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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A66931	A declaration of the brethren who are for the established government and judicatories of this church, expressing their earnest desires of union and peace with their dissenting brethen.	Wood, James, 1608-1664.	1658 (1658)	Wing W3397; ESTC R39139	8,387	13

may before this time fully know our mind in order thereunto by our conference with them and we have also given an account thereof to the world in our Representation Yet we do once again hold our selves bound to declare our readinesse to contribute to our outmost for advancing so good a work and that what ever wrongs we have sustained yet we are heartily content to burie in oblivion all former injuries and to be far from any animosities which might have flowed from the same that so we and they may joyntly concur to uphold the established Church-government in the constitution thereof and due suborditiation and submission thereunto according to the lawfull known principles wherein we have walked formerly which both of us have professed to be of Divine right and the preservation whereof we conceive they ought to prefer to any private interest whatsoever And we believe it will afford them more peace in end so to do than if they had obtained all their irregular desires which they have so industriously prosecuted And albeit they differ from us in Judgement upon the matter of our first difference yet we judge that needeth be no impediment to Union seing we have already offered and declared that though we hold fast our own Judgement yet we shall not impose upon their Judgements in that matter it being now buried and taken out of our way But we aggree that the matter be remitted to the determination of a Generall Assembly when the Lord shall grant the liberty thereof according to the established order to whose determination we submit our selves And we see not how our Brethren shall be able to justifie themselves before the world or in their own Consciences if they continue a rent so prejudiciall meerly because we cannot renounce our Judgements in such a debate and say as they say Whereas it hath been often alleaged against us as a mean of heightening Divisions and an obstruction to Union that by some Acts of the late Assemblies a barr is laid in the way to keep men who are not of our Judgement from the Ministery and to hold out men of their Judgement though never so Godly from being Members of Church-Judicatories We shall not now insist to clear the justice and necessity of the conclusions of these Assemblies at that time and to shew that nothing was then done but what had been done formerly in like cases We might also instruct that though some very few Presbyteries have required of Intrants to the Ministery of whatsoever Judgement that they should promise not to trouble the peace of the Church with these needlesse debates yet to our best knowledge none of these Acts have been de facto a barr to hold out any Godly man who was lawfully and orderly called and tried though we may but too justly complain how industrious and active they have been to thrust-in men of their Judgement and to crush Godly and able men who did not aggree with them But to free our Brethren from all jealousies and grounds of suspition and to justifie our selves before the world as to our sincere and earnest desire of Union we shall willingly aggree that all these Acts be made void and null by the next General Assembly to whom it belongeth to repeal Acts and that in the mean time they shall not be put in practice And whereas they make so great a noise of the Censures inflicted on some of their number by the Assembly 1651. Though we might say much on behalf of the Assembly their proceeding at that time and of their lenitie who did Censure only four of their number who yet have never submitted unto these Censures and consequently have the lesse cause to complain Yet to assure them that we are reall for peace and do not minde nor desire the personall prejudice of any of them but only the preservation of the order of this afflicted Church we are content that the Synods since a Generall Assembly doth not meet do take off the Censures that are upon their respective Members they giving assurance of their submission and subordination to the Judicatories without which there can be no order nor Government and which we have to this day constantly observed in our practice and they also with us untill the times of our late differences And whereas our Brethren affirm that their chief aim and scope in all their late actings hath been to find out some effectuall way for purging out of scandalous and insufficient Ministers and other Officers We might too justly complain that this is but a Question started on the by and since the time they had begun a rupture amongst us And that they have so liberally aspersed the Ministry of this Church who differ from them both at home and abroad when yet upon exactest trialls both by them and us nothing can be found answerable to the great cry raised against this Church and our Ministery Yet in this bussinesse we seriously declare we do not contravert with them having professed our willingnesse to go about that work in the most strict way according to justice and the common rules of Church-Judicatories in such cases And we have not only often intreated them to unite upon this very account that the work of purging might be carried on more effectually but have upon all occasions of any report of scandall or insufficiency laid forth our selves to the utmost to try and examine the truth thereof and have not been wanting in inflicting due Censure for any thing that at