A30189:483
An answer to two treatises of Mr. John Can, the leader of the English…An answer to two treatises of Mr. Iohn Can, the leader of the English…
An answer to two treatises of Mr. John Can, the leader of the English Brownists in Amsterdam the former called, A necessity of separation from the Church of England, proved by the Nonconformists principles : the other, A stay against straying : wherein in opposition to M. John Robinson, he undertakes to prove the unlawfulness of hearing the ministers of the Church of England ... / by the late learned, laborious and faithful servant of Jesus Christ, John Ball.An answer to two treatises of Mr. Iohn Can, the leader of the English Brownists in Amsterdam the former called, A necessitie of separation from the Church of England, proved by the Nonconformists principles : the other, A stay against straying : wherein in opposition to M. Iohn Robinson, he undertakes to prove the unlawfulnesse of hearing the ministers of the Church of England ... / by the late learned, laborious and faithfull servant of Jesus Christ, John Ball.
London: printed by R.B., 1642
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
To appoint or use a prayer conceived or stinted as the Papists do their Matins and Evensong, for a set service to God, howsoever it be uttered ignorantly, for custom with lips only, alone or with others in public or private, as if the rehearsal of such words, though neither understood nor heard, were an acceptable service, from lwhich he must not depart one word for any good, is a superstition justly to be condemned. Thus to repeat the words of a prayer, though never so good and holy, is not to pray. But, this makes nothing against the lawful, holy, religions use of a stinted form of prayer public or private, which is that we plead for. And this is all that can be gathered from the Author of the Admonition. There needs no great skill to discern the inconsequence of this manner of arguing which here you use; To use a stinted form as the Papists do for a set-service is naught, though the words be good; therefore a stinted or prescribed form is altogether unlawful.
To appoint or use a prayer conceived or stinted as the Papists doe their Mattens and Evensong, for a set service to God, howsoever it be uttered ignorantly, for custome with lips onely, alone or with others in publique or private, as if the rehearsall of such words, though neither understood nonheard, were an acceptable service, from lwhich he must not depart one word for any good, is a superstition justly to be condemned. Thus to repeate the words of a prayer, though never so good and holy, is not to pray. But, this makes nothing against the lawfull, holy, religions use of a stinted forme of prayer publique or private, which is that we plead for. And this is all that can be gathered from the Author of the Admonition. There needs no great skill to discerne the inconsequence of this manner of arguing which here you use; To use a stinted forme as the Papists doe for a set-service is naught, though the words be good; therefore a stinted or prescribed forme is altogether unlawfull.
- lBills. Christ. subject. part. 4. p. 416. Your main foundation is a dream of your own, that the Church of Corinth had a prescribed number of prayers pronounced by some one Chapsaine, that said his lesson within book, and might not go one line besides his Missal for any good. This you imagine was their Church-Service; all other prayers, Psalms, blessings, & thanksgivings, though they were used openly in the Congregation, and the whole people bound to say, Amen; you will not have to be called Church-service.