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Sicily, acknowledg'd not the Pope's Authority, and bad Power to Abfolve, Punish, and Excommunicate all forts of Perfons, whether Laicks or Ecclefiafticks, Monks, Priefts, Abbots, Bishops, and even Cardinals, refiding in that Kingdom.

R. C. But this Spiritual Power was lodg'd next in a Child. Ibid.

C. E. I hope whatever Power was lodg'd in King Edward the VIth, you will not allow to be compar'd with what your Popes pretend to, and in particular with that of Pope John XI. of whom yet your own zealous Hiftorian Baronius fhews, (a) that he muft neceffarily have been Pope, and poffibly fome Years, under the Age of Eighteen. Or if this be not fufficient, it were easy to remind you, from the fame Raronius, of another Pope, I mean Benedict IX. invefted with the Pontifical Power, and fo made Head of the Church, in a far higher Senfe than King Edward pretended to, at (b) Ten or Twelve Years of Age. So that you might as well have let this Reflection alone, for any thing you will get by it; for you fee it is no fuch wonder amongst yourselves, to have a Boy made Head of the Church (c) and owned as fuch. But any thing ferves for an Objection against us, though at the fame time it bear ever fo much harder upon your felves.

R. C. But once more, You have not only given this Prerogative to a bluftering King, and to a Child, but to a Woman likewife. lbid.

C. E. And why I pray might not a Queen be call'd, The Head of the English Church, with as little Offence, as a Pope Joan could be Head of the Roman, and according to the Mo

(a) Anno 955. (b) Anno 1933. VI.

(c) VIL.

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dern Doctrine avowed by you all, of all other Churches? Yet the learned Marefius cites near Eighty Authors, and almost all of them your own, for the Proof of your having had fuch a Pope. And I am very confident, you will not be able to name any one Writer of any Authority, that ever took upon him to deny it, till the time of the Reformation. Befides that, it is worth your while to obfervé, what the forecited F. Simon relates of the Queens of Sicily; (a) That Jeeing in the Kingdom of Sicily, the Female fucceeded as well as in England, a Princess might take the Title of Head of the Church of Sicily, and of Beatiffimo & Santiffimo Padre. Nay, fays he,

bath happened fo already in the time of Joan of f Arragon and Caftile, the Mother of Charles V. Look now Sir, try whether you do not plainly fee your own Face, naturally and lively reprefented, in the Picture you been drawing for us. The truth is, it fits you much the better of the two; not only becaufe we give not now that Title of Head of the Church to our Princes, but because when they had it, it was always allow'd to imply much lefs in it, than has been for many Centuries affumed by your Popes, and afcrib'd to them by their Flatterers, whofoever or howfoever qualified they have been. As will plainly appear, if you will but be pleafed to caft your Eye upon the XXXVIIth Article of the Church of England, in which you will find (b) these words; "Where

(a) Hift. of Eccl. Reven. p. 117.

(b) Whereto alfo agrees, what we find in the Admoni tion to fimple Men deceived by malicious, towards the end of the Queen's Injunctions, in the Year 1559." And further, "her Majefty forbiddeth all manner her Subjects, to give ear or credit to fuch perverfe and malicious Perfons, "which moft finifterly and miliciously labour to notify to

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"Where we attribute to the Queen's Majefty "the chief Government, by which Titles we "understand the Minds of fome dangerous "Folks to be offended: We give not our Prin❝ces, the miniftring either of God's Word, or ❝ of the Sacraments, the which thing the In"junctions alfo fet forth by Elizabeth our Queen "do moft plainly teftify; but that only Prero"gative, which we fee to have been given al

ways to all Godly Princes in Holy Scriptures, "by God himself, that is, that they fhould rule "all Eftates and Degrees, committed to their "charge by God, whether they be Ecclefiafti"cal or Temporal, and reftrain with the civil "Sword the ftubborn and evil doers." Whence it appears, to a Demonftration, that if by a Spiritual Supremacy given to our Princes, you mean a Power to act as a Spiritual Perfon, to Ordain,

"her loying Subjects, how by words of the faid Oath it "may be collected, that the Kings or Queens of this. Realm, Poffeffors of the Crown, may challenge Autho "rity and Power of Miniftry of Divine Service in the

