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A58624 The humble petition of the Commissioners of the General Assembly to the Kings Majesty their declaration sent to the Parliament of England : their letter to some brethren of the ministry there, and their commission to their brother Master Alexander Henderson, January 1643. Church of Scotland. General Assembly. Commission. 1643 (1643) Wing S1244; ESTC R15448 8,078 17

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THE HUMBLE PETITION OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF THE GENERALL ASSEMBLY TO THE KINGS MAJESTY Their Declaration sent to the Parliament of ENGLAND Their Letter to some Brethren of the Ministery there And their Commission to their Brother Master Alexander Henderson January 1643. EDINBURGH Printed by Evan Tyler Printer to the Kings most Excellent Majestie 1643. To the Kings most excellent Majesty The humble Petition of the Commissioners of the Generall Assembly of the Kirk of Scotland from their meeting at Edinburgh January 4. 1643. OUr silence and ceasing to present before Your Majesty our humble thoughts and desires at this time of common danger to Religion to Your Majesties sacred Person Your Crown and Posteritie and to all Your Majesties Dominions were impiety against God unthankfulnes and disloyalty against Your Majesty an indirect approbation and hard●● ing of the adversaries of Truth and Peace in their wicked wayes and a cruelty against our Brethren lying in such depths of affliction and anguish of spirit any one of which crimes were in us above all others most inexcusable and would prove us most unworthie of the trust committed unto us The flame of this common combustion hath almost devoured Ireland is now wasting the Kingdome of England we cannot tell how soon it shal enter upon our selves set this Your Majesties most ancient and native Kingdome on fire If in this wofull case and lamentable condition of Your Majesties Dominions all others should be silent it becometh us to speak and if our tongues and pens should cease our consciences within us would cry out and the stones in the streets would answer us Our great grief and apprehension of danger is not a little encreased partly by the insolencie and presumption of Papists and others dis-affected to the Reformation of Religion who although for their number and power they be not considerable amongst us yet through the successe of the Popish party in Ireland and the hopes they conceive of the prevailing power of Popish Armies and the Prelaticall Faction in England they have of late taken spirits and begun to speak big words against the Reformation of Religion and the Work of God in this Land and partly and more principally that a chief praise of the Protestant Religion and thereby our not vain but just gloriation is by the publick Declaration of the Earle of Newcastle Generall of Your Majesties Forces in the Northern parts and nearest unto us transferred unto Papists who although they be sworn enemies unto Kings and be as infamous for their Treasons and Conspiracies against Princes and Rulers as for their known Idolatrie and spirituall Tyrannie yet are they openly declared to be not good Subjects or better Sub●●cts but far better Subjects then Protestants which is a new and foul disparagement of the reformed Religion a notable injurie to Your Majesty in Your Honour a sensible reflection upon the whole Body of this Kingdome which is impatient that any Subjects but abhorreth and extremely disdaineth that Papists who refuse to take the Oath of Allegeance should be compared with them in allegeance and fidelitie and which as a strange doctrine from the mouth or pen of professed Protestants wil suffer an hard construction from all the Reformed Kirks We therefore Your Majesties most humble and loving Subjects upon these and the like considerations do humbly intreat That Your Majesty may be pleased in Your Princely wisedome First to consider That the intentions of Papists directed by the principles of their Profession are no other then they have been from the beginning even to build their Babel and to set up their execrable Idolatry and Antichristian Tyrannie in all Your Majesties Dominions to change the Face of Your two Kingdomes of Scotland and England into the similitude of miserable Ireland which is more bitter to the people of God Your Majesties good Subjects to think upon than death And whatsoever their present pretences be for the defence of Your Majesties Person and Authoritie yet in the end by their arms and power with a displayed banner to bring that to passe against Your Royall Person and Posterity which the fifth of November never to be forgotten was not able by their subtile and under-mining treason to produce Or which will be their greatest mercy to reduce Your Majesty and Your Kingdomes to the base and unnaturall slavery of their Monarch the Pope And next that Your Majesty upon this undeniable evidence may timously and speedily apply Your Royall Authority for dis-banding their Forces suppressing their Power and disappointing their bloudy and mercilesse projects And for this end we are with greater earnestnes than before constrained to fall down again before Your Majesty and in all humility to renew the Supplication of the late Generall Assembly and our own former Petition in their name for unity of Religion and for uniformity of Church-government in all Your Majesties Dominions And to this effect for a meeting of sound Divines to be held in England unto which according to the desire of Your Majesties Parliament some Commissioners may be sent from this Kirk that in all points to be proponed and debated there may be the greater consent and harmonie We take the boldnes to be the more instant in this our humble desire because it concerneth the Lord Jesus Christ so much in his glory your Majesty in your honor the Kirk of England which we ought to tender as our own bowels whose reformation is more dear to us than our lives in her happinesse and the Kirk of Scotland in her purity and peace Former experience and daily sense teaching us that without the Reformation of the Kirk of England there is no hope nor possibilitie of the continuance of Reformation here The Lord of Heaven and Earth whose Vicegerent Your Majesty is calleth for this great Work of Reformation at Your hands and the present commotions and troubles of Your Majesties Dominions are either preparations in the mercy of God for this blessed Reformation and unity in Religion which is the desire prayer and expectation of all Your Majesties good Subjects in this Kingdome Or which they tremble to think upon and earnestly deprecate are in the justice of God for the abuse of the Gospel the tolerating of Idolatry and Superstition against so clear a light and not acknowledging the day of visitation The beginnings of such a dolefull desolation as no policie or power of man shal be able to prevent and as shall make Your Majesties Kingdomes within a short time as miserable as now they may be happy by a Reformation of Religion God forbid that while the Houses of Parliament do professe their desire of the Reformation of Religion in a peaceable and Parliamentarie way and passe their Bills for that end in the particulars That Your Majesty the Nurse-father of the Kirk of Christ to whose care the custody and vindication of Religion doth principally belong should to the provoking of the anger of God the stopping of the influence of
