son indifferent whether I live or die, so I may by either, serve God, and God's church, and God's vicegerent, in the capacity of,

Great Sir,

Your Majesty's most humble,

And most obedient subject and servant,

JER. TAYLOR.

THE

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

ΤΟ

THE APOLOGY

FOR

AUTHORIZED AND SET FORMS OF LITURGY.

WHEN judges were instead of kings, and Hophni and Phinehas were among the priests, every man did what was right in his own eyes, but few did what was pleasing in the eyes of the Lord; and the event was this, God put on his fierce anger against them, and stirred up and armed the enemies of their country and religion, and they prevailed very far, against the expectation and confidence of them, who thought the goodness of their cause would have borne out the iniquity of their persons, and that the impiety of their adversaries would have disabled them even from being made God's scourges and instruments of punishing his own people the sadness of the event, proved the vanity of their hopes; for that which was the instrument of their worship, the determination of their religious addresses, the place where God did meet his people, from which the priests spake to God, and God gave his oracles, that they dishonourably and miserably lost: the ark of the Lord was taken, the impious priests, who made the sacrifice of the Lord to become an abomination to the people, were slain with the sword of the Philistines; old Eli lost his life, and the wife of Phinehas died with sorrow and the miscarriages of childbirth, crying out, "That the glory was departed from Israel, because the ark of God was taken."

2. In these things we also have been but too like the sons of Israel; for when we sinned as greatly, we also have groaned under as great and sad a calamity. For we have not only felt the evils of an intestine war, but God hath smitten us in our spirit, and laid the scene of his judgments especially in religion; he hath snuffed our lamp so near, that it is almost extinguished, and the sacred fire was put into a hole of the earth, even then when we were forced to light those tapers that stood upon our altars, that by this sad truth better than by the old ceremony we might prove our succession to those holy men, who were constrained to sing hymns to Christ, in dark places and retirements.

3. But I delight not to observe the correspondencies of such sad accidents, which as they may happen upon divers causes, or may be forced violently upon the strength of fancy, or driven on by jealousy, and the too fond openings of troubled hearts, and afflicted spirits; so they do but help to vex the offending part, and relieve the afflicted but with a fantastic and groundless comfort: I will, therefore, deny leave to my own affections to ease themselves by complaining of others: I shall only crave leave that I may remember Jerusalem, and call to mind the pleasures of the temple, the order of her services, the beauty of her buildings, the sweetness of her songs, the decency of her ministrations, the assiduity and economy of her priests and Levites, the daily sacrifice, and that eternal fire of devotion that went not out by day nor by night; these were the pleasures of our peace, and there is a remanent felicity in the very memory of those spiritual delights which we then enjoyed, as antepasts of heaven, and consignations to an immortality of joys. And it may be so again, when it shall please God who hath the hearts of all princes in his hand, and turneth them as the rivers of waters; and when men will consider the invaluable loss that is consequent, and the danger of sin that is appendant to the destroying forms of such discipline and devotion. in which God was purely worshipped, and the church was edified, and the people instructed to great degrees of piety, knowledge, and devotion.

4. And such is the liturgy of the church of England. I shall not need to enumerate the advantages of liturgy in general, though it be certain that some liturgy or other is

most necessary in public addresses, that so we may imitate the perpetual practice of all settled churches since Christianity, or ever since Moses' law, or the Jewish church came to have a settled foot, and any rest in the land of Canaan. 2. That we may follow the example, and obey the precept of our blessed Saviour, who appointed a set form of devotion; and certainly they that profess enmity against all liturgy, can in no sense obey the precept given by him, who gave command, "When ye pray, say, Our Father." 3. That all that come may know the condition of public communion, their religion, and manner of address to God Almighty. 4. That the truth of the proposition, the piety of the desires, and the honesty of the petitions, the simplicity of our purposes, and the justice of our designs may be secured before hand; because whatsoever is not of faith, is sin, and it is impossible that we should pray to God in the extempore prayers of the priest, by any faith, but unreasonable, unwarranted, insecure, and implicit. 5. That there may be union of hearts, and spirits, and tongues. 6. That there may be a public symbol of communion in our prayers, which are the best instruments of endearing us to God, and to one another; Kai auth προσευχὴ μὴ ἔχουσα τοὺς συμφωνοῦντας ἀνενδεεστέρα πολλῷ ἑαυτῆς. "Private prayer not assisted with the concord and unity of a public spirit, is weaker and less effectual," saith St. Basil. 7. That the ministers less learned, may have provisions of devotions made for them. 8. That the more learned may have no occasion of ostentation ministered to them, lest their best actions, their prayers, be turned into sin. 9. That extravagant levities, and secret impieties, be prevented. 10. That the offices ecclesiastical may the better secure the articles of religion. 11. That they may edify the people, by being repositories of holy and necessary truths ready formed out of their needs, and described in their books of daily use; for that was one of the advices of the apostle, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs.' 12. That men by the intervening of authority, may be engaged to certain devotions. 13. That not only the duty, but the very form of its ministration may be honoured by the countenance of authority, and not be exposed to con