Selected quad for the lemma: parliament_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
parliament_n	house_n	king_n	officer_n	2,496	5	7.4181	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77755	Certain queries concerning the lawfullnes of imposing, and taking of the negative oath; propounded by some ministers under restraint in the garrison of Weymouth. / And answered by [brace] E.B. and P.I. [brace] Ministers of [brace] Weymouth, and Melcomb-regis.	Buckler, Edward, 1610-1706.; Ince, Peter, b. 1614 or 1615.	1646 (1646)	Wing B5347; Thomason E369_1; ESTC R201276	10,400	22

CERTAINE QUERIES CONCERNING The lawfullnes of imposing and taking of the NEGATIVE OATH Propounded by some MINISTERS under restraint in the Garrison of WEYMOUTH AND ANSWERED By E. B. and P. I. Ministers of Weymouth and Melcomb-regis LONDON Printed for Rich. Royston at the Angell in Ivy Lane M DC XLVII The Negative Oath I A. B. Do sweare from my heart that I will not directly nor indirectly adhere unto or willingly assist the King in this War or in this Cause against the Parliament nor any Forces raysed without the consent of the two houses of Parliament in this Cause or Warre And I do likewise sweare that my comming and submitting my selfe under the Power and protection of the Parliament is without any manner of Design whatsoever to the prejudice of the proceedings of this present Parliament and without the direction privity or advice of the King or any of his Councell or Officers other then what I have now made knowne So helpe me God and the contents of this Booke To the Reader THese Queries were privately propounded by men pretending a sober desire of satisfaction and this Answer whose contrivement was not the expence of full 24. houres as privately returned The men were so farre from having their Consciences unscrupled by any thing here said that wee were constrained to offer them a dispute Ore tenus which after time and place and Moderator agreed upon and all parties met was prudently declined since which time as I have been assured by some godly Ministers and others it hath been given out by one or more of the Parties themselves how little could be said for the Parliaments practise and some aspersions cast upon my selfe in particular whereby I am necessitated to own these Papers and to make them publique that the world may see that what I have here said was enough to cast me by choyce upon that side I ever was since these differences began though not enough to fetch those men off who are not willing they should now end Thine in the Cause of Christ and the Kingdome EDWARD BUCKLER Certain Queries concerning the imposing and taking the Negative Oath c. 1. Quere SInce Faith that is an assurance of the warrantablenesse of any particular undertaking must be the ground of a Christians action and such Faith can rest on nothing but Gods word Wee demand what warrant there is in the Gospell which restraines the use of Oaths for the contriving and imposing an Oath which is a solemne Act of Religion in order to politick ends This the rather wee desire to be satisfyed in because our experience teacheth us that this Oath is made use of as an Engine of State since it is not urged generally on all but pressed upon some not without Design upon their estates and liberties Ans Your first Quere is what warrant there is in the Gospell for the contriving and imposing of an Oath in order to Politique Ends 1. An assurance from Gods word of the warrantablenes of any particular undertaking must be a Christians ground of that undertaking 2. The Negative Oath is in order to Politique ends being an Engine of State For 1. It is not urged generally on all but only on some 2. On those some not without design upon their 1 States 2 Liberties 1. wee observe 1. An ill Omen viz. a stumbling at the threshold you demand what warrant there is in the Gospell c. and the reason of your demand is because there ought to be a warrant in the word Wee hope Gods word and the Gospell are not with you terms contemptible so that if we find warrant in the word it wil be enough 2. That you demand not whether it be lawfull to take but whether it be lawfull to contrive and impose an Oath in order to Politique ends and so this can be no scruple of your Consciences for whether lawfull or not you are not concerned in it 2. Wee answer 1. To your Quere viz. What warrant there is in the word for that must be the sence of your Quere for the contriving and imposing of an Oath in order to Politique ends Wee desire you to looke into these following Scriptures where you shall find 1. An Oath in order to politique ends both in 1. Precept Exod. 22. 