Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
mercy_n	great_a	let_v	sinner_n	1,997	5	7.5506	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43610	The black non-conformist discover'd in more naked truth proving that excommunication & confirmation ... and diocesan bishops are ... of human make and shape, and that not only some lay-men, but all the keen-cringing clergy are non-conformists ... / by Edm. Hickeringill ...	Hickeringill, Edmund, 1631-1708.	1682 (1682)	Wing H1796; ESTC R3140	128,573	98

Aye Here 's your Men quoth the Popish Priests Chapmen What do you lack What do you buy Then then and not till then they got the whipping-hand of the superstitious world for he that has got a hank over other Mens Souls and Consciences their Bodies and Estates consequently are without dispute at his Service and Devotion And when a Priest can make a poor Lady believe that he can damn her or absolve her and has the Keys and something else under his Girdle and can let her into or shut her out from the Church and Sacraments so that she will but shew him all her Secrets and unbosome her self in Auricular Confession Cajol'd thereunto superstitiously and bug-bear'd by many lying Miracles in the Legend of many that dyed and got as far as Heaven-gates but were glad to return a long and weary Journey to earth again to be confest by a Priest before they could be let in dying unshriv'd or unhousled can such a Priest that has got the Lock and Key of a Ladies Closet and Secrets have far to go before he come at her heart And I have therefore wondred that the jealous Italians Spaniards and Portugueze that will not suffer any man scarce a Brother to see their Wives face should yet permit them to go to secret and auricular Confession to a young vigorous unguelt piece of Sanctity I had almost said Hypocrisie I could not but wonder 'till now of late to find St. Ambrosie Ora pro nobis in the Popish Letany or Mass For what merit Oh! Captain St. Ambrose was the first Ecclesiastical-Hector or Spiritual-Bravo that in defiance of God and the King durst as malapartly as barbarously and insultingly some say Traiterously shut the doors of the Church against his Prince and Emperor Theodosius the elder not admitting him to the Sacrament nor Divine Service 'till the Emperor submitted to the proud insulting Priest and promis'd upon his knees that for the future he would be rul'd and so he and the Priest became Friends again Well I see St. James the Author the Papists say of their Liturgy and Mass though he was none of the Twelve Apostles yet was a Bishop and a Prophet too if he could so early insert into the Churches Common-Prayer Book stout Captain St. Ambrose and make him pray for himself and all Christen-Souls 400 years before he was born Oh! the merit of some mens Ecclesiastical Insolence But if Captain Ambrose was Canoniz'd and Sainted for shutting the Church-doors and debarring a great Sinner from Divine Service and Sacraments Will not the men of the same Leaven Anathematize me for opening the Church-doors thus to Sinners great Sinners and small Sinners and shut me out But it is better far to eat with Publicans and Sinners as our blessed Saviour did than to partake with Scribes Pharisees and Hypocrites to whom he denounced Wo Wo Wo. Thus have I known School-Boys taught in the Church but better fed than taught to barr out their Masters and be Masters of Mis-rule upon pretence of Christmas and a Holy-time and with a Brazen-face make Declamations and Verses in praise of that precious Ecclesiastical Discipline But if I come I 'le open the Church Doors again and spread the Arms of Mercy wide open and outstretched to as great a Latitude and Comprehension as our Blessed Saviour did even to Publicans and Sinners they shall eat with me let the Hypocrites eat alone and as fittest by themselves if they will not vouchsafe to eat with Sinners let them cringe and bow and face to the Left to the Left to the East the East Sinners look you Sinners though they despise Sinners so much in nomine Domini Sinners are the best Gryst that comes to their Mills If it were not for Sinners the Bench Ecclesiastical at least would not be so scarlet as it is their Holinesses might sit alone as well as a cold if it were not for Sinners and look as lean as an Easter-Offering Sinners quoth a Who is this that despises Sinners which our Blessed Redeemer did not despise by God's help this little Book shall open the Church-Doors to let in Sinners in spight of the most self-conceited Hypocrite as far as the Old and New Testament will go I say ipse dixi What shall sin walk barefac't magisterial in open Court and unrebuk't