Page:A Letter from a Person of Quality, to His Friend in the Country (1675).pdf/30

 such, as were never ordain'd Priests by Bishops. Moreover the Unchari­tableness of it was so much against the Interest of the Crown, and Church of England (casting off the dependency of the whole Protestant partie a­broad) that it would have been bought by the Pope and French King at a vast summ of Money; and it is difficult to conceive so great an advantage fell to them meerly by chance, and without their help; so that he thought to endeavor to alter, and restore the Liturgy to what it was in Queen Eli­zabeths days might consist with his being a very good Protestant.

As to the Catachisme, he really thought it might be mended, and durst declare to them, it was not well that there was not a better made.

For the Homilies he thought there might be a better Book made, and the 3. Hom. of Repairing and keeping clean of Churches, might be omitted.

What is yet stranger then all this, The Canons of our Church are directly the old Popish Canons, which are still in force, and no other; which will appear, if you turn to the Stat. 25. Hen. 8. cap. 19 confirmed and received by 1. Eliz. where all those Canons are establish'd, untill an alteration should be made by the King in pursuance of that Act; which thing was attempted by Edward the 6th. but not perfected, and let alone ever since, for what reasons the Lords the Bishops could best tell; and it was very hard to be obliged by Oath not to endea­vour to alter either the English Common-Prayer book, or the Canon of the Mass. But if they meant the latter, That the Protestant Religion is con­tein'd in all those, but that every part of those is not the Protestant Religion, then he apprehended it might be in the Bishops Power to declare ex post facto what is the Protestant Religion or not, or else they must leave it to every man to judge for himself, what parts of those books are or are not, and then their Oath had been much better let alone. Much of this nature was said by that Lord, and Others, and the great Officers, and Bishops were so hard put to it, that they seemed willing, and convinced to admit of an Expedient. The Lord Wharton an Old and Expert Parliament Man of eminent Piety and Abilities, beside a great Friend to the Protestant Religion, and Interest of England, offer'd as a cure to the whole Oath, and what might make it pass in all the 3 parts of it, without any farther debate, the addition of these words at the latter end of the Oath, Viz. Rh