8. 11. 2. Practise 1 Reg. 8. 31. Gen. 24. 2. 3. Neh. 5. 12. 2 Chron. 36. 13. compared with Ez●k 17. 13. 16. 2. A negative Oath 1 Reg. 2. 42. 43. Gen. 24. 3. Iudg. 21. 7 3. An Oath not urged on all but some as when an Oath is explanatory or cautionary as in the case in hand it is only pressed upon the suspected not urged on all Num. 5. 19. Exod. 22. 11. the man suspected not all the men in the neighbourhood Ezr. 10. 15. 4. An Oath not without influence 〈◊〉 without Design upon their 1. Estates Neh. 5. 12. 2. Liberties 1. Reg. 2. 42. O●j These texts are all in V. T. But the Gospell restraines the use of Oathes Sol. 1. You either were not able or not willing to give us any sence of this parenthesis at our first meeting 2. You shew us where the Gospell restraines the use of Oathes in any sence that will serve your purpose 3. Oathes are in the Gospel 1. mentioned with approbation Heb. 6. 16. 2. used Rom 9 1. 2 Cor. 11. 31. 2 Cor. 1. 23 2. To the reasons of your Quere to the 1. V●z An assurance from G●ds word of the warrantablenes of any particular undertaking must be a Christians ground of that undertaking This wee acknowledge to be a truth Ans and a necessary ground of Quere when wee do indeed doubt of the warrantablenes of any thing that is required of us But wee do not thinke our selves or others bound to suffer till wee can satisfy our selves of a warrant for what is done by others as in the case of this Quere viz. of a ground for contriving and imposing of oathes To the 2. The Negative oath is in order to Politique ends c. See in order to what end those oathes were contrived and imposed Ans which you saw in the texts above cited To the grounds of this viz. 1. This oath is not urged on all If by all you meane 1. All the Subjects of this Kingdome oathes not being either to be multiplied or extended beyond necessity wee say that the State need not engage their own party by any other way having sufficient assurance of their good affection already Ans 2. All of a kind viz. Of such as have adhered to the King in this warre wee believe and have been informed that the Ordinance intends all and the non-execution of it is to be written down among the Errata of their Instruments 2. On some not without design upon their 1. Estates 2. Liberties Wee might find heere some incongruity between this Ans and what went immediately before viz. not urged on all Why not if this be the design T is possible that

thus If the doing of both do equally concerne the Kingdoms good then there is an equall power in the King to both for whatsoever the King quatenus King is or hath he is and hath it for the Kingdoms good as the meanes is for the end Rom. 13. 4. but the doing of both doth equally concern the Kingdoms good the Kingdome is as much concerned that good lawes be made as that evill lawes be hindered ergo 2. Not to allow Ordinances ut supra equivalent to Acts which at least Sedente curiâ was never questioned is to necessitate the continuance of old Lawes though never so prejudiciall to impossibilitate the making of a new though never so necessary if the King will contrary to that known rule in Politiques Lex debet Reipub accommodari non respub legi 3 It makes the King absolute and his government arbitrary it being all one to rule without a Law and to rule by a Law of his own making and which could not be made without him 3. Wee demand whether 1. Ius gladii if the Parliament were pleased or had need to plead it doth not entitle them to power enough to impose this Oath 2. The King had any more for imposing his Protestation in places under his power 3. The imposition of that Protestation being not by Act of Parliament nor by any power equivalent be tyrannicall and capable of a hard construction 4. Quere Since there is a naturall all allegiance due to the person of King Charles from all his Subjects born so that it is a declared treason to distinguish between the naturall and politique capacity of the King as it is evident in Cookes Report of Calvins case which the founders of our Government have thought fit to ratifie by Oathes of fealty and allegiance which obliege all Subjects to adhere unto and assist King Charles in time of Warre as well as in time of Peace and since by a late Protestation taken at the instinct of Parliament wee have oblieged our selves in our severall places and callings to maintaine with our lives and fortunes the Kings person