Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	king_n	law_n	majesty_n	3,064	5	5.9700	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09908	A VVelch bayte to spare prouender. Or, A looking backe vpon the times past Written dialogue wise. This booke is diuided into three parts, the first, a briefe discourse of Englands securitie, while her late Maiestie was liuing, with the maner of her proceeding in gouernment, especially towards the papists and puritanes of England, whereof a letter written late before her death, specifics, as followeth in this first part. The second, a description of the distractions during her Maiesties sickenesse with the composing of them. The third, of the aptnesse of the English and the Scotte to incorporate and become one entire monarchie: with the meanes of preseruing their vnion euerlastingly, added therevnto.	Powell, Thomas, 1572?-1635?	1603 (1603)	STC 20170; ESTC S110537	18,002	32

be such presumption in man as to impugne his owne bosome faith and all for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 bition of a Singularitie can it be that a Singularitie should be so deerely gained and farre-fetcht An. Yes and boast that wit for it to asmuch as Laco the lying trauailer does his discouery of the new found land with all the miraculous stones and plants he left behinde him there For for mine owne parte I doe belieue there is no other Atheist but of conscious ambition I come to the Morall affectation ofthose dayes which was either the oppsite of Fashion or Custome Your opposite of Fashion was either he that vsed to dedicate the affected prety and fantasticke of euery new 〈◊〉 to the iudgement of some new Mistris Or your Affectation of a neglected fashion and hauiour and this was your onely shallow malecontent of the age Now your Anticustome was one that would neuer go directly and by president where his owne wit or countenance could come by ambages and therefore me thinkes this should be he that was the first inuenter of Monopoly because the first that euer went out of custome Me thinkes this should be he that deuised your first Impropriation of Ecclesiasticall liuings Quest. Why should he not be the first Proteus of offices and occupations Answ. No doubt Sir but hee was For I can tell you I knewe him liue in the Court doe hir Maiestie the seruice of a whole man there and yet he was a parson in halfe a dozen places more at least he was a baylife in one shape and a steward in an other now an Honorable and by and by a housesweeper I meane him that had no substitute therein for sauing of the fee and to the rest I reserue Eugé Bellé But Proteus was no body to an other Anticustome in my remembrance What thinke you of the old Ubiquitarie Lycus But I perceiue you are rather chewing vppon the times fulnesse that it should come to this and notwithstanding to haue wholesome gouernment Qu. Sir I ratifie your reasons before cited for a kinde of necessitie to be acknowledged in them I onely expect to be hastened nowe you are at the height of Englands Securitie to heare the manner of dieting it from the first Ouerflowe of her Perfections fulnes while it is gathering new blood for new infection desiring you to resume at hir cleere Gouernments proceeding betweene Softnes and Singularitie Ans. With Softnes in Religion because there was no such intention in it as might attaint it finaly the mildest meanes of recouerie were thought most competible and so applied in discretion to reduce it by gentle meanes rather then giue the wholesome blood issue at incisions But into Singularitie more obseruation enquired prosecuting it in wisdom frō the first schisme to the extreamest heresie Qu. Of hit particular proceeding towards these by example of the Papists and Puritanes I pray enlarge your proposements the rather to giue satisfaction to the question had of the sinceritie and constancie of the Inquisition into them Ans. Because I hope I can not goe beyond my duty and authoritie with their satisfaction I will intertaine their doubts with the sufficient answere of a letter written to that effect late before hir Maiesties death As followeth A letter to a French Gentleman touching the proceedings in England in Ecclesasticall causes translated out of French by T. T. SIr wheras you desire to be aduertized touching the proceedings here in Ecclesiasticall causes because you note in them some inconstancie and variation as if we enclined sometimes to one side and sometimes to an other and as if that clemency and lenity were not vsed of late that was vsed in the beginning all which you imputed to your owne superficiall vnderstanding of the affaires of this state hauing notwithstanding hir Maiesties doings in singular reuerence as the reall pledges which shee hath giuen vnto the world of hir sinceritie in religion and of hir wisdome in gouernment well meriteth I am glad of the occasion to imparte the little I knowe in that matter vnto you both for your