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	england_n	people_n	2,804	4	4.5265	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A66389	A declaration of the sense of the archbishops and bishops, now in and about London, upon the occasion of their attendances in Parliament concerning the irregular and scandalous proceedings of certain clergy-men at the execution of Sir John Freind [sic] and Sir William Parkins.	Williams, John, 1636?-1709.	1696 (1696)	Wing W2699; ESTC R3132	2,589	17

A DECLARATION OF THE SENSE OF THE Archbishops and Bishops now in and about London upon the Occasion of their Attendance in PARLIAMENT Concerning the Irregular and Scandalous Proceedings of certain Clergy-Men at the Execution of Sir JOHN FREIND and Sir WILLIAM PARKINS Printed for John Everingham at the Star in Ludgate-street 1696. A DECLARATION OF THE SENSE OF THE Archbishops and Bishops c. A DECLARATION OF THE Sense of the Archbishops and Bishops Now in and about London upon the Occasion of their Attendance in Parliament Concerning the Irregular and Scandalous Proceedings of certain Clergie-men at the Execution of Sir JOHN FREIND and Sir WILLIAM PARKINS WE the Archbishops and Bishops now in and about London upon occasion of our Attendance in Parliament having seen a Printed Paper Entituled A true Copy of the Papers delivered by Sir John Freind and Sir William Parkins to the Sheriffs of London and Middlesex at Tyburn the place of Execution April 3. 1696. And being also certainly informed of the most irregular behaviour of Mr. Cook Mr. Collier and Mr. Snatt in pretending to Absolve the said Criminals at their Execution to the great scandal of the Church and of our holy Religion have therefore thought our selves obliged to Declare our Sense of the same as here followeth 1. As to the Paper before mentioned we cannot but observe that in that part to which Sir John Freind is Entituled among many other things there delivered as his private Opinion for which we must leave him to God there are mingled some things concerning the Church of England to the great dishonour and reproach of it That venerable Name is by the Author of that Paper appropriated to that part of our Church which hath separated it self from the Body and more particularly to a Faction of them who are so furiously bent upon the restoring of the late King that they seem not to regard by what means it is to be effected We have a sad instance of it in this very Person who as was deposed at his Tryal was privy to the horrid Design of Assassination and yet neither discovered it nor shewed any dislike of it but as he was afraid it might ruine King James and his Affairs and was ready also together with others of the same Christian Principle as the Author of his Paper is bold to call it to Act in Conjunction with an Army of French Papists for the Ruine of their Country and the Extirpation of that Religion which they themselves do profess 2. As for Sir William Parkins who also professed to dy in the Communion of the Church of England We cannot think he meant any thing elseby it than that he adhered to the same violent Faction being assured as we are by very good Information that both he and Sir John Freind had withdrawn themselves from our Publick Assemblies some time before their death Which makes us the less wonder to find in both their Papers so light and even favourable a mention of that most Inhumane Design of Assassinating his Sacred Majesty and especially in that of Sir William Parkins who though he was publickly convicted of his having engaged so many in that horrible Sin yet after all could think to clear himself of it with this wretched excuse 'T is true I was privy to the Design upon the Prince but was not to Act in it Blessed be God there never was any of our Church that in any change of times could have this laid to his charge that he was so much as privy to a Design of Assassination Lastly For those Clergymen that took upon them to absolve these Criminals at the place of Execution by laying all three together their hands upon their heads and publickly pronouncing a Form of Absolution as their manner of doing this was extremely insolent and without Precedent either in our Church or any other that we know of so the thing it self was altogether irregular The Rubrick in our Office of the Visitation of the sick from whence they took the words they then used and upon which if upon any thing in our Liturgy they must ground this their proceeding gave them no Authority nor no Pretence for the absolving these Persons nay as they managed the affair they acted in this Absolution far otherwise than is there directed That Rubrick is concerning sick Persons and it is there required First That the sick person shall be moved to make a special confession of his Sins if he feel his conscience troubled with any weighty matter and then after such confession the Priest shall absolve him if he humbly and heartily desire it But here they absolved and that publickly Persons condemned by Law for Execrable Crimes without so much as once moving them at that time to make a special confession of their sins at least for those Sins for which they were condemned And on the other side here were persons Absolved that did not humbly desire Absolution as feeling any such weighty Matter to trouble their Conscience but on the contrary in Sir John Freind 's Paper it is declared that he had a great deal of satisfaction in suffering for that cause which he firmly believed to be the Cause of God and True Religion If these Ministers knew not the State of these Mens Souls before they gave them Absolution as it is manifest two of them Mr. Snatt and Mr. Cook did not as to Sir William Parkins they having since declared that they had not spoke with Sir William till they were at the place of Execution how could they without manifest Transgression of the Churches Order as well as the prophane abuse of the Power Christ hath left with his Ministers absolve them from all their Sins If they were acquainted with these Mens Sentiments declared in their Papers then they must look upon them either as hardened Impenitents or as Martyrs We are so charitable to believe that they would not absolve them under the former Notion for that had been in effect sealing them to Damnation But if they held these men to be Martyrs then their absolving them in that manner was a Justification of those grievous Crimes for which these men suffered and an open affront to the Laws both of Church and State Upon the Consideration of these Things and for the doing of Right to our Church which may otherwise suffer among such as are strangers to our Constitution by the evil Principles and Practices both of the aforesaid Criminals and the Three Clergy-men that assisted them who all pretended to be Members of the Church of England We do declare That we disown and detest all such Principles and Practices looking upon them as highly Schismatical and Seditious dangerous both to the Church and State and contrary to the True Doctrine and Spirit of the Christian Religion And we also take this occasion to warn and exhort all the People committed to our Charge to beware of such Seducers and to avoid them lest as the Apostle St. Peter speaks they be led away with the error of the Wicked and fall from their stedfast Adherence to the Principles of the True Church of England as it was established at the blessed Reformation of Religion and as by Gods especial Providence it continues to this day April 10th 1696. Tho. Cantuar. Jo. Ebor. H. London N. Duresme P. Winchester W. Cov. and Lich. Tho. Roffen Sy. Eliens Gil. Hereford Jo. Norwich Ric. Peterb Ed. Gloucester Rob. Chichester E. Asaph FINIS * Tryal p. 17.