Some sober and weighty reasons against prosecuting Protestant dissenters for difference of opinion in matters of religion humbly offered to the consideration of all in authority. Penn, William, 1644-1718. 1682 Approx. 11 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 2 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2005-12 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A54221 Wing P1372 ESTC R35103 14990789 ocm 14990789 103045 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A54221) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 103045) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1576:29) Some sober and weighty reasons against prosecuting Protestant dissenters for difference of opinion in matters of religion humbly offered to the consideration of all in authority. Penn, William, 1644-1718. 1 sheet ([2] p.) Printed by G. Larkin ..., London : 1682. Caption title. Attributed by Wing and NUC pre-1956 imprints to Penn. Imprint from colophon. Reproduction of original in the Harvard University Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Freedom of religion -- England. Liberty of conscience -- England. Dissenters, Religious -- England. 2005-07 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2005-08 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2005-09 Jonathan Blaney Sampled and proofread 2005-09 Jonathan Blaney Text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion Some Sober and Weighty Reasons against Prosecuting Protestant Dissenters , for Difference of Opinion in Matters of Religion . Humbly offered to the Consideration of all in Authority . 1. Reas . BEcause the great and mighty God , who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords , hath not imposed matters of Religion upon the Consciences of Men and Women by any outward force : God hath not appointed Death , nor Bannishment , nor Imprisonment , nor loss of goods , as a means to bring persons to conform to the way of his Worship ; but God hath given his Word , and favoured the World with such as can Preach it , whose work is to invite , intreat , perswade ; and not in a lordly way to domineer over the Consciences of Men and Women , whether they be Rich or Poor . 2. Reason , Because all sorts of mankind are fallable in some Divine matters , even in all Countreys ; the Princes , the Priests , and the People , are yet short of infallabillity in many matters of Divinity ; yea the most Eminent Ministers of the Gospel in the Primitive time confessed they saw but in part , and they knew but in part ; and said to their fellow Christians , that they would not lord or domineer over them , but be helpers of their Joy. 3. Reason , Because all sorts of persons do desire this as a great good for themselves , even those that are for distressing of , and imposing upon others , would not be so dealt with themselves , but would Account it hard measure , yea cruelty , to be forced to such things in Religion as are against their Consciences , or else to suffer in their Purse or Persons . As for instance , the Episcopal Protestant would doom it great Persecution to be punished if he would not turn Presbyterian , Independant , Baptist , or Quaker ; and why then should the Episcopal Protestant take pleasure in punishing of , and so force any of the others to be of his mind ? And therefore great and good Reason it is to walk by that Blessed Rule Christ hath given , Do unto others as you would they should do unto you , and what you would not others should do unto you , do not to them . 4. Reason , Because forcing the Conscience is the Ready way to make men Hypocrites ; for if persons conform to any way of Worship unwillingly , they cannot serve God acceptably , though the matter and form of worship be never so Right , because the heart of the Worshippers is not Right , the Service being performed by by Mans Compulsion ; God requireth that his Service should be performed with a perfect heart , and with a willing mind ; but he that conforms by Compulsion , in stead of being Gods Servant , he is but Mans slave : and the Conformity is to Man , and not to God. 5. Reason , Because His Majesty did Sollemnly promise Liberty of Conscience in matters of Religion , when he was at Breda , Just upon his Restauration to his Throne and Kingdoms , in April 1660. In these words : We do declare a Liberty to Tender Consciences and that no man shall be disquieted , or called in Question for differences of opinion in matters of Religion , which doe not disturb the Peace of the kingdom ; & that we shall be Ready to Consent to such an Act of Parliament as upon mature deliberation shall be offered to us , for the full granting that Indulgence . 6. Reason , Because the prosecuting the Protestant Dessenters for matters of Conscience , is a great disquieting of the minds of great numbers of his Majesties good Subjects , and a great hinderance to the Trade of the Kingdom , the Dissenters being a great part of the Trading People of this Kingdom ; and some thing of this his Majesty was gratiously pleased to take into his Princely Consideration , when he put forth his indulging Declaration , by the advice of his Privy Councel , in March , 1672. after a violent prosecution of that Act against Conventicles , in these very words : But it being Evident by the sad Experience of Twelve Years , that there is very little fruit of all those . FORCEABLE courses : we think our self obliged to make use of that Supream Power in Ecclesiastical matters , which is not only inherent in us but hath been declared and recognized to be so by several Statutes and Acts of Parliament ; and therefore we do now accordingly Issue this our Declaration , as well for the quieting of the minds of our good Subjects in these points , for inviting of Strangers in this conjuncture to come and liue under us , and for the better incouragement of all to a cheerful following of their Trade and Callings , from whence we hope by the blessing of God to have many good and happy advantages to our Government . 