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MY God, my God, I doe not expostu∣late with thee, but with them, who dare doe that: Who dare expostu∣late with thee, when in the voice of thy Church, thou giuest allowance, to this Ceremony of Bells at funeralls. Is it enough to refuse it, because it was in vse amongst the Gentiles? so were fu∣neralls too. Is it because some abuses may haue
crept in, amongst Chri∣stians? Is that enough, that their ringing hath been said to driue away euill spirits? Truly, that is so farre true, as that the euill spirit is vehemently vexed in their ringing, therefore, because that action brings the Con∣gregation together, and vnites God and his peo∣ple, to the destruction of that Kingdome, which the euill spirit vsurps. In the first institution of thy Church, in this world, in the foundation of
thy Militant Church, a∣mongst the Iewes, thou didst appoint the calling of the assembly in, to bee by Trumpet, and when they were in, then thou gauest them the sound of Bells, in the garment of thy Priest•• In the Tri∣umphant Church, thou imploiest both too, but in an inuerted Order, we enter into the Trium∣phant Church by the sound of Bells, (for we enter when we die;) And then we receiue our fur∣ther edification, or con∣summation,
by the sound of Trumpets, at the Re∣surrection. The sound of thy Trumpets thou didst impart to secular a••d ci∣uill vses too, but the sound of Bells onely to sacred; Lord let not vs breake the Communion of Saints, in that which was intended for the ad∣uancement of it; let not that pull vs asunder frō one another, which was intended for the assem∣bling of vs, in the Mili∣tant, and associating of vs to the Triumphant
Church. But he for whose funerall these Bells ring now, was at home, at his iournies end, yesterday; why ring they now? A Man, that is a world, is all the things in the world; Hee is an Army, and when an Army mar∣ches, the Vaunt may lodge to night, where the Reare comes not till to morrow. A man ex∣tends to his Act and to his example; to that which he does, and that which he teaches; so doe those things that con∣cerne
him, so doe these bells; That which rung yesterday, was to con∣uay him out of the world, in his vaunt, in his soule•• that which rung to day, was to bring him in his Reare, in his body, to the Church; And this continuing of ringing after his entring, is to bring him to mee in the application. Where I lie, I could heare the Psalme, and did ioine with the Congregation in it; but I could not heare the Sermon, and these latter
bells are a repetition Ser∣mon to mee. But, O my God, my God, doe I, that haue this feauer, need other remembran∣ces of my Mortalitie? Is not mine owne hol∣low voice, voice enough to pronounce that to me? Need I looke vpon a Deaths-head in a Ring, that haue one in my face? or goe for death to my Neighbours house, that haue him in my bosome? We cannot, wee cannot, O my God, take in too many helps for religious
duties; I know I cannot haue any better Image of thee, than thy Sonne, nor any better Image of him, than his Gospell: yet must not I, with thanks con∣fesse to thee, that some historicall pictures of his, haue sometimes put mee vpon better Meditations than otherwise I should haue fallen vpon? I know thy Church needed not to haue taken in from Iew or Gentile, any supplies for the exaltati∣on of thy glory, or our deuotion; of absolute ne∣cessitie
I know ••hee nee∣ded not; But yet wee owe thee our thanks, that thou hast giuen her leaue to doe so, and that as in making vs Christians, thou diddest not destroy that which wee were be∣fore, naturall men, so in the exalting of our reli∣gious deuotions no•• we are Christians, thou hast beene pleased to conti∣nue to vs those assistan∣ces which did worke vpon the affections of naturall men before: for thou louest a good man,
as thou louest a good Christian: and though Grace bee meerely from thee, yet thou doest not plant Grace but in good natures.
Num. 10 1.
Exo. 18.