| Title: | Copy Memorandum In Scribal Hand ?, By John Dury? |
|---|---|
| Dating: | Undated |
| Ref: | 3/2/6A-7B |
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Concerning the daily Prayers in the Princesse
Royalls Family.
Sir I haue vnderstood that some are offended because in our Family, I reade the Psalmes[altered], & vse the Prayers which are in the seruice-booke, which formerly haue bin vsed in the Family, & which by the States in the Contracte of Marriage are allowed to bee vsed. Although I am not obleiged to take Notice of the offences of those that are without, so much, as of those that are within my charge; & although the rumours of those excepcions come not immediately from themselves vnto mee: but are spread amongst others, before theie come to my eares which is a preposterous way of dealing & against the Rules of Charity. Leuit. 19. 17. Hebr. 3. 13. Math: 18. 15. yet because I am tender of offences, though taken & not given (as this is) to heale the breaches which theie make in Christian affeccions whence all other wills proceed, therefore as it becommeth a Childe of Light who loueth to walke openly & by a Rule in all things, I shall bee willing to giue them this satisfaccion. First that theie ought not to bee too curious obseruers of the accions of other men which are done in priuate in their own Families; nor too rigged censurers of the priuate devocions of others whereof theie are not bound to partake. Secondly that theie not only transgresse a Rule in makeing complaints in the darke, but also hinder their owne satisfaccion, because the ground of their offence being concealed theie cannot bee dealt withall directly & to any purpose. Neuerthelesse seeing I ought not, & cannot take ill that any doth obserue mee & my waye (for I loue not to walke in the darke) I will enforme them of the Rules by which I walke; if happily that may serue to rectify their mistakes; & teach them to bee lesse censorious of other men's accions, till theie know the true circumstances & the grounds of their proceedings.
If then I could meete any of those that are offended at my way, I would first lay it plainely open to them, & then desyre them to let mee knowe their judgement of it, which if any of them will doe when theie may chance to see this paper theie shall doe mee a favour & deserue thanckes at my hands.
I must tell them then that without my knowledge I being chosen to this place, & called to it by him that had full Authority to doe it, & I judgeing it a place wherein I might doe God & his Church good seruice, by the care of breeding a Princesse & ordering her Family in his wayes, did accept of the call, with this intencion to walke in it, without worldly wisedome, in Godly simplicity according to the Rules of Edificacion. When then I came first to them, I found them cast loose to their owne wills & fallen to a neglect & discontinuance of the duetyes theie were accostomed unto in England. The first thing then was to bring them to that, from which theie were fallen, which was to haue daily [catchword: prayers]
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prayers & heare the reading of Gods word, which with much adoe, I haue hardly obtayned, & if I had not made vse of the Authority of the Article of the Marriage Contracte, & made my endeavour free from all excepcion, by vseing the Seruice booke, I had neuer brought them thus Farre. My Rule was at the first entrie vpon my worke to stoope to their weaknesse, & by no meanes to rayse any preiudice which <left margin>: H. might make my future proceedings vnsavoury or vselesse: I found them Babes; therefore I resolued to stammer with them, & by this meanes theie are brought to some attencion & willingnesse to minde the dueties of Prayer, daily, & of hearing the word, expounded & Catecheticall doctrine [delivered?] on the Lords day. For to take them off from the outward formall way of worshiping <by> the true meanes which begetteth the ability to worship God in Spirit & Trueth; I thought their vnderstandings were to bee wrought vpon by Catecheticall & Scripturall Instruccions, wherevnto prayers fitted vnto the occasions are joined to acquaint them afarre off with the vse of them: for to transport them to a worship whereof theie are not yet capable, is against the Rules of discrecion; therefore till I finde that theie can relish freely conceiued Prayers with more affeccion then the other: I doe not intend to alter the Course wherein I am; but when I shall see that God hath brought them to that ripenesse of vnderstanding as to follow mee in that way which