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With regard to the

Corporation andTeJl ^&s.

In a Letter to a Friend,

LONDON:

Printed for J. Roberts, near the Ox^ ford-Jrms in Warwick-Lane. 1732,

[5]

London, Dec. 1732.

Dear S i r,

^^ HE great Talk at prefent in this Place is about the Corporation and Teit Ads. The DifTcntcrs fecm relblv'd to pulh for the Repeal of them this next Seilions ; and they arc confulting all the Meafures, and making all the Friends they can for the cfFeccing of it. Whether they will fucceed or not, I find differently believed. What I hear faid of the Matter, and my own Opini- on about it, I fend you in the following Sheets.

It

[6]

It is faid, and many fpecious Ha- rangues have been made upon that Head, that the Teft itfelf is a very improper one ; as it may be, and often is, the Oc- cafion of giving Scandal to our Holy Religion. It is true, the taking the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper merely for a Qualification to fome lecular Em- ployment, is a great, and hardly to be pardon'd, Profanation of that holy Rite: becaufe, as the Motives thereto are very unworthy, and confequently muft render the Receiver unworthy ; ib the End of fuch receiving is quite foreign, and very different from that which our bleffed Lord ordain'd when he inftituted that holy Sacrament. So far is very certain, and agreed on all Sides. But then let us ask, and fairly fix the Charge where of right it be- longs: Who it is that is properly guilty of that Profanation, the Legiflator or the Receiver? The latter certainly; he whofe own Ad it is, he is highly guil- ty of it. And if the DifTenters any of them, notwithftanding the known Sa- crednefs of that divine Inftitution, and the Danger of abufing it, will yet ven- ture

[7 ]

ture upon it, with no otlier View but that of a Qualification, they, of all Men, have the leaft Rcafon to charge others with the Proftitution, or the Profanation of it. The Defign of the Legiflator was not to alter or to add to the End for which Chrift himfclf or- dained that Sacrament ; but only there- by to diftinguilh the true Friends of the Eftablifh'd Church, and to be a Bar againft any who were not of her Com- munion, and in her Intereft. This was all that was intended by the Lcgiflator in the Cafe. And if thofe very People, whom that Act was on purpofe calcu- lated to keep out from ever being able to hurt the Church *, if thole People will pervert the Intention of that Act, and from either wrong or wicked Mo- tives demand, as it were, that holy Sacrament to be deliver'd to them ; as nothing can be more impious, or give greater Scandal to our holy Religion, fo the Sin thereof will be chiefly at their doors.

It is true, our blefTed Lord charges his Difciples, /. e. the Minifters of hi$ Word, that they give not that which is

holy

[8]

holy unto dogs^ nor caft their pearls before Jw'ine'^ lejiy as his Reafon is, they turn again and rend you *. The Realbn, I think, is not unworthy our Attention in the prefent Cafe \ and as no Power ought to interpofe, where thofe Di- redions are duly obferv'd, fo the due Oblervation of them might be a Means of preventing, in great meafure, that horrid Proftitution of the Sacrament fb much complained of, tho' often caused, by the DilTcnters.

Upon the whole ; I think the re- ceiving the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, as our Law requires, and after the Manner of the Church of England^ to be a very proper Teft, and fuch which (as long as that Part of our Eihiblifhrient lafts) ought to be given by all Vv'ho have any publick Power or Truft committed to them. If for the fake of any fuch Power or TrUft, any fhall dare to profane it, let them look well to it : they are Volunteers in the Guilt, and their Condemnation mull be certain.

* Mstth. vii. (^.

Others

[9]

Others of the DifTenters, whofe Prin- ciple will not lufFer them to give this Teft, are angry with it, becaute with- out it they can have no Share in the Ad- miniftration of Things, and the Places of Profit and Truit among us. Here they inveigh bitterly, and with great Indignation : For hereby, lay they, we are perfecuted for Confcience fake, and deprived of all thofe civil Rights, which, as Subjeds in general, and as good Sab- jects in particular, naturally belong to us.

But this CompJaint too is both ground- lefs and unrcaibnable. As Subjeds in general, they have all the Indulgence, and all the Enjoyment both in their Civil and Religious Rights, which in. Wifdom ought to be allow-'d them, and which in Juftice and Reaibn they ought to claim.

