Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A51005
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A divine and moral essay on the Christian pilgrim's conduct with some glances on that of the secular / by John Macqueen ...
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Mackqueen, John, d. 1734.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing M225; ESTC R22482
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53,913
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158
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If they had renounced the Articles of the Church of England submited their Consciences to the Pope and the sacred Scriptures to the Canons of the Council of Trent they might have avoided the cruelty of their Persecutors But they loved neither their Lives Rev. 12 11. nor Honours to the Death but chose to forgoe these rather than the Faith and God would have it so that he might not want the Glory of such Christian Magnaminity nor the Truth of the Protestant Religion the honour of the Triumph of such resolute Warriors That the Church might not miss the Boast of such renowned Generals nor the Age then the Influential Encouragment of such affecting Examples or the succeeding the reviving Energy of such excellent Precedents to invigorate their Faith quicken the Courage and fortifie the Hope of other Strangers and Pilgrims Truly if we weigh without prejudice and partiality this same Instance we must needs Conclude they were no Friends to Popery who upon account of their Religion felt so much of its Severity nor can the publick Service of this Church be constructed a favourer of Romish Devotion when it must be thrust out to make way for its Superstitious Worship But Secondly there is another thing I would have you consider And it is this that next in the late unhappy Times of prosperous Rebellion when the Liturgy of this Church was laid aside and the Episcopal Government demolish'd then Anarchy invaded the State and Confusion the Church Tyranny and Usurpation possessed the Throne Heresie and Blasphemy the Pulpit Popery made more considerable Advances in that Interval than in many Years before when the decent Worship and orderly Discipline of this Church kept footing It is well enough known there were many Roman Catholicks in the Parliament Army as the Royal Martyr in his printed Papers declared And Mr. Monteith who from being a Protestant Minister turn'd to be a Romish Priest whose History of the Troubles of Britain he publish'd in French and I saw at Nantes confesses there were many Priests slain at Edgehill which considering he was a New Proselyte he durst never have averr'd to occasion so much Reproach and Scandal to a Profession he had but recently Embraced if Truth had not forced him thereto And let it be remembred that the Enemies of the Liturgy and Government then and those of them now Surviving whose Faces are not steel'd with Impudence or whose Hearts are not hardned with Impenitence seek to remove from themselves the Odium of the Kings execrable Marther by charging the multitude of Jesuites and Popishly affected in the Army therewith If those of this Perswasion shuffled themselves into the Army by parroting the Cant of the Age against the Liturgy and Government If they had the Power and Cunning to wheedle others into their Net and make them Tools and Instruments in carrying on the War or execution of the King Did not the Dissenters then bring their pretences and Designs against Popery to a fair Issue when instead of Extirpating or Staving it off it increased with our Divisions swarm'd in our Armies and spread through all the Corners of the Land Now if we find to our woful Cost and sad Expences that upon the Ruin of the Church formerly there followed an Inundation of Errour and Heresie to corrupt the Doctrine of Immorality and Prophaness to destroy the Power and Practice of Religion That the Monarchy as well as the Hierarchy was overturn'd that Faction in the State as well as Schism in the Church Oppression in the City and Country came in on the Dissolution of the Government and removal of the Liturgy Can we look for other Effects from the same fatal Occasions or I may say dismal Causes if renewed or set on Foot again Indeed to expect better Fruit from the same Tree rooted in the same luxuriant Soil under the same malignant Influences and care of the same cunning Dressers I should rather have said cruel Hacksters is to look for Grapâ—s from Thorns Mat. 7.16 or Figgs from Thistles But there are many in the Kingdom whose gray Hairs and snowy Heads are Crowns of glory to them for espousing the Interest of the King and Church and bear these marks of Honour and proofs of Valour in their Scars and Wounds which may supersede any more Enlargment on this subject These are living Witnesses and blessed be God there are many such Surviving in the Nations of the Havock Religion and Property Laws and Liberty sustain'd when Episcopacy was abrogated and the Liturgy abandon'd These still retain the Sense of Honour and Conscience of Duty which acted them formerly to adhere with undaunted Hearts and valiant Hands to the Crown and Mitre against the Torrent of triumphant Treachery the same princples afford them now joyful reflections on their past Calamities and are ready upon occasions to Animate a-fresh their chill Blood to swell their old shrivel'd Veins with new Life and Vigour to give a timous check to the rash Attempts of those petulant young Sparks who may be deluded with the novelty of an unexperienced project into a Disvalue if not a Dislike of the present Settlement But if these Instances be stale and old and so less impressive on the volatile Spirits of the present Age permit me in the Third place to come a little nearer and tell you what is within your own Kenning Pray you who so resolutely stood in the Gap so early scented or earnestly opposed the Designs and Contrivances of a Popish Party who lately flattered themselves with great expectations but the Venerable Prelates of this Church If in former Ages some of the preceeding Bishops were Martyrs for the Protestant Religion were not these in our Time to our own view Confessours for the same If the former were dragged to Stakes these were haled to Prison who maintain'd the Protestant Doctrine with such Christian 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in publick Harrangues who asserted it in Print with such degrees of Zeal and Learning who press'd it more convincingly in private accidental Conferences or appointed Meetings and upon extraordinary Occasions where were there Combatants to be singled out to defend the Truth and overthrow the arguments of its Enemies with such ponderous Reasons and nervous Eloquence like the Orthodox Regular Clergy of this Church Let me then intreat all who vouchsafe to read this Essay that they suffer not themselves to be imposed upon by the cunning artifice of these Hucksters of Souls and Factors for Schism who asperse the best Reformed Church in the World with favouring Rome which her Doctrine Condemns her Worship abhors and her practice Remonstrates against Why should People any more shut their Eyes against the Light or stop their Ears against the Truth These I have written are plain matters of Fact without any slight or guise and if you consider them without Pride Passion or Partiality I dare say you 'l easily be convinced the antient Ecclesiastick Government of this National Church has been and