A Christian Directory, Part 4: Christian Politics
5. He will know those men, whom he is concerned to use, and to judge of, as far as may be, by personal acquaintance and observation; and not by the partial reports of adversaries, behind their backs: and so he will neither be deceived in his instruments, nor disappointed by them.
6. He will call together the wise, peace-making persons; and with the strictest charge, commit to them the endeavours of reconciling and uniting the several parties; by drawing their differences into the narrowest compass, and stating them more correctly than passionate men do; and by persuading them to love and peace, and to all such abatements and forbearances, as are necessary. And his own prudent oversight and authority (like Constantine's at Nice) will facilitate the success.
7. He and his people will inquire, what terms of concord are meet, not only for some one corner or country, but for all the christian world; that when he hath found it out, he and his kingdom may be a pattern to all christendom, and the spring and leaven of a universal concord of all christians.
8. Therefore, he will inquire of Vincent. Lirinensis, Catholic Terms of Quod, 1. Ab omnibus. 2. Ubique. 3. Semper, receptum est.
(1.) What all christians are agreed in, as christians, in the essentials of their religion.
(2.) What all christians did agree on, in the apostles' time, which was the time of greatest light, love, and purity.
(3.) What all christians, in all kingdoms of the world, since then, to this day, in the midst of all their other differences, have been and still are agreed in, as their religion.
For he will see, that there is no hope of agreeing the disagreeing world (at least, in many an age) by changing men's judgments from what they are, and bringing them all in controverted things to the mind of some party; nor to agree them on any terms, in which they do not really agree. But that their concord must be founded in that, which they are indeed all agreed in; leaving the superfluities or additions of each party, out of the agreement.
9. The peace-makers will then find, that the christian religion is contained in three forms.
(1.) In the sacramental covenant with God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, as the briefest formula.
(2.) In the creed, Lord's prayer, and decalogue; as the summaries of the credenda, appetenda, and agenda, matters of faith, will, (or desire,) and practice, as the larger form.
(3.) In that canon of Scripture, which all the churches receive, as the largest form or continent.
And that he who is understandingly a sacramental covenanter with God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, was ever taken for a visible christian. And therefore baptism was called our christening; and the baptized taken for christians, before they knew the controversies of this church, or that: and that the competent, explicit understanding of the creed, the Lord's prayer, and decalogue, was ever taken for a competent understanding of the sacramental covenant, and more. And that he that implicitly receiveth the commonly received canonical Scripture, as God's word, (though he understand no more than as followeth,) and that explicitly understandeth the creed, Lord's prayer, and decalogue, and receiveth them, and consenteth to the sacramental covenant, always was accounted, and is still to be accounted, a christian. On these terms, therefore, the peace-makers will resolve to endeavour the union of the churches.
10. Therefore they will pare off, and cast away, (as the greatest enemy to unity,) all those unnecessary controversies, or things doubtful, which christians (yea, or divines) were never agreed in, and which never were the happy and successful means or terms of any extensive concord; and which have long been tried to be the great occasions of all the scruples, and contentions, and divisions, and woeful consequents in the churches. And they will once more say, "It seemeth good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things," Acts xv. 28. All christians shall, in general, receive the canonical Scripture as God's word; and more particularly, the creed, Lord's prayer, and decalogue, as the summary of necessaries; and shall profess, with competent understanding of it, their consent to the sacramental covenant; and vow and devote themselves therein to God. And this shall be all the title, which they shall be forced to show, for their visible church communion. And though a higher measure of the understanding of the same principles and rules, shall be required in teachers, than in the flock; and accordingly, the ordainers shall try their understandings, together with their utterance and ministerial readiness of parts; yet shall the teachers themselves be (ordinarily) forced to no other subscriptions, professions, or oaths, (besides their civil allegiance,) than to assent and consent to all aforesaid; and to promise ministerial fidelity in their places. All councils, called general or provincial, canons, decretals, articles, formulas, rubrics, &c. shall be reserved to their proper use; but be no more used for insnaring and dividing subscriptions, professions, or oaths; or made the engines to tear the churches.
