TEN Considerable Queries CONCERNING TITHES, THE Present Petitioners and Petitions for their total abolition, as Antichristian, Jewish, burdensome, oppressive to the godly, conscientious People of the Nation; excited, encouraged thereunto by disguised Jesuits, Popish Priests, Friars, and Romish Emissaries, to starve, suppress, extirpate our Protestant Ministers, Church, Religion; and bring them all to speedy confusion. By William Prynne Esq a Bencher of Lincoln's Inn. Levit. 27. 30. All the Tithe of the Land, of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, IS THE LORDS, it is holy unto the Lord. Gal. 6. 6. Let him that is taught in the word communicate to him that teacheth in all good things. Calvin, in Mal. 3. 11. Videmus non esse novum vel insolitum si homines Deo sua officia imputent, & interea manifest è eripiant ei (Decimas) quod suum est, et ad se transferunt; manifest è satis appareat eorum impictas, etiamsi velo simulationis sit obducta. LONDON, Printed for Edward Thomas at the Adam and Eve in Little Britain, 1659. Ten Considerable Quaeres concerning Tithes, and the New Petitioners, Petitions, concerning their abolishing. I. WHether Nine parts of Ten of the present eager Petitioners against our Ministers Tithes (if strictly examined by the poll) will not appear to be poor mecanical persons, of such mean inconfiderable fortunes, estates, condition, (without any Tithable lands, live, estates,) as are no ways interessed nor concerned in the payment of Tithes? And so fit to be punished as factious, seditious, schismatical; than thanked, encouraged as zealous, conscientious, well-affected persons, by those in present power? II. Whether all or most of these Petitioners, be not really greater Enemies to our * See John Cannes second Voice from the Temple, 1653. Ministers and their Ministry, than they are unto their Tithes; petitioning purposely against their Tithes in order to the subversion, extirpation of their Ministry, Function, and thereby of our Protestant Church and Religion? And that by the instigation, solicitation of those disguised Jesuits, Popish Priests, Monks and * See My Quakers Unmasked. My New Discovery of Romish Emissaries. And true and perfect Narrative. Romish Emissaries, which bear chief sway in most Separate Congregations of Anabaptists, Quakers, and other Antagonists now attempting the present abolition of Tithes? If so; (as will appear upon an impartial Inquisition) whether such persons will not be fit to be banished as Antichristian, rather than Tithes, and to be taken into public consideration before the debate of Tithes? III. Whether there be not above One hundred religious well affected Protestants, persons of Honour, Quality, Estate liable to the payment of predial Tithes, and most concerned therein, who desire the constant payment and continuance of them for the maintenance of their Ministers, to every one of those Tith-payers who now petition against them as a grievance, though the Tithes the most of them pay be not considerable? If so, (as is most apparent, by comparing the paucity and quality of the Petitioners, with those who refuse to join with them) Whether it can be conscionable, equitable, just, reasonable, * See Claus. 28 E. 1. m. 3. dorso. Parliamentary, to admit of any debates for the abolishing, or altering the payment of Tithes, upon the Petitions of so few malcontented Sectaries, and unvaluable persons; against the wills, consents, desires, of the Generality and most considerable part of the Nobility, Gentry, Farmers, Citizens, Freemen of the whole Nation? And that during the absence & forcible seclusion of most of those Knights, Citizens, and Burgesses they duly elected to represent their persons, and give both their free Votes, Opinions, Assents, and Dissents, to whatever public businesses should be propounded and ordained in Parliament: Therefore to this of Tithes which is so universal, and so highly concerns both our Religion and Proprieties? iv Whether it will not be an apparent breach of the Great Charter of England, ch. 1. & 29. That the Church of England shall be free, and shall have her whole Rights and Liberties inviolable; That no Freeman shall be disseised of his Freehold, or Liberties, or Free-Customs, or be outlawed, exiled, or any otherwise destroyed, nor shall we pass upon him nor condemn him, but by the lawful judgement of his Peers, and by the Law of the Land: And of above 40. other Statutes for its confirmation since, (some of them in the last long Parliament, now revived in pretext:) for those now sitting to take upon them, the debating and voting down of Tithes, or altering their usual way of payment in any kind (being the Inheritance, Right, Liberty, of the Church of England, of every particular Church, Patron, Minister, Impropriator, and many thousands of Freemen in all parts of the Nation) without any lawful summons given to them to appear before them, to