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Church, wherein her faid Subjects be much abused by "fuch evil difpofed Perfons. For certainly Her Majefty "neither doth, nor ever will challenge any Authority,than "what was challenged, and lately ufed by the faid noble "Kings of famous Memory, King Henry VIII. and King "Edward VI. which is, and was of antient time due to "the Imperial Crown of this Realm, that is, under God,

to have the Soveraignty and Rule over all manner of "Perfons born within thefe her Realms, Dominions, and "Countries, of what Eftate, either Ecclefiaftical or Tem→ "poral foever they be, fo as no other Foreign Power "hall, or ought to have any Superiority over them. "And if any Perfon that hath conceived any other Senfe "of the Form of the faid Oath, fhall accept the fame "Oath with this Interpretation, Senfe or Meaning, Her "Majefty is well pleafed to accept every fuch in that be "half, as her good and obedient Subjects,and fhall accquit "them of all manner of Penalties contain'd in the faid " A&t, &c.

Confirm,

Confirm, Excommunicate, &c. you are most grofly mistaken. If you mean only a Civil Supremacy over all Perfons, as well Ecclefiafticks as Laity, with a Power and Authority, to fee that they all in their feveral Stations perform their Duty, and faithfully discharge the Offices committed to them, and inflict all neceffary Civil Penalties upon the refractory and disobedient, you may give this as many hard Names as you please, but will never prove it a greater Power, than justly belongs to all Chriftian Princes.

As for Mr. St. the Author of the Obfervati ens upon the Ellay, &c. as he profeffed not to be of our Church, fo neither was he a Man of that either Learning or Prudence, that his Judgment was ever had any regard to, amongst thofe that knew him much better than you can be fuppofed to have done. And therefore till you can produce fome other more confiderate, and lefs prejudiced Writer against us, I fhall not need to concern my felf, for any thing he was pleased to charge us with. Yet you frequently produce him, and I know not what Author of the English Atlas against us, as if they were Men of Figure amongst us. But it is only for want of fuch as are fo.

R. C. The Reformation of the Church of England was ushered in, and confirm d, by the Spiritual Supremacy of Kings, and Authority of Parliaments, p. 6.

C. E. The learned Bishop of Derry, and afterwards of Armagh, Bishop Brambal, (b) has told you long ago, That the Seceffion and Subftra&tion of Obedience, [to the Pope] was not made by our Reformers, or by any of their Friends or Favourers, but

(b) Fuft Vindication of the Church of England from Cri minal Schifm. Ch. 3.

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by their capital Enemies and Perfecutors, by Zealots of the Roman Religion. And this was not done fecretly in a Corner, but openly in the fight of the Sun, difputed publickly, and determined beforehand. in both our Univerfities, which after long deliberation, and much dif putation, done with all Diligence, Zeal, and Confcience, made this final Refolution and Profeffin. Tandem in hanc fententiam unanimiter convenimus ac concordes fuimus, videlicet, Romanum Epifcopum, &c. That the Roman Bishop had no greater Jurifdiction, within the Kingdom of England, conferr'd upon him by God in holy Scripture, than any other foreign Bishop. After this, the fame was voted and decreed in our National Synods; and lastly, after all this receiv'd and establish in full Parliament [a Popish Parliament] by the free Confent of all the Orders of the Kingdom, the Concur rence and Approbation of Four and Twenty Bishops, and Nine and Twenty Abbots, then and there prefent, &c. He adds moreover, that thefe very Papifts declar'd, That the King, as Head of the Body Politick, canfifting of Spirituality and Temporality, bath plenary Power to render final Justice for all Matters. Now you fee who they were that firft gave this high Title to King Henry VIII. and by confequence how little concern we have in it.

And as to what you urge, of our Religion being brought in by King and Parliament, I own this we often hear of, but I would beg of you to tell me to what purpofe? For is there any more fault in this, than in Febu's deftroying Haal and his Worshippers? 2 Kings 10. 25, &c. or in Hezekiah's banishing Idolatry out of Judab? 2 Kings 18. 4. And yet I hope you will not blame either of thefe for fo doing. I am fure the one of them is highly commended for it in Scripture, in the two Verfes next following that now refer'd to, in thefe word:. After him was none like him, among C

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