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156
The
L
I
F
E
of
the
LIB.
j.
r. About
Fafts
and
Feafts,
theQueftion
as
referring to the Obligation
of
the
Laws
of
the Land,
is
of
the
fame Refòlution
as
all
other Queftionsrefpeéing thofe'
Laws
;
which
being
a Cafe
more out
of
my way,
I
fhall
not
prefume to deter-
mine
without
aclearer
Call.
Only I
muft
fay
that I fee
little Reafon why thofe
Men
fhould
think
themfelves
bound
in
this
who yet fuppofethemfelvesloofefrom
many otherLaws, and who obey many
Of
the
Laws
or Ordinances of
the prefect
Powers.
z.
I
much
fear
'that not
only the
Querift, but many more are much
enfnared
in
their
Confciences,
by
mifunderftanding the Nature and
ufe
of
Synods. It's one
thing
for
an Affembly
of
Bifhops
to
have a fuperior
Governing Power dire&Iy
over
all
particular Churches and Bithops; and another thing for fach an Affembly
to have
a
Power
of
determining of
things neceffary for the
Concord
of
the
leve-
ral
Churches.
I
never
yes faw
it
proved
that
Synods are over Bithops
in
a di-
re& Governing Order, nor are
called for fuch
Ends
;
but properly
in ordine
ad
Uni-
tatem, and
fo
oblige only
(
more than
fingle Bithops
)
by Virtue
of. the General
Precept,
of
maintaining
Unify
and Concord:
This
is
the
Opinion of the molt
learned
Bifhop and famous
'antiquary that I am acquainted with.
.3.
And then when the end
ceafes,
the Obligation
is
at an
End.
So
that
this
can
now
be
no Law of
Unity
with
us.
4.
All human Laws die
with the
Legiflator, farther
than the
furviving Rulers
(hall
continue them.
the
Reafon
is
drawn from the
Nature of
a
Law, which
is
to
be jsffum
Majeflatia,
in the Common-wealth, and
every
where to be
a
fign
of
the
Rectors
Will
de
debito,
vet
eonfitaendo,
vel
confermando:
Or
his
Authoritative
Determination of
what
(hall
be due from
us
and
to us.
Therefore no
Redor,
no
Law
:
and'the Law that
is,
though
made
by
the
deceafed Re&or,
is
not
his
Law,
but the prefent Redor's
Law,- formally
;
it
being the
lignifier
of
his
Will: And
it
is
his Will for
the continuance
of
it,
that
gives
-it
a
new
Life.
In
all
this'I
fpeak
of
the whole
Summa
poreJlar
that bath
the
abfolute Legiflative
Power.
If
therefore
the Church
Governors be dead that made
thefe
Laws, and no
fufficient
Power
fuc-
ceeds
them
to
continue thefe
Laws
and
make
them
theirs,
then
they
are
dead with
their Authors.
g.
The
prefent Paftors
of
the Church ( though but Presbyters)
are
the true
Guides
of
it,
while
Bilhops are
abfent
( and the true
Guides
conjundly with the
Bifhops,
if
they were prefent, according to the Judgment
of
your own
fide
).
Whoever
is
the
foie
exiltentgoverning Power, may
govern,
and
muff be obeyed
in
things Lawful.
Therefore you
muff
(
for
all
your unproved Accufation of
N
Schifm)
obey them.
The
Death ór Depofition
of
the
Bifhops
depriveth not the
Presbyters
of
that Power which they had
before.
6.
Former Church
Governors
have
riot
Power to bind
all
that
(hall
come after
them, where they were
before free But
their
Followers are
as
free
as
they
were.
7.
The
Nature
of
Church
Canons
is
to determine
of
Circumftances only for a
prefent time, place
or
occalion, and
not to
be'univerfal ftanding Laws,
to
all Ages
of
the Church
:
For
if
fuch
Determinations
had been fit,
God
would have
made
them
himfelf, and
They
would have been contained
in
his perfect
Word. He
giver
not
his
Legillative
Power to
Synods or
Bifhops.
8.
Yet if your Confcience
will needs perfuade
you.lo
ufe
thofe Ceremonigs,
you
have
no
ground to feparatefrom all that will
not
be
of
your
Opinion.
9. -For
the
Crofs, the
Canons require only
the Mini ter
to
ufe
it,
and
not
you
:
and
if he
do not, that's nothing to
you.
ro. Have you
impartially read what
is
written
againft the Lawfulnefs
of
it, by
dmeJiue'sfrefh Suit, Bradfhaw, Parker,
and
others
:
If
you
have
:
you
may at leaft
fee this
that it's no
fit
matter to place the Churches
Unity
or
Uniformity in
:
and they
that
will make
fuch
Laws for
Unity
-go
beyond their Commiffion.
Church
Governors are to determine the Circumftances
pro
loco
&
tempore
in partí-
cular,
which God bathin Word or
Nature
made neceffary
in genere,
and
left
to
their Determination.
But
when Men
will prefume beyond this, to determine
(+things not
indeed circumftantial, or
no way
neceffary
in
genre nor
left
to
their
Determination (as
to institute new Banding Symbols
in and with God's
Symbols
or
Sacraments;
to
be
engaging
Signs
to engage us
to
Chrift,
and
to Work Grace
on the
Soul
as
the Word and
Sacraments
do, that
is
by amoral
Operation)
and
their will needs make thefe the
Cement
of
Unity
;
.
this
is
it
that
bath
been
the
Bane
of
and Caufe
of
Divifions.
r
r. Kneeling