Confiderations touching the likelieft Means to remove HIRELINGS out of the CHURCH. Wherin is also Difcours'd Of Tithes, Church-Fees, and Church-Revenues ; And whether any Maintenance of Ministers can be fettl'd by Law. To the PARLAMENT of the Commonwealth of England with the Dominions therof. Wing to your Protection, fupream Senate, this liberty of writing which I have us'd these eighteen Years on all occafions to affert the juft Rights and Freedoms both of Church and State, and so far approv'd, as to have bin trusted with the reprefentment and defence of your Actions to all Christendom against an Adverfary of no mean repute; to whom should I address what I still publish on the fame Argument, but to you, whofe magnanimous Councels firft open'd and unbound the Age from a double Bondage under Prelatical and Regal Tyranny; above our own hopes heartning us to look up at laft like Men and Chriftians from the flavish Dejection, wherin from Father to Son we were bred up and taught; and therby deserving of these Nations, if they be not barbarously ingrateful, to be acknowledg'd, next under God, the Authors and best Patrons of Religious and Civil Li berty, that ever thefe Ilands brought forth? The care and tuition of whofe Peace and Safety, after a short, but scandalous night of Interruption, is now again by a new dawning of God's miraculous Providence among us, revolv'd upon your shoulders. And to whom more appertain these Confiderations which I propound, than to your felves, and the Debate before you, though I truft of no difficulty, yet at prefent of great expectation, not whether ye will gratifie, were it no more then fo, but whether ye will hearken to the just Petition of many thousands beft affected both to Religion and to this your Return, or whether ye will satisfie, which you never can, the covetous Pretences and Demands of infatiable Hirelings, whose Difaffection ye well know both to your felves and your Refolutions? That I, though among many others in this common concernment, interpose to your Deliberations what my Thoughts alfo are, your own Judgment and the fuccefs therof hath given me the confidence: which requests but this, that if I have profperously, God fo favouring me, defended the publick Caufe of this Commonwealth to Foreiners, ye would not think the reason and ability, wheron ye trufted once, and repent not, your whole Reputation to the world, either grown lefs by more maturity and longer ftudy, or lefs available in English then in another tongue: but that if it suffic'd som years paft to convince and fatisfie the uningag'd of other Nations in the justice of your doings, though then held paradoxal, it may as well fuffice now against weaker oppofition in matters, except here in England with a spiritualitie of Men devoted to thir temporal Gain, of no Controverfie els among Proteftants. Neither do I doubt, feeing daily the acceptance which they find who in thir Petitions venture to bring advice alfo and new models of a Commonwealth, but that you will interpret it much more the duty of a Christian to offer what his Confcience perfwades him may be of moment to the freedom and better conftituting of the Church: fince it is a deed of highest charity to help undeceive the People, and a work worthieft your Autority, in all things els Authors, Affertors and now Recoverers of our Liberty, to deliver us, the only People of all Proteftants left still undeliver'd, from the Oppreffions of a fimonious decimating Clergy, who fhame not, against the judgment and practice of all other Churches reform'd, to maintain, though very weakly, thir Popish and oft refuted Pofitions, not in a point of Confcience, wherin they might be blameless, but in a point of Covetoufness and unjuft Claim to other mens Goods; a Contention foul and odious in any Man, but most of all in Minifters of the Gospel, in whom Contention, though for thir own right, fcarce is allowable. Till which Grievances be remov'd, and Religion fet free from the monopoly of Hirelings, I dare affirm, that no Model whatfoever of a Commonwealth will prove fuccessful or undisturb'd; and fo perfwaded, implore Divine Affiftance on your pious Councels and Proceedings to unanimity in this and all other Truth. Confiderations touching the likelieft Means to remove HIRELINGS Out of the CHURCH. HE former Treatife, which leads in this, began with two things ever found working much mischief to the Church of God, and the advancement of Truth; Force on the one fide reftraining, and Hire on the other fide corrupting the Teachers therof. The latter of these is by much the more dangerous for under Force, though no thank to the Forcers, true Religion oft-times beft thrives and flourishes; but the Corruption of Teachers, moft commonly the Effect of Hire, is the very bane of Truth in them who are fo corrupted. Of Force not to be us'd in matters of Religion, I have already spoken; and so stated matters of Confcience and Religion in Faith and Divine Worship, and fo fever'd them from Blafphemy and Herefy, the one being fuch properly as is defpiteful, the other fuch as ftands not to the Rule of Scripture, and fo both of them not matters of Religion, but rather against it, that to them who will yet ufe Force, this only choife can be left, whether they will force them to believe, to whom it is not given from above, being not forc'd therto by any Principle of the Gofpel, which is now the only Difpenfation of God to all Men; or whether ; being Protestants, they will punish in those things wherin the Proteftant Religion denies them to be Judges, either in themselves infallible, or to the Consciences of other Men; or whether, laftly, they think fit to punish Error, fuppofing they can be infallible that it is fo, being not wilful, but confcientious, and, according to the best light of him who errs, grounded on Scripture: which kind of Error all Men religious, or but only reasonable, have thought worthier of pardon, and the growth thereof to be prevented by Ipiritual Means and Church-difcipline, not by civil Laws and outward Force, fince it is God only who gives as well to believe aright, as to believe at all and by those means which he ordain'd fufficiently in his Church to the full execution of his divine Purpose in the Gofpel. It remains now to speak of Hire, the other evil fo mifchievous in Religion: wherof I promis'd then to speak further, when I fhould find God difpofing me, and opportunity inviting. Opportunity I find now inviting; and apprehend therin the concurrence of God difpofing; fince the Maintenance of Church-Ministers, a thing not properly belonging to the Magiftrate, and yet with fuch importunity call'd for, and expected from him, is at present under publick debate. Wherin left any thing may happen to be determin'd and establish'd prejudicial to the right and freedom of Church, or advantagious to such as may be found Hirelings therin, it will be now most seasonable, and in these matters wherin every Christian hath his free Suffrage, no way mifbecoming Chriftian Meeknes to offer freely, without difparagement to the wifsest, fuch Advice as God fhall incline him and inable him to propound. Since hertofore in Commonwealths of moft fame for Government, Civil Laws were not establish'd till they had been first for certain days publish'd to the view of all Men, that whofo pleas'd |