Selected quad for the lemma: england_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A39297
|
An account of tythes in general
|
Ellwood, Thomas, 1639-1713.
|
1700
(1700)
|
Wing E611A; ESTC R36220
|
8,805
|
15
|
his Flesh for Mankind The Major must be granted and the Minor I thus prove Whatsoever was a Part of the Ceremonial Law of Moses was to be taken away and cease at and by the Death of Christ But Tythes were a Part of the Ceremonial Law of Moses Therefore Tythes were to be taken away and cease at and by the Death of Christ The Major here again is unexceptionable and the Minor is thus proved Every Heave Offering among the Iews was a Part of the Ceremonial Law of Moses But Tythes were an Heave-Offering among the Iews Numb 18. 24. Therefore Tythes were a Part of the Ceremonial Law of Moses 6. By this it appears that without Regard had of the Person to whom or the Use for which Tythes are paid the paying of Tythes as well as the receiving them being a Part of the abrogated Ceremonial Law of Moses imports a Denyal of the Coming and Death of Christ Hence it is that Tythes have been and are commonly called Antichristian or against Christ And hence hath arisen that Saying often used not only by our antient Friends but by some of the Martyrs long before viz. He that pays Tythes doth thereby deny that Christ is come in the Flesh. That Conclusion could not have been drawn from the paying of Tythes to a wrong Ministry or for a wrong Use only though such Payment be evil Nor could any thing justify that Inference but the Consideration that Tythes depending on the Ceremonial Law of Moses which must of Necessity and in Course fall and cease when Christ suffered the paying of Tythes carries in it a Supposal that that Law is not yet ceased but is still in Force And consequently that Christ whose Death must needs have ended it is not yet come nor has yet suffered in his Flesh for Mankind 7. That other Objection not less weighty than common against paying Tythes to the Clergy so called viz. The Unlawfulness of upholding a false Ministry to perform a false Worship being it self so clear and plain that it needs no Illustration I shall in this Discourse no further meddle with than to observe in my way how far it may affect those Tythes also which the Impropriators claim Wherefore having premised what is said before concerning Tythes in general to what Hand or for what Use soever paid let us now inquire into those Tythes which are called Impropriate Of Impropriate TYTHES 1. THAT these Tythes which are claimed by the Impropriators are of the same Nature and stand originally on the same Root and Ground on which the other Tythes stand which are claimed and exacted by the Priests is evident from hence that they were all heretofore these as well as those claimed by and paid to some or other of the Romish Clergy or their Appendices the Religious Orders so called and upon the same Foot That is These Impropriate Tythes were paid to those Religious Orders or Houses as being due to God by Vertue of the Levitic Law as well as the other Tythes were paid to the Parish-Priests on the same supposed Right from the same Law But how these Tythes came to those Religious Houses first and how afterwards from them to the Impropriators is next to be inquired 2. Until the Lateran Council so named because it was holden in the Pope's Palace at Rome called the Lateran in the Year 1215. It was in the Choice of every Man to give his Tythes to what Church he pleased so he gave them to some Church And even after that Council the Popes as Heads of that Church by their dispencing Power did give leave to such as would sue and pay for it to give their Tythes from the Parish-Priest to such Order of Religious People whether Monks Fryers or Nuns as they were best affected to By which means the Parish-Priests called Seculars and those of the several Religious Orders called by a general Title Regulars being left to scramble as they could for maintenance the Regulars mendicant Fryers and others swarming in all Places and pretending at least to greater Sanctity and Austerity of Life than the Parish-Priests prevailed with the People either living or dying to give not only very considerable Estates in Lands but also the Tythes of other Lands and of whole Parishes from the Parish Priests to their Religious Houses or Convents 3. The Tythes or Parsonages so given were then called Appropriations because they were appropriated to this that or the other Religious House or Convent And I have read that there were in England about 3845 Parsonages thus appropriated And as Tythes were then held to be due to