626 1°le HISTORY of the PURITANS. Chap. VI;. K. Charles I. not ratifying any of their acts, it was evident, that the Englif court 1639. had refumed their courage, and were determined once more to try the fortune of war. Bij/hop Hall's In the mean time, to balance the declaration of the Scots affembly, divine right bifhop Hall, at the requeft of Laud, compofed a treatife of the DI VIN E ff epifcopacy., RIGHT OF EPISCOPACY, which the archbifhop reviled. The Pro- pofitions which he advances are thefe. (I.) Thatform of government which is of apoftolical inflitution, ought to be efteemed of divine right, (2.) That form which was pratifed and recommended by the apofties, though not exprefsly commanded, is of apoftolical infitution. (3.) The government fet up by the apoflles was defigned for perpetuity. (4,) The univerfal pracîice of the primitive church is the beft rule to judge of the apoftolical praélice. (5.) We ought not to ffppofe the primi- tive fathers would change the form of government they had received from the apoflles. (6.) The acceflion of privilege and honourable titles does not affect the fubflance of the epifcopal function. (y.) The pref- byterian government, though challenging the glorious title of Chrft's. kingdom andordinance, has no foundation in fcri:pture, or in the practice of the church for fifteen hundred years, and is altogether incongruous and unjuflifiable. Reviled by The bifhop's book was altered in many places, contrary to his own Laud, inclinations, by the archbifhop, and particularly in thofe wherein he had called the pope antichrift, or (poke toofavourably of the morality of thefabbath; and faid, that prefbytery was of ufe, where epifcopacy could not be obtained. His grace difapproved of his lordfhip's waving the queftion, whether epifcopacy was a difiin6l order, or only an higher degree of the fame order 2 and of his advancing the divine right of. epifcopacy no higher than the apoftles, whereas he would have it derived from Chrifz? binfelf: Upon the whole, his lordfhip's book was fo model'd by his metropolitan, that in the debate hereafter mentioned, he could hardly go the lengths of his own performance. The bifhops ftill kept a arid hand over the puritans; not a fermon was to be heard on the diflinguifhing points of Calvinifm all over Eng- land. In forme diocefes great complaints were made of puritan juftices of peace, for being too ftrict in putting the laws in execution againfl profanenefs. AtAfhford in Kent the archbifhop faid, he muff have re- courfe to the fatute of abjuration, and call in the afhftance of the temporal-courts to reduce the feparatifls, the cenfures of the church not being fufficient. Upon the whole, there was no abatement of the height of conformity, even to the end of this year, though the flames that were kindling in Scotland began to difturb the tranquillity of the church. Mr.
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