Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A63838
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A character of Charles the Second written by an impartial hand, and exposed to publick view for information of the people.
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Tuke, Samuel, Sir, d. 1674.
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1660
(1660)
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Wing T3232; ESTC R203811
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8,944
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7
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for to us the Tree is only known by the fruits neither will I extend my self upon the discourse of his Humility Meeknesse Charity and other divine Graces since these produce the same effects though more rais'd because they are deriv'd from a higher Cause for Christian Religion is onely Reason sublim'd which I have already treated under other names and they are fitter for the Pens of those who have entrance into the Sanctuary then for a secular Person therefore I shall only insist upon His MAJESTIES Firmness to his Religion as the most conducing to our purpose And in this particular he hath given such signal testimonies to the world that I wonder at the folly as well as the malice of his Enemies that have planted their Batteries against this point but it is a Maxime deriv'd from the Father of Lyes To calumniate boldly that something may remain and the People are so susceptible of tales that it is hard to invent a Fable which is above their Faith His MAJESTY having passed ten years of his exile in the territories of Catholick Princes in France Germany and Flanders it cannot be doubted that he hath been frequently importuned to change his Religion either by those who out of a firm perswasion of the verity of their own belief have thought it a charity to make him a Convert or those who from the presumption of their great abilities in Controversie have had the ambition to adde so illustrious a person to the number of their Proselytes or those Politicians who despairing of his re-establishment unlesse by the assistance of Catholick Princes have urged his conversion to the Roman Faith as the best means to take the benevolence of his Allyes but they have all encountred such an immovable firmnesse in his MAJESTY to the Principles of his Religion that they have retir'd from the assault with no other effects then the satisfaction of having discharged their Consciences by their officious Counsels Amongst many other Champions of the Roman Church His MAJESTY was frequently attacqued whilst he remained in France by Monsieur de la Melitiere a man of an excellent spirit who had been formerly a Calvinist and by Monsieur Salmonet originally a Scotch-man and favourite to the Cardinal de Retz who have since printed and published the Arguments of their conference and there is hardly any Roman Catholick of note for Piety or Learning in any part of the World where his MAJESTY hath been that hath not joyn'd his Forces to combate him for his Religion And shall he that hath pass'd so succesfully through a ten years War in the defence of his Faith be rob'd of his Triumph and of his Highest Title by the tongue or pen of a perjur'd Villain We must then conclude that Justice is fled to Heaven and hath left us nothing here but her Ballance in which these wretched men do weigh their worldly Interests against all the moral and divine Vertues but Truth will be justified of her Children and His MAJESTIES perseverance in his Religion will be dear to the truly pious People of this Nation when the faces of these slanderers shall grow black with confusion But his MAJESTIES Fervour for his own way of Worship does not invade his Charity to dissenting Christians He is convinced by his Experience as well as by his Reason That Consciences are not to be forc'd and that men may reasonably suspect the truth of that Religion which useth the Sword for her Argument since it is as much against Reason as Charity to persecute those who may be in the right or if not shall by this means be kept longer in the wrong And therefore those tender Consciences who worship God in the sincerity of their spirits and do not diffent from their Brethren to advance their humane Interests ought to joyn in their Prayers to Almighty God with the rest of the People â—o place this Religious Virtuous King in Peace upon the Throne of his Ancestors And if the Illustrious Birth of His Sacred MAJESTY His Just Title to dominion over us warranted by the Laws of these Kingdoms and marvelously asserted by the Providence of God and who besides his Acquir'd Perfections is possest of Wisdome Justice Fortitude Courage Clemency Faithfulness Industry Temperance and Steddinesse in his Religion If these Eminent Qualities may derive happinesse to His People Then it is in our power to be happy and He is bold to pronounce this to his fellow-Fellow-Subjects Who is so far from betraying his Countrey for his Prince that he would not betray a Private Person either for his Prince or Countrey FINIS â—â—at unhappy â—â—etch Manâ—â—ng when he â—â—as a Prisoner â—â—Colen conâ—â—ed that his â—â—lary from the â—â—otector was â—â—00 L a Month.
