fhall find fufficient caufe to induce them thereunto, that it may be in due time punished and reformed. Provided, That for these voluntary prefentments there be no fee required or taken of them, under the pain aforefaid.

rast

117. Church-wardens not to be troubled for not prefenting oftener than twice a Year.

TO Church-wardens, Queft-men, or Side-men, fhall be called or cited, but only at the said time or times before limited, to appear before any Ecclefiaftical Judge whofoever, for refufing at other times to present any faults, committed in their parishes, and punishable by Ecclefiaftical Laws. Neither fhall they, nor any of them, after their prefentments exhibited at any of thofe times, be any further troubled for the fame, except upon manifeft and evident proof it may appear, that they did then willingly and wittingly omit to present fome fuch public crime or crimes as they knew to be committed, or could not be ignorant that there was then a public fame of them; or unless there be very juft caufe to call them for the explanation of their former prefentments. In which cafe of wilful omiffion, their Ordinaries fhall proceed against them in fuch fort, as in caufes of wilful perjury in a Court Ecclefiaftical it is already by law provided.

118. The old Church-wardens to make their Prefentments before the new be fworn.

THE

HE office of all Church-wardens and Side-men shall be reputed ever hereafter to continue until the new Church-wardens that shall fucceed them be fworn, which fhall be the first week after Eafter, or fome week following, according to the direction of the Ordinary. Which time fo appointed fhall always be one of the two times in every year, when the Minifter, and Church-wardens, and Side-men of every parish fhall exhibit to their several Ordinaries the prefentments of fuch enormities as have happened in their parifhes fince their last presentments. And this duty they fhall perform, before the newly chofen Church-wardens and Side-men be fworn, and fhall not be fuffered to pass over the faid presentments to those that are newly come into office, and are by intendment ignorant of fuch crimes; under pain of those cenfures which are appointed for the reformation of fuch dalliers and difpenfers with their own confciences and oaths.

119. Convenient time to be affigned for framing Prefentments.

FOR

OR the avoiding of fuch inconveniences as heretofore have happened by the hafty making of bills of prefentments upon the days of the Vifitation and Synods, it is ordered, That always hereafter every Chancellor, Archdeacon, Commiffary, and Official, and every other perfon having ecclefiaftical jurisdiction, at the ordinary time when the Church-wardens are fworn; and the Archbifhop and Bifhops, when he or they do fummon their Vifitation, fhall deliver, or caufe to be delivered to the Church-wardens, Queft-men, and Side-men of every parifh, or to fome of them, fuch books of articles as they, or any of them, fhall require, for the year following, the faid Church-wardens, Queft-men, and Side-men to ground their prefentments upon, at fuch times as they are to exhibit them. In which book fhall be contained the form of the oath, which must be taken immediately before every fuch prefentment; to the intent that, having before-hand time fufficient, not only to perufe and confider, what their faid oath fhall be, but the articles alfo whereupon they are to ground their prefentments, they may frame them at home both advifedly and truly, to the discharge of their own confciences, after they are fworn, as becometh honeft and godly men.

120. None to be cited into Ecclefiaftical Courts by Process of Quorum Nomina.

No

TO Bishop, Chancellor, Archdeacon, Official, or other Ecclefiaftical Judge, fhall fuffer any general proceffes of Quorum Nomina to be fent out of his court; except the names of all fuch as thereby are to be cited fhall be first expressly entered by the hand of the Regiftrar, or his Deputy, under the faid proceffes, and the faid proceffes and names be firft fubfcribed by the Judge, or his Deputy, and his feal thereto affixed.

121. None to be cited into feveral Courts for one Crime.

IN places where the Bishop and Archdeacon do by prefcription or compofition vifit at feveral times in one and the fame year, left for one and the felf-fame fault any of his Majefty's fubjects fhould be challenged and molefted in divers Ecclefiaftical Courts; we order and appoint, That every Archdeacon, or his Official, within one

month

month after the Vifitation ended that year, and the prefentments received, fhall certify under his hand and feal to the Bishop, or his Chancellor, the names and crimes of all fuch as are detected and prefented in his faid Vifitation, to the end the Chancellor fhall thenceforth forbear to convent any perfon for any crime or caufe fo detected or prefented to the Archdeacon. And the Chancellor within the like time after the Bishop's Vifitation ended, and prefentments received, fhall under his hand and feal fignify. to the Archdeacon, or his Official, the names and crimes of all fuch perfons which fhall be detected or presented unto him in that Vifitation, to the fame intent as is aforefaid. And if thefe officers fhall not certify each other, as is here prefcribed, or after fuch certificate fhall intermeddle with the crimes or perfons detected and presented in each other's Vifitation; then every of them fo offending fhall be fufpended from all exercife of his jurifdiction by the Bishop of the diocefe, until he fhall repay the cofts and expences which the parties grieved have been at by that vexation.