11. When all those superfluities, and foot-balls of contention, are cast out of the way, the power of the keys, or pastoral government, shall come to be better known and exercised, and the primitive discipline set up; which took place before Cyril of Alexandria took up the sword, and pride swelled the bishops into a secular state, and way of rule. Then it shall be church government, to see that the people be duly taken into the sacramental covenant, and learn the creed, Lord's prayer, and decalogue; and be instructed in the word of God, and live together in sobriety, righteousness, and godliness. And the pastors shall leave secular matters to the magistrates; and be no more troubled nor corrupted by their use of any forcing power: their government shall be a paternal, authoritative exercise of instruction, and of love, and no more; like that of a tutor to his pupils, a physician in his hospital, a philosopher in his school (supposing a divine commission and rule). The church itself shall be all their courts, (supposing the magistrates,) and the people the witnesses; and the present incumbent pastors be the judges, without excommunicating and absolving lay-chancellors, surrogates, commissaries, or officials. And all the materials of contention being now gone, they shall have nothing to do in these courts, but to try whether the people have learned and understand their catechisms, and consent to God's covenant, and communicate in his worship with the church; and when any are accused of wicked living, contrary to sobriety, righteousness, and godliness, to try whether these accusations be well proved: and if so, to persuade the offenders to repent; and by plain Scripture arguments, to convince them of the sin; and with tears, or fatherly tenderness and love, to melt them into remorse, and bring them to confess and forsake the sin. And if this cannot be done at once, to try again and again, and pray for their repentance. And, when there is no other remedy, to declare such a one openly incapable of church communion; and to require the church to avoid communion with him, and him to forbear intruding into their communion: and to bind him over by a ministerial denunciation of God's displeasure, (as against the impenitent,) to answer it at the bar of God himself; as one that is under his wrath, till he do repent. And this is the utmost of the pastoral power that shall then be used (supposing private admonitions): and this only in that church or congregation wherein the sinner had before his communion; and not at a distance, nor in other churches, or parts of the world, where the pastor hath no charge. Yea, this much shall not be exercised irregularly, and at random, to the injury of the flock; but under the rules and remedies afterward here expressed.
12. The primitive church form shall be restored: and as (where there are christians enough) no churches shall be too small, so none shall be greater for number or distance, than to be one true particular church; that is, a society of christians united as pastor and people, for personal communion and assistance in God's public worship, and holy living: that is, so many as may have this personal communion, if not all at once, yet per vices, as oft as is fit for them to meet with the church (which all in a family cannot usually do at once). So that Ignatius's church mark shall be restored, To every church there is one altar, and one bishop, with his fellow-presbyters and deacons. And there shall no more be a hundred, or six hundred, or a thousand altars to one bishop, primi gradus, and in one church of the first form, called a particular church. Nor shall all the particular churches be unchurched for want of true bishops; nor all their pastors degraded into a new order of teaching ministers, that have no power of pastoral government; nor the true discipline of the churches be made a mere impossible thing, whilst it is to be exercised by one bishop only over many hundred congregations, which do every one of them afford full work for a present bishop. Nor shall the bishop's office be thought so little holy, any more than preaching, and sacramental administrations, as to be performable by a lay-delegate, or any one that is not really a bishop. But the people shall know them that are "over them in the Lord, which labour among them, and admonish them; and shall esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake; and shall be at peace among themselves," 1 Thess. v. 12, 13. Such bishops as Dr. Hammond in his "Annotations" describeth; that had but one church, and preached, baptized, catechised, visited the sick, took care of the poor, administered the Lord's supper, guided every congregation as at present in public worship, and privately instructed and watched over all the flocks; shall be in every church that can obtain such.
13. Where the churches are so great as to need, (as most will do,) and so happy as to obtain, many faithful presbyters or pastors, whether they shall live together in a single college life, or married, and at a distance; and whether one as the chief, or bishop, shall be president, and have a negative voice, or all be equal in a concordant guidance of the flocks; shall be left to the choice and liberty of the several churches, by mutual consent of pastors, and people, and magistrates, to do and vary, as their several states and exigences shall require: and shall neither be called antichristian or odious tyranny on the one side, nor made of necessity to the church's communion or peace on the other, as long as the true pastoral or episcopal office is exercised in every particular church.
