Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	concern_v	great_a	king_n	2,509	5	3.3499	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90362	The Jesuits grand design upon England, clearly discovered in a letter lately written from a father of that society.	Peirce, Edmund, Sir, d. 1667.; J. M.	1660 (1660)	Wing P1063; Thomason E1019_16; ESTC R208327	7,068	8

THE JESUITS GRAND DESIGN UPON ENGLAND Clearly discovered in a Letter lately written from a Father of that Society SIR I Received your last and have sent the inclosed to the party according as you desired Monsieur De-vaulx came hither last night from Lyons where he met with Monsieur Prè who was going post from Rome where he hath been ever since the death of the Duke of Orleans his great friend and benefactor to Germany he saith he is like to repair the loss he had by the Dukes death with an imployment which an Italian Cardinall will help him to I am glad of it for although the man have none of the acutest parts he hath heen very active and industrious and hath done to my knowledge no small services He saith that some Grandees in those parts are not so much joyed with the King of Swedens death as it was supposed they would I could partly guesse the cause but referring that to another opportunity I shall at present enlarge my self concerning what is now the greatest trouble and care to us all The state of things in England which truly I am very sorry to hear how it dayly grows worse and worse For although you seem not to apprehend so much because as you write if things should come to a settlement there that you could not think the Catholicks to be in a much worse condition because you suppose it would be then as in former times viz. the Lawes concerning their Estates not to be put in so rigorous an execution as now and that they had rather be in some certain way under the Government of one whose prudence and moderation was well known then still to be exposed to the Frantick madnesse of what ever happens to be uppermost who upon all occasion link them with their greatest enemies in all mulcts of punishment And who can never be supposed with any face to shew the least favour to them And that it is the opinion of some sober men that their case if there were once a settlement in some Parliament might deserve some consideration as to penall Laws which were made in a conjuncture of time when severity was requisite and the Kingdom exasperated by I must needs say very desperate attempts but seeing in so long a tract of time the party is much wafted and made inconsiderable in whatever might make them formidable And they have not a long while been guilty of any exorbitant offence and that the interest of the King would be rather to compose and court all parties then exasperate any You I say for these reasons do suppose our condition there would be rather better then worse I must needs confesse that there is some ground for your opinion as to the English Catholicks of estate and fortunes and who by consequence cannot but have much of the Nations true interest in them and possibly as to their particular had better be settled in some moderate way then in such condition as if things come to that passe which we so long have driven at for advancing the generall cause of the Church which perhaps by reason of your years you have not so fully understood and which only neglecting all other particulars is a grand duty of a true son of the Catholick Church and how far we were all herein concerned as to the affaires of England For you must know that about twenty years agoe the English Hereticks had brought their Church to such a height and settled it in so fair and plausible a way the Doctrine of it so learnedly maintained by their Divines Men I must needs say most of them of admirable learning and parts whatsoever we could object to them still so fully answered Their Discipline such as did dayly give satisfaction to more and more of all parties Their Ceremonies being decent and comely for the most part grounded upon Scripture or the ancient customs of the Primitive Church Insomuch that many who were offended with the multiplicity insignificancy and superstition which they apprehended in ours did much better like of them For I must needs say as I think I have sometimes told you before we did retain many things because we thought it more prudent to alter nothing at all rather then that some could be solidly maintained thinking it better with wit and art bravely to bear them out then by yeelding to the least alteration which once begun we could perhaps never have stay'd breed any disrepute or dishonour to our Church And finally all things settled in that splendid and orderly way under so potent and considerable a Monarch that as it was the powerfull head and protector of all the Protestant Churches in the world so likely to be the great countenancer and procurer of any new revolt which in some considerable states was feared and in veryshort time probable to gain ground upon if not quite over-throw the Catholick Church Insomuch that as then those considerations to my knowledge there was nothing more terrible to us so then that which was afterwards the occasion of dissipating these fears nothing more welcome Although it was no more then we might ever somewhat probably also expect as we have from time to time carryed on affaires there by our Agents we knowing well that there was alwayes in England a numerous sort of well meaning men who did desire to serve God in a perfect way as their consciences instructed as they were informed them These being most of them of indifferent wealth and of a middle degree and capacity and therefore few of them being capable to apprehend the main scope and design of the Rulers of their Church but being I cannot tell how perswaded to the no small laughter of us you must imagine that the way their Bishops then went was in order to favour if not quite bring in the Catholick Religion and being not a little heighthned in such their fancies by our indefatigable endeavours They began at length to prove very troublesome and in some good sort to answer our expectations The Universities likewise swarming then with men of excellent learning and parts it was a hard matter for one who was not therein eminent to attain if not well befriended to any considerable preferment Hence it was that they which had loytered their time when they could live no longer there usually seated themselves in some populous Town in which were great numbers of the aforesaid people then called Puritans from whom by reason of some Lecture they having their maintenance their preaching was such as was most likely to get credit with that party Hence were their Sermons commonly invectives against the present or-orders of the Church And the more they were taken notice of by Authority the more were they flocked after and grew to greater eminence and thereby had occasion of gaining a greater number of Proselites to their opinion so that in time some Thousands there were which were desperately bent against their Church government These as we ordered the