Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	civil_a	magistrate_n	matter_n	3,433	5	6.0251	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B05065	A true representation of Presbyterian government, wherein a short and clear account is given of the principles of them that owne it. The common objections against it answered, and some other things opened that concern it in the present circumstances. / By a friend to that interest.	Rule, Gilbert, 1629?-1701.	1690 (1690)	Wing R2229A; ESTC R182954	15,429	16

be governed But he hath committed it to the Church Guides Ministers and Ruling Elders for to them are all the Directions about it given in the Word not to the Magistrats they are to given an account of it Heb. 13.17 They did manage it for diverse hundreds of years when there was no Magistrat that did owne or countenance Christianity And there is no hint in Scripture nor Principle of reason that can evince that this Power should devolve into the hands of the Magistrat when he should become Christian neither are any Directions given to the Magistrat how he should administer any of the Ordinances of Christ 10ly Yet we owne the Civil Magistrat as Nursing Father of the Church and Custos utriusque tabulae legis Upon which account he is not only to provide 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for the Church and to procure her Peace and Unity by all good means as repressing of Heresie Schism and other Disorders wherein he is to use a judgment of Discretion and not blindly to execute the Sentence of the Church but also may require all the Officers and Members of the Church to do what is their Duty And that he may when the Case requireth convocat Synods and Indict times of Fasting and Thanksgiving Though for these we assert and intrinsick Power in the Church to which that of the Magistrat is not privative but cumulative For we maintain a twofold Kingdom of Christ one as God over all men in which the Magistrat is his Vicegerent another as Mediator over the Church as such in which he hath Deputed no Magistratical but only Ministerial Power We hold also that the Persons and Actions of Church-men are subject to the Civil Magistrat and that they may be punish'd when they transgress the Laws 11ly This Ministerial governing Power in the Church the Lord hath not committed to all the Members nor to all the Males thereof But hath made a manifest distinction between Rulers and Ruled in the Scriptures mentioned already 12ly The Lord hath equally intrusted all his Servants the Ministers not only with the power of dispensing the Word and Sacraments but also with the power of Governing the Church Which by his appointment and according to the practice of the first and best Ages of the Churches ought to be and was done in common by Ministers acting in Parity and not by a single Prelat set over the rest This is acknowledge by most and the most eminent of our Prelatick Brethren And must be so by all of them who do not plead for a Divine Right of Episcopacie Besides that neither Names Directions or Reproofs given to Church-Guides in Scripture do import any such imparity of Power nor is there any footstep of the exercise of it in Scripture to infer this disparity of Power from that of the Apostles is most inconsequential They being Universal Extraodinary Unfixed and Temporary Officers whom the Lord immediatly called and abrogated their Office with their Death in that he neither called others to succeed in that Power nor gave any hint that it should be done by the Church It is as if one should say the Church was once governed Monarchically by a visible Head viz. while Christ was on earth ergo It should be so still Which no Protestant will averr The Argument in Timothie and Titus is of the same Kidney they being extraordinary and unfixed Officers and so no precedent for after times Neither can any Argument be drawn from the Angels of the Churches words not being often used properly in that mystical Book and we know that Thologia Symbolica non est Argumentativa Besides that the Angel of Thyatira was certainly a Community being spoken to in the Plural Number Rev. 2.24 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 13 There being no disparity of power amongst Ministers by Christ's grant of power to them No man can make this Disparity by setting One over the Rest Neither can they devolve their power on One of themselves For Christ hath given no such warrant to Men to dispose of His Ordinance as they see fit And power being delegated to them by him they cannot so commit it to another to exercise it for them as to deprive themselves of it Also it being not a License only but a Trust of which they must give an account they must perform the work by themselves as they will be answerable But we must contract not being now disputing but asserting what we shall be ready to defend as occasion shall be offered 14 We assert Presbyterial Government to be so of Divine Right as We can make no composition with men about it though none shall be more condescending to them that are otherwise minded in what is consistant with Truth and necessary Duty than we Yet it is not alike so in all the parts of it For some parts of it are of Christ's institution as the officers of the Church the Laws and Censures of it And others of the Dictats of natural Reason which is also a Beam of Divine Light as that there be a Government and meeting for managing of it that one preside in them that lesser and greater parts of the Church had their meetings as Congregational Classical Provincial and National Assemblies for Government that there be a subordination and appeals amongst these To require positive assertions of Scripture warranting every one of these though there want not Scripture examples and other hints to countenance severals of them is as unreasonable as if we should be called to bring a Text to prove that we should come in to the publick assemblies cloathed and not naked In an usual and not in an antiquat Garb. 15 Whether the Moderator or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of ruling Church meetings should continue for one or more Diets or for how long a time is not determined by any institution of Christ nor by any general dictate of natural Light Yet we judge a constant Moderator highly inconvenient and by all means to be shunned For if he be imposed on the meeting it is an encroachment on their intrinsick power of governing themselves in such things as are peculiar to them And though chosen by themselves fatal and constant examples together with the inclinations of men to usurpation do shew it to have so violent tendency to Lordly Prelacy as rarely doeth it fail of the bad effects nor can be expected not to Issue in it We maintain that no Church Judicature ought to cognosce of Affairs of State nor of Mens civil Rights or Interests except their advice should be sought by the Magistrat concerning Sin or Duty in any such matter As if the thing be manifestly Scandalous and evidently dangerous to the interest of Religion and the Souls of Men. Neither do they inflict any punishment save Spiritual Censures Their work is to enquire into and declare controverted Truths to censure Scandalous Sinners to try and ordain Ministers to absolve the penitent by applying the comforts of the Gospel to them

