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this, if, as hirelings, they forsake the flock committed to them, and do not watch over those sheep, whose blood will be required at their hands in the last day. Since it is certain that no excuse will be received, if the wolf devours the sheep when the shepherd does not look after them. Yet since, to our great grief, it is found, that some at this time neglect the salvation of their souls, and prefering earthly things to heavenly, are still about courts; and forsaking the fold, and the care of the sheep trusted to them, do give themselves wholly to earthly and temporal cares: Therefore all the ancient canons, which by the iniquity of times, and the corruptions of men were fallen into disquietude, were renewed against Non-Residents." To which several compulsory clauses are added, which are indeed slight ones, because the execution of them was entirely put into the Pope's power and the punishment did only lie, if the bishop was absent six months in a year.

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This decree did not satisfy those who moved for a reformation; so a fuller one was made in the 23rd Session, 1st Chap. In these words: "Whereas, by the law of God, all those to whom the care of souls is committed, are commanded to know their sheep, to offer sacratice for them, to feed them by the preaching of the word of God, the administration of the sacraments, and by the example of a good life, to have a tender care of the poor and all other miserable persons, and to lay themselves out upon all the other functions of the pastoral care: Which cannot be performed by those who do not watch over, nor are present with their flock: Therefore this synod does admonish and exhort them, that they, remembering the divine precepts, and.

being made an example to their flock, may feed and govern them in righteousness and truth. Upon this they declare, that all bishops, even cardinals themselves, are obliged to personal residence in their church and diocese and there to discharge their duty, unless upon some special occasion. "By which indeed a door is opened to as many corruptions, as the court of Rome thinks fit to dispense with." Yet without this none may

be absent above two or at most three months in the whole year; and even that must be upon a just reason, and without any prejudice to the flock: "And they leave this upon the consciences of such as withdraw for so long a time, who they hope will be religious and tender in this matter, since all hearts are known to God, and it is no small sin to do his work negligently." They declare the breaking this decree to be a mortal sin, and that such as are guilty of it cannot with a good conscience enjoy the mean profits during such their absence, but are bound to lay them out on the fabric, or give them to the poor: And all these provisions and punishments they do also make against the inferior clergy, that enjoyed any benefice, to which the care of souls was annexed; and the execution of that is put in the bishop's hands, who is required not to dispense with their residence, unless upon a very weighty occasion, above two months; and in this they give the bishop so full an authority, that no appeal or prohibition was to lie against his sentence upon Non-Residents even in the court of Rome. By these decrees, though the Papal party hindered a formal declaration of the obligation to residence by divine right, that so room might be still left for the dispensing power; yet

they went very near it; they applied passages of scripture to it, and laid the charge of mortal sin upon it.

In the last place, I shall set down the decree that was made in the 24th Session, chap. 17. against pluralities, in these words: "Whereas the ecclesiastical order has perverted, when one clerk has the offices of many committed to him, it was therefore well provided by the holy canons, that no man should be put into two churches. But many lead by their depraved covetousness deceiving themselves, but not God, are not ashamed to elude those good constitutions by several artifices, and obtain more benefices than one at the same time: Therefore the synod, being desirous to restore a proper discipline for the government of churches, does, by this decree, by which all persons, of what rank soever, even cardinals themselves, shall be bound, appoint, that for the future, one man shall be capable of receiving only one ecclesiastical benefice. But if that is not sufficient for the decent maintenance of him that has it, then it shall be lawful to give him another simple benefice, provided that both benefices do not require personal residence. This rule must be applied not only to cathedrals, but to all other benefices whether secular, regular, or such as are held by commendam, or of what sort or order soever they may be. And as for such as do at present possess either more parish-churches than one, or one cathedral and another parish-church, they shall be forced, notwithstanding any dispensations or unions that may have been granted them for term of life, to resign within the space of six months all they do now hold, except one cathedral, or one parochial church; other

wise all their benefices, whether parochial or others, shall be by law esteemed void, and as such they shall be disposed of to others. Nor may those who formerly enjoyed them, recieve the mean profits after the term of six months with a good conscience. But the synod wishes that some due provision might be made, such as the Pope might think fit, for the necessities of those who are hereby obliged to resign."

These were the decrees that were made by that pretended General Council: And wheresoever that council is received, they are so seldom dispensed with, that the scandal of Non-Residence or Plurality, does no more cry in that church. In France, though that council is not received, yet such regard is had to primitive rules, that it is not heard of among them. Such exam. ples are to us reproaches indeed, and that of the worst sort, when the argument, from the neglect of the pastoral care, which gave so great an advantage at first to the reformers, and turned the hearts of the world so much from their careless pastors to those who shewed more zeal and concern for them, is now against us, and lies the other way. If the nature of man is so made, that it is not possible but that offences must come; yet, woe, be to him by whom they come.

CHAP. VI.

Of the declared Sense and Rules of the Church of England in this matter.

WHATSOEVER may be the practice of any

among us and whatsoever may be the force of

some laws that were made in bad times, and perhaps

bad

upon ends, yet we are sure the sense of our church is very different she intended to raise the obligation of the

:

pastoral care higher than it was before; and has laid out this matter more fully and more strictly than any church ever did in any age, as far at least as my enquiries can carry me. The truest indication of the sense of a church is to be taken from her language in her public offices: This is that which she speaks the most frequently, and the most publicly; even the articles of doctrine are not so much read, and so often heard, as her liturgies are. And as this way of reasoning has been of late made use of with great advantage against the church of Rome, to make her accountable for all her public offices in their plain and literal meaning; so will I make use of it on this occasion: It is the stronger in our case, whose offices being in a tongue understood by the people, the argument from them does more evidently conclude here.

In general then this is to be observed, that no church before ours, at the reformation, took a formal Sponsion at the altar from such as were ordained Deacons and Priests: that was indeed always demanded of bishops, but neither in the Roman nor Greek Pontifical, do we find any such solemn vows and promises demanded or made by Priests or Deacons, nor does any print of this appear in the constitutions, the pretended Areopagite, or the ancient canons of the church. Bishops were asked many questions, as appears by the first canon of the fourth council of Carthage. They were required to profess their faith, and to promise to obey the canons, which is still observed in the Greek church. The questions are more express in the Roman Pontifical; and the