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A52594
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A discourse of ecclesiastical lawes and supremacy of the kings of England, in dispensing with the penalties thereof by Mr. Philip Nye.
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Nye, Philip, 1596?-1672.
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1687
(1687)
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Wing N1490A; ESTC R41353
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35,351
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41
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be discovered by this indiscriminating Severity that is who are Dissenters upon Principles of Conscience and who of them so pretending are notwithstanding of a Seditious Spirit These can never be distinguished one from the other when Dissenters and such as conform not be it upon what ground soever are all of them equally branded with the same mark of disloyalty and so represented to His Majesty and all the Nation There is a necessity that this Pretence of Conscience be removed and Seditious Persons discovered and left to condign Punishment and others these stumbling-blocks being removed may by their peaceable Obedience to all other His Majesty's Lawes justifie and vindicate their Integrity which can no ways be done while the Righteous are thus condemned with the Wicked and no relaxing those Lawes which shut up all both Guilty and Innocent under the same Condemnation His Majesty who hath had a clear prospect all along of these things and thence publickly declared his avowed readiness in that Proclamation of 10 July 1669. and otherwise to indulge tender Consciences hath upon these afore-mentioned and the like weighty Considerations been necessitated to Publish this his Gracious DECLARATION of March 15. 1672. where he hath fully performed his Promise made at Breda and so often repeated Thus His Majesty as a Wife and Prudent Prince whose Station is fixed in an higher Orb like the Sun exhaling and consuming or serving to refresh and to shew the dark Foggs and Mists here beneath hath by the Light and Liberty shining forth from his gracious Indulgence refreshed multitudes of his good Subjects and delivered them from the dark misapprehensions of others Nor is this their great relief in any thing prejudicial either to the Estates or Liberties of men otherwise minded nor are such men abridged in any of their concerns Spiritual or Temporal hereby His Majesty hath made sufficient Provision for the satisfying their Consciences in a careful continuing those Ceremonies and Forms of Worship they have been accustomed to Let it not be grievous or offensive to them that their Brethren have obtained from His Majesty in respect to their Consciences the like favour Quest Since these Ecclesiastical Lawes of Restraint were Enacted by Parliament the King giving his Royal Assent had it not been convenient if His Majesty had so pleased that the dispensing with these Lawes had been by Parliament Answ 1 The King and Princes of this Realm His Majesty's Predecessors did Establish many Things and Orders by Parliament relating to Ecclesiastical Matters but did yet nevertheless often exercise their own Power in dispensing with the Penalties at least of such Lawes A constant acting with others in the exerting hereof might tho no Prescription against the King yet introduce at least into the Minds of Men a kind of Suspicion especially in the Vulgar that such Proceedings of the Supream Majesty by his sole Power to be an assuming an Arbitrary Government 2. The Parliament did still continue in this their former Opinion and first Judgment namely That a way of Severity was the only means to settle Peace and Unity They had newly passed the Act for Uniformity without any abatement of what was offensive by reason whereof arose that general Discontent which before we have mentioned His Majesty being sensible hereof did by that Declaration of Decemb. 26. move a second time That an Act might be prepared c. not doubting their chearful co-operation with him being a Matter wherein he conceived himself so much engaged both in Point of Honour and in what he oweth to the Peace of his Kingdoms which we profess saith he we can never think secure whilst there shall be a colour left to the malitious and disaffectionate to inflame the minds of so many Multitudes upon the score of Conscience with despair of ever obtaining any effect of our Promise for their Ease The House returns this Answer We your Majesty's Loyal Subjects who are now returned to serve in Parliament from those several Parts and Places of your Kingdom for which we were chosen do humbly offer to your Majesty's great Wisdom That it is in no sort adviseable that there be any Indulgence to such Persons who presume to dissent from the Act of Vniformity and the Religion Established for these Reasons c. whereof this is one It will in no wise become the graver Wisdom of a Parliament to pass a Law at one Session for Vniformity and at the next Session the reason of Vniformity continuing still the same to Pass another Law to frustrate or weaken the Execution of the former So that now His Majesty had no other Remedy but either 1. To retreat from that Pious and Seasonable Resolution for Liberty of Conscience expressed in Letters to the Parliament then sitting from Breda a Resolution so acceptable to them as the whole House Nemine Contradicente by Letters returned Thanks to him and Blessed the Name of the Lord who put such reconciling thoughts into the heart of the King. And he himself likewise owned an especial Blessing from God upon his Affairs after he had expressed that intention 2. Of break that Promise he solemnly made assuring this Liberty and had professed to the world upon this occasion in his Speech May 8. 1661. That he valued himself much upon keeping his Word and whatsoever he promised to his Subjects and that no man can be his Friend and wish him well who would perswade him to consent to the breach of that solemn Promise 3. Or leave the Nation under greater Distractions and Sufferings about Religion then he found it And that upon 12 years Experience of other means which extended rather to increase the Distempers These dishonourable things I say His Majesty must have suffered and undergone or make use of that Power GOD and the NATION have intrusted him withal tho not with Concurrence of Parliament so much and so often desired by him even so oft as he came to them as he tells them in his Speech July 8. 1661. yet nothing at any time was done to his Satisfaction in Liberty of Conscience by the Houses being obliged in their Judgments to proceed in the other way CHAP. V. Of former Examples for Indulgences HIS Majesty's Gracious Declaration contains not a greater Indulgence altho it be extended to a greater number of Persons than what was granted by His Majesty's Predecessors which before we have mentioned to the French and Dutch Congregations 1. There was an uniform order of Church Government and Divine Service to which not only His majesty's Subjects but all the Inhabitants in His Majesty's Dominions were to conform and no man to absent himself And were enjoyned not to hear or be present at any other Forms of Prayers and Administration of Sacraments then what is in that Book prescribed under Penalties of Ecclesiastical Censures Fines to the King Poor of the Parish c. 2. The Dispensation and Exemption was by the SOLE Authority of the Sovereign and stands thus A Liberty to
