Christ and his Church: or, Christianity explained, under seven evangelical and ecclesiastical heads; viz. Christ I. Welcomed in his nativity. II. Admired in his Passion. III. Adored in his Resurrection. IV. Glorified in his Ascension. V. Communicated in the coming of the Holy Ghost. VI. Received in the state of true Christianity. VII. Reteined in the true Christian communion. With a justification of the Church of England according to the true principles of Christian religion, and of Christian communion. By Ed. Hyde, Dr. of Divinity, sometimes fellow of Trinity Colledge in Cambridge, and late rector resident at Brightwell in Berks.

SECT. IV. Praying a greater part of the Churches Trust, then preaching. The Church hath God the Fathers Precedent, and Precept for making set forms of prayer; and shall answer for all the blemishes that may be in publick prayers for want of a set form.

THE Church teacheth us to know God by Preaching, but she teacheth us to worship God, by praying; And accord∣ingly we cannot but think praying a much greater part of her Trust, then preaching, because though it be a very great hap∣piness truly to know God, yet is it a much greater happiness truly to worship him: And if the Church be bound to take care that there be no false doctrine in the Pulpit, much more there be no absurd prayers at the Desque; For the Sermons men naturally hear as Judges, letting their discretion go be∣fore their Affection; But prayers men naturally hear as Com∣municants, letting their affection go before their discretion; so that false worship in praying is much more dangerous, and may be much more mischievous, then false Doctrine in preach∣ing; for it is like an unsuspected infection, most probable to spread further, to sink deeper, and to tarry longer: Again, false worship in praying doth infinitely more dishonour God, then false Doctrine in preaching, because it more immediately dishonoreth him; that is to say, not only in his truth by here∣sie, but also in his very nature and essence by blasphemy: For though a man may preach blasphemy as well as pray it, yet he that preacheth blasphemy, blasphemeth God only to men, but he that prayeth blasphemy, blasphemeth God to his own face: Wherefore the Church must needs take a most special care of prayer, if she desire to discharge her trust either in re∣gard of God or Man; in regard of God as she is obliged to shew forth his glory; in regard of men as she is obliged to pro∣mote their salvation.

And indeed for so doing the Church hath very good Prece∣dent, and Precept, and Promise; Her Precedent is God; her

Precept and Promise are from God. Her Precedent is God, who having taught so many heavenly forms of prayer in his ho∣ly word, did in the very act of teaching them, as it were cry out to his Church, Vade & fac similiter, Go then and do likewise; For if the Jews examples of sin were registred for our instruction, (as the Apostle plainly affirmeth, 1 Cor. 10▪ 11.) then much more Gods example of Righteousness; And he that com∣manded Moses to do all things exactly according to the pat∣tern shewed in the Mount, when as yet he shewed him but on∣ly the out side and the out-works of the Tabernacle, doth much more command his Church exactly to follow his example, since he hath been pleased to shew her the very inside and mar∣row of Religion; aad therefore if the Tabernable, then surely much more the service of the Tabernacle is to be framed and ordered according to his pattern; Thus much for Precedent, but for Precept we have much more; First in the Old Testa∣ment, God commanded the children of Israel to bring pure Oyl Olive, beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually, Lev. 24. 2. This command reacheth us; for he that would have well beaten Oyl for his lamp, will not be contented with extempore effusions, but will have well studied and elaborated expressions for his homage; unless we will say he did more regard their Typical, then he doth our real worship.

Again, God threatned the children of Israel, That if they walked at all adventures with him, he would bring plagues upon them according to their sins, Lev. 26. 21. For so it is in the Hebrew, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Keri (for Bekari) in Accidente; If you walk with me by chance or by accident, and so Tremelius renders it, Si ambulaveritis mecum temere, If ye walk with me rashly or unadvisedly; This threat likewise reacheth us, and then espe∣cially when we most walk with God, that is, in the exercise of our Religion; we must there be sure to do nothing at adven∣tures; nothing rashly, nothing unadvisedly; for unadvised∣ness in this case is ungodliness; and if our prayers be turned into Provocations, what shall we have left to make our Atone∣ment? But you will say, these are rather consequents then arguments; I answer, if they were so, yet they ought to be regarded; for God forbiddeth those actions which are sinfull in their consequences, and not only in their concomitances;

but indeed we have choice enough of direct Arguments; for so Moses is commanded to speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The Lord bless thee and keep thee: the Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gratious unto thee; the Lord lift up his coun∣tenance upon thee, and give thee peace▪ Numb. 6. 23. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Coh tebaracu, sic benedicatis, so ye shall bless, id est, ye shall use this very prescript form of blessing: And to shew that this precept was to be looked on as doctrinal, and not as occasional, as general not as particular, we find Moses him∣self putting it in practise in another case; for when the Ark set forward, he said, Rise up Lord, and let thine enemies be scat∣tered, and let them that hate thee flee before thee; and when it rested he said, Return O Lord unto the many thousands of Israel, Numb. 10. 35, 36. He that considers how oft the Ark moved and rested, must needs confess that Moses used this set form of prayer very often; If to the stinting of the Spirit, or ex∣cluding of the gift of prayer, let us blame Saint Paul for say∣ing, Moses verily was faithful in all his house, Heb. 3. 9. but if rather for the solemnity, and reverence, and certainty of Religi∣on, that all Israel might pray with him, and knowing his prayer before hand, might pray in the greater assurance and comfort of Faith, then let us not blame Gods Church for following the example of his faithfulness: For indeed this is a general rule concerning Gods publick worship, and the Church cannot be faithfull, unless she carefully observe this rule. If it have any ill blemish, thou shalt not sacrifice it unto the Lord thy God, Deut. 15. 21. Though it be a lamb, yet if it hath any ill ble∣mish, it is all one, as to thy sacrifice, as if it were a Hog; This is in effect Jarchies gloss upon the place, to shew that a lamb might no less be excluded for his il-favoredness, then a hog for his uncleanness; Nay indeed this is in effect Gods own gloss, Mat. 1. 8. And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evill? or if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? as if he had said, though the offering you bring be not unclean in it self, yet if it be blind, or lame, or sick, tis unclean in its use, for it may not be offered as a sacrifice: And the more either to conform their obedience to this command, or to convince their disobedience against it, he appealeth to common sense,

