well I do not intend you shall dye at least not for the present until I know the King 's further pleasure I was not I thank God for it troubled with any disturbing thoughts either against the Judge for his Sentence nor the Jury that gave in such a Verdict nor against any of the Witnesses For I was then of the same mind as by God's grace I ever shall be esteeming them all the best Friends to me in all they did or said that ever I had in my life or ever shall have except upon the like occasion And I was I thank God so present with my self whil'st the Judge pronounced the Sentence to deliver me to Death that without any concern for any thing in this world I did actually at the same time offer my self and the world to God After the Judge was gone from the Bench to the other end of the Hall I stayed with the Keeper in the Hall where several Protestant Gentlemen and others who had heard my Tryal came to me though Strangers and told me how sorry they were for me To whom with thanks I replied that I was troubled they should grieve for me or my condition who was joyful for it my self for I told them I had professed this Faith and Religion all my life-time which I was as sure to be true as I was sure of the truth of God's Word on which it was grounded and therefore in it I deposed my Soul and Eternal Life and Happiness and therefore should I fear to lose my temporal life for this Faith whereon my Eternal life depends I were worse than an Infidel and whosoever should prefer the life of their Bodies before their Faith their Religion or Conscience they were worse than Heathens For my own part I told them I was as ready by God's grace to dye to morrow as I had been to receive the Sentence of Death to day and as willingly as if I had a Grant of the greatest Dukedom So we sate talking half an hour and I returned to the Prison there to remain as long as it pleased God and the King whom God long preserve in all happiness There was another Objection which I forgot to put in until I had finished the former Writing and it was an Objection which the Judge was pleased to put against me himself and it was that I had changed my name and went in several places by several names To which I answered the reason was Because in Cromwel's time in the great Troubles our Family suffered much my Father was imprisoned and a Fellow-Prisoner with Sir Thomas Ashton both confined together which Sir Thomas is now one of His Majesties Admirals of the Fleet. And for my own part I going Beyond Sea to Travel I changed my name and then coming into England again before the King's Restauration I was glad to conceal my self and go by several names as many others of the King 's Loyal Subjects did the better to be able to do His Majesty the best service I could which according to my small ability I did endeavor both before and since the King came into England like a dutiful Subject and like the rest of our Family who all endeavored to serve His Majesty For I have two Brothers served Him the one a Voluntier at Sea in Sir William Reeve's Ship which Sir William was killed in the last Engagement with the Dutch and the other Brother had a Command under his Royal Highness the Duke of York at Land therefore I hope the changing of my name on such an occasion as I did could not be imputed as a guilt upon me nor speak me other than a dutiful Subject which I could have made further appear before the Bench but I did not judge it convenient to say any more to the Judge there in publick But before his Lordship went out of VVorcester I presented him with a Petition to acquaint his Lordship that I having had the honour to kiss His Majesties Hand before His Restauration in the Low-Countries as also I have had the honour to be one of those whom His Majesty was pleased to grace with being entertained by us His then best Subjects His Majesty was pleased to make us a Gracious Promise that when it should please God to restore Him to His Crown we should not live so in Banishment as then we did Of this in my Petition I did acquaint the Judge and beseeched him that he would be pleased by declaring this to the King to endeavor to obtain some gracious Favor from His Majesty for me my condition now being such that I could never have greater need to be Partaker of His gracious Promise and Clemency The Judge promised me he would make an Address to His Majesty for me in this behalf which whether he hath done or no I wish some body may put him in mind to do it for me I do not here mention the place where in particular nor the other persons to whom His Majesty made that Promise but if you remember you know I did tell you with several other particular circumstances which I need not here make any further mention of THE Last SPEECH OF Mr. Francis Johnson Priest of the Order of St. Francis who was Executed as a PRIEST onely at Worcester upon the 22d of August Anno Dom 1679. Which he spake for the most part upon the Ladder immediately before his Execution but being interrupted and that which he did speak being taken by an unskilful Scribe was Printed by the halves and so imperfect that it was in some places Nonsense To correct that Abuse this which he left written with his own Hand is publish'd by Friend ALmighty God out of his infinite Goodness to this World through the merits of his Son Christ Jesus ordained or made choice of three Virtues whereby we must walk which are these viz. Faith Hope and Charity First by virtue of Faith we are to believe all things that are done in this World Secondly by virtue of Hope we are to believe and hope for all things in another World And the reason why Christians do believe this Hope is to bring and conduct them to salvation in the other World And if we hope in God we cannot but believe God for with the mouth Confession is made but with the heart and through Faith we must believe unto salvation so that Faith is not to be troaden under foot or to be hid under a bushel but to be set upon a candlestick Luke 12 Whosoever doth confess me before men him will I confess before the Angels of God And therefore all are bound to believe that there is but one Faith and if but one Faith then but one Christian Faith There is but one Faith one Lord one Baptism if it be so how can this stand with so many Sectaries as there are If there be but one Faith how can this be I believe the Creed of St. Athanasius which is in your Common-Prayer Book there it
