self, which determines, so many abstruse points of divinity, should have the unanimous and hearty assent of the whole assembly or parliament: for though all the divines were in the antiarminian scheme, yet some had a greater latitude than others. I find in my MS. the dissent of several members against some expressions relating to reprobation, to the imputation of the active as well as passive obedience of Christ, and to several passages in the chapters of liberty of conscience and church discipline; but the confession, as far as related to articles of faith, passed the assembly and parliament by a very great majority.

Various censures have been passed by learned men upon this labored performance: some have loaded it with undeserved reproaches; and others, perhaps, have advanced its reputation too high. Mr. Collier condemns it, for determining in favor of the morality of the sabbath; for pronouncing the pope to be anti-christ; and for maintaining the calvinian rigors of absolute predestination, irresistible grace, and the impotency of man's will; doctrines, in his opinion, inconsistent with christianity. But then, he observes, very justly, that it falls very short of the Scots claim in points of discipline; it yields the magistrate a power of convening church assemblies, and of superintending their proceedings; it is silent as to the independency of the church, and the divine right of presbytery, &c. Upon the whole, the Assembly's Confession, with all its faults, has been ranked by very good judges among the most perfect systems of divinity, that have been published upon the calvinistic or antiarminian principles in the last age.

While the confession was carrying through the assembly, committees were appointed to reduce it into the form of catechisms; one larger, for the service of a public exposition in the pulpit, according to the custom of foreign churches; the other smaller, for the instruction of chil

§ Ecel. Hist. vol. ii. p. 812.

Here may be introduced, as it escaped our recollection in the more proper place, the remark made by Mr. Robinson on the DIRECTORY. The best state instructions to preachers were given in the DIRECTORY by the assembly of divines: but even these (he properly adds) in⚫clude the great, the fatal error, the subjection of God's word to human laws." Translation of Claude on the Composition of a Sermon, vol. ii. Prefatory Dissertation, p. 63. Ed.

dren; in both which the articles relating to church discipline are entirely omitted. The larger catechism is a comprehensive system of divinity, and the smaller, a very accurate summary, though it has by some been thought a little too long, and in some particulars too abstruse for the capacities of children. The shorter catechism was presented to the house of commons, Nov. 5, but the larger, by reason of the marginal references to scripture, which the houses desired might be inserted, was not ready till the 14th of April, 1648, when the house ordered six hundred copies to be printed for the service of the members; and having examined and approved it, they allowed it to be printed by authority, for public use, September 15, 1648. The king, after many solicitations, at the treaty of the isle of Wight, offered to license the shorter catechism, with a suitable preface; but that treaty proving unsuccessful, it was not accomplished.‡

The chief affairs committed to the assembly being thus finished, Mr. Rutherford, one of the Scots divines, moved, October 24, 1647, that it might be recorded in the scribes books, that the assembly had enjoyed the assistance of the honorable, reverend and learned commissioners of the church of Scotland, during all the time they had been debating and perfecting these four things mentioned in the covenant, viz. their composing a directory for public worship; an uniform confession of faith; a form of church government and discipline; and a public catechism; some of their number having been present during the whole of these transactions; which being done about a week after, he and the rest of the commissioners took their leave, and returned home; upon which occasion Mr. Herle, the prolocutor rose up, and, in the name of the assembly, "thank

ed the honorable and reverend commissioners, for their 'assistance; he excused in the best manner he could, the 'directory's not being so well observed as it ought; and lamented that the assembly had not power to call offend'ers to an account: he confesses, that their affairs were 'very much embarrassed, and that they were still in a chaos of confusion; [the king being now taken out of the hands of the parliament, and in custody of the army] he takes * Rushworth, p. 888, 1060. Rushworth, p. 1326.

'notice what distresses the parliament were in, while the 'common enemy was high and strong; and adds, that their extraordinary successes hitherto, were owing to the pray'ers of their brethren of Scotland, and other protestants abroad, as well as to their own. He then mentions with 'concern some other restraints the assembly lay under, but that this was not a proper season for redress."

The commissioners went home under a very heavy concern for the storm that was gathering over England, and for the hardships the presbyterians lay under with respect to their discipline; and having obtained the establishment of the directory, the confession of faith and catechisms, the presbyterian discipline, and Rouse's psalms in metre, for the service of their kirk, they appointed a general fast, to lament their own defection from the solemn league and covenant, and the distressed condition of their brethren in England, who were zealous for carrying on the work of God, but were now oppressed, under pretence of liberty, when no less was aimed at than tyranny and arbitrary power.