any time was found Yea so far are we from fore-slowing or obstructing that to declare our readinesse and sincerity in that matter we are content if our Brethren be not satisfied with the rules of procedure hitherto aggreed upon that they condescend upon the strictest rules can be desired in justice for triall and censure and we shall be willing to observe them providing they be rules binding for all and to which all will submit both they and we Having thus again expressed our selves in this matter we do seriously in the bowels of Jesus Christ Exhort and Obtest all our Brethren that as they do tender the Government of this Church and the welfare of Christs Interests therein they would lay aside prejudices and animosities and cease from all irregular practices and all things tending to hold up divisions and widen the breach And that now at last after so many experiences of the bitter fruits of contention they will joyn cordially to uphold the Lords Interests and go on in His Work that so the Gospel and work of Reformation may prosper amongst us the Lord may take delight to continue His habitation in the midst of us and stumbling-blocks may be removed out of the way of the People which have been multiplied by these differences We have made choice of this way of making known our inclinations to peace not upon any sinister designe but meerly that our heart in this matter may be made known to all our Brethren and the Lords People in the Land and that our condescensions may not be huddled up in a conference with some few who may keep them up or represent them to others as they please but that all knowing our minde there may be a foundation laid for begetting a good understanding and making up an Union with all these whom the Lord shall convince of the necessity of peace in this poor Church which we desire may be speedily gone about considering the sad prejudices following upon this rupture and the so long continuance thereof And we cannot in reason but expect that our Brethren will hearken to our serious request if so be they be real in their professions for Presbyterial-government and do mind only the advancement of the work of God amongst us and be not driving some other design all this while But if after all these essayes and desires of Union we be still to our great grief frustrated of our intentions and men will continue an unnecessary Schism in the Church Though we shall desire to reverence and stoup to the Lords holy dispensation in it and as hitherto we have done shall look upon that sad and humbling lot more grievous to us than any thing could be fall us in our particular concernments as a call from Him exciting us to our work that we may lay forth our selves in season and out of season to make our Master Christ more known to His people and bring-in Disciples to Him and may make full proof of our Ministrie In all the parts and opportunities thereof that our Lord when He cometh may find us so doing Yet as to those who persist in such courses we must say that we have exonered our selves in discharge of our duty towards them and we hope it will appear to all unbyassed Discerners that notwithstanding all their violent attempts against the Church-government and us since our conference with them yet we are not at all irritated thereby to recede from the condescensions and offers then made And as we do commit Christs Interests into His own hand that He may see to the preservation thereof against those usurpations and encroachments of men and shall desire to lament after Him till He be pleased to dispell those clouds and shine upon this distracted Church So we invite all the Lords People in the Land that they will not give place to Satans craft in these times who would take them off the main work of Godlinesse and Religion and engage them in fruitlesse contentions and debates whereof they will have neither profit nor pleasure in end But that with us they will lay to heart and lament all the evils that have come and do daily grow upon us by these sad Divisions and that in their Stations they will adhere to the Interests of Christ and the settled Government of His Church not suffering themselves to be misled by the specious pretexts of men while they run courses so destructive thereunto As considering that it will be no grief of heart to them in the latter end when the Lord will judge not according to appearances or pretext but righteous judgement that they have had no accession to the ruine of their Mother-Church but have been a comfort to her in the day of her distresse FINIS

A DECLARATION OF THE BRETHREN who are for the established GOVERNMENT and JUDICATORIES OF THIS CHURCH Expressing their earnest desires of UNION and PEACE with their DISSENTING BRETHREN EDINBURGH Printed Anno Dom. 1658. A DECLARATION of the BRETHREN who are for the established Government and Judicatories of this Church expressing their earnest desires of Union and Peace with their Dissenting Brethren IT may justly seem strange to all impartiall Observers and cannot but be looked on by all the lovers of Zion as a sad and humbling dispensation That after so many years tossing about a debate now so far removed out of our way and after so many endeavours for an accommodation We should yet be necessitated to expresse our sad resentment of the continuance of our distempers and of the afflicted condition of this Nationall Church For our part we have been from the beginning and yet are so sensible of the evill and prejudice of these Divisions that as we have made Conscience of lamenting them before the Lord and afflicting our souls because of them and for the sins procuring the same So we have not forborn from time to time to seek peace and pursue