Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
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A59475
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A letter from a person of quality to his friend in the country
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Shaftesbury, Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of, 1621-1683.; Locke, John, 1632-1704.
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1675
(1675)
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Wing S2897; ESTC R3320
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30,815
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37
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without Reordination but no Protestant Minister not Episcopally ordain'd but is required to be reordain'd as much as in us lies unchurching all the forreign Protestants that have not Bishops though the contrary was both allowâ—d and practis'd from the beginning of the Reformation till the time of that Act and several Bishops made of such as were never ordain'd Priests by Bishops Moreover the Vncharitableness of it was so much against the Interest of the Crown and Church of England casting off the dependency of the whole Protestant partie abroad that it would have been bought by the Pope and French King at a vast summ of Money and it is difficult to conceive so great an advantage fell to them meerly by chance and without their help so that he thought to endeavor to alter and restore the Liturgy to what it was in Queen Elizabeths days might consist with his being a very good Protestant As to the Catachisme he really thought it might be mended and durst declare to them it was not well that there was not a better made For the Homilies he thought there might be a better Book made and the 3. Hom. of Repairing and keeping clean of Churches might be omitted What is yet stranger then all this The Canons of our Church are directly the old Popish Canons which are still in force and no other which will appear if you turn to the Stat. 25. Hen. 8. cap. 19 confirmed and received by 1. Eliz. where all those Canons are establish'd untill an alteration should be made by the King in pursuance of that Act which thing was attempted by Edward the 6th but not perfected and let alone ever since for what reasons the Lords the Bishops could best tell and it was very hard to be obliged by Oath not to endeavour to alter either the English Common-Prayer book or the Canon of the Mass. But if they meant the latter That the Protestant Religion is contein'd in all those but that every part of those is not the Protestant Religion then â—e apprehended it might be in the Bishops Power to declare ex post facto what is the Protestant Religion or not or else they must leave it to every man to judge for himself what parts of those books are or are not and then their Oath had been much better let alone Much of this nature was said by that Lord and Others and the great Officers and Bishops were so hard put to it that they seemed willing and convinced to admit of an Expedient The Lord Wharton and Old and Expert Parliament Man of eminent Piety and Abilities beside a great Friend to the Protestant Religion and Interest of England offer'd as a cure to the whole Oath and what might make it pass in all the 3 parts of it without any farther debate the addition of these words at the latter end of the Oath Viz. as the same is or shall be establish'd by Act of Parliament but this was not endured at all when the Lord Grey of Rollston a worthy and true English Lord offered another Expedient which was the addition of words by force or fraud to the beginning of the Oath and then it would run thus I do swear not to endeavor by force or fraud to alter this was also a cure that would have passed the whole Oath and seemed as if it would have carried the whole House The Duke of York and Bishop of Rochester both secondâ—ng it but the Lord Treaâ—urer who had privately before consented to it speaking against it gave the word and sign to that party and it being put to the question the major Vote answered all arguments and the L. Grey's Proposition was laid aside Having thus carried the question relying upon their strength of Votes taking advantage that those expedients that had been offered extended to the whole Oath though but one of the 3 Clauses in the Oath had been debated the other two not mentioned at all they attempted strongly at nine of the Clock at night to have the whole Oath put to the question and though it was resolutely opposed by the Lord Mohun a Lord of great courage and resolution in the Publick Interest and one whose own personal merits as well as his Fathers gave him a just title to the best favors of the Court yet they were not diverted but by as great a disorder as ever was seen in that House proceeding from the rage those unreasonable proceedings had caused in the Country Lords they standing up in a clump together and crying out with so loud a conâ—inued Voice Adjourn that when silence was obtain'd Fear did what Reason could not do cause the question to be put only upon the first Clause concerning Protestant Religion to which the Bishops desired might be added as it is now established and one of the eminentest of those were for the Bill added the words by Law so that as it was passed it ran I A. B. do swear that I will not endeavor to alter the Protestant Religion now by Law established in the Church of England And here observe the words by Law do directly take in the Canons though the Bishops had never mentioned them And now comes the consideration of the latter part of the Oath which comprehends these 2 Clauses viz. nor the Goverment either in Church or State wherein the Church came first to be considerd And it was objected by the Lords against the Bill that it was not agreeable to the King's Crown and Dignity to have His Subjects sworn to the Government of the Church equally as to Himself That for the Kings of England to swear to maintain the Church was a diffeâ—ent thing from enjoyning all His Officers and both His Houses of Parliament to swear to them It would be well understood before the Bill passed what the Government of the Church we are to swear to is and what the Boundaries of it whether it derives no Power nor Authority nor the exercise of any Power Authority or Function but from the King as head of the Church and from God as through him as all his other Officers do For no Church or Religion can justify it self to the Government but the State Religion that ownes an entire dependency on and is but a branch of it or the independent Congregations whilest they claim no other power but the exclusion of their own members from their particular Communion and endeavor not to set up a Kingdom of Christ to their own use in this World whilest our Saviour hath told us that His Kingdom is not of it for otherwise there would be Imperium in imperio and two distinct Supream Powers inconsistent with each other in the same place and over the same persons The Bishops alâ—eadged that Priesthood and the Power thereof and the Authorities belonging thereunto were derived immediately from Christ but that the license of exercising that Authority and Power in any Country is derived from the civil Magistrate To which was replied that it was a
