of common right, Moft of my Clergy have very punctually fhewn me this little mark of their regard, amongst many greater. Whether any here present have omitted it, I do not know. But I truft you will all have the candor to think I have mentioned it, not from any wrong or mean motive, but because I apprehend it my duty, and have not the least doubt of your willingness to be informed or reminded of every part of yours.

And with this kind of digreffion I must conclude for the present. If God prolong my life and health to another opportunity, I fhall proceed to the remainder of the fubject. In the mean time, I heartily pray him to direct and bless you in all things.

A CHARGE

А

CHARGE

DELIVERED TO THE

CLERGY of the DIOCESE

OF

OXFORD,

In the YEAR 1750.

Reverend Brethren,

**N the course of my former vifitations of this Diocefe, I have recommended to you various parts of your duty, as Minifters ** of the Gospel in general, and of your refpective parishes in particular. After things, more immediately and intirely of spiritual concern, I proceeded, in my laft Charge, to the care, that you are bound to take of your temporalties; with which you are intrufted, partly for the fervice of religion in your own times, partly for your fucceffors, as your predeceffors were for you: a truft, which if any of them broke, or neglected, you are too fenfible they did ill, to be excufable to your own minds, if you imitate them. And dividing this care into the behaviour

u

haviour, that is requifite at your coming into livings, during your incumbency on them, and when you are to quit them: I went through the firft of these heads; giving you proper cautions, more especially against making any contract or promife inconfiftent with the oath, then required of you, or prejudicial to your own benefices, or the common interefts of the Clergy. Therefore I now go on to the fecond, the vigilance, with which you ought each to fuperintend the revenues and poffeffions of your church, whilft you continue minifter of it.

I have too much caufe, in every thing, to be fenfible of my own unfitnefs to direct but, in feveral articles, relating to this point, I am peculiarly unqualified having little experince in them, and a yet lefs hare of the proper abilities and turn of mind for them. However, I ought not to omit being of fuch ufe to you, as I can. There may be thofe amongst you, who are either ftill more unacquainted with these matters, or at least have not confidered them all in the fame light: as you must have obferved, that very obvious inftances, both of wifdom and duty, efcape the attention of many, till they are pointed out to them. And a difcourfe, neither complete, nor poffibly free from mistakes, may notwithstanding do fervice, by exciting perfons to think on the fubject, more than they have done hitherto.

Your care, in respect to this fubject, confifts of two parts: recovering what may be unduly withheld from your church, and preserving what is left.

It is very unhappy, that fo troublesome and invidious an employment, as the former, fhould ever be made neceflary: which yet it hath too often been. Glebe lands have been blended with temporal eftates. and pretences fet up, that only fuch a yearly rent, far inferior to the real value, is payable from them. Tithes and other dues have been denied; under falle colours of exemptions in some cases, and of modus's in many.

Every unjust plea admitted makes way for more. And thus what was given for the fupport of the Clergy in all future times, is decreasing continually; and becoming leis fufficient, as it goes down to them. The Laity themselves, if they would reflect, muft fee, that they have by no means any caufe to rejoice in this. For, probably few of them in proportion will be gainers by what we lofe: but the whole body of them, wherever the provifion made for us becomes incompetent, muft either make another at their own expence, or be deprived in a great measure of the good influences of our office, with refpect to this world and the next. But whatever they are, we ourselves cannot surely fail to be deeply concerned at the ill afpect, which thefe encroachments bear towards religion in ages to come. Whoever is indifferent about it, fhows himfelf very unworthy of what he enjoys from the liberality of ages preceding. And whoever is grieved at it, will fet himfelf to confider, not how he can augment the patrimony of the church, where it is already plentiful; or any where, by difhonourable methods: (you are very fenfible, what injuftice and folly there would be in fuch attempts) but how he can retrieve any part of it, which is illegally or unequitably feized and detained.

Now here the foundation of all muft be, a diligent and impartial in quiry into the right of the cafe: for it would be abfurd to deceive our,

felves;

felves; and unfair to demand of others what we are not well perfuaded is our due. Therefore to avoid both, we should ask the opinion of skilful and upright advisers. If this be in our favour, the next proper steps will be, laying our claim, with the proofs of it, fo far as prudence will permit, before the person concerned; reprefenting it, in a friendly and ferious manner, as an affair, in which his confcience is interefted; procuring the affiftance of thofe, who have weight with him, if we know any fuch; taking the opportunity of his being, at any time, in a more confiderate difpofition than ordinary; preffing him, not to rely too much on his own judgment, where it may fo eafily be biaffed: yet forbidding him to rely on ours, if he would; and begging him to confult fome other worthy able perfon: offering to pitch on one or more, if circumftances perfuade to it, whofe determination fhall conclude us both and intreating him to fay, whether he would not think this, in any other cafe, very reasonable. If ftill he cannot prevail on himself to comply: we may endeavour to lessen the difficulty, by propofing to accept a small payment, where none hath been made of fome time; or a finall variation, where a cuftomary payment is pleaded: in hopes, that either the defire of enjoying, with fome degree of good confcience, the main of what he withholds now with a bad one; or, at least, that of avoiding the coft and hazard of a conteft, may win him over.