honour and estate and to endevour to bring to condigne punishment all those who oppose them wee desire to know how any power on earth without being Antichristian can absolve us from this allegiance or disingage us from our vowes of adherence to the King in maintenance of his right such as is the power of the Militia acknowledged by the Parliaments Petition at Windsor to be a flower of the Crown Your fourth Quereis what power on earth without being Antichristian can absolve us from our oath of Allegiance or dis-ingage us from a late Protestation taken by instinct of Parliament oblieging us to maintain the Kings person honour and estate and to adhere to him in the maintenance of his right such as is the power of the Militia c. Reasons of this Quere are 1. There is a naturall allegiance due to the person of King Charles from all his Subjects born 2. This naturall allegiance the founders of our Government have thought fit to ratify by Oathes of Fealty and Allegiance 3. These Oathes obliege all Subjects to adhere unto and assist King Charles in time of War as well as in time of Peace 4. T is a declared Treason to distinguish between the naturall and politique capacity of the King as is evident in Cooks Report of C●lvins case vid. 11. Hen. 7. 1. 1. Wee observe 1. That you insinuate a power to be claimed by the Parliament of absolving men from Oathes and disingaging them from Protestations 2 That you insinuate this power to be Antichristian 3. That it is exercised in imposing the Negative Oath 2. Wee Answer 1. To your Quere what power on earth c. That by the Negative Oath you bind your selves from nothing which you are bound unto by the oath of Allegiance or the late Protestation taken by instinct of Parliament For the cleering of this wee shall premise That neither Oath nor Protestation obliege us to any new duty but only bind us in the sacred Bond of an Oath to performe that which was ever due This truth we have from the Series of your own arguments there is as you call it a naturall allegiance which is you say ratifyed not added unto by Oathes of Fealty and allegiance Thus then If the Negative Oath bind you from nothing which is by your naturall allegiance the Kings due then it binds you from nothing which you are bound unto by the Oath of Allegiance or the late Protestation But c. ergo Ob. It binds us from adhering unto or assisting the King in this Warre Sol. This is not the Kings due Wee prove it thus Nothing is the Kings due but what he can claime either by the Law or by his Prerogative wee never heard of a third title and his Majestie seemes in one of his Declarations to reduce all to one in this acknowledgement The Law is the measure of our power And wee conceive that the measure and the thing measured are not greater nor lesse one then another But for your good you shall have in the Prerogative to boot c. but the King cannot claime assistance in this warre either by Law or by his Prerogative Ergo. 1. He cannot claim it by Law for 1. The sence of the Law is to be judged of by the mind of the Law-giver and wee cannot yet thinke that the Parliaments mind was to give the King a power to cut their own throates 2. The King seemes to allow the Parliaments sence of the law to be authentique though directly opposite to his own sence of it as in Strafords case 3. Then the Law binds you to endeavour the destruction of all those godly persons in the Kingdome who are of the contrary party and this wee have found was as long as they appeared at least finis operis 4. T were good that Law were produced which inables the King to claime your assistance in a Warre against his two houses of Parliament his Majesty himselfe saw so little of Law in it that he himselfe protested himselfe as ready to Warre against his own Children Obj. Wee have directed you in the Margin to the Statute of 11. Hen. 7. Chap. 1. Sol. And wee direct you to the Parliaments exposition of and Declaration upon that Statute printed above three yeares since Obj. The Parliament acknowledged the power of the Militia to be a flower of the Crown Sol. To use for not against the Kingdome according to Law not will vid. supra 26 ●t infra 42. 2. The King cannot claime your assistance in this Warre by his Prerogative wee shall endeavour to hold you ou● what Prerogative 1. is not 2. is 1. Prerogative is not 1 A power in the King to do what he pleaseth not a power by any instruments of his to take away the life or estate of any Subject to break the priviledge much lesse the ne●ks of Parliaments c. t is not