14. Neither magistrates nor other bishops shall make the bishop's or pastor's sermons and prayers for him; but leave it as the work of the speaker's office, to word his own sermons and prayers; and to choose a set form or no set form, the same or various, as the case requireth: yet so as to be responsible (as after) for all abuses and mal-administrations, and not suffered to deprave God's worship, by confusion or hurtful errors, or passionate and perverse expressions; but to be assisted and directed to use his office in the most edifying ways, by such kind of helps as his personal weaknesses shall require. And where set forms are used, none shall quarrel with them as unlawful.
15. None of the people shall have the high privileges of church communion and sacraments bestowed on them, against their wills; no more than a man impenitent and unwilling, shall be ministerially absolved from the guilt of sin. For every sacramental administration, whether of baptism, or of the body and blood of Christ, is as full an act of ministerial absolution as any pastor can perform: and what he doth to particular persons upon their penitence after a lapse, that the pastor doth to the whole church at the Lord's supper. And as consent is made by Christ the condition of pardon and covenant benefits, which no non-consenter hath a title to; so therefore professed consent is necessary to the sacramental collation or investiture: and those that are but constrained by the apparent danger of a fine or gaols, are not to be accounted voluntary consenters by the church; when the Lord of the church will account none for consenters, that will not forsake all, and endure fines and gaols, rather than to be deprived of the benefits of mystical and visible church communion. The magistrate therefore will wisely, and moderately, bring all the people to hear that which is necessary to their good; but will not by penalties force the unwilling to receive either absolutions or communion with the church, in its special privileges. But if the baptized refuse church communion afterwards, they lamentably punish themselves; and if it be found meet to declare them excommunicate, it will be a terrible penalty, sufficient to its proper use.
16. The magistrate will not imprison, harm, confiscate, banish, or otherwise punish any of his subjects, eo nomine, because they are excommunicate; for that is to punish his body because his soul is punished. Nor will he hearken to those unbelieving clergymen, that cry up the power of the keys as their office; and when they have done, scorn it as an ineffectual shadow of power, which will do nothing without the magistrate's force. But he will himself hear and judge before he punish, and not be debased to be the clergy's executioner, to punish before he have tried the cause; because clergymen's pride and passions may else engage him to be the instrument of their vices and revenge. Yea, as he that seeth a man punished in one court, will be the more dilatory to bring him to punishment in another, for the same crime; so the magistrate that seeth a man excommunicated for his fault, will rather delay his civil force against that man, to see what effect his excommunication will have: because the conjunction of the sword against the excommunicate as such, doth corrupt Christ's ordinance, and make the fruit of it utterly undiscernible, so that no one can see whether ever it did any thing at all, or whether all was done by the fear of the sword. And verily, a faithful minister, that seeth a sinner come to confession of his fault, but when he must else lie in gaol and be undone, will be loth to take that man for a true penitent. And to force pastors to absolve or give the sacrament to every one that had rather take it than lie in gaol and be undone, is to set up such new terms of church communion, which Christ will give men little thanks for. Church communion is only a privilege due to volunteers and penitents. But yet the magistrate may punish men with fines or other penalties for the same faults for which they are excommunicated, having tried and judged them in his own court; but not "quarterus" excommunicate, but according to the nature of the crime.
17. The schools of learning, and academies, shall not educate youth either in idleness, luxury, or hypocritical formality; but under learned, pious tutors, in learning sobriety and piety; from whence they shall not over-hastily leap into the pastoral office.
18. None under thirty years of age (at what time Christ himself entered on his public works) shall take a pastoral charge, except in case of mere necessity of the church, no, not on pretence of extraordinary fitness; but till then shall employ themselves as learners, catechists, schoolmasters, or probationers. Nor shall they meddle in the pulpits with matters of such controversies as the church is in danger to be troubled with.
