A PREFACE TO THEM THAT SEEK (AS THEY TERM IT) THE REFORMATION OF THE LAWS AND ORDERS ECCLESIASTICAL IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. sion of these state things, and their what might be wished same1. in them, Jesus for whose THOUGH for no other cause, yet for this; that posterity The cause may know we have not loosely through silence permitted and occathings to pass away as in a dream, there shall be for men's handling information extant thus much concerning the present of the Church of God established amongst us, and careful endeavour which would have upheld the At your hands, beloved in our Lord and Saviour Christ, (for in him the love which we bear unto all that much pains would but seem to be born of him, it is not the sea of is taken. your gall and bitterness that shall ever drown,) I have no great cause to look for other than the selfsame portion and lot, which your manner hath been hitherto to lay on them that concur not in opinion and sentence with you2. sakes so Ch. i. 2. PREFACE. But our hope is, that the God of peace shall (notwithstanding man's nature too impatient of contumelious malediction) enable us quietly and even gladly to suffer all things, for that work sake which we covet to perform. [2.] The wonderful zeal and fervour wherewith ye have withstood the received orders of this church, was the first thing which caused me to enter into consideration, whether (as all your published books and writings peremptorily maintain) every Christian man, fearing God, stand bound to join with you for the furtherance of that which ye term the Lord's Discipline. Wherein I must plainly confess unto you, that before I examined your sundry declarations in that behalf, it could not settle in my head to think, but that undoubtedly such numbers of otherwise right well affected and most religiously inclined minds had some marvellous reasonable inducements, which led them with so great earnestness that way. But when once, as near as my slender ability would serve, I had with travail and care performed that part of the Apostle's advice and counsel in such cases, whereby he willeth to "try all things," and was come at the length so far, that there remained only the other clause to be satisfied, wherein he concludeth that "what good is "must be held ;" there was in my poor understanding no "glorie, might carie a man of such 66 us, and of thousands converted to "the gospel, you would in like "publike manner (but plainly and Ch. ii. 1. remedy, but to set down this as my final resolute persua- PREFACE sion: "Surely the present form of church-government "which the laws of this land have established is such, as "no law of God nor reason of man hath hitherto been "alleged of force sufficient to prove they do ill, who to "the uttermost of their power withstand the alteration "thereof." Contrariwise, "The other, which instead of "it we are required to accept, is only by error and misconceit "named the ordinance of Jesus Christ, no one proof as yet "brought forth whereby it may clearly appear to be so in very deed." [3] The explication of which two things I have here thought good to offer into your own hands, heartily beseeching you even by the meekness of Jesus Christ, whom I trust ye love; that, as ye tender the peace and quietness of this church, if there be in you that gracious humility which hath ever been the crown and glory of a Christianlydisposed mind, if your own souls, hearts, and consciences (the sound integrity whereof can but hardly stand with the refusal of truth in personal respects) be, as I doubt not but they are, things most dear and precious unto you let "not the faith which ye have in our Lord Jesus Christ" be blemished "with partialities;" regard not who it is which speaketh, but weigh only what is spoken. Think not that ye read the words of one who bendeth himself as an adversary against the truth which ye have already embraced; but the words of one who desireth even to embrace together with you the self-same truth, if it be the truth; and for that cause (for no other, God he knoweth) hath undertaken the burdensome labour of this painful kind of conference. For the plainer access whereunto, let it be lawful for me to rip up to the very bottom, how and by whom your discipline was planted, at such time as this age we live in began to make first trial thereof. II. 5A founder it had, whom, for mine own part, I think The first incomparably the wisest man that ever the French church establishdid enjoy, since the hour it enjoyed him. His bringing new disci 4 James ii. I. 5 [Compare the second chapter of Abp. Bancroft's Survey of the pre tended Holy Discipline: in which ment of Ch. ii. I. pline by Mr. Cal Geneva; and the of strife about it ourselves. PREFACE up was in the study of the civil law. Divine knowledge he gathered, not by hearing or reading so much, as by teaching others. For, though thousands were debtors to vin's indus- him, as touching knowledge in that kind; yet he to none try in the Church of but only to God, the author of that most blessed fountain, the Book of Life, and of the admirable dexterity of wit, beginning together with the helps of other learning which were his guides till being occasioned to leave France, he fell at the amongst length upon Geneva; which city the bishop and clergy thereof had a little before (as some do affirm) forsaken", being of likelihood frighted with the people's sudden attempt for abolishment of popish religion: the event of which enterprise they thought it not safe for themselves to wait A.D. 1536. for in that place. At the coming of Calvin thither, the form of their civil regiment was popular, as it continueth at this day neither king, nor duke, nor nobleman of any authority or power over them, but officers chosen by the people yearly out of themselves, to order all things with public consent. For spiritual government, they had no laws at all agreed upon, but did what the pastors of their souls by persuasion could win them unto. Calvin, being admitted one of their preachers, and a divinity reader amongst them, considered how dangerous it was that the whole estate of that church should hang still on so slender a thread as the liking of an ignorant multitude is, if it have power to change whatsoever itself listeth. Wherefore taking unto him two of the other ministers for more countenance of the action, (albeit the rest were all against it,) they moved, and in the end persuaded with much ado, the people to bind themselves by solemn oath, first never to admit the Papacy 66 66 6 [Pierre de la Baume, of a noble family in France, was the last bishop acknowledged in Geneva. "Il partit à la mi-Juillet [1533] pour se ranger au party de Savoye "contre la Ville." Besides the agitation occasioned by the new opinions, he was at the time engaged in a dispute with the Syndics regarding the judicial prerogative. Spon, Hist. de Genève, I. 344. Aug. 27, 1535, Protestantism was established by ordinance of the Syndics. ibid. p. 366.] 7 [Aug. 1536. He was on his way to Basle or Strasburgh, but went round by Geneva on account of the war, and was persuaded by Farel to remain. Spon, II. p. 14.] 8 [Farel and Couraut. Beza, Vit. Calv. prefixed to his Works. Gen. 1617 from which most of these particulars are taken.] 9 [20 July, 1537-] Ch. ii. 2. amongst them again; and secondly, to live in obedience unto PREFACE, such orders concerning the exercise of their religion, and the form of their ecclesiastical government, as those their true and faithful ministers of God's word had agreeably to scripture set down for that end and purpose. [2.] When these things began to be put in ure, the people also (what causes moving them thereunto, themselves best know) began to repent them of that they had done, and irefully to champ upon the bit they had taken into their mouths; the rather, for that they grew by means of this innovation into dislike with some churches near about them, the benefit of whose good friendship their state could not well lack 10. It was the manner of those times (whether through men's desire to enjoy alone the glory of their own enterprizes, or else because the quickness of their occasions required present despatch; so it was,) that every particular church did that within itself, which some few of their own thought good, by whom the rest were all directed. Such number of churches then being, though free within themselves, yet small, common conference beforehand might have eased them of much after trouble. But a greater inconvenience it bred, that every later endeavoured to be certain degrees more removed from conformity with the church of Rome, than the rest before had been 12 whereupon grew marvellous great dissimilitudes, and by reason thereof, jealousies, heart-burnings, jars and |