Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	doctrine_n	worship_n	3,910	5	7.2192	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A73631	Quæres concerning the state of the Church of Scotland	Calderwood, David, 1575-1650.	1638 (1638)	STC 4362.5; ESTC S124661	7,010	16

QVAERES CONCERNING The state of the Church OF SCOTLAND DEVT. 27.18 Cursed be hee that maketh the blinde to goe out of the way and all the people shall say Amen Re-printed in the yeare 1638. Quaeres concerning the state of the Church of Scotland Quaeres I. WAS there ever any Realme since Christs Incarnation professed Christian Religion so universially through all the parts thereof even to the utmost corners in such puritie both for Doctrine Discipline and publike worship with such libertie and for so many yeares together as our Realme hath done In the Apostles dayes we read not of whole Cities let bee kingdomes to have professed the name of Christ Soone after the departure of the Apostles sundrie corruptions entred into the Church and the mysterie of iniquitie which was working under ground in their time was advaunced by little and little till it came to the full ripenesse Neither was there any Nation free from the open profession of Paganisme the first 300 yeares Since Constantines time that Christianitie began to prevaile above Gentilisme there hath been no Church which hath not beene defiled with much superstition and corrupted with many errours till the dayes of late Reformation From the first time of reformatiō to this houre no reformed Church hath spred it self so universally through any Kingdome with such puritie of profession but either their profession is not so universal being intermingled with Papists Anabaptists Lutherians or not so pure as in our neighbour Church II. WAS there ever any Nation which sealed their profession with Oathes Covenants and Subscriptions so universallie and so oft as our Church hath done How often hath the Confession of Faith called the Kings Confession been subscribed by persons of all Estates through the Realme or by particular persons from time to time as occasion was offered to require their subscription A more fearfull oath cannot be conceaved then is taken in the end of that Confession in these words Promising and swearing by the great Name of the Lord our God That wee shall continue in the obedience of the Doctrine and Discipline of this Church shall defend the same according to our vocation and power all the dayes of our lives under the paines conteined in the Law and danger both of Body and Soule in the day of Gods fearefull judgement This is the Promissorie oath The Assertorie oath whereupon it is grounded is this Wee therefore willing to take away all suspition of hyprocrisie and of such double dealing with God and his Church protest and call the Searcher of all hearts for witnesse That our minds and hearts doe fully agree with this our Confession Promise Oath and Subscription So that wee are not moved for any worldly respect but are perswaded only in our Consciences through the knowledge and love of Gods true Religion printed in our hearts by the holy Spirit as wee shall answer to him in the day when the secrets of all hearts shall bee disclosed To underlye the paines conteined in the Law and danger both of Body and Soule in the day of Gods fearefull judgement and to answere to him in the day when the secrets of all hearts shall bee disclosed are not lightlie to be considered but to bee pondered deeplie and ever to be remembred specially when we have to doe with this our Confession III. I appeale to every mans Conscience Whether wee have adhered to all the generall particular clauses of this our Confession or not When wee say in this Confession that wee detest and abhorre the Antichrist his five bastard Sacraments with all his Rites Ceremonies and false Doctrine added to the ministration of the true Sacraments without the Worde of God his cruell judgement against Infants departing without the Sacrament his absolute necessitie of baptizing doe wee not protest that wee will abhorre and detest confirmation one of the five bastard Sacraments kneeling which is a Rite added to the ministration of the Supper without the warrand of Gods Word and invented by the Antichrist private Baptisme which is grounded upon the necessitie of baptisme and doubting of the Salvation of all Infants dying unbaptized When wee protest wee abhorre and detest his dedicating of dayes do wee not condemne observation of aniversarie holy dayes And when wee protest wee detest and abhorre not onely his owne worldly Monarchie but also his wicked hierarchie Doe wee not condemne the degrees of Bishops and Archbishops When wee say wee abhorre and detest all contrarie religion and doctrine to wit to the former Confession mentioned immediatelie before and the Christian faith receaved believed and defended by the Church of Scotland but chieflie all kinde of Papistrie in generall and particular heads even as they are now damned and confuted by the Word of God and Kirk of Scotland Doe wee not condemne Archbishops Bishops Holie dayes Kneeling Confirmation private Baptisme seeing all these particular heads were damned by our Church either in the former Confession the first or second Booke of Discipline and Acts of generall Assemblies before the sayd Confession was sworne to and subscribed and if any preased to practise them after they were damned the censures of the Church was inflicted upon them Have wee not of late failed in all these particulars and consequentlie violated our oathes promises and subscriptions underlying the danger both of body and soule in the day of Cods fearefull judgement unles we repent which wee cannot seriouslie doe except wee recover so farre as in us lyeth what is lost to the losse of any temporall thing whatsoever to the spending of the least droppe of our blood and defend what is yet reserved whole and sound with the same hazard For what is that hazard or losse in comparison of all the paines conteined in the Law and danger both of body and soule in the day of Gods fearefull judgement Let no man deceive himselfe thinking to deceave God with evasions and shifts The Searcher of all hearts knoweth what was thy meaning when thou saydest Wee call the Searcher of all hearts to witnes that our mindes and hearts doe fullie agree with this our Confession Promise Oath and Subscription And what was the meaning of the Church of Scotland with which thou protested thou would not use double dealing was too manifest both in practise preaching and the authentick Records aboue mentioned And put the case the particular heads above specified had beene a matter indifferent howbeit they were not so esteemed by our Church yet who can denie but thus farre at least was intended to eschew all occasions and provocations to tyrannie superstition and therefore the oath howbeit in a matter indifferent was lawfull and so remaineth as long as they remaine occasions and provocations to tyrannie and corruption yea as long as the forbearance of them is not proved to be a sinne For great regard should be had even to a rash oath if it be not or proue not unlawfull for the reverence wee ought to carrie to the