give them grace to serve him I beseech God to bless the Parliament that is now in Election that they may determine nothing but what they themselves do hope to be judged by at the last day I beseech God to bless all that suffer under this Persecution and to turn this our Captivity into Joy that they who now sowe in tears may reap in joy I beseech God to accept the death of my Body and to receive my Soul I have no more to say Mr. Sheriff I give you no interruption but only whereas you said that you dyed for the Faith that is not so you do not dye for that but because you being His Majesties Subject received Orders from the Church of Rome Beyond the Seas and came again into England contrary to the Law Mr. Johnson That was pardoned by the Kings Act of Grace Mr. Sheriff That Act pardoned onely Crimes committed before the making of it but not those done since as your continuance in England was Mr. Johnson I am sorry if I have given offence in any thing I have said my reason for it was because when I was sent for to the Judges upon Sunday night Judge Atkins told me I dyed not for being concerned in the Plot but for being a Priest Mr. Sheriff No but for your continuance in England against the Law being a Priest Mr. Johnson God receive my Soul Mr. Sheriff Sir You may take your own time and you shall have no interruption Sir will you be pleased to have your own time Jaylor Sir pray give the Sign when you please to be turned off Mr. Johnson I will give you no Sign do it when you will And so he was Executed Mr. Johnson was of an Honourable Family in Norfolk born to an Estate of 500 l. per Annum All which he left for the sake of Religion his third Brother now enjoys the Estate FINIS Mr. Johnson's Speech Which he deliver'd to his Friend to be Printed as he mention'd at the place of Execution ADVERTISEMENT Mr. Johnsons ' s Tryal and what he spoke at his Execution being finisht there came to the Printers hands his Speech at large of which his foregoing words are only the heads as the Reader will see and as Mr. Johnson also mentions viz. I would have said more but that I gave my Speech to a Friend to be Printed therefore his Friend has now faithfully publisht it accordingly being written by Mr. Johnson himself as followeth GOD Almighty honoured Friends having been pleased of his infinite mercy through the merits of our Saviour Jesus Christ to bestow on all Christians the Theological vertues of Faith Hope and Charity by vertue of Faith all are to believe whatever God hath revealed to us in this world by hope all are to expect what he hath promised we shall receive in the world to come And because where God bestows such a Faith and Hope it is in order to bring all to a true charity and love of him for who can have Faith to believe an Infinite Goodness in which he hopes but he must 〈◊〉 that Infinite Goodness in whom he hopes which bestows on him such gifts therefore all ought to honour God and shew their love to him by a due profession and a due practice of this Faith this Hope and this Rom. 10. 10. Charity otherwise they cannot believed because as St. Paul saith With the heart it is believed to righteousness but with the mouth confession is made to salvation Rom. 10. 10. For those that will not shew their Faith which is a light not to be hid under a bushel but to be set in a Candlestick to give light to all such can never have neither true Hope for themselves nor true Charity towards God or their Neighbour nor God to them because our Saviour saith Luke 12. He that confesseth me before men him will Luk. 12. 8. the Son of man confess before the Angels of God but he that denieth me before men as those do that act or swear against their conscience him will the Son of Man deny before the Angels of God And as all are bound to confess him and his Faith so likewise all are obliged to own Ephes 4. 4 5. and profess that this Faith can be but one only Faith as we are taught Ephes 4. where St. Paul declares There is one Lord one Faith one Baptism one God even as you are called saith he in one hope of your calling This being most true let every rational Christian in his most retired thoughts consider how this Unity of Faith and this Hope of our Calling can stand with such multiplicity of Sects and Opinions all so divers one against the other with which the Nation now so abounds For according to the Text a man may as well say there are diversities of Gods or diversities of Christs as that there are diversities of Faiths because Faith is nothing but the truth of one God which Truth or Faith he hath revealed which none can alter We are all therefore bound to believe alike in one Faith and in one holy Catholick Church as our Creed teacheth us we are all obliged to believe in one Catholick Faith as the Creed of St. Athanasius in the Protestant Common-Prayer-Book declares saying Whosoever will be saved it is necessary before all things that he believe in the Catholick Faith which Faith unless every one keep whole and undefiled he shall without doubt perish everlastingly All and every one are to keep this Faith whole because as it is writ St. Jam. 2. v. 10. Whosoever keeps the whole Law and yet offends in one point is guilty of all Jam. 2. 