and sufficient matter either for the plantiff or defendant, without any allegation or objection to be made against the validity of them, by pretence of any general council, canon, or decree, to the contrary." Somewhat belike they thought there was in mere temporal court, without with the pope's own mere ecclesiastical legate's dispensation had taken small effect in the church of England; neither did they or the cardinal imagine any thing committed against the law of nature, or of God, because they took order for the church's affairs, and that even in the court of parliament, The most natural and religious course in making laws is, that the matter of them be taken from the judgment of the wisest in those things which they are to concern. In matters of God, to set down a form of prayer, a solemn confession of the articles of the Christian faith, and ceremonies meet for the exercise of religion; it were unnatural not to think the pastors and bishops of our souls a great deal more fit than men of secular trades and callings: howbeit, when all which the wisdom of all sorts can do is done for the devising of laws in the church, it is the general consent of all that giveth them the form and vigour of the laws, without which they could be no more unto to us than the counsel of physicians to the sick. Well might they seem as wholesome admonitions and instructions; but laws could they never be, without the consent of the whole church, to be guided by them; whereunto both nature and the practice of the church of God set down in Scripture, is found every way so fully consonant, that God himself would not impose his own laws upon his people by the hand of Moses, without their free and open consent. Wherefore, to define and determine, even of the church's affairs by way of assent and approbation, as laws are defined in that right of power, which doth give them the force of laws; thus to define of our own church's regiment, the parliament of England hath competent authority.

Touching that supremacy of power which our kings have in the case of making laws, it resteth principally in the strength of a negative voice; which not to give them, were to deny them that, without which they were kings but by a mere title, and not in exercise of dominion, Be it in regiment popular, aristocratical, or regal, principality resteth in that person, or those persons, unto whom is given right of excluding

any kind of law whatsoever it be before establishment. This doth belong unto kings as kings; pagan emperors, even Nero himself had no less; but much more than this in the laws of his own empire. That he challenged not any interest of giving voice in the laws of the church, I hope no man will so construe, as if the cause were conscience and fear to encroach upon the apostles' right. If then it be demanded, by what right from Constantine downward, the Christian emperors did so far intermeddle with the church's affairs, either we must herein condemn them, as being over presumptuously bold, or else judge that, by a law, which is termed regia, that is to say, regal, the people having derived unto their emperors their whole power for making of laws, and by that means his edicts being made laws, what matter soever they did concern, as imperial dignity endowed them with competent authority and power to make laws for religion, so they were thought by Christianity to use their power, being Christians, unto the benefit of the church of Christ. Was there any Christian bishop in the world which did then judge this repugnant unto the dutiful subjection which Christians do owe to the pastors of their souls? to whom, in respect of their sacred order, it is not by us, neither may be denied, that kings and princes are as much as the very meanest that liveth under them, bound in conscience to shew themselves gladly and willingly obedient; receiving the seals of salvation, the blessed sacraments at their hands, as at the hands of our Lord Jesus Christ, with all reverence, not disdaining to be taught and admonished by them, nor withholding from them as much as the least part of their due and decent honour. All which, for any thing that hath been alleged, may stand very well without resignation of supremacy of power in making laws, even laws concerning the most spiritual affairs of the church; which laws being made amongst us, are not by any of us so taken or interpreted, as if they did receive their force from power which the prince doth communicate unto the parliament, or unto any other court under him, but from power which the whole body of the realm being naturally possessed with, hath by free and deliberate assent derived unto him that ruleth over them, so far forth as hath been declared. So that our laws made concerning religion,

a Item quod principi placuit, legis habet vigorem. Inst. de J. N. G. et C.

T. C. lib. i. p. 92.

do take originally their essence from the power of the whole realm and church of England, than which, nothing can be more consonant unto the law of nature and the will of our Lord Jesus Christ.

To let these go, and return to our own men ; "Ecclesiastical governors (they say) may not meddle with making of civil laws, and of laws for the commonwealth; nor the civil magistrate, high or low, with making of orders for the church." It seemeth unto me very strange, that these men, which are in no cause more vehement and fierce than where they plead, that ecclesiastical persons may not кupiɛɛv, be lords, should hold that the power of making ecclesiastical laws, which thing of all other is most proper unto dominion, belongeth to none but ecclesiastical persons only. Their oversight groweth herein for want of exact observation, what it is to make a law. Tully, speaking of the law of nature, saith," That thereof God himself was inventor, disceptator, lator, the deviser, the discusser, and deliverer:" wherein he plainly alludeth unto the chiefest parts which then did appertain to his public action. For when laws were made, the first thing was to have them devised; the second to sift them with as much exactness of judgment as any way might be used; the next by solemn voice of sovereign authority to pass them, and give them the force of laws. It cannot in any reason seem otherwise than most fit, that únto ecclesiastical persons the care of devising ecclesiastical laws be committed, even as the care of civil unto them which are in those affairs most skilful. This taketh not away from ecclesiastical persons all right of giving voice with others, when civil laws are proposed for regiment of the commonwealth, whereof themselves, though now the world would have them annihilated, are notwithstanding as yet a part; much less doth it cut off that part of the power of princes, whereby, as they claim, so we know no reasonable cause wherefore we may not grant them, without offence to Almighty God, so much authority in making all manner of laws within their own dominions, that neither civil nor ecclesiastical do pass without their royal assent.

