A

SERMON

PREACHED AT THE

OPENING OF THE PARLIAMENT OF IRELAND,

MAY 8, 1661.

BEFORE THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LORDS JUSTICES,

AND THE LORDS SPIRITUAL AND TEMPORAL,

AND THE COMMONS.

BY JEREMY TAYLOR, D.D.,

LORD BISHOP OF DOWN AND CONNOR.

Salus in multitudine consulentium.-[Prov. xi. 14.]

TO THE

RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LORDS SPIRITUAL AND TEMPORAL

AND COMMONS OF IRELAND

ASSEMBLED IN PARLIAMENT.

MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN,

I OUGHT not to dispute your commands for the printing my sermon of obedience, lest my sermon should be protestatio contra factum here I know my example would be the best use to this doctrine, and I am sure to find no inconveniency so great as that of disobedience; neither can I be confident that I am wise in any thing but when I obey, for then I have the wisdom of my superior for my warrant, or my excuse. I remember the saying of Aurelius the emperor, Equius est ut ego tot et talium amicorum consilium sequar, quam ut tot et tales amici meam unius voluntatem sequantur. I could easily have pretended excuses: but that day I had taught others the contrary, and I would not shed that chalice which my own hands had newly filled with waters issuing from the fountains of salvation.

My eyes are almost grown old with seeing the horrid mischiefs which came from rebellion and disobedience; and I would willingly now be blessed with observation of peace and righteousness, plenty and religion, which do already, and I hope shall for ever, attend upon obedience to the best king and the best church in the world. I see no objection against my hopes, but that which ought least of all in this case to be pretended: men pretend conscience against obedience; expressly against S. Paul's doctrine, teaching us to 'obey for conscience sake;' but to disobey for conscience in a thing indifferent, is never to be found in the books of our religion.

It is very hard when the prince is forced to say to his rebellious subject, as God did to His stubborn people, Quid faciam tibi? I have tried all the ways I can to bring thee home, and what shall I now do unto thee?' The subject should rather say, Quid me vis a [Capitolin. in vit. Antonin. cap. xxii.] b [Rom. xiii. 5.] [Hos. vi. 4.]

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facered, what wilt thou have me to do?' This question is the best end of disputations. Corrumpitur atque dissolvitur imperantis officium, si quis ad id quod facere jussus est non obsequio debito sed consilio non considerato respondeat, said one in A. Gellius; when a subject is commanded to obey, and he disputes, and says, Nay, but the other is better; he is like a servant that gives his master necessary counsel, when he requires of him a necessary obedience; utilius parere edicto quam efferre consilium, he had better obey than give counsel,' by how much it is better to be profitable than to be witty, to be full of goodness rather than full of talk and argument.

But all this is acknowledged true in strong men, but not in the weak; in vigorous, but not in tender consciences; for obedience is strong meat, and will not down with weak stomachs: as if in the world any thing were easier than to obey; for we see that the food of children is milk and laws; the breast-milk of their nurses and the commands of their parents is all that food and government by which they are kept from harm and hunger, and conducted to life and wisdom. And therefore they that are weak brethren, of all things in the world have the least reason to pretend an excuse for disobedience; for nothing can secure them but the wisdom of the laws; for they are like children in minority, they cannot be trusted to their own conduct, and therefore must live at the public charge, and the wisdom of their superiors is their guide and their security. And this was wisely advised by S. Paul', "Him that is weak in the faith receive, but not to doubtful disputations;" that's not the way for him; children must not dispute with their fathers and their masters. old men will dispute, let them look to it; that's meat for the strong indeed, though it be not very nutritive: but the laws and the counsels, the exhortations and the doctrines of our spiritual rulers, are the measures by which God hath appointed babes in Christ to become men, and the weak to become strong and they that are not to be received to doubtful disputations, are to be received with the arms of love, into the embraces of a certain and regular obedience.

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But it would be considered, that tenderness of conscience' is an equivocal term, and does not always signify in a good sense: for a child is of tender flesh; but he whose foot is out of joint, or hath a biles in his arm, or hath strained a sinew, is much more tender. The tenderness of age' is that weakness that is in the ignorant and the new beginners: the tenderness of a bile,' that is soreness indeed rather than tenderness, is of the diseased, the abused, and the mispersuaded. The first indeed are to be tenderly dealt with, and have usages accordingly; but that is the same I have already told; you must teach them, you must command them, you must guide them, you must choose for them, you must be their guardians, and they

must comport themselves accordingly. But for that 'tenderness of conscience' which is the disease and soreness of conscience, it must be cured by anodynes and soft usages, unless they prove ineffective, and that the lancet be necessary. But there are amongst us such tender stomachs that cannot endure milk, but can very well digest. iron; consciences so tender, that a ceremony is greatly offensive, but rebellion is not; a surplice drives them away as a bird affrighted with a man of clouts, but their consciences can suffer them to despise government, and speak evil of dignities, and curse all that are not of their opinion, and disturb the peace of kingdoms, and commit sacrilege, and account schism the character of saints. The true tenderness of conscience is, 1) that which is impatient of a sin; 2) it will not endure anything that looks like it; and 3) it will not give offence. Now since all sin is disobedience, 1) It will be rarely contingent that a man in a christian commonwealth shall be tied to disobey, to avoid sin; and certain it is, if such a case could happen, yet 2) nothing of our present question is so like a sin, as when we refuse to obey the laws. To stand in a clean vestment is not so ill a sight as to see men stand in separation; and to kneel at the communion is not so like idolatry as rebellion' is to witchcraft.' And then 3) for the matter of giving offences, what scandal is greater than that which scandalizes the laws? and who is so carefully to be observed lest he be offended, as the king? And if that which offends the weak brother is to be avoided, much more that which offends the strong for this is certainly really criminal; but for the other, it is much odds but it is mistaken: and when the case is so put, between the obedient and the disobedient, which shall be offended, and one will, I suppose there is no question but the laws will take more care of subjects than of rebels, and not weaken them in their duty, in compliance with those that hate the laws and will not endure the government.

And after all this, in the conduct of government what remedy can there be to those that call themselves tender consciences? I shall not need to say that every man can easily pretend it; for we have seen the vilest part of mankind, men that have done things so horrid, worse than which the sun never saw, yet pretend tender consciences against ecclesiastical laws. But I will suppose that they are really such, that they in the simplicity of their hearts follow Absalom, and in weakness hide their heads in little conventicles and places of separation for a trifle; what would they have done for themselves?

If you make a law of order, and in the sanction put a clause of favour for tender consciences, do not you invite every subject to disobedience by impunity, and teach him how to make his own excuse? is not such a law, a law without an obligation? may not every man choose whether he will obey or no? and if he pretends to disobey out of conscience, is not he that disobeys equally innocent with the obeh [See vol. iv. p. 68.]