19. Ministers shall all be commanded by the magistrate, and advised by the neighbour pastors, to forbear all unnecessary controversies in the pulpits; and to teach the people the foresaid substantials, the covenant of grace, the creed, Lord's prayer, and decalogue, the duties of faith, love, repentance, and obedience; and shall reserve their subtle and curious speculations for schools and theological writings: and so the christian people shall be bred up in the primitive, plain simplicity of doctrine and religion; and their brains shall not be heated and racked with those new-coined phrases and subtleties, which will but distemper them into a proud, contentious, wrangling disease; but will not be truly understood by them, when all is done. And so, when it is the people's work to hear only (usually) the doctrine of the catechism, and simple old christianity, and to talk of no other; 1. Their time will be employed in promoting faith, repentance, love, and obedience, which was wont to be spent in vain janglings and strife of words. And, 2. Religion will be an easier thing; and, consequently, will be more common (as cheap food and raiment is every one's pennyworth): and ministers may hope to bring the generality of their people to be savingly and practically religious: whereas the fine-spun religion of novelists, and wranglers, that pretend new light and increase of knowledge, doth not only dwindle into a cobweb of no use, or life, or power; but must be confined to a few, that can have leisure to learn to talk in new phrases, and will but become the matter of ignorant men's pride and ostentation; and make them think, that they only are the religious people; and all that cannot talk as they, are profane, and not to be admitted to their communion. Whenas the apostolic, primitive, plain religion, without the laces, and whimsies, that dreamers have since introduced, would make men humble, holy, heavenly, obedient, meek, and patient; and spare men the loss of a great deal of time.
20. The maintenance of the ministry shall neither be so poor, as to discourage men from devoting their children to the office, or disable them from a total addictedness to their proper work, by any distracting wants or cares; nor yet wholly disable them from works of charity: nor yet so great, as may be a strong bait to proud, covetous, worldly-minded men, to intrude into the ministry for fleshly ends. It shall be so much, as that the burden of their calling may not be increased by want; but yet not so much, but that self-denial shall be exercised by all that undertake the ministry; and of the two, the burden of the ministerial labours, with its proper sufferings, shall to flesh and blood seem to preponderate the worldly advantage. So greatly needful is it to the church, that all ministers be self-denying men; that valuing things spiritually can practise humility, mortification, and contempt of the world, as well as preach it.
21. There shall be a treble lock upon the door of the ministry: —
(1.) Whether they are fit to be ministers in general, the ordainers shall judge.
(2.) Whether they are fit to be the pastors of this or that particular church, the members of the church shall so far judge, as that none shall become their pastors without their own consent.
(3.) Whether they be fit for the magistrate's countenance, maintenance, and protection, the magistrate himself shall judge.
And therefore, all three shall severally try and approve each pastor: yet so, that the two first only be taken as necessary to the office itself; and the third only to the maintenance and encouragement or defence of the officer. And though sometimes this may occasion disagreements and delays for a time; yet, ordinarily, the securing of a faithful ministry, and other good effects, will countervail many such inconveniences.
22. No one church shall have the government of another church; and the secular differences of metropolitans, patriarchs, &c. which was set up in one empire, upon secular accounts, and from secular reasons, shall all cease. And no differences shall be made necessary among them, which Christ hath not made necessary. But christian princes shall take warning by the Greek and Latin churches, and by all the calamities and ruins which have been caused in the christian world, by bishops striving who should be the greatest, when Christ decided the controversy long ago, Luke xxii.
23. As christians hold personal, christian communion, in their several particular churches; so churches hold a communion of churches, by necessary correspondencies and associations: not making a major vote of bishops in synods, to have a proper government over the minor part; but that by counsel and concord, that may help and strengthen one another, and secure the common interest of christianity. And that he that is a member of one church, may be received of the rest; and he that is cast out of one, may not be received by the rest, unless he be wronged. So that it shall not be one politic church, but a communion of churches.
24. The means of this communion shall be,
(1.) By messengers.
