Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
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A33722
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Liberty of conscience, asserted and vindicated by a learned country-gentleman ...
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Care, George.
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1689
(1689)
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Wing C503; ESTC R21541
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21,512
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30
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there is no trusting to their Words Promises or Oaths VII My Seventh and last Argument shall be taken ab Authoritate Ecclesiae affirmativè from the Authority of Christians both ancient and modern the Antient Christians generally denied the Persecution of Hereticks for at least well nigh the first 400 years for which there are well-known Testimonies cited out of Tertullian Lactantius c. that Faith is to be perswaded not forced St. Austin is very express contra Cresconium Gra 〈…〉 maticum l. 3. c. 50. Nullis bonis in Catholicâ hoc placet 〈◊〉 usque ad mortem in quenquam licet haereticum saeviatur It pleaseth no good Men in the Catholick Church that Hereticks should be put to Death This Testimony sheweth not his private Opinion but the Judgment of the Universâ—l Church which no Man knew better than he and strongly proves that the Papists are neither the Catholick Church nor good Men for he saith Nullis bonis hoc placet in Catholicâ but it is no wonder for Apostates to alledg the whole Primitive Church as for them when it is all against them This place is quoted by Bishop Jewel Apol. c. 32. Div. 1. p. 431. who cites also Chrysostom Homil 19. in Matth. Num Ovis persequitur Lupum Christianus haereticum c. Doth the Sheep persecute the Wolf No but the Wolf doth persecute the Sheep Doth the Christian persecute the Heretick No but the Heretick doth persecute the Christian And again Whomsoever you see rejâ—icing in the Blood of Persecution he is the Wolf and wisheth that God would kill the Heretick with spiritual Darts and the two-edged Sword of the Spirit Eusebius relates in Vitâ Constantini that Constantine decreed that they which erred should have equal fruition of Peace and Quiet with the Faithful and that we may know Constantine was in earnest he puts it into his Prayer l. 2. c. 55. It is true he banished Arius but he banished likewise Athanasius and neither of them for their Opinions which he accounted trifling and Bp. Jewel saith in Apol. c. 3. Div. 2. p. 524. was thought to encline in his own Opinion rather to Arius but for other Causes and Immoralities and unchristian Contentions not to be reconciled by the Emperours Tears Letters and the Mediation of his Legate Hosius Bishop of Corduba This is certain that Athanasians Arians and Novatians were all suffered in the same Cities to have Churches and Bishops of their own whose Successions are delivered in Ecclesiastical History till Pope Celestine banished the Novatians out of Rome deprived them of their Churches and constrained Rusticula their Bishop to raise private Conventicles anno 425. Socrates Schol. l. 7. c. 11. For now he and Cyril of Alexandria were grown â—reat having gone beyond the Bounds of Priesthood and gotten the temporal Sword. He that would see more of Antiquity may consult Mr. Daillé of the right use of the Fathers and read the Comments of the Fathers upon the Parable of the Tares c. Ye know not what Spirit ye are of I shall add some modern Testimonies of our own Country-men The Apology of the Church of England set out by Authority p. 431. mihi As for us we run not to the Fire as these Mens Guise is but we run to the Scriptures neither do we reason with the Sword but with the Word of God. Indeed the Writ de Haeretico comburendo is now out of Doors and I hope his Fellow de Excommunicato capiendo will follow him ere long See Dr. Hammond in his Defence of my Lord Falkland who writes very fully to this Purpose but especially see his last Words about Paedobaptism in his six Queries His Words are And God forbid we that desire to reduce Dissenters should ever think of damning killing or persecuting any that dissent in this or any other particular And I think it but Duty to pray against that treacherous Prosperity which should be able to infuse any greater Degree of Unkindness or Roughness into the Minds of Men whether Sons or Fathers of the Church than what I here avow to be strict Duty in every Christian Dr. Taylour since Bishop of Down and Conner wrote a whole Book de Libertate Prophetandi the like hath been done by several Conformists in their Pleas for Nonconformists Mr. Hudson who rode with King Charles the first in Disguise in his Treatise of Monarchy c. dedicated to the King asserts Liberty of Conscience boldly and perhaps too boldly but that it was Mr. Hudson who carried his Life in his Hand and at last lost it in the King's Cause See what Dr. More in his Appendix to his Antidote against Idolatry saith p. 55. of Nadab and Abihu's offering strange Fire before the Lord Lev. 10. 1. where he compares it with Luke 9. 54. John 16. 2. and saith Whether Protestants or Papists that kill one the other for conscientious Difference in Religion as thinking 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to make an Oblation of Divine Worship to God thereby do turn the living God of the Christians who is Love it self into the foulest Idols of the Heathens who used to be worshipped with the bloody sacrificing of Men. This holds good in Proportion against Religious Robbery by Fines or Confiscation of Goods Mr. Day on Isa 1. 21. saith that to take away Mens Livelihood is there called Murther Lastly To name no more Dr. Burnet hath written very learnedly and solidly in Defence of Liberty of Conscience in his Preface to the History of the persecuting Emperours Now from what hath been said appears the Vanity of those Men who are content to give a private Liberty but noâ— to assemble which signifies little to many Men who think themselves bound to do so from Heb. 10. 25. and not to live like Atheists Others will give Men Liberty if they will hold their Tongues and distinguish betwixt the outward Exercise or Profession of Faith and the internal Acts of Faith which they say are not to be forced thank them for nothing did the primitive Church only tolerate the Thoughts of Hereticks and who can think any sober Man should dispute of Mens private Thoughts which as such no Man can know or if they be declared and punished yet cannot a Man certainly say that they are forced viz. that his Thoughts are altered for that may be dissembled but all Men have hitherto supposed that Mens Consciences are capable of being forced that is punished taking the inward and outward Acts together as they ought in this Question some I see would give such a Liberty as Antichrist never denied Now it may be fit to answer the principal Arguments which are produced by the Adversaries 1. From Rom. 13. where Magistrates are said to be a Terror to evil-Doers c. I answer that Text only authorizeth the Magistrate to punish civil Injuries and moral Evils He may punish Treason Rebellion Murther c. Such Heresies are Works of the Flesh and against the Light of Nature such
