A PROCLAMATION By his Excellency Sir THOMAS FAIRFAX: Concerning The proceedings of some Ministers of the CHURCH of ENGLAND.
THE Copy of a Petition to the KINGS MAJESTIE WITH A Representation of the Desires of divers Clergy-men.
AND His Excellencies Resolution concerning the insolencies exercised by some, to abuse his Excellency and his Councell of WARRE.
⟨Aug: 14▪⟩ CAMBRIDGE, Printed for Nathaniel Smith, Anno Dom. 1647.
A PROCLAMATION By his Excellency Sir THOMAS FAIRFAX: Concerning the proceedings of some Ministers of the Church of England WITH His Excellencies Resolution concerning the insolencies exercised by some to abuse his Excellency and his Councell of Warre.
VVHEREAS it appeares upon sufficient proofe, that many violent Tumults and outrages, are committed by severall persons, against [Page 2]divers Ministers, placed by Order, or Ordinance of Parliament, in sequestred Livings, and for such their violent carriage to, and detaining from the said Ministers, their profits; there is pretended by the said parties, power and authority from the Generall and the Army: And for the more plausible justifying of their undue pretences herein, have caused to be Printed and Published, a Pamphlet intituled TVVO PETITIONS of the sequestred Clergy of England and VVales. One to the Kings most Excellent Majesty; the other to Sir THOMAS FAIRFAX, with a (pretended) Declaration of the Generall and His Councell of VVar thereupon; of all which actions as aforesaid; VVee cannot but testifie [Page 3]a very ill resentment, and doe hereby declare a dislike of such proceedings, disclaiming not onely the actions themselves to have had any incouragement from us, but also any ends or intentions to that purpose. And to the clearing of our selves herein, VVee shall henceforth indevour the bringing to condigne punishment, such who have or shall exercise the like insolencies upon any pretence whatsoever.
To the Kings most Excellent Majesty.
The Humble Petition of many thousands of Your Majesties Loyall Subjects, the poore sequestred Clergy of
England and
Wales.
THat whereas your Petitioners have a long time been destitute of all lively-hood, by meanes of sequestration of their Estates and other losses, and are at present driven to extreame necessities how to provide for themselves and their Families, and the season now approaching for the receiving the benefits of the Harvest, before which time, if some charitable course be not taken, they are like to starve or beg another yeare.
May it therefore please your most Sacred Majesty to take our sad condition into Your Gracious consideration & care, that some course may be taken for our speedy reliefe, as may preserve us a live, & inable us to doe more service in Gods Church to Your Majesty and the Kingdome.
And as in duty bound, we shall ever pray for Your Majesties happie establishment, and long and prosperous Reigne.
To his Excellency Sir
Thomas Fairfax.
The humble Petition of many thousands of the poore sequestred Clergie of
England and
Wales.
THat whereas the eyes of all the oppressed people of the Kingdome are fixed upon Your Excellency and the Army as the great Instruments (under God) to restore them to their legal Rights and Liberties, which they doe justy ground upon Your severall Declarations published to the World.
And whereas your Petitioners (a considerable number of the free borne men of this Kingdome) have been for divers yeares outed of their lively-hood and freeholds, contrary to Magna Charta & other fundamentall Lawe of the Land, by the arbitrary power of Committees; whose proceedings usually have been by no Rule of any known Law but by their owne wills: of whose orders no Record is kept, nor scarce any notes or memorials, whereby it may appeare when by whom, or for what your Petitioners were removed, the Committees for scandalous and for plundered Ministers (by whom the greatest part are turned out) being grounded not so much as upon any Ordinance of both Houses; the most of your Petitioners outed for refusing the Covenant, or adhering to the King and the Religion established according to their Judgements and Consciences; and, of those, diverse were never called to answer, scared one had any Articles proved against him by oath, or other legall processe, and some put out upon private information given to the Chaire-man Master White: by which unheard of proceedings not to be parallelled in any age [Page 6]Your Petitoners, who have lived heretofore in good esteem, according to their Calling, Degrees,, Birth and Education, are reduced to extream misery and want, with their Wives and Children, that they must either starve or begge, if some speedy course be not taken for their releife. And whereas those who are put into our places, labour by all meanes to stir up the people to involve this Kingdome in a new war, and are generally men ignorant and unable to instruct the People, and many of them scandalous in their practises, if impartially examined, and divers of them hold three or foure of the best Benefices, whilst divers other Churches are void and without any constant Preacher: And Your Petitioners are ready to submit themselves for their Rights to tryall by the knowne Laws of the of the Land, and if any appeare guilty of any legal scandal (which we know to have been unjustly charged upon many, and is a great part of their present sufferings) we shall leave them to undergoe the severest punishment and censure, which by any knowne Law can be inflicted.
And forasmuch as the maine profits of our Benefices consist in the Harvest which is now at hand; which many of the present possessors, if they could receive, would presently be gon, whereby the burthen of the Cure will lye upon Your Petitioners, having nothing to live upon all the next yeare.
Your Petitioners therefore Humbly pray, that Your Excellency would bee pleased to make stay of the profits of this Harvest, in such way as Your Excellency shall think fit, that such as are charged with any legal scandal, may come to a just tryal, and both they (if they be found innocent) and the rest may injoy their Rights, and have the benefit of Subjects, according to the knowne Law of the Land, and your Petitioners shall ever pray, &c.