THE Asses Complaint against Balaam; Or the Cry of the COUNTRY AGAINST Ignorant and Scandalous Ministers.
To the Reverend Bishops.
YEE
mitred Members of the
House of
Peers,
The
Kings Churchwardens, and
Gods Overseers,
Fathers in
Christ, we your poor
Children cry
Oh give us
Bread of Life, or else we
die.
For we are burd'ned with our
old Sir Johns,
Who when we ask for
Bread do give us
stones;
And only
cant a
Homily or two,
Which
Daws and
Parrots may be taught to doe;
Drunkards Cannonicall, Ʋnhallowed Bears,
That name
God oftner in their
oaths then
Prayers.
Into what darknesse will our Church be hurld
If such as these be call'd
The light oth' World?
These that have nought to prove themselves devout
Save only this,
That Cromwell turnd them out.
Mistake us not, we do not mean those loyall
And learned soules, who in the fiery tryall
Sufferd for
King and
conscience sake, let such
Have double honour, we shall nere think much;
But this our tender conscience disapproves,
That
Ravens should return as well as
Doves;
And
croak in
Pulpits once again to bring
A second Judgment on our
Church and
King.
Though
England doth not fear another losse,
'Cause
God hath
burnd his Rods at
Charing crosse;
Yet
Clergy sins may call him to the Doore
Ev'n him who
whip'd and
scourg'd them out before.
Oh therefore ye that read the sacred Laws
Eject their
Persons, and disown their cause:
God, and the
King have both condemud this crew,
Then let them not be
patroniz'd by
you.
'Tis not their
Cassocks, not their
Surplices
We quarrell at, there is no hurt in these;
We owh their
Decency, yet every
Foole
Cannot be call'd a
Monk that weares a
Cowle;
Were
grace, and
learning wanting (by your leaves)
We would not pin our faith on your
Lawn sleeves;
'Tis
Aarons breastplate, and those
sacred words
Become a
Churchman best, THAT THAT my Lords
Which pious
Baxter makes his livery,
VVould all our Curates were but such as he!
Pardon my
Lords, we do not make this stir
To vindicate the
factious Presbyter;
We hate his ways, and equally disown
The
zealous Rebell, as the
Idle Droan;
And beg as oft to be deliver'd from
The
Kirk of
Scotland, as the
Sea of
Rome;
We pray for
Bishops too, Oh may ye stand
To heale the sad distractions of the Land;
Then give us
Priests loyall and painfull too,
To give to
Caefar, and to us our due.
God save King
Charles our Christian faiths Defender,
And bring Religion to its wonted Splendour.
ADVERTISEMENT.
LOyall and Orthodox Reader, Judg charitably, I am ne'ther Presbyterian, nor Phanatick, but as true a Son of the Church of England as thy self; for thy further satisfaction, I shall (God willing) present thee with an other paper, to clear my honesrintention in this.
Lewis Griffin.