which some say of forcing the external not internal Acts of Faith I shall speak to that afterward V. My fifth Argument is drawn ab axiomate viz. from that received Axiom Dominium non fundatur in Gratiâ that Dominion is not founded in Grace which I know to be chieâ—ly understood of Soveraignty But there is a gradual Parity of the Reason upon which that Axiom is founded which may be reciprocally applied to Subjects for Pagans though they cannoâ— be lawful Dispensers of the Mysteries of Christ nor Heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven yet they may be lawful Kings and lawful Subjects lawful Husbands lawful Masters and lawful Possessors of their Lives Liberties and Estates Christian Religion doth not allow Servants to deny Obedience to their Masters according to the Flesh except they may be made free nor Masters to turn away their Servants contrary to their Covenants nor ought Christian Magistrates to deny Protection to whom it is due though they be not Christians and perhaps was due before either of them was Christian What might a good moral Heathen say if your Christianity stirreth you up either to tyrannize or to rebel sor causes of mere Religion Malo Venusinam quam te Cornelia Mater Si cum magnis Virtutibus affers Grande Supercilium Indeed Errors in Religion may have such intolerable Injury mixt with them as may excuse if not free both the one and the other but I speak of merely Religious Errors It is true wicked Men want the Blessing of God to them upon what they possess they have not a sanctified use of things but they have a lawful Title and 't is as much Theft to steal from them as the best Godly Men in the World. And therefore Heresy can be no sufficient ground to dispossess any Man of what he hath for that can only denominate a Man not Godly or Gracious or to be no excellent Person but Men are not to be punished by the Civil Sword because they are not excellent Persons It is generally thought that Soveraign Authority be it as absolute as it will is founded at least in implicite pact or trust which was necessary in all Nations before Christianity came into the World and when it did it was not in the Christian Power to betrust that nor is it likely that the Community would trust their temporal Rights with the contingent Opinions of their Governours and therefore that bloody persecuting Opinion must needs it self be an Heresy with moral Impiety mixt with it and intolerable as being at Inlet to Thievery and Tyranny on the one Hand and Rebellion on the other And we see by Experience that the principal Hyperaspists and Defenders of the bloody Tenent I mean the Papists do not stick to rebel against to depose and murther Heretical Princes merely for Religion as they are encouraged to do by the Decrees of their Popes and Councils by which whether Kings or Subjects they are bound the one to persecute the other to rebel in case of Heresy though no Civil Injury be offered whatsoever Oaths they may have taken Here it may be objected that what Persecutors do now is according to Law. I answer no humane Authority can justly make such Acts of Sequestration or Confiscation or impose Fines much less such unreasonable Fines as they are wont to do for things merely Religious what is that else but to establish Iniquity by a Law then they say they do not force Men to embrace the Faith but punish Relapsers I answer that Men are forced into Opinions by Law and Fear of Punishment or are surprized by Education and Custom before they are able or fit to judg or are deceived by the plausible reasons of abler Men without hearing what other Men could say to the contrary And then if any Man was to be free from Punishment before he turned he ought to be as free to return except some sufficient cause in Nature or Reason could be shown to dissolve his Right in the one case more than in the other to relapse indeed for any by or worldly ends is a great Sin in the sight of God and fit for him to judg of whose Judgment is according to Truth There are a great many things both in Doctrine and Discipline for which some are very zealous but the greatest part do so little understand or apply their minds to understand that they may turn and return ten times over for what they know and yet the Zealots will engage them to be of their sides as for the great Persecutors their talk of Relapse is but a Pretence for they persecute all of all sorts Again it may be objected that now the Ministers Ecclesiastical Preferments may be endangered by Heretical Doctrine which Preferments are settled by Law. I answer that that Settlement cannot be good so far as it abridgeth any Man or deprives him of that Right which is vested in him by the Law of Nature which is for the Parishioner to have his Freedom in matters of Religion as well as the Rector of the Parish who turns a just Reward into Oppression and Bribery when he useth it to another Mans Wrong what ever Declamations or Defamations such Men may make for their own ends I answer further that the Ministers spiritual Title is founded in Grace viz. for a certain spiritual use which when the Office proves needless or vain the Title falls of it self because the Foundation is sunk away from it Now though in the present Objection we suppose the Office well founded and terminated in a good use yet in those Offices which are not essential to Civil Government in order to the temporal Weal of the Publique but founded in Grace for spiritual ends the Usefulness whereof is best judged by such as are spiritual the Right is likewise best judged by them also and to be reputed but as doubtful and disputable as to others and consequently it cannot be an Offence so great and of the same Nature to deny that Right to oppose it or undermine it as it is to oppose Civil Natural Right which is all the World over unquestionable especially when that Religious Right is but remotely endangered and not actually opposed by Sedition or other Endeavours without the Command of the Soveraign Authority paying all Dues in the mean time according to Law. If a Petition was preferred to the Parliament that our Prelates who in this Latitude of Diocess are indeed Arch-Bishops might be made without any new Ordination by Patent or Commission only and before they enter upon their Offices be bound to declare that they do not hold their Jurisdiction in that Latitude to be jure divino viz. as distinct from Presbyters or such parochial Bishops as watch over the Souls of the People and that the Means of the Church might be brought into a common stock and more equally distributed as they in their Wisdom shall think fit the Petitioner in the mean time paying their Duties till such Determination of the