If the parliament had dissolved the assembly at this time, as they ought to have done, they had broke up with honor and reputation, for after this they did little more than examine candidates for the ministry, and squabble about the jus divinum of presbytery; the grand consultations concerning public affairs, and practising upon the new establishment, being translated to the provincial assemblies, and weekly meetings of the London clergy at Sion-college.*

* Rapin, vol. ii. p. 297, note.

* That the reader may form a judgment of what was intended to be established in England, it may not be improper, to set before him, in one view, the discipline that was then settled in the kirk of Scotland, and subsists at this time. "In Scotland there are eight hundred and ninety parishes, each of which is divided, in proportion to its extent, into particular districts, and every district has its own ruling elders and deacons; the ruling elders are men of the principal quality and interest in the parish, and the deacons are persons of a good character for manners and understanding. A consistory of ministers. elders, and deacons, is called a kirk session, the lowest ecclesiastical judicatory, which meets once a week, to consider the affairs of the parish. The minister is always moderator, but without a negative; appeals lie from hence to their own presbyteries, which are the next higher 'judicatories. Scotland is divided into sixty-nine presbyteries, each consisting of from twelve to twenty-four contiguous parishes. The

Though the city and suburbs of London had been formed into a province, and divided into twelve classical presbyteries (as has been remembered) under the last year, new complaints were still made to the parliament of certain obstructions to their proceedings; upon which the houses published their resolutions of April 22, 1647, entitled Rem edies for removing some obstructions in church govern ment; in which they ordered letters to be sent from the speakers of both houses to the several counties of England immediately to divide themselves into distinct presbyteries and classes; "They then appoint the elders and ministers of the several classes of the province of London, to hold their provincial assembly in the convocation house of St. Paul's in London, upon the first Monday in May next en'suing, and to adjourn their meetings de die in diem, and 'conclude them with adjournment to the next opportunity, according to the ordinance of parliament; but that no act 'shall pass or be valid in the said province of London, ex6 cept it be done by the number of thirty-six present, or the 'major part of them, whereof twelve to be ministers, and 'twenty-four ruling elders. That in the classical meetings, that which shall be done by the major part present, shall be esteemed the act of the whole; but no act done by any classes shall be valid, unless it be done by the number of 'ministers of these parishes, with one ruling elder, chosen half yearly out of every kirk session, compose a presbytery. They meet in the head town and choose their moderator, who must be a minister, half yearly from hence appeals lie to provincial synods, which are composed of several adjacent presbyteries. Two, three, four to eight; there are fifteen in all. The members are a minister and a ruling elder out of every parish. These synods meet twice a year, at the priu. 'cipal town of its bounds. They choose a moderator, who is their prolocutor. The acts of the synods are subject to the review of the general assembly, the dernier resort of the kirk of Scotland. It consists of commissioners from presbyteries, royal burghs, and universities. A presbytery of twelve ministers sends two ministers and one ruling elder; a presbytery of between twelve and eighteen sends three, and one ruling elder; of between eighteen and twenty-four sends four, and two ruling elders; of twenty-four sends five, and two elders; ev. ery royal burgh sends one elder, and Edinburgh two; every university sends one commissioner, usually a minister. The general assembly 'meets once a year, in the month of May, and is opened and adjourned, by the king's royal commissioner appointed for that purpose."

6

* Vol. Pamp. Ne. IV,

• fifteen present, or the major part of them, whereof five be • ministers and ten ruling elders." So that the number of lay-elders in these assemblies was double to the number of ministers.

According to this appointment the first provincial assem bly met at the convocation-house of St. Paul's, May 3, consisting of three ministers and six ruling elders from the several classes, in all about one hundred and eight persons; at their first session they chose the reverend Dr. Gouge prolocutor, who opened the assembly with a sermon at his own church in Black-friars, the reverend Mr. Thomas Manton, Mr. Rulph Robinson and Mr. Cardel, being appointed scribes. After their return to the convocation-house, a committee of seven ministers and fourteen ruling elders, were chosen to consider of the business of the province.

Any six to be a quorum, provided there be two ministers, and four ruling elders. Their next meeting to be at Sioncollege, May 6, at two in the afternoon.

At the second sessions it was moved, that application be made to parliament, for liberty to remove the assembly from the convocation-house to some other place; and accordingly they were allowed to adjourn to any place within the city or liberties of London, upon which they agreed upon Sioncollege, where they continued to meet twice a week to the end of the year 1659, as appears by a manuscript of the late Mr. Grange, now in Sion-college library.

Before their adjournment from the convocation-house at St.Paul's, they came to the following resolutions; resolved,