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A64131 A sermon preached at the opening of the Parliament of Ireland, May 8. 1661 before the right honourable the Lords justices, and the Lords spiritual and temporal and the commons / by Jeremy Lord Bishop of Down and Connor. Taylor, Jeremy, 1613-1667. 1661 (1661) Wing T393; ESTC R33899 24,525 60

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A SERMON PREACHED At the opening of the Parliament of IRELAND May 8. 1661. Before the right Honourable the Lords Justices and the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and the Commons By JEREMY Lord Bishop of Down and Connor Salus in multitudine consulentium LONDON Printed by I. F. for R. Royston Bookseller to his most Sacred MAJESTY 1661. To the Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons of Ireland Assembled in PARLIAMENT My Lords and Gentlemen I Ought not to dispute your commands for the printing my Sermon of Obedience lest my Sermon should be protestatio contra factum here I know my Example would be the best Use to this Doctrine and I am sure to find no inconveniency so great as that of Disobedience neither can I be confident that I am wise in any thing but when I obey for then I have the wisdome of my Superiour for my warrant or my excuse I remember the saying of Aurelius the Emperor AEquius est me tot talium amicorum consilium quam tot tales meam unius voluntatem sequi I could easily have pretended excuses but that day I had taught others the contrary and I would not shed that Chalice which my own hands had newly filled with waters issuing from the fountains of Salvation My eyes are almost grown old with seeing the horrid mischiefs which came from Rebellion and Disobedience and I would willingly now be blessed with observation of Peace and Righteousness Plenty and Religion which do already and I hope shall for ever attend upon Obedience to the best KING and the best CHURCH in the world I see no objection against my hopes but that which ought least of all in this case to be pretended Men pretend Conscience against Obedience expressly against Saint Paul's Doctrine teaching us to obey for conscience sake but to disobey for Conscience in a thing indifferent is never to be found in the books of our Religion It is very hard when the Prince is forc'd to say to his rebellious Subject as God did to his stubborn people Quid faciam tibi I have tried all the waies I can to bring thee home and what shall I now doe unto thee The Subject should rather say Quid me vis facere What wilt thou have me to doe This Question is the best end of disputations Corrumpitur atque dissolvitur Imperantis officium si quis ad id quod facere jussus est non obsequio debito sed consilio non considerato respondeat said one in A. Gellius When a Subject is commanded to obey and he disputes and saies Nay but the other is better he is like a servant that gives his Master necessary counsel when he requires of him a necessary obedience Utilius parére edicto quam efferre consilium he had better obey then give counsel by how much it is better to be profitable then to be witty to be full of goodness rather then full of talk and argument But all this is acknowledged true in strong men but not in the weak in vigorous but not in tender Consciences for Obedience is strong meat and will not down with weak stomacks As if in the world any thing were easier then to obey for we see that the food of Children is milk and lawes the breast-milk of their Nurses and the commands of their Parents is all that food and Government by which they are kept from harm and hunger and conducted to life and wisdome And therefore they that are weak brethren of all things in the world have the least reason to pretend an excuse for disobedience for nothing can secure them but the wisdome of the Laws for they are like Children in minority they cannot be trusted to their own conduct and therefore must live at the publick charge and the wisdome of their Superiors is their guide and their security And this was wisely advised by S. Paul Him that is weak in the faith receive but not to doubtfull disputations that 's not the way for him Children must not dispute with their Fathers and their Masters If old men will dispute let them look to it that 's meat for the strong indeed though it be not very nutritive but the Laws and the Counsels the Exhortations and the Doctrines of our Spiritual Rulers are the measures by which God hath appointed Babes in Christ to become Men and the weak to become strong and they that are not to be received to doubtful disputations are to be received with the arms of love into the imbraces of a certain and regular Obedience But it would be considered that Tenderness of Conscience is an equivocal terme and does not alwaies signifie in a good sense For a Child is of a tender flesh but he whose foot is out of joint or hath a bile in his arme or hath strained a sinew is much more tender The tenderness of age is that weakness that is in the ignorant and the new beginners the tenderness of a bile that is soreness indeed rather then tenderness is of the diseased the abused and the mis-perswaded The first indeed are to be tenderly dealt with and have usages accordingly but that is the same I have already told you must teach them you must command them you must guide them you must chuse for them you must be their guardians and they must comport themselves accordingly But for that tenderness of Conscience which is the disease and soreness of Conscience it must be cured by anodynes and soft usages unless they prove ineffective and that the Launcet be necessary But there are amongst us such tender stomacks that cannot endure Milk but can very well digest Iron Consciences so tender that a Ceremony is greatly offensive but Rebellion is not a Surplice drives them away as a bird affrighted with a man of clouts but their Consciences can suffer them to despise Government and speak evil of Dignities and curse all that are not of their Opinion and disturb the peace of Kingdomes and commit Sacrilege and account Schisme the character of Saints The true Tenderness of Conscience is 1. that which is impatient of a sin 2ly it will not endure any thing that looks like it and 3ly it will not give offence Now since all Sin is Disobedience 1. it will be rarely contingent that a man in a Christian Common-wealth shall be tied to disobey to avoid sin and certain it is if such a case could happen yet 2ly nothing of our present questions is so like a sin as when we refuse to obey the Laws to stand in a clean Vestment is not so ill a sight as to see men stand in separation and to kneel at the Communion is not so like Idolatry as Rebellion is to Witchcraft and then 3ly for the matter of giving offences what scandal is greater then that which scandalizes the Laws and who is so carefully to be observed lest he be offended as the KING And if that which offends the weak brother is to be