And shall the Naked-Truth be glad to hide its Head Ha shall the wicked Extortioners of Doctors-Commons sin and will you make me suffer and be whipt for their faults upon their Backs whilst they hold me up to you Sir look you my Lord Is there any Conscience in this Look you Sir look you I am got into the Modern Rhetorical Phraze entail'd on some seats of Eloquence can it be Justice look you my Lord that I should suffer because they sin and I only wish and endeavour their amendment Just thus does the unjust World abuse the poor Cuckolds when the Naked-Truth on 't is the great and only fault is in the Cuckold-makers the Whore and Rogue And must he not have a face of Brass look you and a conscience of Steel my Lord that shall vindicate that domineering Popishly invented Prelacy which the Holy Scriptures and our Blessed Redeemer condemns making all his Disciples Spiritual-Levellers Luke 22. Whose Disciples then are the Popish Prelates that in defiance of Christ will domineer over the Clergy their Brethren and vex them with Law-Suits having great Interest and great Power and withal Purse-proud to defend in spight of Christ that Antichristian Lordliness and Clergical Tyranny over their Brethren calling it as the Pope contradictione adjecto first call'd it Hierarchy or the Holy Rule But how can that be Holy that the Holy Scriptures and the Holy Jesus decries and condemns and it was first Enacted and made a Law in England when the Pope did what he list both with King and People They had and we have a happy time on 't yet most of these Popish Hierarchical Laws are abolished and that was stoutly attack't though it still stands and let it stand I said in my Naked-Truth Rome was not built and cannot be destroyed in one day it crumbles a pace If you be for Discipline and Spiritual Weapons rather Draw upon the Adulterers and Adulteresses the Extortioners impudent Extortioners in your Spiritual-Courts in Probates Administrations Visitations Ordinations grant ing Licences to Preach Institutions Inductions Procurations and if you have power to Anathematize and Curse Curse the Cursers and Blasphemers of the unparallel'd Age we live in In all the Reign of Edw. 6. I find no man taken upon the Writ de Excommunicato capiendo nor 'till the fifth of Queen Elizabeth nor any legal Cursing or Commination save that in the Common-Prayer-Book denouncing of Gods Anger and Judgments against Sinners Cursed is he that smiteth his neighbour secretly and Cursed is he that lyeth with his neighbours wife c. and all the people shall say Amen Cursed is he that taketh a reward to slay an

ought it to be otherwise appli'd than as to the matter in hand that whatsoever the Pope do yet God gives no Indulgences Licences or Priviledges either to sin or to sin impunè Besides Piety is the greatest Policy in the World and the most easy as well as most safe certain and sure way of governing Mankind in Mercy Goodness Meekness Compassion Justice in not being over-rul'd with Popular or Parasitical Applause or distast of the greatest Favorite Especially in England of all the World who are sturdy generally hard to be forc'd or driven but easily drawn like a great Ship in calm Water with a Twine-Thred Besides the Defence of the King and Kingdom consists not in impregnable Fortresses Forts and Citadels as in the Low Countries but in the Limbs and Hands Heads and Hearts of the happy Natives I mean our Main-guard under God consists in Castles of Bones and not in Castles of Stones CHAP. XVI FRiday Novemb. 25th 1681 was the day appointed and agreed upon on both sides to argue the said Pleas Protestations and Answer and to that purpose Sir Philp Lloyd upon the 21st Instant being their Court-day did bid me nominate and chuse what Advocates I thought most meet to argue and improve my said Prostestations Pleas and Answer Advocates Replied I Advocates what shall I ask Advice of the Fox how to preserve my Chickens Advocates indeed have the Advantage of me in Skill Eloquence Pleadings and Subtilties but all that will be abundantly supplied by the Advantage of the Ground on which my Innocence has plac'd me Let Criples go on Crutches I told them and that I doubted not by God's help but I should stand on my own Legs and against them all if I might but be allowed fair play and the benefit of the Laws which was fairly promised and honestly performed yet on the day time and place appointed in Doctors-Commons to argue this mighty Case before the Judg came into the Room I was most insolently affronted and my Hat pluck'd off in great Rudeness and tumultuously by a Proctor's Clerk unworthy the naming who being reproved for the sawcy