owne satisfaction and to the end you may make vse therof towards any that shall not be so modestly nor so reasonably minded as you are I finde therfore hir Maiesties proceedings to haue bin grounded vpon two principles The one That consciences are not to be forced but to be wonne and reduced by the force of Truth with the ayde of time and the vse of all good meanes of instruction and perswasion The other That causes of conscience when they exceede their boundes and grow to be matter of faction loose their nature and that soueraigne Princes ought distinctly to punish the practise in contempt though coloured with the pretence of conscience and religion According to these principles her Maiestie at her comming to the Crowne vtterly disliking of the tyranny of Rome which had vsed by terrour and rigour to seeke commaundement of mens faiths and consciences though as a prince of great wisdome magnanimitie she suffred but the exercise of one religion yet hir proceedings towards the Papists was with great lenitie expecting the good effects which time might worke in them And therfore hir Maiestie reuiued not the lawes made in the 28. and 35. of hir fathers raigne wherby the oath of Supremacie might haue bin offered at the Kings pleasure to any subiect though hee kept his conscience neuer so modestly to himselfe the Refusall to take the same oath without farther circumstances was made treason But contrariwise hir Maiestie not liking to make windowes into mens harts and secret thoughts except the aboundance of them did ouerflowe into ouerte and expresse acts or affirmations tempered hir lawe so as it restraineth only manifest disobedience in impugning and impeaching aduisedly and malitiously hir Maiesties supreame power and maintaining and extolling a forraigne iurisdiction And as for the oath It was altered by hir Maiestie into a more gratefull forme the harshnes of the name and appellation of Supreame head was remoued the penalty of the refusall therof turned onely into a disablement to take any promotion or to exercise any charge and yet that with libertie of being reuested therin if any man shall accept thereof during his life But after when Pius Quintus had excommunicated hir Maiestie and the Bull of excommunication was published in London wherby hir Maiestie was in sorte proscribed and that theruppon as vppon a principall motiue or preparatiue followed the rebellion in the North yet because the ill humors of the realme were by that rebellion partly purged and that she feared at that time no forraigne inuasion and much lesse the attempt of any within the realme not backed by some potent succoure from without she contented hirselfe to make a lawe against that speciall case of bringing in or publishing of Bulls or the like instruments whereunto was added a prohibition vppon paine not of treason but of an inferior degree of punishment against the bringing in of

the Agnus Dei halowed bread and such other merchandize of Rome as are well knowne not to be any essentiall partes of the Romane religion but onely to be vsed in practi●e as loue-tokens to inchaunt and bewitch the peoples affections from their allegeance to their naturall soueraigne In all other points hir Maiestie continued hir former lenitie But when about the twentieth yeare of hir raigne shee had discouered in the King of Spaine an intention to inuade hir dominions and that a principall point of the plotte was to prepare a partie with in the realme that might adhere to the forreiner and that the Seminaries began to blossome and to send forth dayly priests and professed men who should by vow taken at shrift reconcile her subiects from their obedience yea and binde many of them to attempt against her Maiesties sacred person and that by the poyson which they spred the humors of most Papists were altered and that they were no more Papists in conscience and of Softenes but Papists in faction then were there newe lawes made for the punishment of such as should submitte them selues to such reconcilements or renuntiations of obedience And because it was a treason carried in the clowdes and in wonderfull secrecie and came seldome to light and that there was no presumption thereof so great as the recusancie to come to diuine seruice Because it was sette downe by their decrees That To come to Church before reconcilement 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 schisme But To come to Church after 〈◊〉 was absolutely hereticall and damnable Therefore there were added Lawes containing punishment pecuniarie against such Recusants not to enforce consciences but to infeeble and impouerish the meanes of those of whom it rested indifferent and ambiguous whether they were reconciled or no. And when not withstanding all this prouision this poyson was dispersed so secretly as that there was no meanes to stay it but by restraining the Merchants that brought it in Then lastly was there added a Lawe whereby such seditious