or Rule. He faith, that he was at feveral Councils, particularly that he was at that General, and Creedmaking one of Conftantinople. Where the Reader may obferve where his Core at Councils lies; it was a Creed-making Council; it made that Creed which our Ancestors ufed a Thousand Years ago, and we ftill ufe in the Communion-Service, and Gregory was one of the Chief Creed-makers in it; and if his Teftimony is good against the Heats, and passionate Debates which happen'd in the Council about himself, it is as good for the Creed. Nay, if he is a teftable Perfon, his Teftimony must be taken in behalf of the first General Council of Nice; for he was a great Impugner of the Arians, of whom our Author, and the Theistical Club are great admirers, and a zealous Defender of the Nicene Faith. He profeffes fo much in his 49th Oration, tranflated by Ruffinus, but more especially in his 21 Oration, in Praife of that Creed-making Rafcal ATHANASIUS; where he calls the Synod the Holy Synod, and the Fathers the Holy Fathers; and therefore if he is a good Witnefs, there was one Synod at least, and that a General one, that determined nothing in prejudice of the true Religion. Nay, if his Teftimony is to be taken, the Sacerdotal, and Regal Power are distinct from, and independent of one another, as he may fee in the 202, and 233 Pages of this Book.

In the rest of the Chapter he hath raked together out of feveral Writers a very invidious account of the ill Conduct of Councils, and of the Divifions, and Quarrels of Bishops in them, with his own Reflections, and Applications; which will fignifie nothing to wife, and ferious Men, who in this cafe can confider the difference between the Men, and the Priests; as in others of the like nature between the Men, and the Senators, or between the Man,

• Oper. Vol. I. p. 727.

and

and the King. All he hath maliciously scraped together on th melancholy Subject, amounts to no more than this, that Priefts, and Bifhops are Men, and not Angels, Men of like Paffions, and Infirmities with others; and that every one of them may fay, as Siracides makes Solomon fpeak of himself : I my felf alfo am a mortal Man, like to all, and the Off-fpring of him, that was first made of Earth. Priefts therefore like Kings, and Princes, and Senators, and Judges, are at best but frail Men; and our Authors way of arguing against them in their Single, or Synodical Capacity from their Miscarriages, is in effe&t to Impeach the Wisdom of God in making mortal Men Priests, and to argue Chriftianity out of the World. Julian the Apoftate, who knew the Divifions, and Parties, and Quarrels that had been among Christian Priests both in, and out of Synods better than our Author, was a better Reafoner, than to make use of this Argument against them. He knew very well, that this way of reprefenting any Sort, or Rank, or Order of Mortals had no fenfe, tho' much of popular fallacy in it, and in reality was nothing but a Satyr on the Nature of Man; and the Differences among the Clergy in, or out of Councils never had that effect upon the Chriftians of ancient Times, as to make them defpife their Order, or disobey their Authority, much lefs to fufpect that Chriftian Priesthood, was but Prieftcraft. There were then no fuch Monsters among Chriftians, no fuch infernal Enemies to Priefthood, as our Author, and his Gang. For they did not only confider, that Priests were Men fubject to divers Temptations, and capable, like other Chriftians, of committing Sins of all Sorts, but believed alfo, that as the Devils, thofe Enemies of Chrift, were more diligent to tempt Chriftians, than other Men; fo they were bufier with Priefts, than other Chriftians, but never thought the Priesthood, or the Authority be

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longing to it, affected with the Miscarriages, or Fall of their Priests. At his way of speaking, what a fine Harangue might a Learned Few, or Mahometan make against Christianity from the former, and later Divifions of Chriftians, out of Chriftian Writers, with particular Reflections upon these Times, in which, to the great Dishonour of the Christian Religion, but without being a real Argument against the Truth of it, Chriftian Nations, and Kingdoms have for almost Twenty Years been fheathing their Swords in one anothers Bowels, to fay no worse, in most Unchriftian Wars, without a Sword being drawn in any part of the Unbelieving World.

