"Degree of a Bishop, which doth or fhall "pretend to be a Prieft, or Minister of "God's Holy Word and Sacraments, by "reafon of any other Form of Inftitution, "Confecration, or Ordering, than the «Form fet forth by Parliament, in the "Time of the late King of moft worthy "Memory, King Edward VI. "ufed in the Reign of our moft graci"ous Sovereign Lady, fhall in the Prefence "of the Bishop, &c. declare his Affent, and "fubfcribe to all the Articles of Religion, "comprized in a Book Imprinted, Entituled, Articles, whereupon it was a"greed, &c. or now Thefe (May it please your Honours) are the Articles of the Church of England; And " (fays my Lord Chief Juftice Coke) the "Subfcription hereby required is to three "Articles. "The 1ft is, That the King's Majefty, "under God, is the only fupream Gover"nour of the Realm, and all other his High"nefs's Dominions and Countries. "2dly, That the Book of the Common"Prayer, and of Ordering of Bishops, Priefts "and Deacons, containeth nothing in it con"trary to the Word of God, &c. "3dly, That he alloweth of the faid "XXXIX Articles of Religion, and acknow"ledgeth them to be agreeable to the Word ❝of God. After reciting these three Articles, my Lord Coke goes on,- And I heard Wray, "Chief Juftice in the King's Bench Pafch. "23d of Eliz. report; That where one "Smith fubfcribed to the faid XXXIX Ar❝ticles of Religion, with this Addition, (fo "far forth as the fame were agreeable to the "Word of God) that it was refolved by " him, and all the Judges of England, that "the Subfcription was not according to the "Statute of the 13th of Eliz. because the "Statute requires an abfolute Subscription, "and this Subfcription made it conditio"nal; and that this Act was made for "avoiding Diverfity of Opinions, c. and "by this Addition the Party might, by his "own private Opinion, take fome of them "to be against the Word of God; and by "this means Diverfity of Opinions should "not be avoided, which was the Scope of "the Statute; and the very Act it felf, "made touching Subfcriptions, hereby of none "Effect. Coke 4. Inftit. 324. Now (may it pleafe your Honours) if a Perfon (though epifcopally ordained) who refuses to give his Affent and Confent to these three Articles abfolutely, and without any Condition or Refervation, fhall not, by all the Judges of England, be deemed Orthodox, or of Sound Religion; (which is one and the fame thing) much lefs (in my humble Opinion) fhall a Dissenting Teacher Teacher, who abfolutely condemns Subfcrip+ tion, and imagines, that thofe who impofe it, have not right Opinions of Religion, or are not of found Religion, or Orthodox: I fay, fuch a Perfon (certainly) by the Laws of England, will not be allowed to be of found Religion or Orthodox! Who likewise, in the Eye of the Law of England, is mere laicus, not in Holy Orders, but a mere Lay-Man. Since then the Laws of England allow no Minister to be Orthodox, but he who is Epifcopally Ordained, and who subscribes the abovefaid three Articles, which is a Minifter of the Church of England. And inafmuch as by the Acts of Affembly of this Province, an Orthodox Miniftry is established in every Town; Therefore, by a juft and true Construction of the Laws of this very Province, (unless they are repugnant to the Laws of England) the Minifters of the Church of England are eftablished HERE. I beg leave to remark under this head, that our prefent Governour Col. Shute, in his Order to the Magiftrates of Bristol, &c. wherein he prohibits their taxing the Churchmen towards the Maintenance of any Minifters, of any other Profeffion than Epif copal, calls the Church of England the eftablifhed Church here. other And And the late Governour, Col. Dudley, by wife Men, deservedly acknowledged the wifeft Man that ever was in this Country) in a like Order, in Favour of the Church at Newbury, declares the Church of England to be the established Church; and fpeaking of their Proceedings for fettling a Church there, fays, that they are according to Law, and that they ought to be fuffered to go peaceably on for their good Eftablishment. May it pleafe your Honours; The Opinion of this great and wife Man, was founded upon his exact Knowledge of the Laws of England; fome of which (by your Honours Permiffion) I fhall now produce, in order to make good my third Propofition; viz. That by the Laws of England, the Church of England, as established in England, and no OTHER, is pofitively established in all His Majefty's Plantations. May it please your Honours, and you The Common Law, and efpecially Magna Charta, is allowed to be the Law of the Plantations, and every Englishman's BirthRight. And by that, the Holy Church, i. e. the Church of England, is for ever inviolably confirmed. The Church reformed, and confirmed, and eftablished by the 2d, 3d, 5th, 6th, of Edw VI. mentions England, Wales, Calais, and the the Marches thereof, and other the King's Dominions, and fays, the Inhabitants of this Realm, and other his Majefty's Dominions. This was repeal'd by the 1ft of Mary; but the 1st of Elizabeth took off that Repeal; and mentions again the Realm of England, Wales, or Marches of the fame, and (or) other the Queen's Dominions; and in the Conclufion exprefsly inhibits any other to be establish'd within the Realm, or any other the Queen's Dominions or Countries. The 13th of Eliz. which declares who are Orthodox Minifters, entitled an Act for the Minifters of the Church to be of found Religion, and provides, That the Churches of the Queen's Majefty's Dominions may be ferved with found Minifters, &c.-qualified as in the Act. Now, may it please your Honours) I humbly conceive, that by King's Dominions muft be meant not only the THEN Dominions, but what fhall be the King's Dominions at all times, while that Law remains in force. As (for Inftance) Acts of Trade that ex'tend to the Plantations, bind new or acquired Places, added to the King's Dominions, afTter Juch Acts were made. And the 12th of Charles II. which was made after the Settlement of these Colonies, confirms thofe former Acts, that mention the King's or Queen's Dominions or Countries. But |