7. Reason , Because the Lords and Commons Assembled in Parliament , sence those Declarations have upon MATURE DELIBERATION considered the ill consequences of prosecuting the Protestant Dissenters by the penal Laws , and have shewed their willingness to a Toleration , and prohibiting of a prosecution of Protestants for matters of Conscience . 8. Reason , Because the French Protestants , who are the Dissenters from the Established Worship of that Kingdom , are gratiously Received by the King , and kindly Received and succoured by the People of England , and the French King is highly blamed for Persecuting his peaceable Subjects ; and therefore much more Reason that Protestants should not persecute one another , for it is to do the same things that is condemned in others : therefore let the words of the Apostle Paul be well considered , Rom. 2. 1. Thou art inexcusable , O man , whoever thou art , that Judgest another , thou condemnest thy self , for thou that Judgest doest the same things thy self ; Verse 3. And thinkest thou , O man , that Judgest them which do such things , and doest the same , that thou shalt escape the Judgment of God ? 9. Reason , There is a good and great Agreement between the Conforming , and Non-conforming Protestants , in the Chief things of the Protestant Religion : as for Instance ; 1. Both parties believe in the holy Trinity , viz. The Father , Son , and holy Ghost : 2. That Jesus Christ is very God and very Man , and the only Saviour of Sinners : 3. That Salvation doth depend upon the miraculous Birth , the holy Life , the painful Death , the wonderful Resurection , the Joyful Ascention , the constant Intercession , and the second coming of Jesus Christ : 4. Both parties believe that the Worship of God , and the Conversations of men , ought to be according to the holy Scriptures , and not according to the inventions of any sort of mankind : 5. Both parties do deny all Mediators but only Jesus Christ , and abhor praying to deceased Saints : 6. Both parties deny a Purgatory , and do believe and profess a Heaven of Eternal Joy for the godly , and a Hell of Eternal woe for the wicked . All these things more largely and plainly are made manifest in Confessions of Faith , Printed by the Dissenting Protestants as well as by the Conforming Protestants . Now the matters wherein they differ from each other being smaller then the former things , and yet such as each partty cannot conform unto without wronging their Conscience , and so sinning against God , therefore they ought not to be Forced . 10. Reason , Because Persecution for matters of Conscience is a Breach of the good Rules of Humanity , and common Civility among all sorts of men , which is carefully observed in smaller matters : as for instance , among the many Creatures of God that are Food for mens Bodies , some things that are very pleasing and comfortable Food for some men , the same things are very Destructive to the health of other men ; now in this Case there is such Civility among all sorts of men that they hate and scorn to force one anothers Stomacks , looking upon it to be an inhumane practise ; and therefore do friendly , say to each other , Pray eat that which will best go down , and agree with your Stomack . Now for as much as Conscience is greater then Stomack , and the hurt of the Soul greater then the hurt of the Body , how much more should persons , especially Protestants , be thus friendly one to another in matters of Conscience ? 11. Reason , Because all Protestants ought to behave themselves towards each other as Brethren , there being so good and great agreement between them in the chief things of Religion ; Especially they being all in a like danger of the Bloody Papists , who if ever the Government should fall into their Bloody hands , ( which God of his mercy prevent ) then the same miseries that may befal the Protestant Dissenters , will certainly befal the Conforming Protestants ; if they prove true to their Protestant Principles , they will all be deemed Hereticks , and must suffer as much in their Estates and Persons ; and therefore instead of Persecuting one another , they should love each other , and pray for each other , and say as Abraham said to Lot , Let there be no strife between me and thee , for we are Brethren : and more especially because the Popish Cannonite and Perrizite are now too much in the Land. 12. Reason , Because the Protestant Dissenters do not belong to any Forraign Power , but do abhor , detest , and protest against all Forreign Power or Jurisdiction over the King , the Kingdom , or any of his Majesties Subjects ; neither are they covetous of Preferment in Church or State , but willingly leave that to his Majesties wisdom , and desire only that they may live a peaceable Life in all Godliness and Honesty under Authority , as Gods Word doth direct . London : Printed by G. Larkin , in Scalding-Alley in the Poultry , 1682.