as like an instance of occasional free-prayer so that if I wou'd argue at this loose rate I might with as good reason pretend that our Lord recommended extempore-prayers with his dying breath c. II. The Bp. has not produc'd the least evidence of Christ's enjoyning or recommending to Christian Churches the use of stinted Liturgys even as to the ordinary publick Prayers which they are to offer up So that tho the same matters of Prayer constantly occur in that duty when publickly offer'd especially in the celebration of Baptism and the Ld's-Supper yet neither dos our Saviour nor his Apostles prescribe any stated forms for ' em Whereas if our Lord had judg'd 'em so necessary or so highly useful as some pretend Nothing cou'd have been more conducive to have fixt the use of 'em and prevented all corruptions in 'em as well as scruple about 'em than to have furnisht the Church with a Divinely inspired Liturgy Nay what is more considerable Christ and his Apostles content themselves with giving us general commands to pray and with all prayer and suppliâ—ation for all men c. but never gave the least order to the Pastors of the Church to compose forms of Prayer for publick Worship in those Churches that were planted and settled under the care of ordinary Teachers who had not the same immediate Inspiration as the Apostles themselves Dos not this plainly imply that they took not such an imposed Liturgy to be necessary to the Churches Edification and Peace but rather suppos'd that the ordinary occasions of publick Prayer were too various and different to be confin'd to such sett and prescrib'd forms If it be pretended there was no need of their prescribing such Forms when the Jewish Liturgy was still extant and us'd I answer That not to repeat what has been objected against the pretensions of a stinted Liturgy among the Jews I hope none can imagin that a Jewish Liturgy cou'd be sutable to the Christian Oeconomy after our Saviour's Ascension in the Christian Churches that were planted by the Apostles So that if a Liturgy in general were necessary to the Christian Church there was the greater reason why they shou'd have substituted one in the room of the Jewish in the Churches they settl'd Since then they no way so much as recommend such a Liturgy but left even ordinary Pastors to the free exercise of their own abilities in Prayer as well as in other parts of their publick ministrations We may with great probability infer that they judg'd it more conducive to Edification that the Pastors of Churches shou'd use those ordinary gifts wherewith they were furnisht for the performance of this duty without being ty'd up to any sett-forms And accordingly those that have been most anxiously concern'd to find out fixed and stinted Liturgys in the 3 first and purest Ages of Christianity have but lost their labour and have but trifled with us in their most confident pretences to discover such Liturgys As appears by Mr. Clerkson's Discourse of Liturgys and Mr. S B's Examination of Dr. Comber's Answer in his Scholastical History of the use of Liturgys III. 'T is evident That the general Rules of Scripture cannot be duly observ'd by those that pray no otherwise than by a sett Form of Words They command us to pray with all Prayer and Supplication and for all men In every thing to make known our Request to God 6 Eph. 18. 4 Col. 6. 1 Tim. 2.1 c. Now 't is evident there is a vast variety of occasions and emergencys in which we shou'd apply our selves to God by Prayer which it cannot be expected any
heard such slothful people awaken'd by severe reproofs in the Dissenters Assemblys than in theirs So that I suspect those will fail of their design who come to our Meetings in hopes to take a more undisturbed Nap there The Bishop seems p 143. to assert That kneeling in publick Prayer is a duty which we are bound to provide conveniency for But as he wisely takes it for granted instead of proving it so he groundlesly imagins the Dissenters to have some aversion to it whereas I know of no posture more universally us'd by 'em in that duty in their Closets or Familys where they have conveniency for it And I have seen it frequently us'd in those larger Seats in their Meetings that were wide enough to allow room for it So that I perceive his Lordship is as great a stranger to our judgment and practice as if he liv'd in some remote part of the world and yet pretends to give an account of it with as much confidence as if he had continually frequented our Assemblys I think I may pretend to know 'em better and therefore must in justice to 'em add that in those Meetings I have frequented I have observ'd as great an appearance of external Reverence and Devotion of seriousness and gravity as in any other Protestant Churches whatsoever either at home or abroad The Bishop concludes this Chapter with this Observation But the truth of the matter as it seems to me is That your neglecting to kneel at the most solemn of all Christian Ordinances the Lord's-Supper dos harden you against Reverence in the other parts of Divine Worship And it is no wonder it shou'd do so for if Reverence be not thought necessary in that duty it may well seem unnecessary in any other On which words I shall only add That if by Reverence in that Ordinance of the Lord's-Supper he means kneeling while we eat the Bread and drink the Cup I have shew'd him that the Apostles us'd no such Reverence and he may with the same justice reproach them as he dos us But it will by no means follow that we must not use a worshipping-posture when acts of immediate Worship are offer'd because we use it not when no such acts are requir'd as none are during our eating and drinking in remembrance of