priests of the new erection were exiled and those that were at that 〈◊〉 within the land shipped ouer and so commanded to keepe hence vpon paine of treason This hath beene the proceeding though intermingled not only with sundrie examples of hir Maiesties grace towards such as in hir wisdome she knewe to be Papists in Conscience and not in Faction and Sigularitie but also with an ordinarie mitigation towards the offenders in the highest degree conuicted by lawe If they would but protest that if in case this realme should be inuaded with a forreine armie by the Popes authoritie for the Catholique cause as they terme it they would take part with hir Maiestie and not adhere to hir enemies For the other part which haue bin offensiue to the State though in other degree which name themselues Reformers and we commonly call Puritanes this hath bin the proceeding towards them A great while when they inueighed against such abuses in the Church as Pluralities Nonresidence the like their zeale was not condemned only their violence was somtimes censured When they refused the vse of some ceremonies and rites as superstitious they were tollerated with much con●iuence and gentlenes Yea when they called in question the Superioritie of Bishops and pretended to bring a Democracie into the church Yet their Propositions were heard considered and by contrarie writing debated and discussed Yet all this while it was perceiued that their course was dangerous and very popular as because Papistrie was odious therefore it was euer in their mouthes that they sought to purge the Church from the reliques of Papistrie a thing acceptable to the people who loue euer to run from one extreame to an other Because multitude of Rogues and Pouertie were an eye-soare and dislike to euerie man therefore they put it into the peoples head That if Discipline were planted there should be no vagabonds nor beggers a thing very plausible and in like manner they promised the people many other impossible wonders of their Discipline Besides they opened the people a way to gouernment by their Consistorie and Praesbyterie a thing though in consequēce no lesse praeiudiciall to the liberties of priuate men then to the soueraignty of Princes yet in first shew very popular Neuerthelesse all this except it were in some few that entered into extreame contempts was borne because they pretended but in dutifull maner to make propositions and to leaue it to the prouidence of God and the authoritie of the Magistrate But now of late yeares when there issued from them as it were a Colonie of those that affirmed the consent of the Magistrate was not to be attended when vnder pretence of a confession to auoide slaunders and imputations they combined themselues by classes and subscriptions when they descended into that vile base meanes of defacing the gouernment of the Church by rediculous Pasqu●ls When they beganne to make many subiects in doubt to take an oath which is one of the fundamentall parts of Iustice in this Land and in all places When they beganne both to vaunt of the strength and number of their partizans and followers and to vse communications that their cause would preuaile though with vproare and violence Then it appeared to be no more zeale no more conscience but meere faction and diuision And therefore though the State was compelled to hold somewhat a harder hand to restraine them then before yet it was with as great moderation as the peace of the Church and State could permitte And therefore Sir to conclude consider vprightly of these matters and you shall see her Maiestie is no temporizer in religion she buildes not religion vpon policie but policie vpon religion It is not the successe abroade nor the change of seruants here at home can alter her onely as the things themselues alter so she applieth hir religious wisdome to correspond vnto them still retaining the two rules before mentioned in dealing tenderly with consciences yet in discouering Faction from Conscience Softnes from Singularitie Farewell Your louing friend T. P. THe other kinde of Softnesse in mortall behauiour because it had no such eagernesse in it as might it time vnquallifie the generall temperament was measured aduisedly by his owne length and breadth It had ceremony of an implicite law and custome of a modest liberty Singularity in Artes because it needed no other penance but the world to haue knowledge of it to be the signe of a too soone mellowed wit to be as soone rotten was therefore limed with no other circumuention Ambition in Artes such as tended to induce the heresie of religion suffered vnder the same letter of the law with it it was onely the modesty of the law-giuer not to prohibite that which her charitie denied her to suspect as an ambition so infinite and beyond extreames as is Atheisme which in the most presumption broake but out in positions of Philosophie and that for disputations cause or so Your Singularity of Fashion was