of the Exchequer my Lord chiefe Baron sir Humphrey Daverport and the other Barons of the Exchequer refusing to grant me a certiorarj to the High Commition Court to command them to certfie the cause to permit mee to pleade to the foresaid fine did the 10. of May 1633. commit me to the Fleet in execution of the foresaid fine there detained me a full yeare untill I to procure my liberty paid the fourth part of the said fine to Mr. Motershed pecunijs numeratis and stal'd the other three parts to the Kings use And for which and also for a Petition delivered at the Counsell Table to crave justice therein according to his Majesties mandate under sir Edward Powels hand to my Lord chiefe Justice sir Iohn Bramston and the other Judges of the Kings Bench court dated the 29. of December 1635. and delivered with mine owne hand to the said Judges in open Court the first day of Hilary Tearme 1635. I was by my most reverend Diocesan and provinciall William Lord Archbishop of Cant. his Grace and other right Honorable Lords of his Majesties most honorable privie Councell on the third day of February 1636. committed to custodie of the Warden of the Fleet by a warrant wherein no cause of commitment was exprest and there detain'd a prisoner by him untill Trinity Tearme 1639. and then upon an habeas corpus issuing out of the Kings Bench Court I was brought to that court in Trinity Tearme 1639. and the foresaid warrant for my commitment returned and then I was presently bayled and thereby tyed to appeare in court divers daies both that Tearme and the Tearme thence next following and because none of the Kings Counsell in all that time came in against me I was on the last day of that Michaelmas Tearme 1639. delivered from the said baile and imprisonment by the joynt consent of all the Reverend Judges then of that court As I formerly had beene in the same court Termino paschae 1629. after the first two yeares imprisonment upon the foresaid originall matter returned to an habeas and fully debated by Counsell on both sides and Mr Justice Bertley then the Kings Sergeant in open court professing himselfe fully satisfied And for the former originall matter onely may for nothing at all in the judgement of the Law even for the foresaid sentence of deprivation and degradation charging mee with grievous and enormous crimes excesses delicts mentioned in the said Articles and those Articles not given in evidence nor found by the Jury in the speciall verdict betweene Allen and Nash entred upon record in the Kings Bench court termino Sancti michaelis 8. Car. rot 508. my Lord chiefe Justice of that court sir Iohn Bramston did for himselfe and his brethren Termino Trinitatis 1637. affirme the foresaid sentence and deliver his opinion against me for the intruder Robert Carter Whence it followeth that if the Commissioners aforesaid first finall sentence against me the 500 pounds fine thereby imposed upon me the two yeares imprisonment thereby sustained by me be just legall then all the other sentences censures and punishments following and depending thereupon may be just and legall But if the former the only ground of all the rest be unjust and illegall then all the other must of necessity be unjust and illegall And whether the former be just or unjust let the indifferent reader judge impatially upon the perusall of the following argument MY Honoured Lord cheife Iustice and my Honored Iudges the first thing in this Controversie concerning the points of the Canon law in question whereunto cheifly I am to speake is the very stating of the controversie it selfe between me my adversaries And for that purpose in the first place I humbly desire your Lordship the Court to observe that the defendants charge me with faults of severall degrees some principall and especiall others inferiour and accessory· The Principall and Especiall are two as appeares by their first finall sentence alleaged in their plea wherein they say that upon the opening of the cause they found the aforesaid George Huntley charged in the said Articles with these two perticulers principally (a) This word specialiter in this sence is 3. times used in the defendants plea. twice in the first part of their first finall sentence and once in the Commission of 14. Articles obiected against me 12. doe expresly mention my refusall to Preach the Visitation sermon as a fault or prepare the way theieunto and the fourth saith that I offered two or three peeces to the Arch-deacon to procure one to preach that sermon only the sixth and thirteenth Articles doe not mention it or especially first that he refused to preach a visitation sermon at the Arch-deacons of Cant. Doctor Kingsleys command contrary to his Canonicall obedience and secondly that he raised an opinion amongst the Clergy that the said Arch-deacon had no power to command him the said Huntley or any other incmbent to preach the said visitation Sermon The Inferiours or Accessories are foure first that the said Huntley came unsent for or uncal'd for to Master Arch-deacon aforesaid he being in his visitation amongst the Clergie and sitting there to heare