In devising and discussing of laws, wisdom especially is required; but that which establisheth them and maketh them, is power, even power of dominion; the chiefty whereof (amongst us) resteth in the person of the king. Is there

any law of Christ's which forbiddeth kings and rulers of the earth to have such sovereign and supreme power in the making of laws either civil or ecclesiastical? If there be, our controversy hath an end. Christ, in his church, hath not appointed any such law concerning temporal power, as God did of old unto the commonwealth of Israel; but leaving that to be at the world's free choice, his chiefest care is, that the spiritual law of the gospel might be published far and wide. They that received the law of Christ were, for a long time, people scattered in sundry kingdoms, Christianity not exempting them from the laws which they had been subject unto, saving only in such cases as those laws did enjoin that which the religion of Christ did forbid. Hereupon grew their manifold persecutions throughout all places where they lived; as oft as it thus came to pass, there was no possibility that the emperors and kings under whom they lived, should meddle any whit at all with making laws for the church. From Christ, therefore, having received power; who doubteth, but as they did, so they might bind them to such orders as seemed fittest for the maintenance of their religion, without the leave of high or low in the commonwealth; forasmuch as in religion it was divided utterly from them, and they from it. But when the mightiest began to like of the Christian faith; by their means, whole free states and kingdoms became obedient unto Christ. Now the question is, whether kings, by embracing Christianity, do thereby receive any such law as taketh from them the weightiest part of that sovereignty which they had even when they were heathens: whether, being infidels, they might do more in causes of religion, than now they can by the laws of God, being true believers. For, whereas in regal states, the king, or supreme head of the commonwealth, had, before Christianity, a supreme stroke in making of laws for religion; he must by embracing Christian religion utterly deprive himself thereof, and in such causes become subject unto his subjects, having even within his own dominions them whose commandment he must obey; unless his power be placed in the hand of some foreign spiritual potentate: so that either a foreign or domestic commander upon earth, he must admit more now than before he had, and that in the chiefest things whereupon commonwealths do stand. But apparent it is

T. C.

lib. iii.

p. 51.

unto all men which are not strangers unto the doctrine of Jesus Christ, that no state of the world receiving Christianity, is by any law therein contained bound to resign the power which they lawfully held before: but over what persons, and in what causes soever the same hath been in force, it may so remain and continue still. That which, as kings, they might do in matters of religion, and did in matter of false religion, being idolatrous and superstitious kings, the same they are now even in every respect fully authorized to do in all affairs pertinent to the state of true Christian religion. And, concerning the supreme power of making laws for all persons, in all causes to be guided by, it is not to be let pass, that the head enemies of this headship are constrained to acknowledge the king endued even with this very power, so that he may and ought to exercise the same, taking order for the church and her affairs, of what nature or kind soever, in case of necessity: as when there is no lawful ministry, which they interpret then to be (and this surely is a point very remarkable), wheresoever the ministry is wicked. A wicked ministry is no lawful ministry; and in such sort no lawful ministry, that what doth belong unto them as ministers by right of their calling, the same is annihilated in respect of their bad qualities; their wickedness is itself a deprivation of right to deal in the affairs of the church, and a warrant for others to deal in them which are held to be of a clean other society, the members whereof have been before so peremptorily for ever excluded from power of dealing for ever with affairs of the church. They which once have learned thoroughly this lesson, will quickly be capable perhaps of another equivalent unto it. For the wickedness of the ministry transfers their right unto the king; in case the king be as wicked as they, to whom then shall the right descend? There is no remedy, all must come by devolution at length, even as the family of Brown wilk have it, unto the godly among the people, for confusion unto the wise and the great by the poor and the simple; some kniperdoling, with his retinue, must take this work of the Lord in hand; and the making of church-laws and orders must prove to be their right in the end. If not for love of the truth, yet for shame of gross absurdities, let these contentions and trifling fancies be abandoned. The cause which