God and holy Church and those Religious Orders were reputed a Part of that Church So the Tythes as well as the Lands thus given them were continued to them and possessed by them till that general Storm arose in K. Henry 8. his time which overturned those Religious Houses and Orders together And here by the way it may be noted That while those Religious Houses stood a great Part of the Lands which had been given to them were by Papal Authority exempted from paying Tythes Whence it is that many of those Estates which had belonged to those Religious Houses remain discharged from the Burthen of Tythes still 4. As Tythes were set up here on the Authority of the Levitic Law and in Imitation of the Iewish Practice consonant to that Law So while those Religious Houses stood and the Pope's Power prevailed here not only the Seculars or Parish-Priests but all those Regulars who received Tythes were bound to pay the Tenths out of the Tythes they received to the Head of their Church the Pope as the Levites under the Ceremonial Law were required to do to the Priests 5. But after that K. Hen. 8. upon a Quarrel between the Pope and him about his Divorce from his first Queen Catharine which he earnestly desired and the Pope would not grant fell off from the Pope though not from Popery For after that he retained the most pernicious Doctrines of the Romish Church contained in the six Articles and burnt some for denying them he threw off the Pope's Supremacy here and assumed it to himself declaring himself and being declared first by the Clergy in their Convocation and soon after by Lords and Commons in Parliament The only Supream Head in Earth of the Church of England This was done by the Statute of 26 Hen. 8. c. 1. And therein it is enacted That the King his Heirs and Successors Kings of this Realm shall be taken accepted and reputed the only Supream Head in Earth of the Church of England And shall have and enjoy annexed and united to the Imperial Crown of this Realm as well the Title and Stile thereof as all Honours Dignities Praeemences Jurisdictions Privileges Authorities Immunities Profits and Commodities to the said Dignity of Supream Head of the same Church belonging and appertaining And shall have full Power and Authority from time to time to Visit Repress Redress Reform Order
Correct Restrain and Amend all such Errors Heresies Abuses Offences Contempts and Enormities whatsoever they be which by any manner of Spiritual Authority and Jurisdiction ought or may lawfully be reformed repressed ordered redressed corrected restrained or amended c. By which it is evident the Intention of the Parliament then was to transfer confer and settle unto and upon King Henry all the Powers Profits and Priviledges which had been before supposed to be in or belong to or had been enjoyed or exercised by the Pope while he was received as Supream Head of the Church 6. And therefore as the Pope while he retained the Supremacy here had the first Fruits which are the Profits of every Spiritual or Ecclesiastical Living for one Year upon the advancing of any Ecclesiastical Person to such a Living and also the Tenths that is the Tenth Part of all the Tythes So these two Revenues as appendant to that Supremacy followed it being settled on the King in the same Session of Parliament wherein the Supremacy was vested in him The Words of the Statute 26 H. 8. c. 3. relating to the first Fruits are these That for the more surety of Continuance and Augmentation of his Highness Royal Estate being not only now recognized as he always indeed hath heretofore been the only Supream Head in Earth next and immediately under God of the Church of England but also their most assured and undoubted natural Soveraign Leige Lord and King c. It may therefore be enacted and ordained by c. That the King's Highness his Heirs and Successors Kings of this Realm shall have and enjoy from time to time to endure for ever of every such Person and Persons which at any time after the first Day of Ianuary next shall be nominated elected perfected presented collated or by any other means appointed to have any Arch-Bishoprick Abbacy Monastery Priory Colledge Hospital Archdeaconry Deanry Provostship Prebend Parsonage Vicarage Chauntry Free-Chappel or other Dignity Benefice Office or Promotion Spiritual whithin this Realm or elsewhere-within any of the King's Dominions of what Name Nature or Quality soever they be or to whose Foundation Patronage or Gift soever they belong the first-Fruits Revenues and Profits for one Year of every such Arch-Bishoprick Bishoprick Abby Monastery Priory Parsonage Vicarage c. Then after