As to their Religious Rights, they are fully tolerated both in the Frofefli- cn, and in the Exercile of them. They are not only fuiTer'd to convene publick- ly, and to ierve God in their own Way ; B but

}

but the Law alfo has provided Remedies againft any, who ihall interrupt or di- fturb them therein. And if in modefty they would but confider, that theirs is not the eftablifh'd Religion of the Country they live in, they ought fure- ly to be well contented, if not very thank- ful for the Liberty and the Privilege which by the Favour of the Legiflature is allow'd them.

In other Countries and where other Religions prevail, all the Indulgence which the DifTenters meet with here is not to be found : And fince theirs ts not^ nor likely to he^ they may be very thank- full that the Religion eftablifh'd is the eftablifh'd Religion. As the Cafe at prefent ftands, and with regard to their Religious Rights, I fee no Difference be- tween the Dilfenters and us ; but that ours is the Religion eflahVijloed by Law, theirs tolerated by Law.

Then again as to their Civil Rights, where is there any Difference between a Churchman and a Diffenter ? What a Diffenter is born to, what is bequeathed to him, or what he acquires himfelf,

he

[II]

he has as good a Right to, and is as fccure in, as any other Subjecl whatever : He has the lame Accefs to the Laws of the Land, and he may defend him- lelf by them in any juft Claim which he has. Where then is the Greivance fo mightily complained of? Why, as good and faithful Subjects to the Government, they fay that they ought to have an e- qual Share in the publick Adminiftrati- on of Things, and that as fuch, they have a natural Right to it.

But this Claim of a natural Right, as they call it, I hope will never be al- low'd them ^ bccaufe, as the Cafe now is, they can have no Pretence to it. They boaft indeed not only that they are Subjeds in common, but that they are the beft and mod faithful Subjects His Majefty has; in the fame manner as their Forefathers boafted, that they were the only Righteous, the only Men of God. And as thefe would have en- grofs'd all the Merit of Rightcoufnefs, and all the Favour of God to them- felves; fo our modern Presbyterians would fain extol and prefer their Loy- alty into the greateft Merit from His B 2 prefent

[ 12 ]

prefcnt Majefty, and the whole Houfe of Hcwover. Now fippojing all this that they fay, (not that I grant it by any means; becaufe His Majefty has a great many, and thofe in all refpeds his Beft Friends and his Beft Subjeds, in the Church of which he himfelf is the Head : ) I fay, fuppofing the Dil^ fenters to be the good Subjefts they boaft ! And what of all that? Or how do they derive from thence a natural Right to the fame Share in all publick Diftributions with thofe of the Efta- bllfh'd Religion? Their being good Sub- jeds is no more than what His Majefty, fo indulgent as He is to them, dejerves and may claim from them : And it is not only their Duty, but it is their In- tcreft, as well as it is ours of the Church of Enghwdy to be in a particular man- ner fo to His prefent Majefty \ fmce in Him only it is, and in His Royal Fa- mily, that both they and we are fecure from a Power, which if once it ftiou'd prevail, wou'd undo both them and us. What then have both they and we to do, but to be as loyal and as dutiful Subjects to Him as poffibly we can? — But to fay that upon that account, and

merely

[ 13 1

merely as fuch, the DifTenters have a natural Right to the fame Favonr, and the fame Trufts with thofe of the Efta- blilh'd Church ; and in a manner fo in- folent and threatning as they have done, to demand it (as it were) of the Govern- ment; this, 1 think, is going a great way farther than either Decency or good Politicks can juftify.

The Government, let them obfervc, is in fuch Hands, and ib fecure in thofe Hands, that they who hold it are ap leajl not to be bully'd into any Mea- fures, which may be detrimental to the prefent Conftitution : and His Majefty is wife enough to diftinguifh between thofe who are of the whole Conftitu- tion, and thofe who comply with but a Part of it. And therefore, as there can be ao Difpute who are hisbeftSub- je£ls, and confequently defervc bcft of him ; thofe who go along with him in every Part of that Conftitution over which He prefides, and which He has cngag'd to defend ; and thofe who dif- fcnt wholly from it, or comply but in Part ; fo a Pretence to an equal Share in His Favour, and in the AdmTniftra-

tion

[14]

tion of things under Him, is altoge- ther unreafonable to be ask'd, impoli- tick to be granted, and what they can- not have a Right to. For my own part, I think the Diffenters of all De- nominations are pretty much upon a Level, as to this natural Right fo much talked of j and the Man who has not taken the Oaths to the Civil Govern- ment, but is a profefs'd Member of the Church, may, in like manner, put in his Claim to it, and has not much lefs to lay for himfelf upon it. In ihort, the Laws in the prefent Cafe fo much complained of, were made for the Se- curity of the Church, as it now ftands eftabiilh'd amongft us; well feeing that the Security of that Church would be the bell Security to the State. But farther :

