A RELIGIOUS AND WORTHY SPEECH SPOKEN BY Mr. ROVSE IN PARLIAMENT.
CONCERNING THE GOODS, LIBERTJES, And Lives, of his Majesties Subjects.
Laying open, the Paintings that are used by the Whore of Rome, and Arminianisme amongst Us, to draw the people thereby to Idolatry.
By which meanes, they seeke both to take away our wealth and Religion, and the dangerous Consequence thereof.
With the neere Correspondencie, and Allyance, that is apparently evident to be betweene our Bishops, and the Bishop of ROME.
And the Remedy propounded, to redresse all such Greevances.
London, Printed for W. H. 1641.
A Religious and VVorthie Speech Spoken in the High Court of Parliament by Mr. Rouse.
WEE have of late entred into the consideration of the Petition of Right, and the violation of it, and upon good reason; for it concernes our Goods, Liberties, and Lives.
But there is a Grant of higher Nature, that preserves for us far greater things; eternall life, our soule, yea God himselfe. A writ of Religion derived to us from the King of Kings, confirmed to us by the King of this Kingdome, enacted by Law in this place, streaming downe to us in the bloud of the Martyrs, witnessed from heaven by miracles, and miraculous wonders, and deliverances. And this right, in the name of this Nation, I this day claime, and desire, that there be a serious consideration had of the violation of it: my desire is, that it may be considered, what new paintings are laid upon the face of the whore of Rabylon, to make her seeme more lovely, and to draw so many the more Suters to her. J desire it may be consisidered, [Page] how the See of Rome, doth eate into our Religion, and fret into the bankes and walls of it.
The Lawes and Statutes of this Realme, especially since those Lawes have been made in manner by themselves, even by their owne treasons, and bloudy Designes.
And since that Popery is a confused mist of Errour, casting down Kings before Popes, the precepts of God, before the traditions of men, living and reasonable men before dead, & senseles stocks and stones: I desire, that we consider the encrease of Arminianisme, and Errour, that maketh the grace of God, looke after the will of men: that maketh the sheepe to keepe the shepheard, and make a mortall seed an immortall God. I desire, that we may looke into the belly, and bowels of this Trojan Horse, to see if there be no man in it, ready to open the gate of Romish tyranny, and Spanish Monarchy; for Arminianisme is the span of a papist, and if there come the warmth of favour, you shall see him turne into one of those frogs, that ariseth out of the bottomlesse pit.
And if you marke it well, you shall see an Arminian, reaching one hand to a papist, a papist to a Iesuit, a Iesuit one hand to the Pope, and the other to the King of Spaine: and these men having kindled fire in our Neighbor-countries, now they have brought some of it over hither, to set on flame this Kingdome also.
Yea let us consider, and search, whether these be [Page] not the men, that breake in upon the goods, and liberties of this Common-wealth; for by this means, they may make way, for the taking away of our Religion. It was an old trick of the Divell, when he went to take away Jobs religion, hee began at his goods. Lay thy hand on all that he hath, and hee will curse thee to thy face.
Either they thinke hereby, to set distaste betwixt Prince & people, or to find some other way of supply to avoid, and breake Parliaments, that so they may break in upon our religion, and bring in their owne errours.
But let us doe, as Iob did, hee held fast his religion, & then his goods were restored with advantage. And if wee hold fast God and our religion, these things will be added unto us. Let us consider the times past, how we flourished in honour, when religion flourished amongst us: but as religion decayed, so the honour and state of this Nation decayed.
When the soule of a Common-wealth is dead, the body cannot long over-live it. If a man meete a dogge alone, the dogg is fearefull, though never so fierce by nature: but if that dog have his Master by him, he will set upon that man, from whom he fled before.
[Page] This sheweth, that low natures being backed by higher, encrease in strength and courage: and certainly, a man backed with omnipotence, is a kind of omnipotent thing; all things are possible to him that beleeveth, and, all things being possible, there is a kind of omnipotence in them.
Wherefore, now let it be the unanimous consent, as our resolution formerly was, to make a vow, and Covenant, from henceforth to hold fast our God, and Religion, and then shall we from henceforth, certainly expect Prosperity, in this our Kingdome, and Nation, and to this, let every one say,
Amen.
A Correspondency of the Pope with our Bishops.
THe Pope writeth himselfe Father, so doe they write themselves reverend Fathers. The Pope sells sin for money, so doe they, as the whole Kingdome, and their Officers can well tell; and doth nothing without money so doe they. The Pope forbiddeth marriage and meats, &, which Paul calleth the Doctrine of Divels, so doe they in the same manner, whatsoever they pretend. The Pope commandeth superstitions Idoll-dayes to be kept & observed, contrary to the Commandements of God, and punisheth the neglect of his Commandements more severely, then the breach of the waightiest Lawes of God: so do the Prelates, as their Courts can witnesse; yea and command men, and compell them as the Pope himselfe, to break the Commandements of God to observe vaine & impious traditions. The pope selleth Licences for meat & marriage, the Prelates do the same: the pope selleth Non-residences, pluralities, trialities, totquots, the Prelates doe the same, to the starving & ruining of the soules of men. the pope ruleth and governeth the Church, by the cursed Canon-law, and popish Excommunications, the scalding of the Conscience, the prelates doe the very same, and the breach of their stinkingest Canons is more deeply punished in their Courts, then the violation of the Lawes of God and the King: the pope preferreth his Ceremonies and traditions before the Word of God, the prelates doe the same, as daily experience teacheth us: the pope persecuteth all godly preachers and people, that preach the Gospell in the purity of it, and desire in sincerity to serve the Lord, and would bring their brethren to the knowledge of the same, and to the purity and truth of the Apostolicall Churches, the Prelats do the like, as the whole Kingdome [Page] knoweth well, and the Gaoles and prisons daily witnesse, and the silencing of so many learned and painfull Ministers: the Pope appoints his priests to stand at the Altar with the Deacon, apparell'd with his foppish and playerlike accutriments, those Babylonish garments, and to cry out Dominus vibiscum, the Deacon and Sub-deacon, with all the rest of Baals Priests, answering him as loud as they can▪ the Bishops doe the same, saving onely that it is in English: the Pope commandeth adoration at the Sacrament, crossing of children in Baptisme, demanding of the new-born Babes, if they will forsake the Divell, and all his workes, &c. & esteemeth the Font more holy then other places; injoyeth likewise purifying of women, and a thousand such like costly and chargeable vanities, which were too tedious to relate: and all these and more then these doe the Prelates in like manner: in all which, their Antichristian Authority with their Popish practises, are sufficiently manifest: so that there is little or no difference betweene pope and prelates. And all Authority of doing this, they arrogate unto themselves Iure divine. Limbes therefore they are of Antichrist, from whom Dr. Pocklington gloryes, that they are lineally discended, in his impious pamphlet, entituled Sunday no Sabbath.