Christ in that Institution So that I may more justly observe That his Lordship's neglecting so long to reason solidly and to speak Truth concerning the Dissenters has so harden'd him in the contrary practice that he seems resolv'd to go on in it to the end of the Chapter For the practice of the Establisht Church in reference to Bodily Worship I need add nothing to what has been already observ'd p. 123 124 concerning bowing at the name of Jesus standing up at the Reading some part of the Scriptures rather than others Reading in the Cathedrals one part of their Service at the Communion-Table where few of the people can hear it c. For which practices the Bp. must either bring us express scriptural precept or pattern or must censure 'em for his sort of human Inventions and truly some of 'em look too like superstitious ones For they are either us'd and retain'd for no reason at all but meer arbitrary pleasure or for such reasons as include some superstitious conceit in 'em as if some peculiar honour and homage were due to that name of our Saviour above others And greater veneration were due to some part of Scripture above the rest And as if there were either some peculiar sanctity in the prayers or in the place when they are read at the Communion-Table or there were no better way of instructing the people in their obligation to Communicate than by this dumb sign of reading some part of the Communion-Service there Remarks on the Fifth Chapter concerning the Lord's-Supper And here I. FOr the Account he gives us of what the Scriptures prescribe concerning the frequency of Celebrating this Institution I shall very easily agree with his Lp. For tho I think his Reasoning from the time of Celebrating the Passover and from the general Topic of our doing it as often as we have conveniency for it is not very cogent to prove any obligation upon us to celebrate this Sacrament every Lord's-day Yet I do think his other arguments from Scripture are of great weight to prove that in the Apostles time this Ordinance was made one constant part of their Lord's-days Worship and I think it past doubt that this was the universal practice of Christian Churches for several succeeding Ages So that in this respect I fear that the Reformed Churches themselves have not yet come up to the practice of the truly primitive and Apostolical ones as I truly think were highly desirable Many learned Authors both Conf's and N C's have freely deliver'd their judgments to the same purpose and I know of none that have disputed the matter of fact on which their arguments for reviving this practice are founded I know there are other judicious persons that do not think the arguments drawn thence to be demonstrative and do still conceive the words As oft as ye eat this bread c. and do this as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me to leave the frequency of performing this duty to the determination of human prudence And tho their exceptions do not so far weigh with me as to alter my judgment yet I dare not be harsh in censuring such whose apprehensions herein are different from my own All the Debate then remaining between the Bp. and me will be concerning II. The Practice of the Establisht Church and that of the Dissenters For the practice of the Establisht Church I wonder why he shou'd pretend their Church has provided for those that desire to Receive every Lord's-day meerly because of her ordering some part of the Communion-Service to be read every Lord's-day when 't is so publickly known that there is no Bread and Wine provided for such as may be dispos'd to Communicate And why shou'd the people be taught their duty only by such dumb signs as that or part of the Communion-Service be read when there 's no Communion intended He dos indeed very justly observe that the Canons require no more of every Parishioner than that he Receivee thrice a year But why he shou'd lay the blame of their people's Receiving no oftner on the ill example of the Dissenters I cannot imagin For if it appear that the Dissenters generally Receive far oftner than their Canons require It will be very unaccountable how their example shou'd encourage that negligence of the Conforming Laity which it rather reproves I confess for the method of driving men to the Sacrament by punishment if he intend this of the severe penaltys that follow upon a Writ de Excommunicato Capiendo we do not much admire it To be admitted to the Lord's-Table we esteem so great a Priviledg and Honour that we think none shou'd partake of it but
as once a Quarter So that if the Bp. speak here of the generality of Dissenters as we have reason to suppose because he does not here as elsewhere confine his Charge to any part of 'em To reproach them as guilty of rare or no Communion not to be precedented among the most degenerate and barbarous People that were ever called Christians is a Calumny of such a hainous nature that I shall in meer Civility and respect to his Character forbear to treat it as it deserves and shall only desire him to bring the Parish-Churches to that frequency of Communion so generally practised among the Dissenters before he treat us any more with such rude Language as we might with so much advantage retort If his Lordship pretend that he design'd to confine this to the North of Ireland tho' he has exprest no such thing yet how little ground he had for this heavy Charge will appear upon a due Examination of matter of Fact Of which I have this Account given by those that know it much better than he can pretend to do 'T is so far from being true that 't is rare if once in a year or two a Communion be celebrated in their Meetings that it 's universally usual in every