Power dispense with and license such Preachers which now seem and are reputed so to be And it follows also if his Power will extend to indulge such persons it will not prove short in respect to hearers which are as it were new in the way of their Assemblies and indulge such as are not in the Ancient order of the Parochial Congregations of England 2. The like Deductions might be drawn from other of those Instances I shall notwithstanding for further confirmation add other instances and such wherein you have this Power put forth in dispensing and exempting from what hath been burthensom to mens Consciences by Episcocal Impositions 1. That of Edw. 6. In the 4th year of his reign Certain Protestants removing themselves and Families out of Popish Countries into England for the sake of Conscience and being not free to submit to the forms of Worship and Discipline established in this Church this good King by his SOLE Authority granteth them the Liberty of such a Church Government and form of worship whereof we shall say more in its place as should be most suitable to their own Perswasion This being utterly against the Provision and Settlement NEWLY made by Parliament He strengthens his Grant by a NON OBSTANTE to the Statute and strictly requires all Bishops and Mayors to suffer them to enjoy this Liberty of Conscience 2. Another instance you have of the same good King in Hooper being chosen Bishop of Gloucester and there being certain Rites and Ceremonies established by Act of Parliament to be Conformed unto in the Consecration of Bishops offensive to his Conscience Edw. 6. requires Arch-Bishop Cranmer to omit these Ceremonies discharging him of all manner of Dangers Penalties and Forfeitures he should be in danger of and run into in any manner of way by omitting of the same and these our Letters saith the King shall be your sufficient Warrant and Discharge therefore 3. The instance you have also of what was done by Queen Eliz. for relieving Tender Consciences namely Her Majesty being informed that in certain places in this Realm sundry of her Subjects called to the Ministry being induced by sinister Perswasions are scrupled about the Form of the Oath which by an Act of the late Parliament was prescribed to be taken according to the Form expressed in the Act under the Penalty of being disabled to bear any Office in State or Church Her Majesty was graciously pleased by her Power in Ecclesiastical Affairs to give and declare such a sense and construction of the words of this Oath expressed in other words much different for their satisfaction with a Gracious Declaration that such Persons fit for the Ministry as could not take the Oath in the Parliaments Form should be accepted to do it in this sense and doing so they should notwithstanding be accepted of her Majesty as good and obedient Subjects and be acquitted of all manner of Penalties contained in the said Act against such as should refuse the same By which means many an able man had freedom to exercise his Ministry which otherwise must be laid aside which Indulgence of hers altho against an ACT of Parliament yet was owned as done by lawful Authority and recognized by the Parliament 5 Eliz. and her Execution assented to and enacted 4. This renowned Queen together with King James and King Charles the First confirmed the Indulgence and Dispensation granted by Edw. 6. to Strangers yea although it was a Gravamen to the Bishops as making an evident breach upon the Lawes of Vniformity for that 't was granted not only to the Parents but to the Children and Childrens Children which were Natural Subjects to the Realm Persons of great Estates and Purchasers of Lands and interessed in the Soil the number also of these Congregations increasing and situated in the eminent and chief Towns and Cities in the Kingdom there to live and Profess as separated and divided Bodies a Discipline and Worship differing from the Church of England which was not at first intended as Bishop Laud complains there being onely that one in London when the first Grant was made and such things were frequently suggested against them Yet these Princes were graciously disposed notwithstanding the Act for Vniformity from time to time to Confirm the Grant of Edward 6th by several Orders past some of them formed as having special respect to such Objections And it will not be amiss for the Reader 's Information here to insert some of them at least The Form in which Queen Elizabeth confirmed their Liberties Non ignoramus variis Ecclesiis varios diversos jam ab initio fuisse ritus ceremonias non contemnimus vestras neque vos ad nostras cogimus King James Oct. 17. About the Dutch at Colchester His Majesty granted their Orders Liberties c. in as large and ample manner to all intents and purposes as heretofore they have been used tolerated and allowed unto them any Provision or Jurisdiction to the Contrary thereunto in any wise notwithstanding An Order of King James under his Signet Jan. 13. 1616. on their behalf These are therefore to Will and Command all our Courts of Justice and other our loving Subjects to permit and suffer the said Strangers and their Children c. The Order of the Councel for the Walloons of Norwich Oct. 10.1621 Those of Norwich tho born in the Kingdom shall continue to be of the said Congregation and subject to such Discipline as hath been by all the time of 55 years practised by them The Order of King Charles the First Nov. 13. 1631. We Will and Command our Judges to permit and suffer the said Strangers and their Children quietly to enjoy all and singular c. without any Trouble Arrests or Proceedings by way of information or otherwise An Order of Councel for the Dutch of Norwich Jan. 7. 1630. That all those that now or hereafter shall be Members of the Dutch Congregation altho born within this Kingdom shall continue to be of the said Church so long as his Majesty shall be pleased These and diverse the like instances might be produced which sufficiently evince it as granted on all sides and constantly supposed to be according to the constitution of this Realm that our Kings and Princes have Power in and from themselves as an inherent inseparable Prerogative not only to enjoyn and give Lawes to their Subjects in Matters Ecclesiastical such as are left to the ordering of any Civil Power but also to dispense and exempt from Lawes of that kind tho established by them in conjunction with the Authority of Parliament Nor do we find that Parliaments at any time have taken into Consideration what was ordered and done by these Kings and Princes in Ecclesiastical Affairs as being their known Prerogative no not in the time of King James who assumed the most in such managements nor by any Petitions or Addresses to any of those Princes which is usual in the concerns of Civil Rights for