causes Secondly that the said Huntley did then and there very malepertly and irreverently charge the said Arch-deacon of falsehood or injustice thirdly that the said Huntley did at the same time and place in a very arrogant irrespective manner lay downe an hundred pounds in Gold upon the table and offered to lay wagers with him the said arch-deacon that he had done him the said Huntley wrong or the like in effect and fourthly and lastly that the said Huntley refused to performe his submission conceptis verbis as was enioyned him by the Commissioners and therein gave a great affront and contempt both against his Maiesties supreame power and authority in matters and causes Ecclesiasticall and also against the high commission court to whom the same by letters patents under the great seale of England is delegated and committed And for these six particulers the defendants confesse that they imprison'd me two yeares namely from the nineteenth day of Aprill 1627. to Aprill 1629. In which moneth upon my appearance in this court the first day of that Easter Terme 1629. to save my baile you Master Iustice Heath then the Kings Attourney Generall were first call'd for by the Court in the Kings behalfe against me and you came and confest that you had nothing to say against me and then Master Iustice Bertley being then the Kings Sergeant whose (b) Master Iustice Bertley at this time was in the custody of the Sheriffe of London absence I much lament whose presence I much desire was called for by the court for the same purpose against mee and hee came and confest that he had formerly spoken twice against mee upon the matter return'd to the habeas corpus which was the very same for substance that is now pleaded
iniquity not with the short cloake for that will not doe it but with the long robe of deepe dissimulation and profound hypocrisie And then by the confession of my Lords Grace of Cant. my most reverend Diocesan and provinciall in his speech in the Starchamber Termino Paschae 1637. there is all the reason in the world that his Grace the High Commissioners and the defendants should all for that be severely punished themselves Should be my my Lord they are all ipso * Libro primo Pr. tit de off Archidiaconi c. eisdem verb. ipso facto est dicere ipso facto ac si diceret ipso iure scil nullo hominis ministerio interveniente facto severely deservedly punished They are all by a double excommunication excommunicate ipso facto to be excommunicate ipso facto is saith Lindwode to be excommunicate lege ante lata vel sententia ante data nullo interveniente hominis ministerio post actum peccantis and so are all they for by punishing me in the former manner not onely for that which is no breach of any law of the land but also for my obedience to the Lawes of the land contrary to the 29. chap. of Magna Charta they have all ipso facto drawne upon themselves those two dreadfull sentences of Excommunication denounced against all the future violaters of Magna Charta the one by Archbishop Boniface 37. Hen. 3. the other by Archbishop Winchelsee 25. Ed. 1. And my Lord seeing pares in culpa pares in paena your Lordship this Court the Barons of Exchequer the Lords of the Counsell have all likewise ipso facto drawne upon your selves that double excommunication your Lordship and this Court by affirming the Commissioners second finall sentence the sentence of deprivation and degradation contrary to that 29. chap. of Magna Charta The Barons of the Exchequer by imprisoning me contrary to that 29. chap. for the five hundred pounds fine imposed upon mee by the Commissioners first finall sentence contrary to the foresaid cap. and the Lords of the Counsell likewise by imprisoning me contrary to the foresaid chap. for a Petition wherein I justly complained both against the High Commissioners for their former exorbitances and also against your Lordship and this Court because you would not doe mee justice according to his Majesties most just mandate And yet my Lord in this matter the High Commissioners have a double precedency above your Lordship this Court the Barons of Exchequer and the Lords of the Counsell for the high Commissioners have punisht me sixe times contrary to the 29. chapter of Magna Charta They have twice imprison'd and once fin'd depriv'd degraded and excommunicated me and for every time they are ipso facto twice apeece excommunicate once every time with the two former excommunications in all twelve times your Lordship this Court the Barons of the Exchequer and the Lords of the Counsell have punisht me only once apeece contrary to the 29. chap. of Magna Charta and so are all ipso facto only twice apeece excommunicate Againe your Lordship this court the Barons of the Exchequer the Lords of the Counsell stand excommunicate by the two former excommunications only but the high commissioners besides the two former excommunications stand excommunicate also by that very excommunication which they unjustly denounced against me according to this rule of the canon law Qui aliquem injuste excommunicat non excommunicat sed excommunicatur non ligat sed ligatur For my