Meeting where an ordained Minister is settled to have the Lord's Supper administred constantly Once a year and Twice in the larger Towns And what is more considerable where-ever 't is administred 't is usual for Two Thirds of the Congregation to be Strangers For 't is their Custom in the North to have very large and numerous Communions so that when the Sacrament is administred in one Meeting 't is usual for most of the Members of Neighbouring Parishes to frequent it To which purpose they bring Certificates or Communicatory Letters from their own Ministers So that the generality of 'em as I am assur'd do communicate four or five times in a year many of them do it much oftner and all of 'em have the opportunity of doing it ten twelve or fifteen times a year if they will take the Advantage of receiving it as often as 't is administred within a few miles of their respective Habitations And they alledge these two or three Reasons that have induc'd 'em to this Method 1. That hereby the vast Number of Communicants tends to increase the Solemnity of the Institution and represents in a more affecting manner the Communion of Saints 2. That every Parish having usually but one Minister 't is requisite the Ministers of Neighbouring Parishes should assist 'em on that occasion and consequently they usually bring their People along with ' em 3. That the Ministers of particular Congregations prepare their own people for it by visiting 'em round examining every particular Member anew about their spiritual Estate and making due Enquiry about their Conversation all which takes up a considerable time This being a just account of their practice tho' I must freely profess I do prefer the general practice of Dissenters elsewhere of administring the Lord's Supper in each Congregation once a Month and cou'd heartily wish it were made a constant part of the Lord's-day Worship yet I see not with what tolerable Justice the Bp. cou'd upbraid 'em with their rare or no Communion when the Members of their Meetings do generally communicate much oftner than the Members of the Parish-Churches Nay when their Ministers not celebrating it in each particular Meeting is occasion'd by so extraordinary care taken to prepare their People for it Whereas there can be no other Account given why the Parish-Ministers who take no such pains with their People administer it so seldom but either their own Laziness or the People's Indevotion And whereas he saith A man may live among 'em with the reputation of a Professor to Thirty or Forty Years and never receive at all If he mean by a Professor a Person accounted truly Religious they declare they know not of one Instance of that kind And whereas he saith Not one in ten that go to their Meetings receive through the whole course of their Lives they do profess that by the best computation they can make there is not one in ten or rather in 20 or 30 that do not receive except such as are with-held for want of competent Knowledge or on the account of Scandal and those that communicate once do it ordinarily on all following occasions So that upon the whole the Bp. is much more concern'd to find a Precedent for the generality of the Members of Parish-Churches in their rare or no Communion than the Dissenters are for the Members of their Congregations And much more is he concern'd to find a Precedent for himself in his so rarely speaking truth concerning the Dissenters and I fear that he will hardly find any if I may return him his civil expressions except among the most degenerate and barbarous Writers that were ever called Christians I mean those Romish Priests who in their writing against Protestants have acquir'd a peculiar dexterity in the practice of that Unchristian Maxim Calumniare fortiter aliquid adhaerebit Throw dirt enough and some of it will stick REMARKS on the CONCLUSION 1. FOr that part of it which contains his Lp's Advice to those of his own Clergy I shall take no farther notice of it than as it concerns the Dissenters P. 166. He tells 'em They are never to despair whilst they have God's Truth on their side tho' whole Provinces should fall off from the Church as all they in Asia did from St. Paul 2 Tim. 1.15 Tho' none should believe our report as it happened to our Saviour himself Answ This looks too like his former Language when he so uncharitably excluded us from the Catholick Church For does he indeed think that Men's going to the Dissenters Meetings is a defection from Christianity and turning Infidels to the Doctrine of the Gospel as the expressions he alludes to import Since we agree in the Articles of Religion profest by the Establish'd Church to which by the way the Dissenters of the two more strictly adhere since as himself owns p 4. we agree about the inward part of Divine Worship Nay since we agree in the same external parts of it Praise Prayer Hearing and the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper and only disagree about the mode of ordering those external Duties Is it not most unreasonable and contrary to Christian Charity and I might add to common sence to speak of such as in these Circumstantial Modes differ from him as fallen off from the Church and dis-believing the Report of the Gospel What is this but to turn the Circumstantial Modes of Worship into Fundamentals and thereby to turn the Reformed Church in this Kingdom into a Sect and Party i. e. to incur the grossest sort of Schism and most opposite to Christian Love I hope I have in these Papers shewn our manner of performing these Duties to be more agreeable to Scriptural Precept and Pattern