charges which must be bestowed upon these idle functions and superstitious Ceremonies If the Abbeyes be recovered out of Noblemens hands I perswade my selfe they will eyther bee converted to the maintenance of Deanes Canons and Prebendaries Organs Copes and other unlawfull uses or els in time bee restored to the olde Crowes to builde their nests in againe VII IF there were a time of Conformitie to bee graunted which wee will never graunt yet is this a fit time When the reformed Churches abroad are in so great hazard and some presently under the fiery tryall When the Antichrist and all his adherents hath resumed fresh courage to prosecute their bloudy designes hoping wholy to extirpate true Religion out of Europe is it time to conforme to them to take on the badges of their profession Will not this encourage the enemie and discourage our friends VIII IF the Antichristian governement before described and the many superstions bee not matters of weight but trifles which they shall never bee able to prove with sound and solid arguments why are wee persecuted for them Is it a small matter to turne a Minister out of his Office wheerein hee hath served many yeares to send him and his familie wife children to begge their Bread so farre as in them lyeth For having dedicated themselves to the service of God and spent their former time in studies they are unable to make shifts as Artizans and Tradesmen can doe Was there ever a persecutor since the dayes of Christ who with one breath did both persecute and pronounce the cause wherefore then are worse by many degrees then the Ethnicke Hereticall or Popish persecutors and consequentlie the worst that ever were Our case is yet the more to bee pitied that wee are denyed the protection of Law when wee would flie to the Sanctuarie of Iustice wee are shut backe like unworthie beasts and no more pitied then if wee were dogges left or redelivered into the hands of mercilesse Tyrants who have given testimonie out of their owne mouthes of the loyaltie and good behaviour of those whom they have persecuted IX AFter so many Quaeres and expostulations in all humilitie and reverence to the honorable the true and native estates of Parlament Nobles Barronnes and Burgesses not regarding that bastard estate of Prelates I would demaund two things First Why they suffer the high Commission a Court not established by the Statutes of the Realme thus to tyrannise over the Church over dutifull and loyall Subjects fyning confyning suspending depriving warding and directing the Lords of Secret Counsell to banish or to give out letters of horning against Ministers or other Professors for not conforming to Popish Ceremonies against their conscience The Parlament is the highest Court of the Realme and therfore should provide that no strange Court be set up to oppresse the Subjects without their approbation and consent and therefore it is not only our Quaere why it is not but our request that it may bee put downe For it is the strangest the most tyrannicall and lawlesse Court that ever came in this Land lyker to nothing then to the Spanish Inquisition whereunto it will turne in the ende to the full as Papistrie increaseth That one or two Archbishops with two or three associats Ecclesiasticall or civill persons such as they please to assume to themselves being nominat in the Kings Letters Pattents should judge in all Ecclesiasticall causes and inflict both temporall and spirituall censures and punishments according to their pleasures is contrarie and repugnant to the word of God For spirituall power nether Princes not Parlaments may giue to Ecclesiasticall or Civill persons nether are Ecclesiasticall persons capable of the power of the Temporall Sword Seeing then nether the one nor the other can be lawfully done this high Commission so much grieved at in our neighbour Church should not be suffered to have place amongst us Next I demaund in all humilitie reverence Why acts of pretended and null assemblies are ratified in Parlament and Statutes made wherewith our pretended Prelats make snares to entrap their brethren and wherewith they countenance their tyranny Was ever the generall Assemblie convocat in time of Parlament or their advice and information sought since these alterations began In England howbeit the Prelats sit in the upper House as Barrons yet they haue besides a convention of the Clergie which is called the Convocation House which representeth almost our generall Assemblie for they have no other whose advyce was never neglected no not in time of Poperie What hath our Church deserved as thus to be neglected and misregarded and the report advice consent and wote of Prelats to bee taken who are both judge and partie in this cause The Acts of that corrupt and pretended assemblie at Glasgow were not onelie ratified and confirmed but also under name of explanation enlarged and Bishops exemed from the judgement and censures of the generall assemblie Shall the like be done now for that pretended null Assemblie holden last at Perth God forbid that the honorable Estates should make so light account of their owne credits among the Reformed Churches to whom the proceedings of that pretended Assemblie are discovered and if need bee may yet bee further discovered or that their Honours should make light account of many faithfull Subjects their owne deare Countreymen who are resolved rather then to conforme to suffer temporall losses and to render their liues Howbeit some of them have defiled themselves with these corruptions will they bee avenged on their Brethren who for cōscience sake have kept themselves free Queen Elizabeth of famous memorie did at the suit of the Commons and upon a Bill preferred into the House at the Parlament holden the 14. yeare of her Raigne signifie in expresse words yet upon record that her Will and Pleasure was that no Preacher or Minister should bee impeached or indicted or otherwise molested or troubled for the Rites and Ceremonies in question as the preamble of the said Bill did purport Adding these comfortable words further Diall betwixt the olde Protestant now Formalist p. 54.55 That her Majestie as Defender of the Faith would ayde and maintaine all good Protestants to the discouragement of all Papists Wee doe expect the like not onely at the hands of honourable Barrons and Burgesses but also of our Nobles who should bee nourish Fathers to faithfull Subjects but no maintainers of proud Prelats enemies to their Estate and the estate of Church and Countrie FINIS