"thereby they may be lapfed to the king, that "they obtain prefentations from the king ad coro"borandum, and that thereupon they perfect all "their former neglects.

"And for the future I advise them, that they "firft have fome credible witneffes prefent, when "they make their fubfcription before the bifhop; "and that they atteft the bishops certificate; and "that they get two books of articles, and that, "when they read the thirty-nine Articles, they give "one of those books of articles to fome credible "parishioners, to read with them, and then attest "the book, that they were prefent, and heard the clerk read the faid thirty-nine Articles, during "the time of common-prayer, and declared his "unfeigned affent and confent to all the matters " and things therein contained, by subscribing their "names thereunto; and that the clergyman keep fafely the faid book of articles, with this atແ teftation. And I advise, that when he reads the "book of Common Prayer, which muft (as above "is faid) be read Morning and Evening, in all "things which are prefcrib'd therein within two "months after induction, that he likewife make "fome intelligent parishioners to read with him, " and give him a copy of the declaration afore"faid, and at the foot of it take an attestation "under their hands of his reading the fame book " of Common-Prayer and Declaration. Which may ❝ be done in this form.

"First, in a fair and legible hand, write the De"claration aforefaid. Then write under to this "effect. Memorandum, That, upon Sunday the "day of in the year of our Lord A. B. "Parfon of D in the county of D "read Common-Prayers in the parish church of " D aforefaid, both in the forenoon and "afternoon of the fame day; according to the form

"and

and order prescrib'd and directed by the book, "intitled, &c. And immediately after the reading "the fame, made a declaration of his unfeigned "affent and confent, to all the matters and things "therein contained, in the former words above "written. And then let the witneffes hereunto fub"fcribe the fame certificate: which the clerk is to "keep carefully with his inftitution, induction, and "certificate, with the book of articles, attefted as " is above directed, and, in these things, I advise all "clergymen to be very tender and careful."

Now the reader may note here, that the New Teftament, with the Apoftolick Conftitutions and Canons, and all the qualifications in the epiftles to Timothy and Titus are intirely omitted, and the whole is put upon the truth and certainty of the church of England's fettlements, as then by law established; without regard to any other rule whatfoever. To be fure Sir Richard Steel hit the mark, when he thus distinguished the two principal churches in Christendom, the church of Rome and the church of England, that the former pretended to be infallible; and the latter to be always in the right.

N. B. The reader must give me leave to tell him here another fact, which will hardly come in better any where elfe, but still relates fo directly to myself, that it ought not to be omited in thefe Memoirs of my own Life: It is this:

Soon after the acceffion of the houfe of Hanover to the throne, Sir Jofeph Jekyl, that moft excellent and upright mafter of the rolls, and fincere chriftian; Dr. Clark's and my very good friend; had fụch an opinion of us two, that we might be proper perfons to be made bishops, in order to our endeavouring to amend what was amifs in the church; and had a mind to feel my pulfe, how I would relifh fuch a propofal, if it ever fhould be made me: my answer was direct and sudden; that I would not fign the xxxx Ar

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ticles to be archbishop of Canterbury: to which Sir Jofeph reply'd, that bifhops are not obliged to fign thofe articles. I faid I never knew fo much before. But still I added, if I were a bishop I muft oblige others to fign them; which would go forely againft the grain with me. However, I added further, that fuppofing I fhould get over that fcruple, and efteem this act only as ministerial; which would by no means imply my own approbation, yet when I were a bishop, I fhould certainly endeavour to govern my diocefe by the chriftian rules, in the Apoftolical Conftitutions, and in St. Paul's epiftles to Timothy and Titus: which as they would frequently contradict the laws of the land, would certainly expofe me to a præmunire, to the forfeiture of all my goods to the crown, and to imprisonment as long as the king pleafed. And this, concluded I, would be the end of bishop Whifton. So I thought no more of it. I might have added alfo, what would for ever exclude me from a bishoprick in the present state of the church, the 31ft Canon of the apoftles. If any bishop makes use of the rulers of this world, and by their means obtains to be a bishop of a church, let him be deprived and fufpended, and all that communicate with him. See my Chriftian Difcipline, page 56.