The Diffenters think themfelves, or wou'd perfuade us to think, that they are a numerous, a weighty, and a very powerful Body of Men in the Nation. Hence they wou^d have us believe, that they may have a great Stroke in our Eledions ; and becaufe the prefent Par- liament is drawing to an End, they

think

[ t5l

think this a proper Time to declare what maft be expecled from them, if they are difappointed in their Attempt. But, alas ! they are ill-advis'd ^ and while they fufFer themielves, without confulting whether this be a proper Time for others, as well as for them- felves, and difregarding all Conient of thofc Pcrfons in Power, who are heft able to judge for, to aflift, or to oppole them: I lay, while the DiflTentcrs do thus fufFer themfelves to be hurried on, even in Oppofition, as it appears, to thofe very Perfons, (who, as they are principally concern'd, fo they ought principally to be confulted in all publick Cafes of this Nature : ) They only be- come thereby the mere Tools of Ibme difcontented or ambitious Men, who have their own, not the Intereft of the DifTenters to ferve in it.

As to the Diflenters being fo great and fo powerful a Body as they pre- tend ^ that, I think, need not alter any of our Laws, nor will hurt us any thing in our Elections. Thofe who are Friends to the Church are knownFriends to His Majefly ; and there are Church- men

[ i6]

men enough throughout the Kingdom to chufe a Church-Parliament, which will beft preferve His, and the Rights of His People, both in Church and State. And I will venture to fay, as to the Miniihy, That if they had Rea- Ibn to apprehend the difobliging any of their Friends, the difobliging their Friends of the Church Eftablifh'd, wou'd be of worfe Confequence than any that is threatened from what other Quarter foever. But the Miniftry has not, nor needs to have any Apprehen- lions of this kind. Whilll the Mini- ftty is a Friend to the Church, the Church will be a Friend to the Mini- ftry ; and lb long as there is that Har- mony between them, they will mutu- ally and necefTarily be the Support of each other. We have feen the Church in great Danger, when the Enemies of curConilitution in the State have been in Power : and the State has greatly fufFer'd, when the Enemies of our Church have prevail'd. We want not Initances for cither of thefe Proofs, and it Js to be hop'd no new Experiment will be made in the one or the other.

The

[ 17]

The Church of England^ let it be confider'd, is not only one Part, and a principal Part of our Conftitution j but the Members of that Church are by- much the Majority of the People. And therefore, as every repealing of thofe wholefome A<fts and Laws, which at prefent fubfift for the Prefervation of that Church, muft necellarily be fuipecl- ed as fo many Inlets upon, and be de- trimental to Her^ fo confequently a greater Number of the good People and good Subjeds of the Land would be oiFended and difobliged thereby.

This is too plain to be infiftcd upon. And thus have Igivenyoulbme

Ihort Hints of the Cafe, as it ftands at prefent, with regard to the Diflenters, and the Teft Ad. And I have great Hopes, that as the Members of the Church o^ Efiglcind 2.XC both by Principle and Intereft the trueft and beft Friends to the Government ; and likewH'e an overbalance in Number to any, I may fay, to all the DifiTcnters from it; and farther, as we have a King upon the Throne, who is Himfelf a true Member of that Church, and under Chrift the G Head

C i8 ]

Head over /V, as well as us ; fo I cannot doubt, but that all thole Laws which the WilHom of our Legiflator has pro- vided for the Security of theEftablifh'd Religion, will continue in their full Force; that as his Majefty found us, fo he will leave us ; fo his Royal Succef- fors continue us; and fowe fhall remain till our Church Militant here on Earth is tranflated to the Church Triumphant above. Which as it ought to be the Prayer of every true Churchman and of every fincere Lover of Liberty, fo in particular it is of,

Tour Friend and Servant,

A. B.

)

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