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preached his famous sermon "On the Nature "of the Kingdom or the Church of Christ:" he maintained that the clergy have no pretensions to any temporal jurisdiction, and that temporal princes have a right to govern in ecclesiastical politics. So great offence was taken by the clergy, at these doctrines, that it was resolved to proceed against him in convocation as soon as it should sit. lower house of convocation accordingly drew up their representation; but, before it could be brought into the upper house, the king prorogued the assembly by a special order, and the convocation never met afterwards. Hoadley always declared that this was done not only without his seeking, but without his knowledge or suspicion. He rejoiced. however in it; as the debate was, by this means, taken from the bar of human authority, and brought to that of reason and the scripture. Removed from a trial by a majority of voices, (which, could not, he said, be a trial to be contended for either by truth or by the church of England), and brought to that of argument.

Some serious protestants, however, were alarmed at this scanty creed: they observed its discrepancy. from the creeds of the first reformers, and trembled for the consequences.-The catholic smiled at the controversy, and claimed, for his church, that right of interpreting the scriptures, which each individual protestant claims for himself.

LXXI. 3.

Acts in favour of the Protestant Dissenters.

THE general rejection of the doctrine of passive obedience, was one of the greatest achievements of bishop Hoadley.

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"Passive obedience," says Mr. Hume*, "is expressly and zealously inculcated in the homilies†, composed and published by authority in the reign "of queen Elizabeth." The corporation act‡ prescribed, that all magistrates should testify both their belief that it was not lawful, upon any pretence whatever, to resist the king, and their abhorrence of the traiterous position of taking arms, by the king's authority, against his person, or against those who were commissioned by him.-The decree of the university of Oxford, passed in convocation, in 1683§, mentions the positions, that "all civil authority is derived originally from the people;" -and that, "there is no obligation upon christians "to passive obedience, when the prince commands

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any thing against the laws of our country," among-" damnable doctrines, destructive to the "sacred persons of princes, their state and govern"ment, and all human society." In a similar strain, the address of the university of Cambridge, presented, about the same time, to Charles the second, declares, that "no earthly power, no means or misery, should ever be able to make them re

* Hist. vol. viii. note (R.) p. 161. + Homil. x. 28. 113 Car. II. § Coll. Hist. vol. ii. 902.

Ib. 903.

"nounce or forget their duty; that they would still "believe and maintain, that our princes derive not "their title from the people, but from God; that "to him only, they are accountable; that it belongs "not to subjects either to create or censure, but to "honour and obey their sovereign, who comes to "be so, by a fundamental hereditary right of suc"cession, which no religion, no law, no fault or "forfeiture can alter or diminish."

Counterpositions were maintained by Hoadley, -and we have mentioned his triumph. In consequence of it, by an act of the 5th of George the first, the clause, in the corporation act, which asserts the doctrine of non-resistance, was repealed.

In 1736, an act of indemnity mitigated the effect of the test act, by giving time to persons to qualify themselves to hold offices under the provisions of that act, till the 1st of August in that year.-An indemnity act, passed in 1743, was more comprehensive, as it mitigated the effect both of the corporation and the test acts. From that period, to the present time, similar acts of indemnity have been passed annually as a matter of course, and they extend to both the restrictive acts.-By this annual act, after mentioning the corporation and test acts, it is provided, that persons, who, before the passing of it, have omitted to qualify themselves in the manner prescribed by those acts, shall, if they properly qualify themselves for them, before the 25th of the ensuing December, be indemnified against all penalties, forfeitures, incapacities and disabilities; and their elections and the acts done

by them are declared to be valid.—The act expresses nothing, which excludes roman-catholics from the benefit of its provisions.-Considering the annual indemnity act as a matter of course, which it evidently is, the protestant dissenters are thus virtually exempted from the corporation and test acts; and as they have no objection to the oath of supremacy, they are not affected by the act of the 1st of George the first, which requires, as we have mentioned, all persons, bearing offices civil or military, or holding command or place of trust, or receiving pay or wages under any patent or grant from his majesty, to take the oath of supremacy under a penalty of 500l. and under other penalties. But the conscientious scruples of catholics to take this oath, continued to subject them, though they are relieved by the annual act of indemnity from the corporation and test acts, to the act of George the first, and its disqualifi

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LXXI. 4.

Doctor Courayer.

SOON after the reformation was established in England by queen Elizabeth, a controversy arose on the validity of the ordinations of the clergy of the church of England. Dodd gives, in his Church History*, a full view of the principal facts and arguments produced by the writers on each side. The controversy was renewed by Mr. Thomas • Vol. ii. p. 269, et seq.,

Ward in 1719 a work*, written by him on this subject, was much read, and produced several answers. Some publications on the same subject,as the "Mémoires sur la validité des Ordinations "des Anglois," of the abbé Renaudot,-appeared on the continent. They attracted the attention of Peter Francis Courayer, a canon regular of St. Généviéve at Paris. In the disputes on jansenism he had taken an active part, and was among those, who appealed from the bull Unigenitus. In 1723, he published his "Dissertation sur la validité des "Ordinations des Anglois, et sur la Succession des "Evêques de l'Eglise Anglicane,"--which was immediately translated into English.- Replies to it were published by the abbé Gervaise, Mr. Fennel, and the fathers Hardouin and le Quien of the society of Jesus: that, of father le Quien, was considered to be the most ably written. Father Courayer published a defence of his work in 1726. The university of Oxford presented him with a diploma, conferring upon him the degree of doctor of laws.

Understanding that his liberty was in danger, he took refuge in England, and was kindly received by Dr. Wake, then archbishop of Canterbury, and by Dr. Sherlock, bishop of London: a pension was settled upon him. His work was censured in France, first, by the cardinal de Noailles; then, by two different assemblies of bishops, one at Paris, another at Embrun; and finally, by a bull of pope Benedict the fourteenth. As a reply to these, he

"The Controversy of Ordination truly stated." 8vo.

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