so many blessings from Heaven the grieving of the hearts of all the godly frustrate our expectation make our hopes ashamed and hazard the losse of the hearts of all Your good People which next unto the truth and unity of Religion and the safety of Your Kingdomes are willing to hazard their lives and spend their bloud for Your Majesties honour end happinesse We are not ignorant that the Work is great the difficulties and impediments be many and that there be both Mountains and Lyons in the way The strongest lett till it be taken out of the way is the Mountain of Prelacie And no wonder if Your Majestic consider how many Papists and Popishly affected have for a long time found peace and ease under the shadow thereof How many of the Prelaticall Faction have thereby their life and being How many profane worldly men do fear the yoke of Christ and are unwilling to submit themselves to the obedience of the Gospel And how many there be whose eyes are dazelled with the externall pomp and glory of the Kirk whose mindes are mis-carried with a conceit of the governing the Kirk by the rules of humane Policy whose hearts are affrighted with the apprehension of the dangerous consequences which may ensue upon alterations But when Your Majestie in Your Princely and religious wisedome shall remember from the Records of former times how against the gates of hell the force fraud of worldly and wicked men and all Panick fears of danger the Christian Religion was first planted and the Christian Kirks thereafter reformed from the condition of the present times how many from the experience of the tyranny of Prelates are afraid to discover themselves lest they be revenged upon them hereafter Whereas Prelacie being removed they would openly professe what they are joyn with others in the way of Reformation All obstacles and difficulties shall be but matter of the manifestation of the power of God the principall worker and the means of the greater glory to Your Majestie the prime Instrument The intermixture of the government of Prelates with the Civill State mentioned in Your Majesties Answer to our former Petition being taken away and the right Government by Assemblies which is to be seen in all the Reformed Kirks and wherein the agreement will be easie being settled The Kirk and Religion will be more pure and free of mixture and the Civill Government more sound and firme That Government of the Kirk must sute best with the Civill State and be most usefull for Kings and Kingdomes which is best warranted by GOD by whom Kings do raigne and Kingdomes are established Nor can a Reformation be expected in the Common and ordinary way expressed also in Your Majesties Answer The wisest and most Religious Princes have found it impossible and implying a repugnancie since the persons to be reformed and the Reformers must be diverse and the way of Reformation must be different from the corrupt way by which defections of Kirk-men and corruptions in doctrine worship Government have entred into the Kirk Suffer us therefore Dread Soveraigne to renew our Petitions for this unity of Religion and uniformity of Kirk-government and for a meeting of sound Divines of both Kingdomes who may prepare matters for Your Majesties view and for the examination and approbation of more full Assemblies The Nationall Assembly of this Kirk from which we have our Commission did promise in their thanksgiving for the many favours expressed in Your Majesties Letter their best endeavours to keep the people under their charge in unity and peace and in loyalty and obedience to Your Majestie and Your Laws which we confesse is a duty well beseeming the preachers of the Gospel But we cannot conceale how much both Pastors and People are grieved and disquieted with the late reports of the successe boldnes and strength of Popish forces in Ireland and England and how much danger from the power of so malicious bloudy Enemies is apprehended to the Religion peace of this Kirk Kingdome conceived by them to be the spring whence have issued all their calamities and miseries Which we humbly remonstrate to Your Majesty as a necessity requiring a General Assembly do earnestly supplicate for the presence and assistance of Your Majesties Commissioner at the day to be appointed That by universall consent of the whole Kirk the best course may be taken for the preservation of Religion and for the averting of the great wrath which they conceive to be imminent to this Kingdome If it shall please the Lord in whose hand is the heart of the King as the rivers of waters to turn it whithersoever he will to incline Your Majesties heart to this through Reformation no more to tolerate the Masse or any part of Romish superstition or Tyrannie and to command that all good means be used for the conversion of Your Princely consort the Queens Majesty which is also the humble desire of this whole Kirk and Kingdome Your joynt comforts shall be multiplied above the dayes of Your affliction to Your incredible joy Your glory shall shine in brightnesse above all Your Royall Progenitors to the Admiration of the World and the terrour of Your Enemies And Your Kingdomes so far abound in Righteousnesse Peace and Prosperity above all that hath been in former Generations that they shall say It is good for us that we have been afflicted A. Ker Cler. Commiss Gen. Ass TO THE HONOURABLE HOUSES of the Parliament of ENGLAND The Declaration of the Commissioners of the Generall Assembly of the Kirk of SCOTLAND from their meeting at Edinburgh Jan. 4. 1643. THe weighty charge and trust put upon us by the Generall Assembly of this Kirk hath given us the boldnesse in this time of so great danger to Religion to His Majesties Person Crown and Posteritie to all His Majesties Dominions through the insolencie and prevailing power of Papists and the Prelaticall partie to represent unto His Majestie by supplication our humble thoughts and desires for a speedy remedy By disbanding all Papists out of His Army by calling an Assemblie of godly and sound Divines unto which some of the Commissioners may be sent from the Kirk of Scotland that by the blessing of GOD upon their labours the so much desired unity in Religion and Kirk-government may be brought about and settled in both Kingdomes and by the faithful using of all good means for the Conversion of the Queens Majestie to the profession and practice of the true reformed Religion which we conceive a principall part of the remedie This Kirk and Kingdome hath the sympathie and fears but the Houses of Parliament and the Kingdome of England have the sufferings and sense of these evils We are in the danger they in the distresse The miseries are imminent to us but incumbent upon them And therefore the Commissioners of the Assembly do only represent their Brotherly and Christian fellow-feeling of the present condition of