it upon any terms that might be consistent with the simple freedom of our own judgements in the matters controverted and with the being of Presbyteriall-government which we believe to be of God and which the Lord in mercy hath established among us in answer to the prayers of many of whom some now sleep in the Lord and by the no small sufferings and troubles of the present generation We are nor so insensible as men how we have lien under many disadvantages in our opposing our Brethrens irregular courses destructive to that Government nor as Christians and Ministers of the Gospel how God might justly plague any private interest or designe of ours which should add fewell to that fire and how our main work hath been retarded and obstructed by these contentions That we should take any pleasure in them if so be we could obtain peace upon safe and just terms In pursuance whereof both in our conferences with our Brethren at home and of late in England and in our Representation published to the world we have expressed our earnest desires for peace and our ready condescendence to gain them to an Union in the Lord for carrying on the work of God amongst us though as yet without any desired successe but while we have been seeking peace some of them have been sailing all winds to compasse their own ends and set up a domination of their Party in this Church We are sorry we have so much cause to complain of our Brethren that they should not only have begun a needlesse rent in this Church upon a Question so extrinsick to our Doctrine Worship and Government But that since they have so notably injured us in our Persons and Ministery by casting so many and so foul reproaches upon us both by word and write at home and abroad that so they might make us hatefull and purchase credite and power to their own Party whereby also they have endeavoured to render this Nationall Church odious in the view of the world and exposed her to be a laughing-stock to all her enemies on all hands and furnished them with weapons if their foul slanders deserved to have credite whereby to fight against her and justifie their opposition to her when her own Children bear such witnesse against her Though we heartily wish our Brethren may seriously consider and lay to heart those their actings Yet for our part we professe it is not our purpose to impose upon their Judgements in these matters of our differences nor do we keep at a distance from them upon the account of any such personall injuries having learned from our Master to forgive and patiently to bear hoping that as these aspersions are not believed by these who know us so in due time He will wipe them off to the conviction of all who do not wilfully blind their own eyes But our stumbling at our Brethren is meerly upon the account of the wrongs they have done and daily do to the settled Government of this Church from which if they would once cease and provide against them for the future our debates with them were at a close As our hopes of peace after our first rupture were soon blasted when we perceived our Brethren not sisting at the first cause of their rent but starting new quarrels to increase alienations So we did easily foresee that their way did manifestly tend to the overturning of the established Church-government and that if they did not hearken unto peace there was no remedy but they behoved to run some course destructive thereunto We could in prudence judge no otherwise when in the very entry we found them decline the Authority of the Supreme Church-Judicatory in this Nation once and again and ready to do so from time to time at their pleasure and drawing Factions and Parties with them in that opposition and branding Church-officers and inferiour Judicatories as generally corrupt that so all of them might be cast loose or at least moulded to their mind But they did not long leave us to our own conjectures and fears in this matter having soon after and constantly to this day by their irregular practices contrary to all order upon the account of their Declinatour and the pretended corruption of this Church both Officers and Members which they could never make out though often put to it bewrayed their small respect to the established Government planting Congregations in a tumultuous and disorderly way without respect either to the Church Judicatories or to the just interest of the People of the Congregation and counter-acting to the Resolutions and Determinations of Judicatories when any of them pleased to be dissatisfied therewith with many the like practices which we take no pleasure to repeat And we found yet more cause to judge that these were not the deeds only of some few amongst them more forward and violent than the rest but agreeable to the principles of all at least of their prime Leaders when our conference for Union with them in November 1655. was broken-up chiefly upon this account beside some other things mentioned in our Representation That we could not denude the Church-Judicatories of their just Power and devolve matters into the hands of an extra-judiciall Committee of equal numbers and that they expresly refused subordination and submission to the Church Judicatories to which they and we were solemnly engaged at our Admission to the Ministry and which we were willing to renew for our parts and without which our established Judicatories shall be nothing else but so many consultative meetings A principle inconsistent with Presbyteriall-government in a constituted Church as all who are acquainted with debates of that nature will easily perceive The prejudices to the Church-government flowing from their way did not sist here we were but too much further confirmed in