THE PARLIAMENTS NEW AND PERFECT CATECHISM.  
Fit and necessary to be known and practised by every old Christian and loyal Subject.  
Quest. WHat is your name?  
Answ. Reformation— A blessed one.  
Quest. Who gave you that name?  
Answ. The Parliament. A blessed one.  
Quest. What did the parliament then for you?  
Ans. They did promise and vow three things in my name. First, to maintain the true, Ancient, Catholic, and Apostolic Religion. Secondly, to defend his Majesty's Royal Person in his just Prerogatives. Thirdly, to preserve the Privileges of Parliament, and the liberty of the Subject.  
Quest. Dost not thou think that thou art bound to believe and the Parliament to do as they have promised for thee?  
Answ. Yes verily, charity obligeth me to believe no Parliament can be so damned, as to take an oath, with intention and resolution to break it, and make the Covenant a very stalking horse to all their designs, blinding the People with specious pretences only.  
Quest. Hath the Parliament truly and faithfully kept their Covenant?  
Answ. No verily, but violated every particular branch thereof.  
Quest. What texts have you to prove that?  
Answ. Their several apocryphal orders, and ordinances extant, which at pleasure they vote, and unvote, do, and undo as they see occasion to the necessitating and undoing of us all.  
Quest. Is not the true Religion established and maintained according to the best reformed Churches of Christendom?  
Ans. No indeed, but the best Reformed Church of Christendom is deformed, by irreverently forcing her to conform to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Kirke of Scotland.  
Quest. Dost thou not believe thou art bound by the Covenant, steadfastly to labour and earnestly endeavour the settling of Presbytery in this Kingdom?  
Ans. Truly no, but rather to destroy all possible hopes of it, and the very covenant itself: which is impossible to keep, for if the Scottish Presbytery be allowed to be the best, and we confirm, and establish that form of Government we confound the second Article, which is to preserve the King in his just Prerogatives. Monarchy (his due) and Presbytery being incompatiable, and altogether inconsistent, nor can the liberty of the Subject be at all maintained, where an usurping power challengeth the privilege to exercise Tyranny over the very consciences of freeborn Subjects.  
Quest. Is not the King defended in his royal Person, and his just Prerogatives?  
Answ. Yes indeed, as well as Colonel Whallyes Regiment can defend him, and of his just Prerogatives as yet, he enjoys just nothing.  
Quest. How is the condition of the King then good or bad?  
Ans. The Kings own conditions are extremely good, but he stands in a very bad condition, being in the nature and extremity of a Prisoner.  
Quest. Is the King a Prisoner;  
Ans. Certainly not so free as he ought to be, amongst those many high, and just Prerogatives of a King, he enjoys not the liberty of a Subject to go where he pleaseth.  
Quest. How is the privilege of Parliament and Liberty of the Subject maintained?  
A The privilege of Parliament, hath confounded the Liberty of the Subject, and the liberty of the Subject, destroyed the Privilege of Parliament.  
Quest. Is it not then a free Parliament?  
A. The parliament is free enough to give to themselves what they take from us, but no free Parliament.  
Q. Is it not very just and reasonable, that this present Parliament should be dissolved?  
A. No expectation of peace and happiness without the dissolution of this most dissolute Parliament, and it should be the desire and resolution of the whole Kingdom, to free itself from the tyranny and oppression it suffers, and the fear, otherwise of an evitable second war, etc. The Houses consisting of two several irreconcilable Factions; the weaker and oppressed will be always plotting and practising to maintain and support their reputation in the Country, which shall ever be preserved in their ancient ignorance, to their own undoing and confusion.  
Q. What hopes have you, that the Army according to promise, and just expectation will dissolve this Parliament.  
A. Truly little, for now, that Party prevailing in the House, the Army hath an Authority and Vote to countenance all their Actions, which otherwise might have been questioned; So they will preserve mutually each other, to the destruction of us all.  
Q. What necessity is there for the Synod to sit longer?  
A. None, for if Liberty of Conscience be allowed; there will be no use of form or priscription for Church Disciplince.  
Q Why are they not dismissed, without further trouble to themselves and us?  
A. There is a mystery, in that they serve for better use to the Parliament. The Synod hath in Sequestration Church livings, to the value of six hundred thousand pounds yearly coming in. The Parliaas much otherwise; they are well contented to divide the spoil. The Parliament borrows conscience from the Synod, the Synod derives law from the Parliament.  
Q. Will the long deluded People endure this long, which conduceth not to the good, but ruin of the King and Kingdom?  
A. Certainly no, nor can it be long safe for those, that thus imprison, and enthrall the King, captive and enslave the Kingdom, that will not be longer subject to the usurpation and controlment of fellow Subjects.  
Q You speak as if there were a probability of resistance, if they should malign the King, or infest the Subject. What power could any obtain to oppose and impede their designs, they having posest themselves, of that ever famous, and memorable City of London, the Navy at Sea, and maintaining a powerful Army at Land?  
A. The eyes of the whole Kingdom, are intent and fixed on the King, and look upon him, as the only unjustly suffering and injured Party, crucified between to Factions. The Army by not executing their pretences, and not perfecting their promises, hath contracted a general hate; and by delaying the Kingdom's peace, and welfare (which depends altogether on the King's happiness and safety) are grown burdensome and intolerable, so that their continued sufferings will force them to shake off their tameness, and rouse up thoughts thirsty of revenge.  
Q. If the Army have good intentions, as they have plauceable pretences, what means this cruel delay? why is not the King settled, Prisoners of war released, the Parliament dissolved; and the Army disbanded?  
A. Their tedious delay, draw their intentions into a suspect of being ill, that they merely pursue designs of their own interests, without reflecting on the great concernment of King and Kingdom, that by their flow motion they gain the advantage of reducing the whole Kingdom, under the power and command of the Army, which they will never be able to compass, for if they reflect on their present state there is a division in their Army (as well as in the Houses of Parliament) which cannot be cemented but in the King, the proper Centre where we must meet and agree in.  
Q. What is the best and readiest way to procure and establish our constant durable Peace and happiness?  
A. The most Certain and infallible way is to refer all to his Sacred Majesty, offer him innocent and spotless hearts, white and nnblotted Paper. He writes a fair hand, let him imprint his own conditions, and that is the way to perpetute our bliss, ye do violence on his modesty far, but doing our duty, would so overcome him, that he would not ask so much as we ought, and should most cheerfully submit to him.  
FINIS.   

London, Printed in the Year, 1647.