Divine Sergeant. All Men that would get Power over Minister others, make themselves as unlike them as they can; upon the same Ground the Priests made themselves unlike the Laity. 4. A Minister when he is made, is Materia prima, apt for any form the State will put upon him, but of himself he can do nothing. Like a Doctor of Law in the University; he hath a great deal of Law in him, but cannot use it till he be made some-body's Chancellor; or like a Physician; before he be received into a house, he can give no-body Physic; indeed after the Master of the house hath given him charge of his Servants, then he may. Or like a Suffragan, that could do nothing but give Orders, and yet he was no Bishop. 5. A Minister should preach according to the Articles of Religion established in the Church where he is. To be a Civil Lawyer let a Man read Justinian, and the Body of the Law, to confirm his Brain to that way; but when he comes to practise, he must make use of it so far as it concerns the Law received in his own Country. To be a Physician, let a Man read Galen and Hippocrates; but when he practises, he must apply his Medicines according to the Temper of those Men's Bodies with whom he lives, and have respect to the heat and cold of Climes, otherwise that which in Pergamus, where Galen lived, was Physic, in our cold Climate may be Poison. So to be a Divine, let him read the whole Body of Divinity, the Fathers and the Schoolmen; but when he comes Minister to practise, he must use it and apply it according to those Grounds and Articles of Religion that are established in the Church, and this with Divine sense. 6. There be four things a Minister should be at; the Concionary part, Ecclesiastical Story, School Divinity, and the Casuists. (1.) In the Concionary part, he must read all the chief Fathers, both Latin and Greek wholly: St Austin, St Ambrose, St Chrysostom, both the Gregories, and Tertullian, Clemens Alexandrinus, and Epiphanius; which last have more Learning in them than all the rest, and write freely. (2.) For Ecclesiastical Story let him read Baronius, with the Magdeburgenses, and be his own Judge, the one being extremely for the Papists, the other extremely against them. (3.) For School Divinity let him get Cavellus's Edition of Scotus or Mayro, where there be Quotations that direct you to every Schoolman, where such and such Questions are handled. Without School Divinity a Divine knows nothing Logically, nor will be able to satisfy a rational Man out of the Pulpit. (4.) The Study of the Casuists must follow the Study of the Schoolmen, because the division of their Cases, is according to their Divinity; otherwise he that begins with them will know little; as he that begins with the study of the Reports and Cases in the Common Law, will thereby know little of the Law. Casuists may be of admirable use, if discreetly dealt with, though among them you shall have many leaves together very impertinent. A Case well decided would Minister stick by a man, they would remember it whether Divine they will or no, whereas a quaint exposition dieth in the birth. The main thing is to know where to search; for talk what they will of vast memories, no man will presume upon his own memory for any thing he means to write or speak in public. 7. Go and teach all Nations. This was said to all Christians that then were, before the distinction of Clergy and Laity; there have been since, Men designed to preach only by the State, as some Men are designed to study the Law, others to study Physic. When the Lord's Supper was instituted, there were none present but the Disciples. Shall none then but Ministers receive? 8. There is all the reason you should believe your Minister, unless you have studied Divinity as well as he, or more than he. 9. 'Tis a foolish thing to say a Minister must not meddle with Secular Matters, because his own profession will take up the whole Man. May he not eat, or drink, or walk, or learn to sing? The meaning of that is, he must seriously intend his Calling. 10. Ministers with the Papists, that is their Priests, have much respect; with the Puritans they have much, and that upon the same ground; they pretend both of 'em to come immediately from Christ; but with the Protestants they have very little; the reason whereof is, in the beginning of the Reformation they Minister were glad to get such to take Livings as they Divine could procure by any Invitations, things of piti ful condition. The Nobility and Gentry would not suffer their Sons or Kindred to meddle with the Church; and therefore at this day, when they see a Parson, they think him to be such a thing still, and there they will keep him, and use him accordingly; if he be a Gentleman, that is singled out, and he is used the more respectfully. II. That the Protestant Minister is least regarded, appears by the old Story of the Keeper of the Clink. He had Priests of several sorts sent unto him; as they came in, he asked them who they were. Who are you? to the first. I am a Priest of the Church of Rome. You are welcome, quoth the Keeper; there are those will take Care of you. And who are you? A silenced Minister. You are welcome, too; I shall fare the better for you. And who are you? A Minister of the Church of England. O God help me, quoth the Keeper, I shall get nothing by you; I am sure you may lie, and starve, and rot before any body will look after you. 12. Methinks 'tis an ignorant thing for a Churchman to call himself the Minister of Christ, because St Paul, or the Apostles called themselves so. If one of them had a Voice from Heaven, as St Paul had, I will grant he is a Minister of Christ, and I will call him so too. Must they take upon them as the Apostles did? Can they do as the Apostles If a could? The Apostles had a Mark to be Minister known by, spake Tongues, cured Diseases, trod Divine upon Serpents, &c. Can they do this? Gentleman tells me he will send his Man to me, and I did not know his Man, but he gave me this mark to know him by, he should bring in his Hand a rich Jewel; if a Fellow came to me with a Pebble-Stone, had I any reason to believe he was the Gentleman's Man? M XC Money A blind ONEY makes a Man laugh. Fiddler playing to a Company, and playing but Scurvily, the Company laughed at him; his boy that led him, perceiving it, cried, Father, let us be gone, they do nothing but laugh at you. Hold thy Peace, Boy, said the Fiddler; we shall have their money presently, and then we will laugh at them. 2. Euclid was beaten in Boccaline, for teaching his Scholars a mathematical Figure in his School, whereby he showed that all the Lives both of Princes and private Men tended to one Centre, con gentilezza handsomely to get Money out of other men's pockets, and put it into their own. 3. The Pope used heretofore to send the Princes of Christendom to fight against the Turk; but Prince and Pope finely juggled together; the Moneys were raised, and some |