neque tamen mere soluta oratio sed Syllabarum atque vocum certo numero seu proportione quadam saltem rhetorica ad melodiam adstricta Where 't is evident he takes Metre in the strict sense but asserts such Measures as are distinct from meer Prose And indeed some such Measures they must have had to conform their Sentences to Musick In some of 'em as particularly those Psalms I have quoted in the Remarks those Measures are more obvious and are like the Measures observ'd in many of the Hymns us'd in the Romish Church such as that Aeterna Coeli Gloria Beata spes Mortalium Summi Tonantis unice Castae que proles Virginis c. Or that Ave maris Stella Dei mater Alma Atque semper virgo Felix Coeli porta Sumens illud Ave Gabrielis Ore c. But others of 'em we are more at a loss to understand because we have utterly lost the Ancient Hebrew Musick even as to Instruments as well as Tunes yea the Ancient Musick of other Nations is lost See Is Voss de Poem Cantu c. p. 21. 48. Upon the whole then sinee the Psalms were wrote in such sort of Metre and Verse as was then us'd since the knowledge of their particular Musical Tunes and Instruments is quite lost we cannot be oblig'd to an exact imitation of 'em for that were to suppose us oblig'd to Impossibilities The Commands therefore that enjoyn Christian Churches to sing Psalms necessarily oblige us to turn 'em into such sort of Metre and Verse as will accommodate e'm best to be sung by the People Whereas to put 'em into no other Metre than the Pointed Psalter in the Common-Prayer-Book is to exclude the generality of the People from any capacity of complying with God's own Command for Singing ' em And as the Tunes of those pointed Psalms are quite different from the Hebrew ones so they are as much a human Invention as the Tunes of the common Metre-Versions And therefore to set up that pointed Psalter in the Service-Book whose Tunes the body of the People cannot follow to the Exclusion of those Metre-versions according to which they can joyn in singing the Psalms as the Bp. seems to design is in his Language to set up a human Invention to the violation of a Divine Command by rendring the Peoples observance of it impracticable And whereas the Bp. adds p. 8. That we cannot find that our Saviour and his Apostles in their time or those in the Age immediately following sung any thing in verse but we are sure they sung Hymns in Prose I shall only subjoyn That I cannot imagine whence the Bp. shou'd be sure That Christ and his Apostles Sung Hymns in Prose For by the account already given 'T is no way probable since the Hebrew-Psalms tho compos'd when Poetry was but in its first rise and as it were unfledg'd and unform'd were in Verse as distinguish'd from Prose Nay that in the Apostles time and in the following Ages they Sung in Metre and Verse seems more probable from the Relation that Eusebius gives us from Philo concerning the Therapeutae or Worshippers in Egypt Philo flourish'd in the middle of the Apostolical Age of whose Commentary Eusebius tells us Eccles. Hist l. 2. c. 16 That it contain'd manifestly the Canons or Rules hitherto conserved in the Church and that insomuch as he i. e. Philo has curiously described unto us the lives of our Asseticks or Religious Men he plainly shews that he not only understood but also greatly admir'd and approv'd those Apostolical Men who probably descending from the Hebrews did therefore observe the ancient Rites and Ceremonies of the Jews Now among other customs of those Therapeutae Philo relates Eccl. Hist l. 2 c. 17. That they made Songs and Hymns to God in grave and sacred Rhymes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of every kind of Metre and Verse 'T is true indeed that Scaliger de Emend Temp. l. 6. falls foul on Eusebius for making these Therapeutoe or Worshippers to be Christians and Valesius Annot. in Euseb p 34. 35. falls in with him in that tho he dissent from him that these Therapeutoe were Essenes and pretends to prove the contrary But the Arguments of Scaliger and Valesius on both these heads are well answer'd in Bruno's Dissertatio de Therapeutis Printed at the end of Colomes's Edition of the Epistle of Clement ad Corinthios But however that bee 'T is evident that Eusebius not only asserts such Divine Hymns compos'd in Metre and Verse to be in use among Christians in his Age but to have been a custom deriv'd to 'em from the Apostolical Age and continually preserved in the Church as Philo supposes such Hymns to have been usual among the Jews So that we have better ground to conclude that Christ and his Apostles and the following Ages sung Hymns in Metre and Verse then the Bp. has produc'd for their Singing Hymns in Prose And for the Alternate singing of the Psalms of David Dr. Comber acknowledges the truth of what Theodoret asserts l. 2. c. 24. That this custom was first brought into the Church of Antioch by Flavianus and Diodorus and from thence universally spread of Lit. p. 87 88. And Dr. Hammond saith That St. Basil in the description of a Clergy man officiating Ad Clerum Caesar Ep. 63 saith they go to the House of Prayer and after the Confession they prepare for the singing of Psalms speaking of the first Apostolical times For now saith he we sing the Psalms in parts or by turns it seems they had not done so before but altogether View of the New Direct Ed. fol. p. 138 In other Hymns 't is true we read of Alternate singing more early practis'd And indeed since the Scripture only requires Singing Psalms Hymns c. in general without prescribing the particular mode of it Christian Charity shou'd make us cautious of censuring such different modes of others as sinful human Inventions except when such an inconvenient mode is chosen as excludes the main part of the Congregation from joyning in this Religious Duty FINIS