Provisions made for finding out the Value of those Spiritual Livings and for paying receiving and recovering those First-Fruits the Settlement of the Tenths that other part of the Pope's Revenue upon the King follows in the same Statute in these Words And over this be it enacted by Authority aforesaid that the King's Majesty his Heirs and Successors Kings of this Realm for more Augmentation and Maintenance of the Royal Estate of his Imperial Crown and Dignity of Supream Head of the Church of England shall Yearly have take enjoy and receive united and knit to his Imperial Crown for ever one yearly Rent or Pension amounting to the Value of the Tenth Part of all the Revenues Rents Farms Tythes Offerings Emoluments and of all other Profits as well called Spiritual as Temporal now appertaining or belonging or that hereafter shall belong to any Archbishoprick Bishoprick Abbacy Monastery Priory Archdeaconry Deanry Hospital Colledge House-Collegiate Prebend Cathedral Church Collegiate-Church Conventual-Church Parsonage Vicarage Chauntry Free-Chappel or other Benefice or Promotion Spiritual of what Name Nature or Quality soever they be within any Diocess of this Realm or in Wales c. And so goes on to direct the Time Place and Manner of Payment of these Tenths with the Penalty for non-Payment 7. Thus were these two great Pillars of Papal Supremacy First Fruits and Tenths transferr'd from the Pope the old Head to the King the new Head of the Church to support and maintain that Headship in him as they had done before in the Pope Which Ecclesiastical Headship the King was no sooner possessed of than he began to exercise it amongst those Religious Orders Suppressing as Herbert in his Life p. 379. relâ—tes the Observant Fryers at Greenwich Canterbury Richmond and other Places and substituting the Augustines in their Places Which he did says Herbert there for the finding out how his People would take his Design of putting down Religious Houses To which he proceeded the next Year beginning with the lesser Sort and suppressing all those Monasteries Priories and other Religious Houses of Monks Canons and Nuns which had not in Lands Tenements Rents Tythes Portions and other Hereditaments above the clear yearly Value of two Hundred Pounds By which means 376 of those Religious Houses being dissolved a Revenue of above thrity thousand Pounds a Year besides an hundred thousand Pounds in Money raised by Sale at low Rates of the Goods and Chattels of those Houses a Sum not small in that Age came to the King for Support of his Ecclesiastical Supremacy 8. The Statute which countenanced this Proceeding is the 27 of Hen. 8. cap. 28. And a new Court called the Court of Augmentations was then erected and settled by Parliament for receiving and ordering these new accessional Revenues The Act for which in our printed Statute Books is set before that for the Suppression of those lesser Monasteries But though that for Suppressing those Monasteries be by an Hysterosis set after that for establishing the Court of Augmentations yet it must have been made before it For it is recited in it 9. In that Statute 27 Hen. 8. c. 28. for Suppressing those smaller Monasteries mention is made oâ— Monasteries Abbies and Priories which with in one Year before the making of that Statute haâ— been given and granted to the King by any Abbot Prior Abbess or Prioress under their Convent-Seal or that otherwise had been suppressed or dissolved All which were by that Statute confirmed to the King and to all those unto whom the King either then before had conveyed or then after should convey any Part or Parts thereof To hold to them in like Manner stamped upon those Rectories Parsonages and other Revenues by Tythes into what Hands soever they were passed And therefore by the Statute of 32 Hen. 8. cap. 7. in case of with-holding or denying to pay the Tythes all Persons claiming them Impropriators as well as Priests are restrained from suing in the Temporal Courts and limitted to the Ecclesiastical or Spiritual Courts only for the Recovery of them 13. And that they might still have Dependence upon the Supremacy care was taken from the first by the Statute of 27 Hen. 8. cap. 27. That none of these Estates which then had come or should come from any of those Religious Houses to the King should pass from him by Grant to any Person whatsoever without an express Reservation of a Tenth And in a subsequent Statute 33 Hen. 8. cap. 39. Complaint being made that altho' out of those Grants which the King had made to sundry Persons of Honours Castles Mannors Lands Tenements Rectories c. which were under the Survey of the