122. No Sentence of Deprivation or Depofition to be pro-· nounced against a Minifter, but by the Bishop.

WHEN any Minifter is complained of in any Ecclefi

aftical Court belonging to any Bishop of his province, for any crime, the Chancellor, Commiffary, Official, or any other having ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, to whom it fhall appertain, fhall expedite the cause by proceffes and other proceedings against him: and upon contumacy, for not appearing, fhall first suspend him; and afterward, his contumacy continuing, excommunicate him. But if he appear, and submit himself to the course of law, then the matter being ready for fentence, and the merits of his offence exacting by law either deprivation from his living, or depofition from the miniftry, no fuch fentence fhall be pronounced by any person whofoever, but only by the Bihop, with the affiftance of his Chancellor, the Dean (if they may conveniently be had) and fome of the Prebendaries, if the court be kept near the Cathedral Church, or of the Archdeacon, if he may be had conveniently, and two other at the leaft grave Minifters and Preachers, to be called by the Bishop, when the court is kept in other places.

No

123. No Act to be fped but in open Court.

O Chancellor, Commiffary, Archdeacon, Official, or any other perfon ufing ecclefiaftical jurifdiction whofoever, fhall fpeed any judicial act, either of contentious or voluntary jurifdiction, except he have the ordinary Regiftrar of that Court, or his lawful Deputy: or if he or they will not, or cannot be prefent, then fuch perfons as by law are allowed in that behalf to write or speed the fame, under pain of suspension ipfo facto.

No

124. No Court to have more than one Seal.

O Chancellor, Commiffary, Archdeacon, Official, or any other exercifing ecclefiaftical jurisdiction, shall without the Bishop's confent have any more feals than one, for the fealing of all matters incident to his office ; which feal fhall always be kept either by himself, or by his lawful Subftitute exercifing jurifdiction for him, and remaining within the jurifdiction of the faid Judge, or in the city or principal town of the county. This feal fhall contain the title of that jurifdiction, which every of the faid Judges or their Deputies do execute.

125. Convenient Places to be chofen for the keeping of Courts.

AL

LL Chancellors, Commiffaries, Archdeacons, Officials, and all other exercifing ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, fhall appoint fuch meet places for the keeping of their courts, by the affignment or approbation of the Bishop of the diocefe, as fhall be convenient for entertainment of those that are to make their appearance there, and most indifferent for their travel. And likewise they shall keep and end their courts in fuch convenient time, as every man may return homewards in as due season as may be.

126. Peculiar and inferior Courts to exhibit the original Copies of Wills into the Bishop's Registry.

WH

THEREAS Deans, Archdeacons, Prebendaries, Parfons, Vicars, and others, exercifing ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, claim liberty to prove the laft wills and teftaments of perfons deceased within their feveral jurifdictions, having no known or certain Registrars, nor public place to keep their records in; by reafon whereof many wills, rights, and legacies, upon the death or change of fuch: perfons,

perfons, and their private Notaries, mifcarry and cannot be found, to the great prejudice of his Majefty's fubjects; we therefore order and enjoin, That all fuch poffeffors and exercifers of peculiar jurifdiction fhall once in every year exhibit into the public regiftry of the Bishop of the diocefe, or of the Dean and Chapter, under whofe jurifdiction the faid peculiars are, every original teftament of every perfon in that time deceased, and by them proved in their feveral peculiar jurifdictions, or a true copy of every fuch teftament, examined, fubfcribed, and fealed by the peculiar Judge and his Notary. Otherwife, if any of them fail fo to do, the Bishop of the diocefe, or Dean and Chapter, unto whom the faid jurifdictions do refpectively belong, fhall fufpend the faid parties, and every of them, from the exercile of all fuch peculiar jurifdiction, until they have performed this our Conftitution.

No

Judges Ecclefiaftical, and their Surrogates.

127. The Quality and Oath of Judges.

O man fhall hereafter be admitted a Chancellor, Com. miflary, or Official, to exercife any ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, except he be of the full age of fix and twenty years at the least, and one that is learned in the Civil and Ecclefiaftical Laws, and is at the leaft a Mafter of Arts or Bachelor of Law, and is reasonably well practifed in the course thereof, as likewife well affected, and zealously bent to religion, touching whofe life and manners no evil example is had; and except, before he enter into or execute any fuch office, he fhall take the oath of the King's fupremacy in the prefence of the Bishop, or in the open court, and fhall fubfcribe to the Articles of Religion agreed upon in the Convocation in the year one thousand five hundred fixty and two, and fhall alfo fwear that he will, to the uttermost of his understanding, deal uprightly and justly in his office, without refpect or favour of reward; the faid oaths and fubfcription to be recorded by a Regiftrar then present. And likewife all Chancellors, Commiffaries, Officials, Registrars, and all other that do now poffefs or execute any places of ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, or fervice, fhall before Christmas next, in the presence of the Archbishop, or Bishop, or in open court, under whom or where they exercife their offices, take the fame oaths, and subscribe, as before is faid; or, upon refusal so to do,

fhall