membring that he is to give an account of his management to God. Which he faid, in afferting the Freedom of the African Churches from Subjection to the

Roman.

Cafe.

This we think is juftly applicable to our

The Church of England is a National Church, once indeed under the Ufurpation of the Roman Bishop, and at length rescued from that fervitude; we are at prefent United together by Common Rules for Government and Worship, Confulted upon and agreed unto by the Bishops and Presbyters in Convocation, and then made Laws to all the particular Churches of this Kingdom, by the Authority of the Soveraign. Thefe Laws fhew the Reformation of the Church; And they do not want any Authority they ought to have, for wanting. the consent of the Roman Bishop, upon whom we have neither Ecclefiaftical nor Civil Dependence. For if any one fingle Bishop of the African Church might determin Causes, and judge matters of Ecclefiaftical cognifance (which yet was feldom done in things of moment without the advice of Collegues when the Church had rest from Perfecution) and this without allowing Appeals to Rome; much more may the Bishops of a whole Chriftian Kingdom confederate together to order Church matters Independently upon the See of Rome efpecially being required thereunto by their Chriftian Soveraign to whom they all owe Subjection and Obedience in all things, faving their Common Christianity. So that if the Caufes of the Reformation had not been fo weighty as indeed they were, yet con: fidering the Authority by which it was effected; our Separation from Rome thereupon enfuing was wholly Guiltless on our part, it being necessary unless we would fubmit to the Unjuft and Tyrannous Claims of a Forreign Bishop.

2.. To

2. To the charge of Schifm laid against us by the Romanist, we Answer also, that the conditions of Communion required in the Roman Church, were many of them Unlawful to be fubmitted unto; fince we could not Communicate with her without profeffing Doctrines that are plainly contrary to Gods Word, nor without doing feveral things that are clearly and particularly forbidden by it. And fince it is not in the Power of any Man or Church, to dispense with our Obligations to the Laws of God, we could not be obliged to preferve Communion with the Bishop of Rome and his Adherents, upon those Terms. But because Catholick Communion ought to be preserved, they ought to have put away thofe Scandals from amongst themselves, which fince they have not done, though the Separation is equal on both fides, yet the Schifm is not ours but theirs only.

And therefore we farther fay that if the Corruptions of the Roman Church (which God forbid) fhould ever come to be establisht in this Church of England again by the fame Authority that has abolisht them; it were not only Lawful, but a neceffary Duty to feparate from the Communion of this Church in that Cafe. We have that Reverence of Church Authority, and of the Supreme Magistrate, that we will fubmit to their Determinations in all things wherein God has left us to our own Liberty. But if they Command us to do things contrary to his Determination, and to take that liberty which he has not given us, we must remember that we are to obey God rather than Man. We have that sense also of the mischief of Divifions and Separations, and of the Duty of maintaining Church-Communion, that if the Laws of God be but obferved, we are not only ready to comply with what our own Superiours impose upon us, for the fake of Peace and Unity at home

but

but if we were to go abroad, we fhould obferve the Customs of other Churches, though perhaps very dif ferent from ours, and this for the fake of maintaining one Communion of Chriftians every were. But neither abroad, nor at home can we purchase Unity of Communion at fo dear a rate as to break Gods Commandments for it.

We know it is a good thing for all the parts of the Church to have but one Communion, but we must not do evil, that even this good may come : And leaft of all that evil which Church Communion and Church Authority were in great part defigned to prevent. For as we believe that Chrift formed his Difciples into a Spiritual Society, fo we have great reason to conclude that one main end hereof was, that by the Communion of Chriftians under their Governours, the holy Truths and Laws of God concerning his Worfhip and our Salvation might be more advantageously held forth to the World, and more effectually guarded and maintained. And therefore to keep this Communion one as much as in us lies, we will do any thing required by our Superiors that God has left us free to do or not : But to deny that Holy Truth or any part of it, or to break any of thofe Divine Laws, for the fake of which this Communion it self was Instituted, neither of these things dare we do to prevent Divifions and Separations. And we are as fure that Transubstantiation, Adoration of the Hoft, Worshiping of Images, Praying to the Dead and Praying in an unknown Tongue, are Repugnant to feveral express Texts of Scripture, not to fay to Common Senfe and Reafon : We are I fay as fure that they are the plain Laws and Truths of God to which these things are contrary; and withal that to guard these Truths God Inftituted a Church, and a Communion of Saints, as we are that there was any fuch thing as a C

Church

Church Instituted, or Church Communion required. And truly if Separation, when there is fuch cause for it, as we pretend, were not a neceffary Duty, it might becom the Duty of Chriftians to be United in Scandalous Impieties and Damnable Errors. And I think no body will fay that in fuch things one Communion is either to be defired or excufed, but rather to be broken, and that every Man is concerned as much as his Salvation is worth to break away from it. And we are certain it can never be neceffary to any Mans Salvation to be a Schifmatick.

Upon this account, we fay, that they who in Queen Mary's days chofe to lay down their lives, rather than return to the Communion of the Roman Church, were fo far from being Schifmaticks that they were Gods Martyrs in fo doing. And had it been, or fhould it be our lot to have this choice fo hard to Flefh and Blood offered to us; we truft, that through the mighty Grace of God, we fhould follow the Faith and Patience of those holy Men and Women, who Sealed this Caufe with their Blood,meekly fuffering under the Displeasure of that Juft Authority, the Unjuft Commands whereof they could not honeftly obey. This plain,though General account, we give of the Separation of the Church of England from the Church of Rome. And if we pretend no more in our own Defence against that Church, than we can prove, we have Reason to think our selves fafe on that fide.

-12. Let us now fee upon what Principles and by what pleas the Diffenters Defend their Separation from the Church of England. To us therefore charging them with Schifm upon this account, they Answer alfo,That our Communion is Corrupt, and that they cannot with a safe Conscience continue in it; and that they are bound

for

for greater Purity of Worship and Ordinances, to divide from us. But in making out this general Answer they do not all go the fame way, nor do fome of them allow thofe to be good Reasons for a Separation, which others think fubftantial enough. That in which most of them do agree is in affigning fome Ceremonies injoined in our Church, concerning which fome of them fay that they are Unlawful to be used in Gods Worship; others of them, that there is great cause to doubt whe ther they be Lawful or not; And these dare not join in our Communion with Scrupulous and Unsatisfied minds. The things of this fort are the Sign of the Crofs in the office of Baptifm, (though this be made by the Minister only) Kneeling in the Act of Receiving the Eu charift, and the Minifters wearing a Surplice in Publick Worship. The other Faults they find with the Liturgy, however they are thought by the Generality of Diffenters to be a Reason sufficient to ground Separation upon, are not I think produced by thofe that fhould best understand the Caufe, as amounting to make our Communion directly Unlawful. But yet there are that say, they ought not to prefer a worse mode of ferving God before a better: And the mode which themselves obferve being better they are to prefer that before ours, and therefore to feparate from us for the moft part. Others go yet further from us, and take Liturgies, and prescribed Forms of Prayer to be Unlawful to be used,A or at least fufpect them fo to be. And all thefe do Ge nerally dislike the Form of Diocefan Epifcopacy How. ever they seem not to lay the ftrefs of their Separation upon that, fince they acknowledge our Churches to be true Churches of Chrift, and if it were not for other things,might be Lawfully Communicated with,although they are governed by Bishops. And becaufe the Civib Authority concurs with the Ecclefiaftical in requiring C 2 Con

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