THE JACOBITES CATECHISM, That is to say. An INSTRUCTION to be learned of every Person who either desires, or expects to be confirmed by the Late Bishop of ELY. By Benjamin Bird, Rector of Wooton fits pain, near Lyme Regis in the County of Dorset. Printed at London, and reprinted at Edinburgh, in the Year, 1691. TO THE BOOKSELLER. SIR. YOU may see by the enclosed that the Jacobite Catechism hath left nothing by the Obstruction it met with; the Author had no design to Burlesque the Church Catechism, nor to reflect upon the Creed, Lords Prayer, or Sacraments, for those are all Sacred things, but he was willing it should look something like a Catechism: He hath now omitted their Creed and their Prayer, till he better understands what they believe and when they Pray. Their Sacraments also are left out, because some of them have paid dear for drinking Healths to K. James this last Assizes. SIR. I am King William's Loyal Subject, and your Real Friend Philirenes Junior. Wotton, 29. August, 1691. ADVERTISEMENT. THere will speedily be published the Williamites Catechism, written by the Author of this Catechism. THE JACOBITES CATECHISM. Quest. WHat is your Name? Answ. JACOBITE. Quest. Who gave you that name? Answ. The WILLIAMITES of this Nation in the day when I declared myself a favourer of Popery, and promoter of Arbitrary Government. Quest. Did they promise any thing further for you to make you keep up your Name; Answ. Yes. Quest. Pray tell me what it was; Answ. They did promise three things. 1. That as my Forefathers had done so, I should follow their steps, in siding with French Dragoons, and Irish Cutthroats, against my native Country. 2, That I should renounce the English Laws, and Liberties of the subject; 3. That I should come very short of that Love I bear to the Reformed Religion, and my Protestant Brethren Quest. Dost thou think thou art any ways obliged to Act what they promised in thy Name; Answ. Yes verily, and by Rome's help so I will, and I hearty thank our Earthly Father Lewis Le Grand, that he has taken us into his protection, and I question not but he will be as kind to us as he has been to the Hugonots of his own Country. Quest. But your Principles of Government both in Church and State, are not the same which he has taught them there; Answ. Indeed we are not yet so absolutely refined in neither as 'tis there, but we have endeavoured to instil them into the People of our Nation for above these 30. Years. Quest, What principles have you taught them concerning the State? Answ. We have taught them, that as there is but one God in Heaven, so there aught to be but one Government one Earth, and that's Monarchical both in Church and State, for as 'tis said, by me Kings Reign, so in the Church Bishops ought to govern, and those two are so twisted one in the other, that as 'tis our Maxim, No Bishop, no King, so they who are Enemies to Monarchy and Episcopacy, are Enemies to all Government both in the Church and State for as there can be no State without Kings, so there can be no Church without Bishops, and therefore I blame the New Williamite Church of England, for composing a Form of Prayer for all the Reformed Churches, seeing we ne'er owned them for true Churches, tho' we own the Church of Rome for a true Church. Quest. What do these Principles lead you to follow; Answ. They lead us to follow and acknowledge Three Things. 1. That our gracious Monarch K. James is our only King de Jure. 2. That his supposed Son the Welsh Prince will in due time redeem us, and all of our Loyal Principles, from our present Bondage, to a Prince of the Reformed Religion. 3. That none are truly Loyal who are not of our Club and Societies. Quest. Is there no Laws or Rule that you are to obey for your better direction, in practising what you shall learn; Answ. Yes there are two particular Orders which we should Obey. Quest. Which be they; Answ. 1. Render to Caesar the things which are Cafars. And 2 unto God the things which are Gods. What do they chief teach you; Answ. Two things. Quest. Which be they; Answ. 1. We are taught what we are to render to our King. 2. What we own towards God. Quest. What is it you are to render to your King; Answ. We are to own him for a Caesar, and that he may govern Despotically, and is not tied up to the Laws of the Land to which he has sworn, but that he may impose Taxes, etc. without consent of Parliaments, and the People are bound in Conscience on pain of Eternal Damnation to obey; for we are not to inquire our Duty to our King out of the known Laws of the Land, but from the Holy Scriptures, as they are expounded by these Ancient Fathers of the Church, Sibthorp and Manwaring, etc. that gape after Court preferment▪ who would fain Enslave the Subject to advance themselves. Quest. What have you been taught that you own to God; Answ. To render to God the things that are Gods, as are the Ceremonies of our Church, which are in a manner as holy as the Censors of Old, and we are not to part with the least of them to gratify our weak Brethren, who are so Sacrilegious, as to endeavour to Rob the Church of the White Robe, the Wife of the Wedding Ring, the Infant of the Invisible Bag of Christianity, which he wears in his Forehead, and the devout Christian of his genuflection at the high Altar. Quest. My good Child, know that thou art not able to do all this of thyself without calling in Foreign Aid and Assistance; Therefore let me hear what Endeavours thou wilt use to thy power for effecting it; Answ, 1. I will endeavour it three ways. 1. I will (as we have from the beginning of the Reformation) labour to foment the differences amongst all Protestants whatsoever, that I may once more blow those Coals to a Flame, as may consume them and their Church to Ashes, so as we may once again come to practise those things which I have now learned. 2. I will endeavour to keep the wounds of the Church open and Bleeding, and excite the most Furious of both parties, and vilify moderate Men, and Men of healing Spirits, to make them be looked on as Lukewarm Laodiceans, and only fit to be spewed out of the mouths of both Parties, whilst we cry aha! so we would have it. 3. I will as often as I can possible, keep up a correspondence with Papists and the French Court, as we have hitherto done, by inviting the French last year, and by our continual advertising them of the State of the Kingdom, and what Ships are going out or coming in, that the immortal Lewis may be in the better Capacity to help us: for at present our Cause is so sunk, and that within these six months, I have seen the melting down of five of our Golden-Candlesticks, for the support of the Cause. Quest. Is there no other Rub that you are to practise; Answ. Yes, but it has been exploded these thirty years. Quest. What is it; Answ. Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thyself, or do as thou wouldst be done unto. Quest. Have you any distinguishing Mark whereby you may know who are of the same Profession with you. Answ. Yes Two, as absolutely necessary to distinguish the Members of our Society. Quest. What are they; Answ. 1. A Health to our old Master King James: And 2dly. Another to our young Master the Welsh Prince, who has all our good Wishes. Quest. Why do you so often drink healths to K. James: Answ. Because as Mahomes, said, there is a Devil in every Berry of the Grape, and when the Devil is got in, we are beholding to them that by a good Fine will conjure him out again. Quest. What mean you by the word Health. Answ. I mean an outward Appearance of our inward and hearty Affection to K. James, the Welsh Prince, and the Popish Interest. Quest. What is required of them who enter into these societies: Answ. To examine themselves what Devil prompted them to invite in the Prince of Orange contrary to their Doctrine of Nonresistance and Passive Obedience, and whether they do hearty and unfeignedly repent of that thing, and steadfastly purpose to continue their Loalty to King James for the time to come, and if God should restore their old Master again, whether they would not soon grow weary of him, and Father Peter, and whether they are in Charity with all Men, especially with the Prince of Orange, who came in at their Invitation, but would not be prevailed on to go out again at their Entreaty, being loath to leave them in a worse condition than he found them. Qu. But are you not guilty of great ingratitude to the Prince of Orange, that ventured all he had to save you from Ruin. Answ. He did'nt save us only, but Protestant Dissenters as well as we, and is kinder to them than we do desire. Quest. But must your Eye be evil because his is good. Answ. The truth is, we would have all the water run in to our MILL. Quest. What reason can you Jacobites give that you had rather be Papists than Presbyterians Answ. Because we can have more Elbow-room amongst the Papists than among those strait laced Disciplinarians. Quest. What think you of some of the Fathers of the Church of the Highest Rank, that are for Peace and Agreement with others, since 'tis only in small matters that we differ. Answ. We snarl, and Burlesque, and affront them, because we think them Lukewarm in our Religion. For should we give the Dissenters an Inch, they would take an Ell, nothing will satisfy them but the ruin of the Church, as it is Established by Law. Quest, Suppose they were tried, and somewhat less would please them. Answ. I am never for yielding to that, for our Church is sufficiently Reformed already to our minds, tho' not to theirs. Quest. How long may we teach Passive Obedience before. the Great Men of the Kingdom will believe what we say; Answ. Till Doomsday. For they will give the Parson the hearing, who to get Preferment will Preach up that Doctrine but are very unwilling to be brought to Practise it. Quest. What made you no more concerned for the loss of those brave Patriots of your Country, Essex, Russel; etc. who lost their Lives in defence of their Country and its Liberties: Answ. By reason we thought them not enough to our ways, tho' they were for the Church of England, yet they were too moderate for to keep our Friendship long. Quest. What must the poor Protestants in Ireland think of you, who were so near Ruin by the means of your slow proceeding here. Answ, They know e'er this what one of our Party said of them. Hang them they are a Pack of fanatics, and especially Northward Scotch Presbyterians Quest. What Opinion will the States of Holland and the ●rotestant princes of Germany, have of you for your carriage to 〈◊〉 Prince that they esteemed with Men and Money to come to our Relief. Answ. They may think if they had not been in danger themselves, by the growing greatneness of the French King it had been no matter if we had perished. Quest. What shall the Emperor of Germany think of you that you who pretend to be Protestants should have any kindness for King Lewis, that would root out the Northern Heresy both at Home and Abroad. Answ. He may easily see that we are only Protestants by the custom of our Country where we live, and that our Religion (for all our pretences) is to choose: and say as one of his predecessors once did, that the King of England as a King of Devils. Quest, Why since you have so great a kindness for King Lewis, will be not allow the English Fugitives a Chapel in your old Master's palace, for the Exercise of that little Religion they carried over with them. Answ. He is loath that any Heresy should be preached on Catholic ground, and as for the Doctrine of Nonresistance and Passive Obedience, his People have been taught that sufficiently by the Common Hang man, so that there is no need of our Proaching it up there. Quest. But are you not Ashamed that you should be Popish Tools so long as you were in the former Reigns. Answ We did not think K. J. would have laid us aside so soon as he did, but he repent of it afterwards; and if he had continued, we should have been his white Boys once more. Quest. But wilt not the English. and French Papists laugh at you, to see you so willing to be fooled by them a second time, that have been cheated by them once already. Answ; We han't time to think of that, we are so mad, that we are got under the yoke of Princes, that are Enemies to Looseness and Debauchery (and as we Jacobites think) smell too much of Puritanism. Quest, you are so much for the Papist and the French Interest, what would you do if the French King should as last reject and slight you as he did K. C. and your Old Master. Answ. Then we will march for the Holy Land, for our Master is to succeed Godfrey King of Jerusalem, as soon as the French Monarch has Conquered Asia, and to be Crowned with Thorns in that Holy City as Godfrey was formerly. FINIS.