1.TH

Holy-Days.

HEY fay the Church impofes Holy-Days, there's no fuch thing, tho' the Number of Holy-Days is fet down in fome of our Common-Prayer Books. Yet that has relation to an Act of Parliament, which forbids the keeping of any Holy-Days in time of Popery; but those that are kept, are kept by the Cuftom of the Country, and I hope you will not fay the Church impofes that.

1.

Humility.

UMILITY is a Virtue all preach, none practise,

H and yet every body is content to hear. The

Mafter thinks it good Doctrine for his Servant, the Laity for the Clergy, and the Clergy for the Laity.

2. There is Humilitas quædam in Vitio. If a Man does not take notice of that Excellency and Perfection that is in himself, how can he be thankful to God, who is the Author of all Excellency and Perfection? Nay if a Man hath too mean an Opinion of himself, 'twill render him unferviceable both to God and Man.

3. Pride may be allow'd to this or that degree, elfe a Man cannot keep up to his Dignity. In Gluttony there must be Eating, in Drunkenefs there must be drinking; 'tis not the eating, nor 'tis not the drinking that is to be blam'd, but the Excefs. So in Pride.

Joolatry.

DOLATRY is in a Man's own Thought, not in the Opinion of another. Put cafe I bow to the Altar, why am I guilty of Idolatry? because a stander by thinks fo; I am fure I do not believe the Altar to be God, and the God I worship may be bow'd to in all places, and at all times.

G%

1. IOD at the firft gave Laws to all Mankind, but afterwards he gave peculiar Laws to the Jews, which they were only to obferve. Juft as we have the common Law for all England, and yet you have fome Corporations, that befides that have peculiar Laws and Privileges to themselves.

2. Talk what you will of the Jews, that they are curfed, they thrive whereever they come, they are able to oblige the Prince of their Country, by lending him Money; none of them beg, they keep together, and for their being hated, my Life for yours, Chriftians hate one another as much.

1.

Invincible Ignorance.

TIS all one to me if I am told of Chrift, or fome Mystery of Christianity, If am not ca pable of understanding, as if I am not told at all, my Ignorance is as invincible, and therefore 'tis vain to call their ignorance only invincible, who never were told of Chrift. The trick of it is to advance the Prieft, whilft the Church of Rome fays a Man must be told of Chrift by one thus and thus ordain'd.

Images.

THE

Images.

1. THE Papifts taking away the fecond Commandment, is not haply fo horrid a thing, nor fo unreafonable amongft Chriftians as we make it: For the Jews could make no figure of God, but they must commit Idolatry, because he had taken no fhape; but fince the Affumption of our Flesh, we know what fhape to picture God in. Nor do I know why we may not make his Image, provided we be fure what it is; as we fay St. Luke took the picture of the Virgin Mary, and St. Veronica of our Saviour. Otherwife it would be no honour to the King, to make a Picture, and call it the King's Picture, when 'tis nothing like him.

2. Though the learned Papifts pray not to Images, yet 'tis to be fear'd the ignorant do; as appears by that Story of St. Nicholas in Spain. A Countryman us'd to offer daily to St. Nicholas's Image, at length by mifchance the Image was broken, and a new one made of his own Plum-Tree; after that the Man forbore, being complain'd of to his Ordinary, he anfwer'd, 'tis true, he us'd to offer to the old Image, but to the new he could not find in his Heart, because he knew 'twas a piece of his own Plum-Tree. You fee what Opinion this Man had of the Image, and to this tended the bowing of their Images, the twinkling of their Eyes, the Virgin's Milk, &c. Had they only meant Representations, a Picture would have done as well as thele Tricks. It may be with us in England they do not worship Images, becaufe living amongst Proteflants they are either laugh'd out of it, or beaten out of it by fhock of Argument.

3. 'Tis

3. 'Tis a difcreet way concerning Pictures in Churches, to fet up no new, nor to pull down no

old.

1.

TH

Imperial Conftitutions.

HEY fay Imperial Constitutions did only confirm the Canons of the Church; but that is not fo, for they inflicted Punishment, when the Canons never did; (viz.) If a man converted a Chriftian to be a Jew, he was to forfeit his eftate, and lofe his Life. In Valentine's Novels, 'tis faid, Conftat Epifcopos Forum Legibus non habere, & Judicant tantum de Reli gione.

Imprisonment.

1. SIR IR Kenelme Digby was feveral times taken and let go again, at laft imprifoned in Winchester Houfe. I can compare him to nothing but a great Fish that we catch and let go again, but fill he will come to the Bait, at last therefore we put him into fome great Pond for Store.

Incendiaries.

ANCY to yourself a Man fets the City on & and that

means of others, 'till it comes to White-Fryars, and then he that begun it would fain quench it, does not he deserve to be punish'd most that first fet the City on Fire? So 'tis with the Incendiares of the State. They that first fet it on Fire, [by Monopolizing, Forreft Business, Imprifoning Parliament-Men tertio Caroli, &c.] are now become regenerate, and would fain C

quench

quench the Fire; certainly they deferved most to be panish'd for being the firft caufe of our Distractions.

1.

от

Independency.

Ndependency is in use at Amsterdam, where forty Churches of Congregations have nothing to do one with another. And 'tis no queftion agreeable to the Primitive times, before the Emperor became Chriftian: For either we muft fay every Church govern'd itself, or else we must fall upon that old foolish Rock, that St. Peter and his Succellors govern'd all ; but when the civil State became Chriftian they appointed who fhould govern them, before they govern'd by agreement and confent: if you will not do this, you fhall come no more amongst us, but both the Independant Man, and the Prefbyterian Man, do equally exclude the civil Power, tho' after a different manner.

2. The Independant may as well plead, they should not be fubject to Temporal Things, not come before a Conftable or a Juftice of Peace, as they plead they fhould not be fubject in spiritual things, because St. Paul says, Is it fo, that there is not a Wife Man amongst you?

The

3. The Pope challenges all Churches to be under him; the King and the two Arch-Bishops challenge all the Church of England to be under them. Prefbyterian Man divides the Kingdom into as many Churches as there be Prefbyteries, and your Independant would have every Congregation a Church by it felf.