A treatise of episcopacy confuting by Scripture, reason, and the churches testimony that sort…

Ans. But who be those? Not drunkards or fornicators or any wicked livers: But men that more fear to sin against God, who can cast both soul and body into Hell, than to lie in prison: perhaps it is such Ministers as now are silenced for not saying, subscribing or swearing as they are bid: or it is some Church-Wardens who fear that they should be guilty of Persecution or Perjury (which in their opinion are neither of them things indifferent) if they should take the Oaths with the Articles that sometimes are offered them. Or perhaps it is some one for not receiving the Sacrament, either when a troubled Conscience maketh them fear lest they should eat and drink damnation to themselves, or from a Minister, or with a Church, which they think the Scripture commandeth them to avoid: whether such be in the right or in the wrong, no wonder if they refuse to repent, though they suffer, when they fear a greater suffering from God.

Obj But the Minister of the place, though he excommunicates none, may seek to bring the sinner to repentance, and may satisfy the Church of the justness of the excommunication.

Obj But the Minister of the place, though he excommunicates none, may seek to bring the sinner to repentance, and may satisfie the Church of the justness of the excommunication.

Ans. 1. In the nature of the thing, they go together, and are the work of the same persons: And therefore Tertullian assureth us, that in his time, Discipline was exercised in the Church-meeting, when they had been worshipping God. 2. Who is either so fit, or so obliged to satisfy the Church of the Act, as he that doth it, and hath examined all the Cause? A parish Minister cannot bring any unwilling person to come over to speak with him, (not that we would have him have a forcing power: but he cannot do his own Ministerial part, which is to refuse to be the Pastor of such a man as refuseth to speak with him at all, or to take him for his Pastor, nor to forbear himself to give him the Sacrament): so that he that neither heard the examination of the Cause by the Chancellor, nor perhaps can have any speech with the person, or at least with the Accuser, or any of the Witnesses, is very unfit to justify another mans act, and to satisfy the Church that it is well done; much less to exhort the offender to repent, who to him perhaps (if he vouchsafe to speak to him) will justify his own cause, when he cannot call witnesses to convince him. And (to speak to that which is our common case) we have few persons excommunicated (that ever I saw or knew of in forty years time) save only the Conscientious persons beforementioned: And when the parish Minister oft taketh them for the godliest persons in his Parish, and the Bishop or Chancellor excommunicates them as Impenitent