Attempt by some Citizens there present all strangers and unknown to me upon the Stir comes in Sir Philip Lloyd and inquiring the Cause of such Disturbance and Noise was told by one of the Citizens and who caused the same He very honestly check'd and severely chid the Fellow and bid him be gone out of the Room and that otherwise he might have been thought privy or at least to countenance such Rudeness when Men come upon their Affairs Citations and Monitions to Doctors-Commons but that was poor Satisfaction for so great and publick an Affront 't is well we have his Majesties Laws and his Majesties Courts to vindicate and secure us from such barbarous Assaults and probably the Fellow has heard from me concerning it before this time In the Interim to proceed Sir Philip takes a Chair and sits down and so did all the Advocates and very courteously the Judg desires me also to take a Chair amongst them and sit down and great Expectation there was by the By-standers to hear this mighty Argument But when it came to Sir Thomas Exton of Counsel for the Promoter instead of arguing admitted my Pleas and there 's an end of an old Song except at the next Term the Term Probatory further Debate or Debait arise so away I came out of their Room with the stifling Crowd after me who were defeated of their hopes to hear soome Proof or good Foundation for their Spiritual's Courts which Sir Thomas Exton said I denied and my Reasons for the same you have heard in my Answer which was not argued but admitted and so the By-standers lost their Longing as well as I lost my time detain'd for a Nonni-no above a Fortnight at London from my Parish my Family my Cure and Charge But how I employed my self in that Fortnight you have read thus far in this Book all writ at London in that time and the next day coming to Colchester weary and tir'd and bemir'd I immediately to show my Love to Peace and Quietness writ by Saturday Post this following Letter to Sir Thomas Exton not amiss here to insert in these very Words Colchester November 26th 1681. Right Worshipful I Expected Yesterday that you would have argued as the Bishop's Advocate against my Allegations but since you chose to admit them I have resolved once more thus to perswade you rather to be a Moderator which is in your Power to reconcile the Differences betwixt the Bishop of London and my Self rather than to espouse a Party and be a Stickler tho for a Lord Bishop against your old Friend and Vniversity-Acquaintance of 35 Years Continuance If you think this motion for Peace and Accommodation proceeds from fear the Impartial-Consideration of my Answer will undeceive you And this is the last Overture I will ever make for an Accommodation except you answer it and me effectually within a Week And by your neglect which is probable for Passion and Rage is deaf and hath no Earsy I shall then think my self absolv'd not only in my own Conscience and Honour but in the Opinion and Sentence of all good Men if after these amicable Overtues rejected Differences grow to that height that in my just defence I be forc'd to reach some unhappy Blowes that may otherwise against my will hit an old Friend Thus you see how I study to be quiet and to avoid Disputes especially with my Diocesan though he cannot possibly contrive a way to make my Name and Fame so Eminent and considerable as by thus publickly entring into the Lists of Contests with me Wherein if I be foyl'd no great Honour can he get by the Victory after such great advantage of the ground he has got to stand on above me But if he come off with loss how will he have cause to blame those Counsels that irritated him to this unseemly Encounter Revenge is God's Attribute and can no more be safely and honourably handled by any Man then burning-Coals which leave at best unhandsome Scars and uncomely Cicatrizes though healed never so cleaverly But Harm watch Harm catch And if nothing else will serve then let all our Faults be rip'd up and expos'd upon the Publick-Stage to make sport for the By standers and currat Lex I am Your Servant Edm. Hickeringill It was and is yet a Canon agreed on all hands in the first General Council of Nice which the Church of England ownes That no Bishop shall quit a small Bishoprick for a bigger and therefore better But who heeds the Canon when an useful Man a Man of great Parts great Improvements great Learning and also which I had almost forgot great Relations and Friends in the Case It was a Canon Concil Sardic that none should be made a Bishop but gradually and passing through all the Inferiour Orders and had also continued in them for some considerable time there was no Bishops