If none of these methods (which too commonly happens) will operate, after a due feafon allowed them for it; the only remaining remedy is an appeal to the law. But here I would be far from exciting any of you to plainly fruitlefs or over-dangerous attempts. I am very fenfible, how unfavourable the times are to ecclefiaftical pretenfions, how enormous the expences of legal proceedings, how fmall the incomes of most benefices, how ftrait the circumftances of moft clergymen: confiderations, that one fhould think would reftrain perfons of any generofity, nay of any compaffion, from bearing hard upon them. But they ought not to be pleaded by any of us, to excufe ourselves from undertaking a neceffary burthen; which perhaps we are as well able to support, as any, who will be likely to come in our fstead. I am fenfible too, and would have you be fo, that scarce any thing is a more effectual hindrance to our doing good amongft our parishioners, than the character of being litigious; which many delight to give us but with how little juftice, in general, one fingle obfervation amongst several that might be alledged, will more than fufficiently fhew; that of 700 fuits for tithes, brought by the clergy into the Court of Exchequer, which is only about one in 14 parifhes, during the fpace of 53 years, from the restoration to the year 1713, 600 were decided for them. It is true, our obtaining juftice against any man, though in ever so clear a caufe, is very apt to be refented, by himself and his friends at least, as grievous injuftice. But ufing the previous amicable measures, which I have recommended, muft in fome degree prevent, either fevere imputations upon us, or however the belief of them and if not intirely, yet, by mildness, and prudence, we may certainly regain in time the reputation, we never deferved to lofe. At least our fucceffors will enjoy, free from all blame, what we recover to them: whereas if we acquiefce in the detention of our due, they will be ftill more likely to do fo, and thus the lofs of it will be per

petuated.

petuated. Therefore in cafes both fufficiently plain, and of fufficient importance, when all other ways have been tried to no purpose, and the right will be either extinguished, or much obfcured, by delay; and perhaps the example spread further: I fee not, how we can excufe ourselves from applying to a proper court of justice, if we can hope to procure a fentence from it, without abfolute ruin or extream diftrefs. For it is a mean and wicked felfishness, to hoard up wealth, confult our ease, or court the favour of our fuperiors, by letting the inheritance of the church be impoverished, while the guardianship of it is in our hands. But then we must be doubly careful of what all men should be abundantly more careful of, than most are, that we never awe perfons, especially poor perfons, unjustly, by threatning them with law, into a compliance with our demands; and that no difpute of this kind ever entice us to do any thing fraudulent, or provoke us to do any thing ill-natured or vexatious. And particularly, if we have a demand on any of the people called Quakers, we fhould, if we poffibly can, pursue it by that method only, which the act, for the more eafy recovery of small tithes, hath provided and rather fit down with a moderate loss, than do otherwife. For they are a generation, loud in their complaints, unfair in their representations, and peculiarly bitter in their reflections, where we are concerned: unwearied in labouring to render us odious, and furprizingly artful in recommending themselves to the great.

But I proceed to the less troublesome and disagreeable duty of preferving what we still poffefs. Now to this end the most obvious way is, keeping the glebe in our own hands, and taking the tithes and all other dues, ourselves: for which reafon probably, amongst others, both ancient ecclefiaftical conftitutions, and later acts of Parliament, have reftrained and limited leafing of benefices. But many are fo little qualified for this, and would be fo great lofers by it: and others would find it fuch a hindrance to the discharge of their minifterial office, or the pursuit of useful studies: nay, where it hath been long difufed, the people might perhaps be fo much offended with the novelty: that I would by no means press doing it in all cafes, but only recommend it in proper ones. And where it is done, if a clergyman were to attend to fuch matters too closely; and, above all, were to be over-watchful and strict about small demands: it would naturally raise a contempt, if not hatred of him. And therefore it will be much better to content ourselves with giving parishioners, by prudent inftruction, a general fenfe of their obligation to pay their dues; and by engaging behaviour, a general difpofition to it; than to exact the minuter forts of them with an indecent eagerness. But ftill, where rights, that may feem inconfiderable in each particular cafe, amount to more on the whole, than it is convenient to lofe; and yet will be withheld, if not infifted on: we must do it, with as good a grace as we can; and remind perfons, if there be need, that fuch as make this neceffary, are indeed they, who act the mean part: that it is no fault of ours to require what the law hath allotted us for our maintenance; but a great misfortune, that fo much of it confists in these petty articles.

Whatever tithes it will be incommodious to keep in our own hands, we may compound for with thofe who fhould pay them, or leafe them to

others.