10. All are to keep the whole Faith because our Saviour saith Matth. 16. 15. Go ye into the world and preach the Gospel to every creature All are to believe alike the whole Faith of the Gospel else they shall perish everlastingly because our Saviour saith in the same place v. 16. He that believes shall be saved but he that believeth not shall be damned We all must keep the Unity of Faith whole and undefiled because our Saviour also saith St. Matth. 5. 16. Heaven and Earth shall pass but one jot or one tittle Mat. 5. 16. of the Law shall in no wise pass till all be fulfilled as well the Law of Faith as the Law of Works In confirmation of this I appeal to the Faith and Works and Sufferings of all the Saints from the beginning who to keep their Faith whole and entire have made such profession and practice of it and confirm'd it by such works as are recorded in St. Paul Heb. 11. where first he registers the Faith and Deeds of the Believers in particular and Heb. 11. then in general of what they did and suffered by vertue of their Faith as there you read By faith they stopt the mouths of Lions extinguished the force of the fire repelled the edge of the sword they were racked they were tryed
is said That whosoever will be saved 't is necessary before all things that he hold the Catholick Faith and that if he keep not that Faith whole and undefiled he shall perish everlastingly And as St. James saith Jam. 2. 10. He that keepeth the whole Law and yet offendeth in one point is guilty of all so they that believe must be all of the same Faith And that this ought to be done I appeal to all the Saints that are gone before of whom it is said That their Faith was such as by it they stopt the mouths of Lyons they turned the edge of the Sword and caused the Fire to cease that it should not burn so they were oppressed they wandered about in Sheeps-cloathing and Goats-cloathing Heb. 11. Therefore I say there must be an unity of Faith I desire all Catholiques to consider this That it is better to be reviled by man now in this World than be reviled by God in the World to come Mat. 16. it is said The Catholique Church is built upon a Rock And Mat. 18. He who will not believe the Church let him be as a Heathen and Publican This Faith must be establisht so in every one because Christ said He would send the Holy Ghost and he will shew us or them what to do This is the Rule of Faith This Faith was publisht at Rome And St. Paul writing to the Christians there rejoyceth that their Faith was renowned in the whole World Go ye therefore Baptizing all Nations in the Name of the Father And this is the Faith I confess and believe in and which I dye for I come now to speak of the second Virtue which is Hope I hope I shall have such Reward that neither eye hath seen nor ear heard nor can it enter into the heart of man to conceive Those that have Hope shall be as Mount Sion that shall not be removed Those that have firm Hope there 's nothing can disturb them as David faith God is round about those that do hope in him as the Mountains are round about Hierusalem I come to the third Virtue and that is Charity It 's true now this Body of mine in this shipwrack is full of sin but when that shipwrack is over I shall come to inherit that Rock that shall never fail Now welcome shipwrack that makes the Body suffer but brings the Soul to that Haven which is joyful Now many there be that talk much of Charity few understand it and fewer that practise it This is the greatest Virtue 1 Cor. 13. Though ye speak with tongues of Men and Angels and have not Charity it availeth nothing So then we ought to have Love and Charity or else it prevaileth nothing 'T is expected I should say something of the Plot. As to this I shall declare two Points of my Faith First I believe that all are bound to obey the King's Laws Secondly I do declare That those that do break the Law in word or any action or that do act any thing against His Majesties Life that is a Sin unto damnation as much as it was a Sin in Judas to betray Christ An Oath is a taking God to witness and is as much as if he took his Life and Justice to stake So that he who takes a false Oath is guilty of destroying the Life of God and his Justice and of his own Damnation And if I were but guilty of this I do declare That all the Sin of Damnation would fall upon me because I denied the Truth and so struck at God by my Sin in denying the Truth that 's one Damnation A second Damnation is That if any man know of an Evil against His Majesty His Kingdom and Nation and to hide and not discover it he shall answer for those mischiefs that come thereby so that a man would have made and committed as many Sins as there be men in England that had suffered A third Damnation is to dye in this Lye and with this Perjury in his mouth whereby he loses Heaven and all its enjoyments and dies in greater Sins than the Devils themselves Fourthly I should have been guilty of my own Death For that Judge Atkins offered me my Life if I would confess what I knew of the Plot which had I known and not discovered would have made me the cause of my own Death which would have been a fourth Damnation I would have said more but that I gave my Speech to a Friend to be Printed Mr. Sheriff I pray Sir speak on what you have to say and none shall interrupt you Mr. Johnson Now I have no more to do but to make my Address to Almighty God with all the powers of my Soul that I may have his mercy and pardon of my Sins And therefore I beg that all Catholiques who join in union of this same Faith would make an address unto God for me that we may receive pardon for our Sins I have nothing now but wishes left I wish I may imitate David in his Repentance and that my eyes may run down with tears because I have not kept God's Law I wish with the Prophet Jeremiah That Rivers of waters may fall from my eyes by reason of sin Lam. 3. 