Lord excommunication the Spirituall sword of the Church is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 gladius ex utraque parte acutus 2 Sam. 1.22 a two edged sword and that like the sword of Saul doth never returne empty from the blood of the slaine but whether it be justly or unjustly unsheath'd It alwaies killes and slaies one or other If it be justly drawne against any man then it kills and quite cuts off from the Communion of Christ and of his Church that man against whom it was justly drawne unlesse he submit and repent But if it be unjustly drawne against any man then let the stroake bee never so great and the edge never so sharpe yet by the innocency of the party and Christs institution that stroake is warded that edge blunted and thereby the sword is recoiled reverberated upon him that unjustly drew it and so with the other edge doth kill and quite cut off him from the Communion of Christ and of his Church And this my Lord is evident by the very words of our Saviour wherein he gives power to his Apostles to excommunicate Iohn 20. Whose soever sinnes yee remit they are remitted and whosesoever sinnes ye retaine they are retained And the retaining of the sinnes of an impenitent sinner is the excommunicating and casting him out of the Church for his sinnes and for his impenitency Why then my Lord a man cannot bee justly excommunicated except it bee for some sinne and then our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ cannot justly be excommunicated For he did no sinne neither was there any guile found in his mouth 1. Pet. 2.22 and if our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ cannot be justly excommunicated neither can any man be justly excommunicated for his Communion with or his obedience to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ What then is the effect of that excommunication when a man de facto is excommunicated Luke 6.22 for his communion with or his obedience to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ why this my Lord that excommunication makes no separation betweene the parties excommunicated and Jesus Christ but unites and knits them nearer and faster together and makes a seperation onely between the parties excommunicating on the one side and Jesus Christ and the party united by that excommunication on the other side And this is evident my Lord first in the Iewes Iohn 9. who by excommunicating the man borne blind and cur'd by Christ for professing and defending Christ did not excommunicate or seperate him from Christ for Christ did immediately after that entertaine him most gratiously but did excommunicate and separate themselves both from him and Christ united by that excommunication And secondly in the Councell of Trent who by Anathematising the reformed Churches for divers divine trueths wherein they hold communion with Jesus Christ have thereby united Christ and the reformed Churches more strongely and neerely together and have made a separation onely betweene that Councell and all that hold with it on the one side and Jesus Christ and the reformed Churches thereby united on the otherside And so likewise my Lord the high commissioners by excommunicating me for my obedience to Jesus Christ to this Orthodox Church to the Kings Majesty to the high Court of Parliament and to a provinciall synode have thereby indeed united mee and all these more neerely together and have made a separation onely betweene themselves on the one side and me and all the former united
Servanda est cum mansuetudine humilitas ut bicet vix ferendum ab illa sancta sede imponatur jugum tamen feramus pia devetione toleremus Let us in memorie of S. Peter honour the holy Romane and Apostolike See Humility with meeknesse is to be observed that although a yoke hardly to be borne be put upon us by that holy See yet let us beare and endure it with pious devotion By which words saith Scioppius thou mayest know him to be a true Ishachar of whom it is written Gen. 49.14 Ishachar is a strong Asse couching down between two burdens he bowed his shoulder to bear And our Kings he calls refractory Asses without understanding because they would not submit their backs and shoulders to these burdens but did pedibus recalcitrare kick against these horsekeepers and muletors the Popish Clergie which would put these burdens upon them And in particular he calls our late Lord and Soveraigne King Iames whom I mention with singular reverence a very Asse without understanding because he would neither suffer the bridle to be put into his mouth nor any burden to be put upon him by that chiefe horse-keeper and Arch-muleter the Pope of Rome and was moreover a ringleader to the Romish Asses to do the like both by his example and also by his exhortation unto them in these words of the third Psalme Let us break their bonds asunder and cast away their cords from us And though my Lord I do not charge either the High-Commissioners your Lp. this Court the Barons of the Exchequer or the Lords of the Counsell with those shamelesse and immodest words of Scioppius which even impudency and insolency would blush to utter