his People he endeavours that we should reconcile and embrace like Brethren and concludes That the best means to restore the crazie Body of the Kingdom to its former health and vigour is not to cure one part by afflicting of the other but to heal those wounds which are already festred by their proper lenitives and to remove as much as lies in his power all the causes of future Animosities and this to the best of my remembrance is the substance of a discourse which I have lately heard from his MAJESTIES own Mouth upon this Subject But His MAJESTIES Natural Clemency may possibly want the desirable Effects towards penitent Offenders if he be not possest of a Religious fidelity of performing his Promise and a Constancy of Resolution If at least the ill advis'd Passion of the parties that have suffered should ever incline them to importune him for their revenge under the Stile of Justice To this I reply That Perfidiousnesse and Irresolution are so directly opposite to those Qualities which I have already enumerated in his MAJESTIES CHARACTER that they are altogether inconsistent and if he should have the least inclination to Hypocrisie that which I have hitherto said of him cannot be true but he knows very well that the Reputation of Faithfulnesse is one of the chiefest Pillars of Regal Power and that even his Friends may reasonably suspect the performance of his Promises to them if he breaks his Faith to his Enemies But to be more particular I have often heard his MAJESTY declaime against the perfidious practices which he had observ'd in the Negotiations of some Publick Ministers abroad and Men do not use to declare an open War against those Vices to which themselves are obnoxious and I could name some Persons whom he is pleas'd to honour with a particular esteeme that have no other conspicuous Virtue besides their impregnable Honesty for there is nothing in Nature more productive of friendship then some resemblance in manners But the narrownesse of his Fortune not suffering him to supply some empty men as profusely as they had promis'd themselves they have branded His MAJESTY with Ingratitude and Unfaithfulnesse Sinnes which he abhors both from his Nature and Judgement A Man that is onely Innocent and not actively Vertuous is so neare to imperfection and weakness that it is hard to distinguish their confines and if it be granted that His MAJESTY does possess these Illustrious Qualities yet if he wants the Nature to produce them by Practise they may serve his Flatterers for Panegyricks but they will be of little benefit to his People therefore it is necessary to evince his Industry to confirm the Character of an accomplish'd Prince There was for a long time so dead a Calm in his businesse his Enemies being so strong at home and his Friends so engaged abroad that he could not make one notorious prudent step towards his recovery which his cautelous Enemies have represented to the undiscerning people under the reproach of Laziness But the best of it is he hath had an Army of his own Subjects for the Witnesses as well of his Industry as Courage And if these uningenuous censurers had been of his Train the last Year when his Majesty rid Post above two hundred Leagues through France and part of Spain in the heat of Summer I perswade my self they would have confessed their own weariness though possibly they had denied his Diligence And he spares his Mind as little as his Body for besides his conversation with Books he consults and instructs all men that address to him in his business and amongst his Correspondents which are not few it may be there will scarce be found One to whom he owes a Letter Amongst the Moral Vertues there are some which have not such glorious Names as these which I have already mentioned but I think they are very considerable because they are more diffus'd into the ordinary Actions of our lives In this number I reckon Temperance in Speech wherein his Majesty so excels that I have often thought of it with admiration for though I have sometimes seen him very justly angry yet the hardest expression that I have ever heard him use to a Gentleman was once and but once when he told one of his domesticks That he was an Insolent fellow And though the Authour of A late Letter from a neare Attendant on his Majesty dated from Brussels and written at London may possibly be displeased with this contradiction yet out of my respect to Truth I am bold to affirm That to the best of my remembrance I never heard his Majesty swear an Oath in my life But it is well known out of what Quiver these poysoned Arrowes come which being shot against the impenetrable Buckler of his innocency will rebound upon the faces of those wicked men that did first level them To this may be joyn'd his Sobriety in Diet in which he seldome makes the least excess though he stands not in awe of his Constitution for he is of so healthful a Temperament that I have not known him above thrice sick these eighteens Years But he so Naturally hates Debauchery that his severity to this vice hath cured some habitual drunkards who have chosen rather to part with their beloved sins then with his Majesties Favour Though I can neither impugne nor defend the constant austerity of his Majesties Life since it is possible that in the heats of his Youth he may have rendred to the powerful charms of Beauty yet I am certain that for many yeares he hath been so Chast and Cautious that I have not heard the leaft whisper of any indecent Gallantry And yet his impudent Enemies have not only reproached him with habitual Incontinence and farc'd their slanders with false and frivolous tales knowing that Fame like water bears up light things and swallows the heavy but they have suborned their Mercenary Prophets to denounce Gods Judgements against him for these supposed Frailties and to infer with as ill Morality as Logick That his Majesty is unfit for Government because that in his Youth he may not have been stronger then Samson wiser then Solomon or more holy then David But whosoever will impartially consider his just Character and compare him either with the Ancient or modern Princes of the World will hardly finde a precedent where so many shining qualities are assembled or so little shadowed with any inclinations to vice and if solid Vertue and Abilities for Government were a just title to Dominion the British Ocean would not be the confines of his Empire These Excellent Qualities are the products of a happy Nature or a generous Education but as the soul informs the body so it is Religion which animates the Character of Christian Princes and crowns their moral perfections and therefore as the most eminent I have reserv'd that to finish this Piece For his interiour Piety I leave it to the Searcher of thoughts in whose hands are the hearts of Kings