48. But Tears will not be proper for me at this time I have kept my self from them lest by shedding Tears some might say I was unwilling to dye or feared Death But instead of Tears I offer all the Blood in my veins and I wish every drop were an Ocean and I would offer it up to God I wish I might become a man like David I wish I had Mary Magdalens penitential Tears I wish I had her arms to embrace the feet of mercy I wish I had all the graces of Saints and Angels I would offer them all to God for the remission of my sin This is my desire and this I wish for as much as is in me I offer first my Life and I beseech and desire of God to turn his Face from my Sins but not from me I offer up my Life in satisfaction for my Sins and for the Catholick Cause And I beg for those that be mine Enemies in this my Death and I desire to have them forgiven because I go to that world of happiness sooner than I should have gone And I humbly beg Pardon from God and the world And this I beg for the merits and mercy of Jesus Christ I beseech God to bless His Majesty to give Him a long Life and a happy Reign in this world and in the world to come I beseech God to bless all my Benefactors and all my Friends and those that have been any way under my charge I beseech God to bless all Catholicks and this Nation and His Majesties Privy Council and grant that they may Act no otherwise than what may be for the glory of God who will bring to light and to judgment all both good and evil Luke 12. So I beseech God that he will
believe Obedience to our King to be a Divine Law and that we are bound to obey His Commands in Temporal Laws and I believe it too a sin of Damnation for any Subject of His to Rebel against Him or His Kingdom and I believe it as certain a sin to Damnation for any Subject to endeavor either by thoughts words or deeds to take away His Life or act any thing of that nature either by himself or any others or other against His Sacred Majesty as I believe it was a sin in Judas to Damnation to betray Christ And I do declare upon my salvation that I never did nor do know any Catholick that ever was or is the least guilty either by thought word or deed by any Plot or otherwise to have any design or concurrence to kill His Sacred Majesty or rebel against His Kingdom whom God long preserve with his Subjects in all happiness in this World and crown Him in the World to come with eternal glory And now it remains that with all the powers and forces of my Soul I make my address to God for mercy ere I appear before him for Judgment and you dear Friends here present who believe in one Holy Catholick Church and Communion of Saints be pleased in charity to make the same address to God with me and for me that we may obtain true sorrow and repentance for all our sins and a merciful forgiveness and first let us wish from the bottom of our hearts that we could express and make good Psal 119. 8. our sorrow as David did Psal 119. Whil'st rivers of waters run down our eyes like his because we have not kept according to our faith Gods commands for which had we that Fountain of tears which the Prophet wished for we ought spend it all we ought with Jeremy Lam. 3. 48 49. to weep till our eyes as his failed and as his eye with tears afflicted as he saith his heart so ought ours to do because we have made so ill use of that Faith Hope and Charity which God hath bestowed upon us But forasmuch as Tears now at this present and in these circumstances of rash censuring times Tears I say from me might seem to some either the off-spring of Fear to dye which God forbid I should have in so good a Cause as my Religion or least others might judge my Tears might fall by reason of some other guilt of which I am free and innocent I have endeavoured to stop the course of Tears and instead of drops of waters from my eyes I 'll spend the drops of blood from every sorrowful vein of my heart and my whole body that God may please to wash away the sins of all my life past and I wish each drop an Ocean for my self and all the World because I have nothing now left more than wishes which I beseech thee O gracious God of thy mercy to accept of and if you will vouchsafe to accept of wishes to supply the deeds by wishes I offer up all that 's good to you that ever you gave to any since the Worlds Creation I offer up David's broken heart together with my own that so like him after my repentance I may become a man according to your own heart I offer up the sighs of Magdalen and wish I could make such use of them as she did to sob out my sins I wish her repentant Arms that I may lay fast hold at the Feet of thee my gracious God I wish I had the longanimity of all the Holy Confessors I wish I had the sufferings of all thy constant Martyrs I wish I had the lamps of all thy sacred Virgins that I might offer all to thee that in them was pleasant in thy sight I wish I could offer up to thee O God the Sacrifices of just Abel Lot Job and all other Sacrifices that ever did gratefully ascend up in thy sight that thou being pleased by the sight of them thou