pressure laid upon them but to be made uncapable of Office Court or Armes and to pay so much as might bring them at least to a ballance with the Protestants for those chargable Offices they are lyable unto and concluded with this that he desired me seriously to weigh wheâ—her Liberty and Propriety were likely to be maintained long in a Countrey like Ours where Trade is so absolutely necessary to the very being as well as prosperity of it and in this Age of the World if Articles of Faith and Matters of Religion should become the only accessible ways to our Civil Rights Thus Sir You have perhaps a better account of the Declaration then you can receive from any other hand and I could have wisht it a longer continuance and better Reception then it had for the Bishops took so great Offence at it that they gave the Alarum of Popery through the whole Nation and by their Emissaries the Clergy who by the Connexture and Subordination of their Government and their being posted in every Parish have the Advantage of a quick dispersing their Orders and a sudden and universal Insinuation of whatever they please raised such a cry that those good and sober Men who had really long feared the Encrease and continuance of Popery had hitherto received began to believe the Bishops were in earnest their Eyes opened though late and therefore joyned in heartily with them so that at the next meeting of Parliament the Protestants Interest was run so high as an Act came up from the Commons to the H. of Lords in favor of the dissenting Protestants and had passed the Lords but for want of time Besides another excellent Act passed the Royal Assent for the Excluding all Papists from Office in the Opposition of which the L. Treasurer Clifford fell and yet to prevent his ruine this Sessions had the speedier End Notwithstanding the Bishops attain'd their Ends fully the Declaration being Cancelled and the great Seal being broken off from it The Parliament having passed an Act in favor of the Dissenters and yet the sense of both Houses sufficiently declared against all Indulgence but by Act of Parliament Having got this Point they used it at first with seeming Moderation there were no general Directions given for prosecuting the Non-conâ—ormists but here and there some of the most Confiding Justices were made use of to try how they could receive the Old Persecution for as yet the Zeal raised against the Papists was so great that the worthyest and soberest of the Episcopal party thought it necessary to unite with the dissenting Protestants and not to divide their Party when all their Forces were little enough In this posture the Sessions of Parliament that began Oct. 27. 1673. tound Matters which being suddenly broken up did nothing The next Sessions which began Ian 7. following the Bishops continued their Zeal against the Papists and seem'd to carry on in joyning with the Countrey Lords many excellent Voâ—es in order to a Bill as in particular That the Princes of the Blood-Royal should all Marry Protestants and many others but their favor to dissenting Protestants was gone and they attempted a Bargain with the Countrey Lords with whom they then joyned not to promote any thing of that nature except the bill for taking away Assent and Consent and renouncing the Covenant This Session was no sooner ended without doing any thing but the whole Clergy were instructed to declare that there was now no more danger of the Papists The Phanatique for so they call the dissenting Protestant is again become the only dangerous Enemy and the Bishops had found a Scoth Lord and two new Ministers or rather Great Officers of England who were desperate and rash enough to put their Masters business upon so narrow and weak a bottom and that old Covenanter Lauderdale is become the Patron of the Church and has his Coach and table fil'd with Bishops The Keeper and the Treasurer are of a just size to this affair for it is a certain rule with the Church Men to endure as seldom as they can in business Men abler then themselves But his Grace of Scotland was least to be executed of the Three for having fall'n from Presbitery Protestaant Religion and all principles of Publick good and private friendship and become the Slave of Clifford to carry on the Ruine of all that he had professed to support does now also quit even Clifford's generous Principles and betake himself to a soâ—t of Men that never forgive any Man the having once been in the right and such Men who would do the worst of things by the worst of means enslave their country and betray them under the mask of Religion which they have the publick Pay for and charge off so seething the Kid in the Mothers milk Our Statesmen and Bishops being now as well agreed as in Old Land's time on the same principles with the same passion to attain their end they in the first place give orders to the Judges in all their Circuits to quicken the Execution of the Laws against Dissenters a new Declaration is published directly contrary to the former most in words against the Papists but in the Sense and in the close did fully serve against both and in the Execution it was plain who were meant A Commission besides comes down directed to the principal Gentlemen of each country to seize the Estates of both Papists and Phanatiques mentioned in a Liâ—t annexed wherein by great misfortune or skill the Names of the Papists of best quality and fortune and so best known were mistaken and the Commission render'd ineffectual as to them Besides this the great Ministers of State did in their common publick assure the partie that all the places of Profit Command and Trust should only be given to the old Cavalier no Man that had served or been of the contrary Party should be left in any of them And a direction is issued to the Great Ministers before mentioned and Six or seven of the Bishops to meet at Lambeth-House who were like the Lords of the Articles in Scotland to prepare their compleat Modell for the ensuing Session of Parliament And now comes this memorable Session of Aprill 13. 75. then which never any came with more expectation of the Court or dread and apprehension of the People the Officers Court Lords and Bishops were clearly the major Vote in the Lords House and they assured themselves to have the Commons as much at their dispose when they reckoned the number of the Courtiers Officers Pensioners encreased by the addition of the Church and Cavalier party besides the Address they had made to Men of the best quality there by hopes of Honor great employment and such things as would take In a word the French King's Ministers who are the great Chapmen of the World did not out-doe ours at this time and yet the over ruling hand of God has blown upon their Politicks and the Nation is escaped this