(2.) By letters and certificates communicatory.
(3.) By synods.
25. These synods shall, as to a few neighbour churches, be ordinary and stated; and the meetings of ministers in them shall be improved,
(1.) To the directing and counselling of one another, in matters doubtful; especially of discipline.
(2.) To edify each other by conference, prayer, and disputations.
(3.) That the younger may be educated under the grave advice and counsels of the elder.
(4.) That the concord of themselves, and the churches under them, may be preserved.
But if they would grow imperious, tyrannical, heretical, or contentious, the magistrate shall hinder their stated, ordinary meetings; that it be not accounted a thing simply necessary, nor used to the disturbance of the church or state. And all provincial, national, and larger councils, shall be held by the magistrate's consent.
26. He that taketh himself to be wrongfully excommunicated in one church, shall have a treble remedy:
(1.) To have his cause heard by the associated pastors of the neighbour churches; though not as rulers of the bishop or pastor of that particular church, yet as counsellors, and such whose judgment bindeth to concord in lawful things.
(2.) To be admitted by another church, if it appear that he is wronged. And,
(3.) To appeal to the magistrate, as the preserver of justice and order in all societies.
27. The magistrate shall appoint some of the most grave, and wise, and godly, and moderate of the ministers, to have a general inspection over many churches; and to see that they be well taught and ordered, and that pastors and people do their duty: who shall therefore oft visit them, and shall instruct and exhort the younger ministers; and with the countenance of the magistrate, and their own seniority and ability, shall rebuke the slothful and faulty ministers; and persuade them to diligence and fidelity: but shall exercise no outward force by the sword; nor any excommunication by themselves alone, or otherwise than in the aforesaid regular way.
28. All ordinations shall be performed, (except in case of necessity,) either in the assembly of the associated pastors, with their president; or in the vacant church, by some of them, appointed by the rest; or by the general visitor, last mentioned, with a competent number of assistants. But still, an ordination to the ministry in general, shall not be taken to be formally the same as the affixing him to this or that church in particular; nor more than the licensing of a physician is the same with the affixing him to a particular hospital.
29. A catalogue shall be drawn up of some of the greatest verities, which are not expressly found in the creed, Lord's prayer, or decalogue; which, as the articles of confession of the associated churches of the nation, shall serve for these three uses: —
(1.) To satisfy all foreign churches, against any accusation, that they are orthodox.
(2.) To examine the knowledge of such as are admitted to the ministry by (but not to be subscribed, unless only as to a general acknowledgment of the soundness of their doctrine; without saying that, There is nothing faulty in them).
(3.) To be a rule of restraint to ministers, in their preaching; that none be allowed publicly, after admonition, to preach against any doctrine contained in them.
30. The usurped ecclesiastical power of bishops, and presbyteries, and councils, (which were coercive, or imitated secular courts, or bound the magistrate to execute their decrees,) being cast out, and all pastors restrained from playing the bishops in other churches, out of their own charge, the magistrate shall exercise all coercive church government himself; and no more trust the sword directly, or indirectly, in the hands of the clergy, who have long used it so unhappily, to the disturbance of the christian world, and the shedding of so much innocent blood. Where it may be had, there shall be a church justice, or magistrate, in every considerable parish; who, being present, shall himself hear how ministers preach, and behave themselves among their people. And all ministers and churches shall be responsible to the magistrate, for all abuses, and mal-administration. If any minister preach or pray seditiously, abusively, factiously, railingly, against tolerable dissenters, to the destroying of christian love and unity; or heretically, to the danger of the people's souls; or shall exercise tyranny over the people, or live a vicious life; or be negligent in his office of teaching, worship, or discipline, or otherwise grossly misbehave himself; he shall be responsible both (as aforesaid) to the associated pastors and visitor, (or archbishop,) and also to the magistrate; who shall rebuke and correct him, according to the measure of his offence. And it shall appear, that the magistrate is sufficient for all coercive church government, without all the clergy's usurpations; which uphold the Roman and other tyrannical societies.