and in that to conscience, saying, offer it now unto thy Gover∣nour, will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? q. d. If it be against thy sense to offer it to thy Governour, let it be much more against thy conscience to offer it to thy Maker: For if man who creepeth on the earth, then much more God who sitteth on the heavens, will disdain thy blind, and lame, and sick offerings: Now let us consider seriously, to whose care and charge did God commit the sacrifices and offerings; did he trust every man to bring what he pleased, or did he trust on∣ly the Priests as to offer, so also to see what was fit to be of∣fered? Surely we shall find that he who said, Cursed be the deceiver, ver. 14. did not so much curse the people for decei∣ving their Priests, as he did curse the Priests for deceiving their God; These were the grand impostors, these were the most unpardonable deceivers, because to all other deceits they ad∣ded this also, that they deceived their trust; God had laid a trust upon them, and they so negligently performed it, as if they had undertaken rather to deceive then to discharge that trust: Accordingly all his contestations are with them, all his expostulations against them, as ver. 6. If I be a Father, where is mine honour? and if I be a Master where is my fear, saith the Lord of hosts unto you O Priests that despise my name? And ye say, wherein have we despised thy name? ye offer polluted bread upon mine Altar, and ye say wherein have we polluted thee? in that ye say, the Table of the Lord is contemptible, ver. 7. If Gods publick worship be either contemned for want of due ho∣nour, or prophaned for want of due fear; if either his name be despised, or his Altar be polluted, he expostulates not with the people, but only with the Priests, either about the contempt or about the prophanation, which plainly sheweth that the Priests alone were his Trustees both for ••••s Name, lest that should be despised, and also for his Altar, lest that should be prophaned. And is there a less care to be taken about our spiritual, then was about their material sacrifices? about the Calves of our lips, then about the Calves of their stalls? about the offerings of our souls, then about the offerings of their Heards? about our Prayers, then about their Bullocks? Are not our prayers real sacrifices, when as their bullocks were but Typical? as saith Athenagoras most divinely, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; Let us lift up pure hands to him, and what need will he have of any other Heca∣tomb, of any other magnificent sacrifices? For sure one pure head is more to God then an hundred Oxen; 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉▪ What should I look after whole burnt offerings which God needeth not? yet let me offer unto him an unbloody sacrifice, even that of prayer and praise, which proceedeth from my soul: Nor did God himself say otherwise, under the Law, but that he set a much higher value upon the offerings of the soul then of the flock, Thinkest thou that I will eat Bulls flesh, and drink the blood of goats? There he makes light esteem of the offerings of the Flock; Offer unto God thanksgiving, and pay thy vows unto the most Highest; there he makes great esteem of the of∣ferings of the soul, (Psal. 50.) Then let us know assuredly that God is no less angry with us for blemishes in our Prayers, then he was with them for blemishes in their sacrifi∣ces: And that as then his anger was chiefly against the Priests of the Temple, so it is now chiefly against the Ministers of the Church; for it is their part to oversee the prayers, as it was the Priests part to oversee the sacrifices; upon which ground the second Milevitane Council would not allow any other Prayers to be used in the Churches of Africa, but such as had been per∣used and approved in some Synod, Placuit ut nullae aliae preces omnino dicantur in Ecclesia, nisi quae à prudentioribus tractat••, vel comprobatae in Synodo fuerint; ne forte aliquid contra fidem, vel per ignorantiam, vel per minus studium sit compositum, (Concil. Milev. 2 Can. 12.) We have determined that no other Prayers should be used in our Churches but such as have been perused by some wise men, or have been approved in some Synod, lest any thing contrary to sound and saving Faith should either out of igno∣rance or out of carelesness have scaped the composers of any publick prayers. They rightly Judged; they were to answer for other mens sins in Gods service, and if they did not accordingly pre∣vent them, they would no longer be other mens sins, but theirs. And this without all doubt was one main ground of Liturgies, that men should not dishonour Gods Name when they met to honour it; For that were doubly to take his Name in vain, not only as men, but also as Christians; not only as sinners,

but also as Saints: Not only as offenders, but also as wor∣shippers.

Therefore the Church thought her self bound in duty and con∣science, to provide such a form of prayer as she was sure had no blemish in it, but had holy expressions exactly agreeable with holy affections, and holy apprehensions, that Gods holy name might be certainly glorified, and her own Trust carefully discharged; For it neerly concerned the Church to take great care there should be no blaspheming instead of publick praying, when she was like to answer for all those blasphemies which (through her default) should be vented in publick prayers.