is more spirituall & perfect, then I will as God shall enable mee goe before them in it. In the meane tyme I must not hasten their pace faster than theie can goe. And as this would bee vnprofitable for them; so I finde that in respect of myself & the nature of my Relacion to them, I cannot as yet Lawefully take a Pastorall charge & Authority vpon mee ouer them, by which I should haue power to alter & order things as I thincke fitt. The reason of this is, that theie are not as yet framed into a Congregation, nor I Authorized as I should bee to haue the Pastorall charge of their souls. Till then I can bee able to behaue myself & bee received by them as their shepheard I cannot count them my Flock for which I am accountable vnto God. Only in the meane tyme I doe that which can bee done towards them to bring this Relacion to passe betwixt vs, & if this cannot bee done, as it ought to bee, I will thincke myselfe bound to leaue them which also I am determined to doe: for if I cannot bee permitted to order them, as theie should bee ordered, in the House of God I will resigne to him that sent mee hither, & to him that admitted mee to his Family the charge which I haue in it, because I finde that it is not the ministeriall Charge which God hath appointed for his Church in the Gospel. And in the meane tyme whiles this matter is to bee determined I thincke it not fitt to vse Authority or to alter any thing which may trouble their mindes, [catchword: or]
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or giue offence. And so much the rather because there bee some that watch for some such advantage against mee, to make all that I haue done hitherto vnprofitable: for this my Moderacion & Gentlenes of yeelding in things not vnlawfull is my strong shield of defence & I haue an Expresse Rule commanding mee to deale so with them. 2 Tim. 2. 24. 25.
Now the case being thus I would faine knowe of those that take vpon them to judge mee behinde my backe & condemne my proceedings what theie would aduise mee to doe otherwise. Would theie haue mee to despise the weaknes <H.? et incapacities of> those that I haue to deale with, & only please myself but that is against the Rules of Charity & Humilitie. Rom. 15. 1. 2. Would theie haue mee propose strong meate to Children, & driue those to runne, that scarcely can walke well by a staffe? but this would bee the height of indiscrecion. Would theie not haue <mee> become all things vnto all, in that which is Lawefull? but how then shall I bee able to gaine & edify all? Perhaps theie would say that I should tell them that it is not lawefull to vse sett Prayers, & seing in England now the vse of the Seruice booke is cryed downe by the better sorte, that therefore I should not goe against their judgement & practise, because theie will bee scandalized at mee? But I must say to the first of these Counsells, that I thinke it no more vnlawfull to vse a sett forme of Prayer in teaching a Childe to pray; then it is to lead a Childe that cannot yet goe, by the hand till hee can goe by himself then how can I say or thincke it vnlawefull to vse sett Formes of Prayer, seeing the Psalmes are giuen vs expressely for <left margin: Colos: 3. 16.> that end, & wee are commaunded by the Apostle to vse them for our occasions accordingly; & seeing I finde it to bee the Constant judgement & practise of all the Reformed Churches that both in priuate & public set Formes may bee lawfully vsed. I will confesse that no man should suffer hims his Spirit to bee stinted & himself bound to a sett Forme without power to alter it or goe beyond it: but this abuse of set Formes among some, cannot make the thing in itself vnlawefull. Perhaps theie will say that the Responsories & short eiaculatorie prayers haue too much of a formality in them & no great reality; I answer that I conceiue such Responsories not without vse vnto rude beginners, to fixe their attencion which otherwise in long continued prayers beyond their Capacities would bee lost, & their mindes left to wandring thoughts which now are brought home to the worke in hand by the Responsorie; & surely if the Responsories bee spoken with affeccion & vnderstandingly there is no harme in them, although now in England the formality of such prayers is left off, amongst those that seeke a Reformacion. Therefore to answer the second pointe, [catchword: I]
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I must say what I thinke, that I cannot bee ledde by any mens examples, except I see a Rule to warrant my Practise. Nor can I, or will I euer intend to please