That which we have to say, relates, either to the Tearms of the Act, or the Application of them to us.
As to the Tearms of the Act, they are these, Seditious Conventicles, Seditious Sectaries, and Meetings under Colour or Pretence of Religion, P. 1.
1. Seditious, from Sedition, imports as much as Turbulent, Contentious, Factious, which sowes Strife, and Debate, and hazards the Civil Peace of the Government.
2. Conventicle, is a diminutive private Assembly, designning and contriving Evil to particular Persons, or the Government in generall, see Lamb. p. 173. In Tertullians sense it is an Assembly of immodest and unclean Persons, at least it was so taken in those dayes, and objected against the Christians as their practise, whom he defends. Ter. Apol.
3. Sectaries, must be such as disjoyn or dis-member themselves from the body of Truth, and confess to a strange and untrue opinion. If any Subject of this Realm being 16 years of age or upwards, shall be present at any assembly, Conventicle or pretence of Religion &c. which can signifie no more then thus much, that true it is some may meet and assemble to Worship God, and upon a religious account, that are dissenters, such we censure not, but those who under colour or pretence of any exercise of Religion conspire &c. they are to be suspected and Prosecuted. This being the true explanation of the tearms of the Act; we proceed to show how unreasonably they are applyed to us.
1. Words are but so many intelligible Marks, and Characters set and employ'd, to inform us of each others conceptions, and therein of the nature of those things they stand for; Now because we take the Act to mean what it speaks, and that the Law concludes no man guilty upon conjectures, but from the detection of some fault; we affirm our selves altogether unconcern'd in that word Seditious, because 'twas never our practise in words, or actions to disturb the Government; or suggest Principles that might hatch Conspiracies, or feed the vulgar with disaffection to their Rulers; but before the Kings coming in, at his coming in, and ever since, notwithstanding our frequent suffering, we have made it our business to heal Animosities, Preach forgiveness and Charity amongst men, and that they would by an hearty repentance turn to God, rather then hunt after revenge upon one another: therefore we assert we have not done one thing that may be prov'd Seditious in the sense above mention'd.
2. That we are Strangers to Conventicles is most evident, for where the parts that render it such, are wanting, there
First, Because our Meetings are not Small. 2. Neither are they private or Clandestine; but in the view of all People. 3. Nor are they riotous, liscentious, or otherwise immodest, or immorall; but on purpose to diswade persons from such impieties; so that we are clear in the Interpretation of the Law. 13 H. 5. cap. 8. 19. and 19. H. 7. cap. 13. and in the sense of the famous Father Tertullian.
3. Sectaries, is a word, that whosoever has but confidence enough to conceit himself in the Right, by consequence wants none to suppose the contrary in the wrong, and so to call him a Sectary; but this is but a meer begging of the Question; For to say those are Sectaries, do's not conclude them such, nor does the Act speak so plainly of Dissenters: but granting it did, yet they must be Seditious Ones, or else all will be in vain; where we may observe, that purely to be a Sectary, is not what the Act strikes at, but to be a Seditious One: for a man may differ in judgement about matters of Faith, from the national Religion, and yet correspond with the Government in matters civil: so that ACT upon the whole, aims not at Sectaries simply, but they must be such as are Enemies to the civil constitution to be rendred Seditious Ones, from which we have sufficiently clear'd our selves.
4. That we meet under Colour and Pretence, and not really to Worship God; we deny, and none can prove. 'Twere high Incharity to affirm positively, This, or that People meet only under a Colour of Religion; yet unless the Act had so expres'd it self, we conceive their Authority lame and imperfect that Persecute us by it. It will help but little to say, The King,
Obj But may some say, 'Tis granted, you have very evidently evaded the Force of the Act, so far as relates to these recited Expressions; but what if a Bill be ready, for an Explanatory and Supplementory Act to the former, wherein this Scope for Argument will not be found, because your Meetings will be absolutely adjudged Seditious, Riotous, and Unlawful.
To which we Answer, That as the granting of the first, which none reasonably can deny, is a manifest Impeachment of such as have violently prosecuted people for being present at Religious Assemblies (almost to their utter Undoing) so shall we as easily answer the second, which amounts to the force of an Objection, and briefly thus.
First, It is not more impossible for Mankind to preserve, their Society without Speech, then it is absolutely requisit that the Speech be regular and certain. For, if what we call a Man, a Lion, a Whale to day, we should call a Woman, a Dog, a Sprat to morrow; there would be such Uncertainty and Confusion, as it would be altogether impossible to preserve Speech or Language intelligible.
Secondly, it is not in the power of all the men in the World to reconcile an absolute Contradiction, to convert the nature of Light into that of Darkness, nor to enact a thing to be that which it is not; but that Those endeavour to do, who think of making
Secondly, They endeavour to reconcile Contradictions; for they would have a thing that which by nature it cannot be; for that which is Peaceable cannot be Riotous, and what is Religious can never be Seditious. For any to say our Meetings are not Religious, is not only a poor Evasion, but great Incharity; for that is properly a Religious Assembly where Persons are congregated with a real purpose of Worshipping God, by Prayer, or otherwise, let the Persons met be esteem'd Doctrinally Orthodox, or not. Can any be so Ignorant, or so Malitious, as to believe we do not Assemble to Worship God, to the best of our Understanding? If they think otherwise, they must, and do assume unto themselves a Power beyond the Arrogancy of the POPE himself, that never yet adventur'd to tell man his Thoughts, nor the Purposes and Intents of his Heart, which he, or they must do, that definitively judge our Assemblies, void of Sword or Staff, Drum or Musket, Tumult or Violence, and circumstantiated with all the Tokens of Christian Devotion, a Rout or a Riot. And truly, If Protestants deny the Legallity of those Acts or Edicts, which were contriv'd and executed in order to their suppression, by the respective Kings and Parliaments that own'd the Romish Faith and Authority, where they either did or do live, let them not think it strange, if we on the same Tearms (namely, Scruple of Conscience) refuse compliance with their Laws of Restraint. And as the first Reformers were no whit daunted at the Black Characters the Romanists fastened on them, neither thought their Assemblies in
They say, LOSERS have leave to Speak, at least, we take it; none being greater Losers, then such as for Dissenting from national institutions in point of Faith or Worship, are depriv'd of their Common Rights and Freedoms, and hindred as much as may be, from reverencing the God that made them, in that Way which to them seems most acceptable to him.
To Conclude, we say, and by it let our Intentions in our whole discourse be measur'd, that we have not defended any Dissenters, whose quarrell or dissent is rather Civill and Politticall, then Religious and Concientious; for both we really think such unworthy of Protection from the English government, who seek the ruin of it; and that such as are Contributries to the pres preservation of it, (though Dissenters in point of Faith or Worship) are unquestionably Intituled to a Protection from IT.