I conclude this matter with that very pertinent and emphatical reply, which a fellow of Emanuel college in Cambridge made to a friend of his of the fame college, when at the Reftoration; wherein, by Mr. Baxter's account, 1800 clergymen [a prodigious number this] were deprived for non-conformity, he had been reprefenting the great difficulties of conformity in point of confcience; concluding, however, with thefe Words: But we must live. To which the other answered only, with the like number of words, But we muft die. Than which a better anfwer could not poffibly be given.

Upon

Upon this occafion of the turning out 1800 peaceable clergymen in England out of their cures, into the wide world, for Non-conformity, 1662, and upon occafion of the indignity put upon the very name of Non-conformists, by the publick vogue ever fince: As also upon occafion of the turning out of no small number of clergymen in England and Scotland, 1689, for being Non-jurors; and the like indignity put upon the very name of Non-jurors by the publick vogue ever fince; I cannot but remark how unjustly this is done in both cafes; fince it appears that those Non-conformifts and Non-juring clergymen, whether they were in the right or wrong, have acted most against their worldly intereft, and according to the confciences of all their brethren; and deferve real honour on those accounts. And I cannot but fear that a time will come hereafter, when the tables will be turned, and many ambitious Conformifts and Jurors will be in evil cafe; and even the names of Conformifts and Jurors will be rather in reproach; because they seem'd to prefer their intereft to their confcience in this world.

N. B. Our late addreffes to the crown, nay, our prayers and fermons ftill call our prefent conftitution in church and state, an Happy Conftitution. I cannot join in the epithet happy: Since I verily think it a most unhappy one, as having not the leaft diftinct regard to the laws of God, to the Bible, or to Chriftianity, in any of our courts, civil or temporal; nay, not in our ecclefiaftical or spiritual courts neither. To say nothing more of the permiffion of a bishop to be Non-refident for fix years together, and yet to be prefer'd afterward to three other bishopricks fucceffively of the like permiffion of bifhops, as well as priests and deacons, to marry twice, nay thrice, nay four times, and ftill to give them leave to officiate as bishops, priefts, and deacons ftill; Contrary to the known laws of the gospel, not only

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recorded in the Apoftolical Conftitutions and Canons, but in the ordinary books of the New-Teftament. See my Christian Difcipline, page 31-38, and my Friendly Addrefs to the Baptifts.

Nor can I do other than pity, heartily pity, every good proteftant king and queen of England; as well as every good proteftant A. B. of Canterbury fince the Reformation; between whom the old ufurped power of the pope of Rome, as pretended head of the church, is now divided by act of parliament, for granting those difpenfations, as to the laws of Chrift and the Apoftolical Canons, which quite enervate chriftian difcipline, and almoft fet afide the chriftian religion in this kingdom.

But before I proceed farther, give me leave to try to fhame thofe called chriftians, to act with more regard to the Bible and the laws of chriftianity than they do at prefent, by producing a moft remarkable relation, taken out of Prince Cantemir's Hiftory of the Ottomans, page 103, 104, 105, which will clearly fhew, how vaftly greater regard the Turks pay to their Coran, than we do to our Bible. The history is this. When Sultan Mahomet II. took Conftantinople, A. D. 1453, it was part of it taken by force; and in that part the christian religion was fupprefs'd. But the other part was delivered up by compofition; and an agreement was made that the chriftian religion fhould be preferved, as well as the churches and clergy thereto belonging. This toleration was enjoyed till the reign of Sultan Selim I. who had a mind to force all the chriftians to turn Mahometans, as the only way to their falvation. Accordingly, when the Mufty was once with him, he asked him, " Whether it was "moft meritorious, to fight for the propagation of "the true religion, and the falvation of fouls, or "for temporal dominion?" The Mufty was not throughly