defend, maintain their respective Inheritances, Freeholds, rights, interests in them, (ratified by prescription time out of mind; by sundry Acts of Parliament both under our ancient * See Mr. Seldens History of Tithes, c. 8. Rastals Abridgement, Title Tithes. Saxon, Norman, English Kings, and many late Ordinances (to which those now conyened gave their Votes, as fully as others now secluded) as well as by Divine Right, Institution both before, under the Law, and Gospel too) without any lawful judgement, hearing, trial by their Peers, or by the Law of the Land? And whether this will be a conscientious real performance of their printed Declaration, May 9 1659. We are resolved (by the gracious assistance of Almighty God,) to apply ourselves to the faithful discharge of our Legal Trust, to assert, establish, and secure, the Property and Liberty of the people in reference unto all, both as Men and Christians? Therefore of all Patrons, Ministers, Members as well as others, unless they repute them neither Men, nor Christians. V Whether * See his Second Voice from the Temple, 1653. John Can, with other Adversaries to and Petitioners against Tithes as jewish and Antichristian; ought not first to prove them such, by clear unanswerable Scriptures, Evidences, Demonstrations, to the conviction of the judgements, Consciences of the generality of the English Nation, and all now sitting? And to answer all the Arguments Authorities, Scriptures, Reasons produced by Tyndarus, & Rebuffus, in their Treatises de Decimis, Dr. George Carltons, Tithes proved to be due by a Divine right, London 1606. Dr. Robert Till●slee, his Animadversions on Mr. Seldens History of Tithes London 1619. Sir john Sempil his Sacrilege sacredly handled, London 1619. Stephen Nettles his Answer to the Jewish part of Mr. Seldens History of Tithes, Oxon 1625. Richard Montague his Answer to the first part of the History of Tithes, London 1628. Dr. William Sclater, his Minister's portion; Foulke Roberts, The Revenue of the Gospel is Tithes, due to the Ministry of the word by that word, Cambridge 1613. Richard Eburne, his Maintenance of the Ministry, London 1609. R. G. his Truth of Tithes discovered; or the Anatomy of Annanias and Saphiraes' Sacrilege, London 1608. My Gospel Plea (interwoven with a Rational and Legal) for the Lawfulness and continuance of the ancient maintenance and Tenths of the Ministers of the Gospel, London 1653. & others, to prove Tithes Due by Divine Right to the Ministers of the Gospel, and neither Jewish nor Antichristian, nor illegal, nor burdensome to the people in the least degree, being allowed in all Leases, purchases, before they be voted down, abolished, and quite abrogated as such, upon their clamorous, scandalous Petitions, Suggestions, void of all truth? VI Whether the present, and future pretended ease of the people in their Tithes to their Ministers, (if effected) will not be recompensed with an Augmentation or Duplication of their Monthly Taxes to the Army, or in Fines, Rents to their Landlords, to a far greater value than they now pay to their Ministers, and be levied with greater rigour and harder compositions, if detained, than now they are? according to Saint Augustine's prediction, Sermo 219. De Tempore, If thou will not give thy Tithes, Dabis impio Militi, quod non vis dare Deo & Sacerdoti; Hoc tollit Fiscus, quod non accepit Christus: Thou shall be sure to give that to an impious Soldier, which thou will not give to God, and a pious Minister: The Exchequer takes that away, which Christ's hath not received; as some Parishes have found by experience to their costs and grief. VII. Whether it be not a most arrogant, high, inexcusable presumption for a few giddy-pated Innovators in this Age, to condemn, censure, not only the practice, wisdom, piety of Abraham, the Father of the Faithful, and all the people of God in the Old Testament, before and under the Law, and of most Christian States, Churches under the Gospel in paying, prescribing Tithes, as the most equal, rational, just, convenient maintenance for the Priests and Ministers of God of all others; but likewise of the wisdom, prudence, providence of God, who is a Prov. 8. 1, 14. c. 9 1. Wisdom itself, and b Rom. 16. 27. 1 Tim. 1. 17. jude 21. God only wise, c 1 Cor. 11. 25. whose very Folly is wiser than men, in instituting, commanding such a constant, settled maintenance for them in his Word, as the best, fittest of all others; wherein both Minister and people equally lose, gain, and sympathize with each other, which they cannot do with so much indifferency, equality in any other way, which human wisdom could hitherto invent? VIII. Whether it be not an infallible evidence, that those have neither the Faith nor Piety, and by consequence are not the Sons of Abraham, the Father of the Faithful, in a Spiritual or Gospel sense, who refuse to do his d john 8. 39, Rom. 4. 