against the Lords Anointed and his immediate deputies and Vicegerents Yet I must tell your Lordship that all of you have a great part and share in the matter it selfe The High-Commissioners by two finall sentences as I have formerly shew'd have advanc'd the Apocryphall uncanonicall anticanonicall antidiplomaticall antiprerogative antisuprematicall postscript private letter and message of M. Doctor Ringsley Arch-Deacon of Cant. above the Canons of this orthodox Church above his Majesties Letters Patents above his royall Prerogative above a royall Prerogative invested in the Crown by God himself acknowledged by Article by Statute by Canon nay above a royall Prerogative which every one that hath taken the oath of Supremacy is bound to the utmost of his power to defend and maintain And they have fin'd imprison'd depriv'd degraded and excommunicated me for my obedience to the Canons of this Church to his Majesties Leters Pat. and to his royall Prerogative and so vertually by consequence and by necessary implication they have fin'd imprison'd depriv'd degraded and excommunicated the King himselfe for requiring such obedience of me And your Lp. and the Court by affirming the Commissioners second finall sentence the sentence of deprivation and degradation have approved of all this and the Barons of the Exchequer by imprisoning me for the 500 l. fine impos'd upon me by the Commissioners first finall sentence have done as much and the Lords of the Counsell by imprisoning me for a Petition wherein I justly complain'd both against the High-Commissioners for their former presumptions and also against your Lordship and this Court for your disobedience to his Majesties most just mandate have approved of both So that you * Quilibet homo doctus potest debet toti concilio resistere si videat illud ex malitia vel ignorantia errare Gerson 1. parte de examinatione doctrinarum Cosider 5. all joine together Regem fraenare to put a bridle upon the King yea Regem loro alligare to raine in the King and his supreame jurisdiction nay in very deed Regi jugum onus imponere to put a yoke and burden upon the King and such a yoke and burden as was never yet put upon any of his royall Predecessors If the first of the first of Eliz. 19. of 25. of Hen. 8. and Sir Edw. Coke in Cawdries Case deceive me not For by all these it appears that the Crown had ever a jurisdiction over the state Ecclesiasticall and now you all do not only exempt the state Ecclesiasticall from the jurisdiction of the Crowne but also subordinate the jurisdiction of the Crown to the state Ecclesiasticall and do both advance the postscript private Letter and message of every Arch-deacon Bishop and Arch-bishop above the Canons of this Church above his Majesties Letters Patents and royall Prerogative and thereby also elevate the person of every Arch-deacon Bishop and Arch-bishop above the person of the King according to this rule Cum duo Domini contraria jubent qui obedit minori resistit majori is minorem majori proefert proeponit which is an intollerable injury indignity and injustice the King himselfe but also against not only against God himselfe from whom the King hath receiv'd his Supreame jurisdiction and whose immediate Deputy the King is And therefore as my most reverend Diaecesan and Provinciall my Lords Grace of Canterbury in his Epistle before his Speech in the Starchamber termino paschae 1637. doth rightly observe against Scioppius and such as he is that blasphemy against God and slandering the footsteps of Gods Anointed are joyned together Psa 89. Because he that blasphemes God will never stick at the slander of his Prince and he that gives himselfe liberty to slander his Prince will quickly ascend to the next highest and blaspheme God So I may as truly observe against his Grace the High-Commissioners your Lordship this Court the Barons of the Exchequer and the Lords of the Counsell that justice towards the King and justice towards God are both joyned together by our Saviour in one verse Mat. 22. because he that out of conscience is just towards one will be just towards both and he that is wittingly unjust towards one will easily be unjust towards both Nay my Lord seeing the King receives his supreame jurisdiction immediately from God he that is unjust towards the King by depriving him of any part of his supreame jurisdiction must of necessity ipso facto be unjust towards God for as hee that renders unto Cesar that which is Cesars by the gift of God doth eo ipso render unto Cesar that which is Cesars and unto God that which is Gods so he that takes from Cesar that which is Cesars by the right of God doth eo ipso take from Cesar that which is Cesars and from God that which is Gods And therefore my Lord when the High Commissioners your Lordship this Court the Barons of the Exchequer and the Lords of the Counsell doe all in the former manner regem fraenare put a bridle upon the King yee doe all eo ipso Deum fraenare put a bridle upon God himselfe when ye doe all in the former manner regem loro alligare raine in the King and his supreame jurisdiction yee doe all eo ipso Deum loro