mightst look no more upon my sins For if thou wilt observe mine iniquities who shall endure let therefore thy mercy hide thy face from my sins but let not the rigor of thy justice cast me away from thy presence cast me not away from thy Face and thy holy Spirit take not from me but turn away thy Face from sin and blot out all my iniquities and I will offer my Body as a Sacrifice to thee by death to appease thy just anger I own my sins and I own your mercies You gave me Faith to know and believe what was the Will of you my heavenly Master but I acknowledge my fault that although I knew your Will I did not fulfill it and therefore I ought to be beaten with many stripes because you foretold me that many are the stripes of a sinner but be pleased dear Lord also to remember that in the same place you promised that notwithstanding this yet mercy should encompass him that hopes you have given your Divine Hope vouchsafe to let this Hope defend me and although I know I have not made good use of Hope and Hope not well us'd of which I am guilty makes a Sinner defer Repentance and so puts in danger to fall into Presumption by long neglect yet the last hour of calling being not yet past and your mercy being above all your works I hope and humbly beg to be Partaker with those who were accepted at the last hour I humbly acknowledge with thanks O gracious God that you gave me Charity as your Livery in which I always ought to have appeared in your sight and never to have been divested of it but how oft have I been spoiled through my own fault of this garment how oft have I by descending to Jericho instead of going up to Jerusalem how oft I say have I been rob'd of this garment of Charity even as often as I have preferred any sublunary object and the love of that before the love of you and before your goodness which is above all goodness and the object of all Beatitude Vouchsafe again O gracious Lord to restore in mercy to me this Nuptial Vestment ere I dare appear at the Supper of the Lamb. Make me O heavenly Father a penitential Prodigal and then I shall have put on me again this best Robe of Charity This I beg from the bottom of my Soul for his dear sake who was devested of his garments out of Charity that I might be invested in his Charity who also suffered his garments to be divided that he might purchase grace that we might never be divided from the unity of his Faith and Church but rather willingly suffer for his sake the separation of our lives from our bodies the separation of our bodies from our souls and the separation of our bodies into its quarters that we may the more perfectly by these sufferings and separations from our selves be united to him Therefore in the faithful communion and perfect union of the sufferings of all Saints that ever have been or now are or ever will be in the union of the most sacred merits of the life passions and death of God and man my dear Redeemer and Saviour Christ I offer my self willingly to what I am now to suffer begging by all that 's good in Heaven and in Earth remissions of sins for my self and the world particularly for all that may appear to have been my Enemies in the concern of my Life as Witness Jury Judge and others whom I do not esteem as Enemies but as the best of Friends I heartily forgive them and beg the best of Blessings for them all as being the cause of sending me sooner than otherwise I might have gone to the happy state of Hope for the other World Whither before I go I humbly beg pardon of all in this World for whatever in thoughts words or deeds I have committed to offend them or omitted to do for them by which any thing might have been mended in them or my self I beseech God to bless them all I beseech God to bless also all my Friends spiritual and temporal all Benefactors and all by whom I have received good or evil by words deeds or desires I beseech God to bless all those of whom I ever had care or charge spiritually or temporally I beseech God bless his Holy Catholick Church and our chief Bishop thereof with all other Bishops Priests and Clergy I beseech God bless this Nation and unite all amongst themselves and to God in true Faith Hope and Charity I beseech God to bless His Majesties Privy Council and make all the secrets of their hearts and their desires such as that both Charles our King on earth and God our great King in Heaven and Earth may be serv'd pleas'd and honour'd by them that men and Angels may rejoyce at it now and be publick witness of it at the last great day at the great and last Council Table where every secret shall be laid open Luke 12. as Solomon saith Eccles ult when God will bring into judgment every secret thing whether it be good or evil I beseech God to bless the Parliament now Elect and be so present with them when they sit to judge and discuss the Causes of this Nation they may imitate the Assembly of those that are to sit upon the Twelve Thrones at the last great Assembly that they may now judge or determinate of things no otherwise than they hope or fear then to be judged themselves and determined of to all eternity I beseech God to bless all that suffer in this Persecution and let the blessing exprest in the 126th Psalm light upon them speedily that God turning their Captivity all mouths may be filled with joys and tongues with singings Convert O Lord our Captivity as streams in the South that those who now sowe in tears may reap in joy and for this temporal death O blessed Trinity give me eternal life let my Body dye to the World for the love of thee that my Soul may live for ever and love in thee my God and dear Redeemer Amen Sweet Jesus Amen FINIS