7. to 15. works and follow his steps, in paying Tithes of all their spoils of War to Christ himself, a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedeck, Heb. 7. 4. as other Soldiers by his example did both amongst Israelites, Christians and Pagans too, Num 31. 26, to 54. 1 Chron. 26. 26, 27, 28. Mr. Seldens History of Tithes, c. 1. 3. and endeavour to spoil them of all other Tithes due from themselves, and others too; reputing it an eminent degree of their Saintship? And whether this their practice be not likelier to bring them into Hell torments, than into Abrabams' bosom in conclusion, if they repent not of it? Luke 16. 23. to 31. IX. Whether all the Inconveniences objected against Minister's maintenance by Tithes, be not rather fictitious, imaginary, than real, arising from the malice, covetousness, impiety, fraud, hypocrisy, injustice, rapine, perverseness, litigeousnesse of the wilful Deteiners, Opposers of them, rather than from Tithes themselves? since many Ministers heretofore, and of late years, have lived all their lives without any suits for Tithes with any of their Parishioners, and might do so still, would they make a Conscience to pay them without any suit? Whether those who refuse to pay Tithes in kind to Ministers now, out of a pretext of Conscience; will not upon the same Pretence refuse to pay them any other maintenance that can be invented, and make it more litigious, contentious, uncertain than their Tithes, since every Innovation in this kind engenders new suits & disputes, when all legal Controversies, suits for Tithes have been long since settled, resolved over and over, both in Parliaments, and other Courts of Justice? X. Whether the admission, permission of those few Commoners now acting without their Fellows, (being scarce the TENTH PART OF THE HOUSE) to vote down, or take away the Ministers Tenths, or reduce them into one public Treasury, to divide and distribute them at their pleasures, though amongst the Ministers themselves at first, will not be a dangerous leading Precedent and encouragement to them (upon any pretended necessity) to dispose of these Tenths and the other * 1 Sam. 8. 14, 15, 16, 17. 18. See I0. Calvini Hom. 29 in 1 Sam. c. 8. p. 155. nine parts of every Man's estate, and reduce the profits of them into their public Treasury, for the necessary defence, and preservation of their New-Commonwealth, and the Armies pay, as they did others sequestered estates heretofore, because Tithes, though * See Mr. Seldens History of Tithes, ch. 11. The 2. Part of my Gospel Plea. originally dedicated as a peculiar portion, inheritance, and rent-service to God himself and his Church, as the Sovereign Lord of all men's Inheritances, specially reserved by him for his own immediate honour, service, homage, tribute, for all the other nine parts they enjoy by his free grace and liberality; may be thus alienated and distributed at their pleasures; therefore much more the nine remaining parts allotted unto men alone, for their own private, and the Public good; over which they have a greater probabler, legaller Jurisdiction, than over God's own peculiar portion, which might neither be alienated, exchanged, redeemed by any human powers, but only by the Priest's consents in some special cases for their advantage, Numb. 18. 20. Levit, 27-28, 29, 30, 32, 33. Deut. 12. 17. c. 14. 22, 23. Mal. 3. 8, 9 Ezech. 48. 9 to 15. Which if once reduced into a new public Treasury, the Ministers are like to have no other share nor better account of them, then of the Tithes of Southwales for some years last passed, or of the Deans & Chapters impropriations for the augmentation of incompetent live, swallowed up for the most part by the Treasurers and their Instruments, with little or no advantage to the public, and less to the Ministers, by reason of their unfaithfulness; far different from those * 2 Chron. 31. 11. to 20. Treasurers for the Tithes and First fruits brought to jerusalem, appointed by King Hezekiah, over whom Coniah the Levite was ruler, who faithfully brought in and distributed to their brethren, the Oblations, TITHES, and dedicated things, as well to the great as the small, without substraction or defalcation. The Statutes of 27 H 8. c. 20. 32 H. 8. c. 7. 2, & 3E. 6. c. 13. style those evil disposed Persons, not regarding their Duties to Almighty God, and to the King their Sovereign Lord; who out of an ungodly and perverse will and mind detain all or any part or parcel of their Tithes and Offerings, enacting strict penalties against all Substracters and Detainers of them. How then they can now be reputed conscientious Godly Saints, unless enrolled for such in the Roman Calendar, is worthy resolution: some of them (as the Quakers) beginning of late to work on the Lord's day, denying God one day in seven, as well as the Tenth of their annual increase, deeming both Jewish and Antichristian, as they deem our Ministers. Ex cauda draconem. FINIS.