·Of IIMYijil!g againjl: tiJe U'ill of Paients. ~-------------------- ~·ft· Objtll. ,Anfw. ~·ft· dri~e them away ?r ncglefr them. lf a wife Son that hath a Wife and many Children, and great affa1rs to manage m the world, ~ould .be bound to as ab[olure obedience ro his aged r~arcnts as fl' was in his childhood,it would rume the1r affairs,and Parems government would pull dowr: rh::n j~ rh;.: vld age, whi<h they built up in their middle age. • r ~· 10· And to the fecood Q!!efiion I anfwcr, that,1. Children that pretend to un<anquerab!e Lufi or Love, mufi do all they can to fubdue fuch tnordmate affelt10ns, and bung 1heir lulls fo fioop to .,.erfin andftheir P~ren~J wiU~, An~ if they do t~cir be~, the~e is either none, or not one of m:my hundr:;S', but may mamtam t~e1r cha~zty tog~ther with ~htlr obcditnce. 2. And if any fay, I b'ave d:m~ my bejf, and "ft am un~er_a nectffi•y of m~rrt4gt ; a.nd am I not then bo:md to marry though my Parentf for'bid me l I anfwer tt ts not to be bch~ved : Eaher rou have ~ot done your belt, or etfe you are nor under a ·ncceffity : And your urgrncy bemg your own tault, ( feemg you fhould fubdue it ) God 1\ill obligeth you both to fu~due y.our Vice, and to obe~ your P_arents. 3. But if there fhould be any Otic that hath fuch an ( mcrt:dtblc ) neceffity of marrtage, he JS to procure fomc others to follicite his Parents. for their confcnt, and if he cannot obtain ir, (Qme fay, it is his duty to marry without it: I fhould r;i.. t~er far r_hat.it i~ mimtr mal:m~, the leffir et1il : and tha_t having c~tl. himfelt into fome neceffi~y of fin– ~lmg, Jt IS !hll bu duty to av01d both, and to choofe netther ; bur lt ts the fmaUer fin to c:hoofc to cl if– obey his Parents, rather than to live in the flames of lull and the tilth ofunchallity. And fome Diviiles fay, that in fuch a cafe a Son ~ould appeal to the Magijfr,ttt, as a ]itptrior authority above the father~ But others think; I . That thts l~avcth it as difficult to ~e~olvc what he Oull do, it rhe M 3 giftrare al– fo confent not : And, 2· That 1t doth hut refolvc one dJili<ulty by a greater : it being very doul>cf~l whether in Domfjlick cafes, the authority of the Parent or the Magiftrau be rhe greater. 9· I I· 3· The f1me anfwer ferveth as to rhe third ~eltion, when Parents forbid you tf> marry the perfons that you are mofi fond .of.. .For fuch f ondnef!Cwhether you call it L•11 or Love)as will not Hoop to rt3{on g,nd your Parents w1lis, JS mordmate and hnful : And therefore the thing that God bindeth you to, i! by his appointed means to fubdue ir, and to 9bey : But if you cannot, the accidents and probable confequents mufl tell you whi<h is the lrffir evil. 9· 12· QJ_efi. Brtt what if tht Child have promi{td marri•ge, and the PartntJ be againfl it l Anfw. If the Child was under the Parents Government, and fhort of years of difcretion alfo, the promif~ iS void fOr want of capacity : And if the child was at ~ge, yft the promi[t w.as a finful •promi{e, as to the promijing 11ft, and aHo as to the thing promifeddurmg the Parents diffcnt : If the a[l:u promiumdi only had been ]i11{ul ( the promifc making ) the promife might neverthclcfs oblige ( unlefs it wer< 111tU as well as finful) But rhe materia promiffa being finful (the matter promii(d ) to m4rry wbilt Pa– rtntf dodijfent, fuch a child is bound to forbear the fullfilling of that promife tiU tile ParmiJ J, confim or die. And yet he is bound from marrying any other ( unlefs he be difobligcd by the pcrfon that he made the promife to ) , becaufe he knoweth not but his Parents may confent here– after : And whenever they confent or die, the promife then is obJig•tory, and mull be pCI– formed. 9· 13· Thq. C/Jap. of N•m. enableth Puents to difoblige a Daughtcrthat is in thei< houfe, from a ~wmade to God, fo be it they di~allow it at the tirll hearing. Hence there are two doubrs arife ; 1 • \Vhcther this power extend not to the difobliging of a promife or contract of Matrimony? 2. whether it extend IJ<lt to a Son as well as a Daughter. Alid moll expofitors arc for the affirma– tive of both cafc5". But I have Chewed before that it is upon uncertain grounds: I . It is ancertain whether God, who would thus give up his OJ:,n right in cafe of Vowing, will alfo giveaway the rigiJt cf otbtrr without their confmt in ca[e of Prof?!ifts or Contra{] I. And, 2 · It is uncertain whether this be not an indulgence only of the weaker fex, fceing tnariy words in the Text fcem plainly to intimate fo much. And it is dangerous upon our own prcfumptions to (h~tch Gods Laws to every thing wt imagine there is the fame rcafon tOr : Seeing our imaginations may fo eafily be deceived j a11d God c<mld have exprefi fuch particulars if he would : And therefore (when there is not clear grOund foi our inferences in the Text ) it is but to fay 1hm anti. thzu God fhottld have {aid, when we cannot f1y, 1'hur he hat!J faid: We muft not maltJ Laws under pretenfc of -xpo1mding tiJtm : whRtfotver God coi;z– mandttb thee, talte hetd that thou do it : th~u jh.tlt add nothing tiJtreto, nor tak,.e ought therefrom, Deutd2· 32· ~· 14. Q!efi; If the ~eOion therefore be not of the fmfuUnefi, but the nuDity of fuch Promi{ei of children, becaufe of the diffent of .Parents, for my part I am not able to prove any fuch nuL'ity. It is faid, that Thty are not fui juris, their own, andlherefore tlieir promi{ts arenuU: But if they have attain– ed to years, and ufc: ofdifcretion, they are naturally fo far .Jui jurif as tobe capable ofdifpoting even of their [ouiJ, and therefore of their fidelity : They can obhge themfe!vcs to God or man : Though rhcy are not {Q far fiti juris as to be Ungoverned: For.fo no child, no SubjetJ, no M.zn is {11i juris; fteing all are under the Government of God : And yet if a man promife to do a thing finjitl, it is not a 1u11lity, but a fin : not ltiJ promift but a fiufitl promifr. AmiUity is when the AllfM promittwdi is Rep:t• tativC nuUm, vel ntm atrur: And whtn no Prornife is ntade, then none can be brok,..m. ·~. r5· Q!efi. Bnt ifthe Q!cfiion be only'""' far focb PromifeJ m:<JI be l(_cpt 1 1anfwer by fnmming up what I have faid: .r. Ifthe child had not the ufe of Reafon, the want ot'Natur.1l capacjty, prov~rh the Promife null : Here ignorantiJ nan cjf con[e1i[m~ 2. If he was at age and ufe of Rcafon, then r. If the Promijing aa on!J! was finful ( as before 1fa id of Vow,,) the Promife mufi be both repemrd of, and J,.tpt. lt mull be repented of becaufe it was a fin: It mull be k,_tpt becau{~ tt WM a real PtiJ– mi.[t, and the matttr lawfitl. 2. Jf rhe Proniifing all was not only a fin., but a nullity ( by any other . rcafon,) then it is no obligation. 3• If not only the Promijin~ •Ci be ]in, but alfo the matter Prdfd
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