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Perfecution, and exceedingly fcandalous to the Society concern'd in it. Nay, Church Officers as fuch, are so far from being juftly concern'd in fuch Matters as Bodily Mulets and Punishments; that it has always been look'd upon as a great Crime in a Chriftian Bishop to urge their Princes to Severity; or to put them upon taking away the Lives of the groffeft Criminals; or to give their Opinions in Matters of Blood, unless where the Confcience of any is to be fatisfy'd as to the Lawfulness of executing Juftice upon fuch as are the Scandals of Religion, the Pefts of Civil Government, and the Influence of whofe wicked Examples is like to fpread like a Gangrene, and to infect a whole Nation. Hence it was, that Ithacius, and Idacius or Urfacius, two Spanish Bishops, who perfuaded the Ufurper Maximus, to put Prifcillian, from whom that abominable Set of the Prifcillianifts fprang, to Death, were generally condemn'd as Men of too cruel and bloody Tempers to be Overfeers of the Flock of Chrift. For which Reafon St. Martin, then Bishop of Tours in France, a Man of eminent Sanctity, and Prudence réfus'd to hold Communion with those bloody Prelates, till he was forced to it to prevent a threatned Perfecution from falling upon all the Churches round about Him. And, upon the fame Reason it is, that our English Bishops who fit in Parliament in the Upper Houfe, (and appear there under a double Qualification, both as Temporal Lords or Barons, and as Spiritual Officers or Fathers of the Church) a Dignity belonging to them, and conftituting them one of the greatest Estates of this Realm, before they were made Temporal Barons; and having a real Right vefted in them,

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as they are Members of the highest Court of Judicature to give their Sentence in the most Capital Cafes; yet thefe Bifhops,left their Overt Acts as Peers of the Realm fhould feem to reflect on their Business as Paftors of the Church, when the final Sentence comes to be pafs'd, withdraw themselves with a Legal Proteftation, that such their voluntary Recefs fhall be no Prejudice to their Judicial determining Right in fuch Cafes as well as others; by which they fhow their Opinion, that it is not for the immediate Servants of the Prince of Peace to have their Hands in Blood.

We have thus far confider'd and explain'd the Nature of fuch Perfecution as the Word of God and all good Men condemn, and which ill, or very much mistaken Men, are wonted to exercife. upon their Brethren only for their Righteousness, or because they will not fin against their Maker, by renouncing any known Truth, omitting any plain Duty, or committing any actual Sin, And fince our Holy Mother the Church of England, as by Law establish'd, has by fome very ignorant, and by other very impudent Men been boldly charged with Perfecution, and particularly with refpe&t to those who separate from her on a religious Account; we fhall by the Truth of what has been already laid down, examine the Juftice of that Charge. In Order to which we must,

II. Examine, what thofe Crimes are which the Chriftian Church or the Governors of the Chriftian Church as fuch, may juftly and ought to take Cognifance of. For, if the Church of England with refpect to fuch as in England call

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felves Chriftians, and yet feparate from her Communion, acts no farther than the Power originally vefted in all meer Spiritual and Lawful Governors will justify and bear them out in, or than is allow'd both by the Law of God and Primitive Practice; then the Charge of Perfecution laid against her by her Enemies must be falfe; whether it be laid against her Aim and Inclinations now; when the Powers of the Bifhops and Paftors of our Church are reftrain'd and abridg'd by humane Ordinances; or against her Judiciary Practice or Exertion of Difcipline then, when all Penal Laws were in Force. But if the Charge of Perfecution laid against our Church Governours now or formerly were true; then it is fuch a Fault as the Amendment of it may juftly be required of the lawful Paftors and Governors of our Church.

The State and Church of the Jews were all one entire and indiftinguishable Body: The High Prieft was fupreme in Spiritual, the Prince in Secular, Affairs: The Power of them was join'd together (when they exifted together) in Matters of Blood; and all Perfons were obliged by God Himself to fubmit to their Determinations upon the most dreadful Penalties in the World. And tho' we look upon the Jewish Stories of their mighty Sanhedrim as a Medly of ill connected Fables not worth our Regard; yet we doubt not but that there was somewhat of a Council always in Being, who met together, and heard Causes, and made their Report to the Supreme Civil Magiftrate, and to the Prieft; according to which they determin'd Matters, not as obliged by the Report, but fo as their own Difcretionary Judgment might direct them when they had heard

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it. Their Sanhedrim, indeed, under the Afmonean Princes, grew quite another thing, and took upon them what their former Councils never pretended to: But both of them were a kind of Church Representative, the Prince and the High Prieft being in their Head: And we find, that they exercis'd Difcipline upon those who were guilty of Errors in Matters of Divine Worship, and upon those who were guilty of Immoralities; either of them Faults of fuch a Nature as must reflect severely upon that Church or Nation to which the guilty Perfons belong. Now it being the great Bufinefs of Spiritual Inftruors to bring Men, if poffible, to live agreeably to the Principles of that Religion they profefs; it could be no Wonder that those who were the Priests of the Moft High God, fhould take Notice of all manner of vicious Extravagances. It is true, fome Vices or Immoralities have that fatal Influence upon Civil Government; that Secular Princes are under a Neceffity of repreffing them bytheir own particular Laws: But tho' as irregular Members of the State,they juftly fall under the Cenfures of the State ; yet as diforderly Members of the Church, they subject themfelves to the Cenfures of the Church too: only a larger room was left for Repentance under Spiritu al,than under Temporal,Judicial Determinations, Hence the Jewish Priesthood took Cognisance of the Breach of any of thofe Commandments which had been given them by God: So Rebels, Murderers, Blafphemers, profane Perfons, Whoremongers, Adulterers, Thieves, Extortioners, the Intemperate and idle Part of the People, were the Subjects of their Difcipline. And then again, in Matters of Religion, Atheism, Polytheism and Ido

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Idolatry, fuch as the fetting up and Adoration of any graven Image, or the Likeness of any thing in Heaven above, or in the Earth beneath, or in the Waters under the Earth; vain Swearing, Perjury, the Breach of folemn Oaths and Vows, and any Breach of the Sabbattic Reft; thefe Things their Spiritual Governors were to enquire of, and Judgment was to be exercis'd upon Tranfgreflors according to the Sentence of the HighPrieft for the Time being.

I remember not, that we ever hear of any Separatifts from the Publick eftablifh'd Communion of the Jewish Church. Seets indeed they had in Religion, and Factions in the State: But except it were to follow downright Idolatry, I find not, that any withdrew from the Service of the Temple. Some, it is true, in those Days were ready with a Pharifaic Boaft to cry to their Brethren, Stand by your felves; Come not near us; we are holier than you. They were ready to ftile themselves, the People of God, nay, his more peculiar People and Children; or according to the Modern Phrafe, the only Regenerate People, the Elect of God, his holy ones; while they look'd upon the Vulgar Jews, tho' much the foberer as well as much the greater Number, to be only one great ignorant and unregenerate Mafs. The Pharifees, indeed, were modeft in thofe Days; they had only fome flying Sparks of that Pride among them, which their Chriftian Succeffors in thefe later Ages have blown up into the Sulphureous Flames of fhameless Impudence." But farther yet, among all the Follies of that Hypocritical Sea of the Pharifees, we have no Account of any private Conventicles which they held, or of any Meetings diftinct from thofe of

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