His Words alfo in the Mouth, or from the Pen of a Saducee, or Theistical Jew, if ever there were any fuch, would have made a fine Flourish of no force against the Jewish Clergy, to perfuade his Readers, if he could, that the Mofaic Priesthood, and Inftitutions were all Priestcraft; and that Mofes (as a Theist lately faid) was a Cunning Fellow, who made himself King, and his Brother a Priest. The Golden Calf; the Sons of Eli, thofe Sons of Belial, who made themselves fo vile; the Priefts taking ftrange Wives in their Captivity; their polluting the Table of the Lord after it; all the Complaints in the Prophets against them, particularly in their Synodical Capacity, as Members of the Sanhedrim, would have been matter of a much more plausible; Harangue against the Priesthood then, than all our Author hath collected now; yet for all this, and much more, that might be added, the Jewish Princes, and People, ftill venerated their Priests for the fake of their Office, and that for the fake of its Divine Inftitution, and had any of them been fo wicked as this Author, as to write after his reproachful manner against the Priests, the whole Congregation would have ftoned him to Death.

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Our Lord, who knew the Wickedness of the Priests, and that he should be Crucified by them, never spoke against them as Priests, but was fubject to them, and bid those he cured to fhew themselves to them, and offer their Gifts according to the Law of Mofes. Whatever He, or his Apoftles, faid of them as Sinners, they never fpoke against the Priesthood, or against them as Priests and therefore it was blafpheming of him, and flandering of them, in their Table-talk, to say, that the Author of the Rights in fpeaking against Priests, did no more than Chrift, and his Apostles did.

But to proceed, his way of expofing, and deriding Ecclefiaftical Synods, is in effect Libelling all Temporal Senates, States, Dyets, and Parliaments, and arguing against thefe, as well as them. He cannot but know that the Senate of Rome, when a Commonwealth, was fo Corrupt, that they would have fold the City, and Citizens, if they could have found any to buy them; and that Tiberius the Emperor, when he went out of the Senate-Houfe, ufed to fay aloud in Greek, O homines ad fervitutem paratos! And Petronius in his Verfes of the Civil Wars, wrote thus of Senate, and People.

-Emptique Quirites

Ad predam, ftrepitumque lucri Suffragia vertunt
Venalis populus, Venalis Curia patrum.

He knows how the Jewish Sanhedrim, which was their Senate, Killed the Prophets, and Crucified their Saviour, and Murdered his Difciples. But there is no need of having recourfe to Jewish, and Heathenifh Affemblies of Men upon this unhappy Subject, Christian Hiftories being full of Examples of fuch Meetings, wherein ambitious, and defigning Men, and Men of the worst Principles, and Morals, have made moft fierce, and furious Contentions, formed bloody

bloody Parties, turned all Civil Order into Confufion, and involved their Countries in Broils, Wars, and Defolation; Reputation, and Honour, Shame, and Difgrace, which, as our Author speaks, frequently influence fingle Perfons, having quite loft their Force in fuch Bodies of Men. I need not go Abroad for luftances, the direful History of the Parliament, that begun in 1641, is a Proof, a deplorable domeftick Proof, and will be a Teftimony of what I fay in all Ages to come: And an Enemy of Parliaments, after his ill Logick, and worfe Example, may fay in his Words; The Conduct of Parliaments is a fufficient Demonftration against all their Pretences of doing Justice, fince that Cardinal, and benign Virtue is likelier to be found any where than in fuch Affemblies; and it would be strange if Right fhould be found to dwell, where Justice, and Humanity are feldom to be found. Nay, if our Author defires more Examples, let him confult Frynne, his dear Oracle Prynne, in his Preface to the Abridgment of the Records, and in his Seafanable, &c. Vindication of the Liberties of English Freemen, and there he will find great plenty.

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* Parliaments now, and then, either out of Hatred, Envy, Paffion, or compliance with fome potent, ambitious, popular fwaying Lords, and Grandees, have moft unjustly, illegally Condemned, Executed, Banished, Fined, Sentenced, Oppreffed fundry Innocent, and fome well-deferving Perfons without juft Caufe, Tryal, or duc Conviction of any real Crimes.

That all fuch Parliaments and ambitious Self-feekers in them, who under a pretence of publick Reformation, the Peoples Eafe, Welfare, dc.

We may difcern that as Parliaments are the best of all Courts, and Councils, when duly Summoned, Convened, Conftitured, Ordered, and kept within their legal Bounds: So they become the greatest Mischiefs, and Grievances to the Kingdom, when like the Ocean they overflow their Banks, or degenerate, and become through Sedition, Malice, Faction, Fear, or Infatuation by Divine Juftice, promoters of corrupt, finifter Ends, or Accomplishers of, &c.

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