and such like Wherefore there is no Ground of Fear that they should Clash or Cope with Magistrat unless they go beyond their line in which case they fall under the Magistrats coercive power 16 The way how men come into any office or power in the Church is by Election of the people which designeth the Person in which Election as in other things they are to be under the Conduct and Regulation of the Church Guides and ordination by laying on of the hands of the Presbytery which is the mean of communicating authority to him and the former of these ought to preceed the latter For we find no warrand for a Ministerium Vagum in the Church seeing even in times of great trouble and Persecution we read of none ordained by the Apostles but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with the suffrages of the People 17 Though superintendency that is a power of inspection delegated from the Church to one used in case of necessity when a qualified Minister could hardly be had in a Province he might for a time be appointed to oversee them who could do little more than read the word publickly that is no warrant for bringing qualified Ministers under that subjection in a constituted Church where there are through the mercy of God competent number of Ministers If our Principles be rightly understood we confidently hope they will suggest grounds of answer for most of the objections made against us to the minds of the intelligent and unbyassed Yet we shall endeavour to afford some farther light this way also 1. It is objected or rather we are reproached with by some that Presbyterial Church Government is inconsistant with Civil Government Answ 1. A simple denial is enough to stop the mouth of such bold Asserters Neither hath the World yet seen any topick except Calumnies whereby this could be pretended to be proved 2. Experience proveth the contrary Civil Government is advantageously mannaged in several of the most eminent of the reformed Churches with that discipline of Christ's House that we plead for And our own land is a confounding instance that might stop the mouth of impudence it self wherein Presbytery commenced with the Reformation from Pupery and continued with much Peace till ambitious Men by labouring to unsettle it did disturb and at last overturn the State 3. We have already shewed how we give to Caesar that which is Caesars and to God that which is Gods neither can our Adversarie make any Power appear to be due to the Magistrat but what we allow Him Indeed Erastians do require for the Magistrat some Power that the Presbyterians cannot approve of But this is not peculiar to us but common to all that assert a Government in the Church distinct from that of the State Which is the principle of Papists Prelatists that are only such and Independents as well as it is ours 4. Our obedience to Magistrats in all their Lawful commands and our peaceful sufferings of unjust violence are notour to all that can behold us with an unprejudiced Eye And if instances can be given to the contrary the disloyalty of some is not to be imputed to all for what party of men hath not afforded such instances and where the peace was broken by Men of our way which were but a few it was the fruit of such insupportable Severities and Hardships as even they could not have born who blame others for that practise As late Instances do make manifest 2. It is next objected that Presbytery and Monarchy are inconsistant No Bishop no King at least it is not so adapted to Monarchy as Prelacy is and the Government of the Church should be so moulded as it may best sute that of the State Answ 1. The falshood of the Assertion and Maxim is evident from what hath been said Presbytery and Monarchy have well consisted in our own Land and in France 2 None maintain more loyal Principles towards Kings than Presbyterians do who think themselves oblidged to fear God and Honour the King and were alwayes ready to obey him in the Lord. 'T is true they cannot give him Unlimited Obedience But this is not as they are Presbyterians but as they are men of Conscience and will obey God rather than Man which I hope the Objecters will not say is peculiar to Presbyterians If they do and plead for the publick Conscience as some of them have done to the laying aside the use of particular Consciences in the actions that are moral which is to introduce practical Atheism They do not hurt our cause but their own 3. Our practice hath also been Loyal in abhorring the Murder of King Charles the first and in contributing the most effectual endeavours to restore His Son And in owning and submitting to a King of a contrary Religion so long as our Religion and Liberties were in any tolerable safety or the Laws that were the measure of our obedience were any way regarded and what was then done was not by us alone 4. It is boldly alledged but not proved that the Church Government should be fram'd according to that of the State for that may be various but this is one And was so under the old Testament though the Civil Government varied 3 'T is said that Presbyterians encroach on the Authority of the Magistrat by medling with state Affairs Answ 1 Our Principle in this is already declared And whatever instances of former times this allegation may seem to be built on had their rise from Statesmen taking the advice of Church-men in their Assemblies who sometimes gave advice contrary to the inclination of the leading Men of the State And if their Zeal for a good Interest led them at any time to press their advice with Reasons and Threatnings from the Word of God And if some excess did happen this way the blame lay on them who gave the first rise to it Besides this when the actings of Rulers have a manifest and direct tendency to lead People into sinful Courses such as imposing of unlawful Oaths and engaging People in a false Religion who could be silent without unfaithfulness to God and cruelty both to the Souls of Rulers and People Another answer may be by retorting this Argument on the prelatick Clergy Do not Bishops sit in the Councils and interpose directly and formally in affairs of State which Presbyterians never pretended to 4 The rigidity of Presbyterians is objected Answ 1 Can any man have the brow to compare the rigidity of Presbyterians with that of either Bapists or Prelatists either in bearing with no dissent from their way even in the least matters and which themselves count indifferent or in the Bloody and cruel way of Persecuting such as dissent by Massacres Inquisitions horrid Tortures Imprisonment Fining and strange Severities Is there any thing that can be alledg'd against Presbyterians that can be once compared with the Persecutions that many in the west of Scotland and elsewhere have