The Sun.
London, England, 1816-08-08 00:00:00

•
which ProieStantS contribute largely; and a eel-
lege, far the'education Of th f!i r clergy, has been built
and 'endowed at a very great expcnce, by the Pro-
testant Sate ; though the fundamental principles
of their religion, Which they regard as immutable
and infallible, are peculiarly calculated for the
subversion of our Constitution, and for the de-
structiOu of all perians as heretics, who happen
not to be within 'the Bate Of: their intoleran't
' church. The practical effects of these principles
have been experienced 'in a woeful degree for
above 600 yeas, in many parts of Europe, and in
none mere than in the British islet. Fo*r
these reasons many of the wisest men.. have
'been decidedly of opinion, that the popish super-
-
st'tion should not even be tolerated bya Proiest-
ant State. Milton assigni the following reasons
for not allowing Popery is a double thing
to deal with, and claims a two-fold poOfer,•eccle-
siastical and political, both usurped, nad one
supporting the other. But. ecclesiastical is ever
pretended to political. The Pope, by this mixt
faculty, preteuds to kingdoms and states, and .espe-
cially to this.of.England ; thrones and enthrones
kings-, and absolves the people frop► their oaths
of allegiance to them ; sometimes iwerdiets
to whole nations the public worship of Gin],
shutting their 'churches ; and was verint to'
dial(' away the greatest part of the .wealth of
this their miseraide lind, as, part of Ins patri-
mony, to maitoain the pride and -luxury of his ,
-Court and Preletes ; anti now, since through the
infittite `mercy. end favour. of God we have. shah en
off his ltabyioaish yoke, he bath pot, ceased, by
his spies and agents, hulls and emissaries, to httive
once mOre to destroy bath Icing'and Parliameut,
and perponally• to .scduce, corrupt, and atvreet t as
many ut tile people as they can,. .Whether, there-
Wit, it be fi't or reasonable. to tolerate men thins
principled in 'religion towards the State, I submit
it to the coneiduturion -of nil magistrates, who are
best able to prOvide fur their own. and the public
safety." lie then proceeds to sheet,. that even
soeposing principles and Stateat:7
thltieS 001 to he dangeroas, their religion. should
not be tolerated,. because' it •is idolatrous. The
reader wilt find this in Milton's Treatise .on
'' What best :Means may be used against the
Growth of Popery."
Lord Bacon, in his Essay on the Unity of Reiti-
iagrves with Milton,- Mr. Locke, in his
Essay on Toleration, observes, " that 'church can
have no right to be tolerated by the Magistrate,
which it constituted on such a button), that
who. enteric, do thereby, ipso facto, deliver them'
selves up to the service and--protection of another
Prince; for by this means the Magistrate would
give way to the settling a foreign jurisdiction in
his own country,- and suffer his own people to be
listed, as it were, for soldiers against his own
Government.”. He says, also, in the same,
What do they mean, who teach that faith it not
to be kept.with heretics ? Their meaning, forsooth,
is, that the privilege of breaking faith belongs
exclusively to themselves ; for
.they declare all
that are not of their Colllllllli'lloll -to he • here,.
tics, or at least they may declare them so,
whenever., .they think fit." " What can be
their meaning of asserting, , that kings , excommu-
nicated forfeit their crowns and kingdom's I It is
evident that they thereby arrogate to themselves
the power of deposing-kings; because they dial-
..lenge the power of excommunication in the pe-
culiar right of their hierarchy."' " That domi-
nio' is founded in grace is also an. assertion, by,
which those 'that maintain it do plainly lay claim
.to the 'possession of all things, and profess them-
selves to be the only truly pious and faithfni. For
what do all these and the like doctrittes signify,
but chat these eum-nsay,..tod, are ready on any ocs
casion, to seize the Governments, and pos,ess
themselv-es ol the eitates.e.od fortunes of their lel-
low-snbjects, and' that they only ask leave to be
tolerated by the, magistrete so long,'•until- they
find themselves stvookettoogh to effect it. 1 say
that these have no right to be tolerated by fie
magistrate; "neither those that will not own
and teach the duty of-tolerating all men • in. mat-
ters of religion,''
The opiniOnti of these ;:'eat, men were foUnd•
ed on tile callow of she Romish Chore!),
whose practical effects have been an unceasing
source at discord .and bloodshed, in many Euro-
peat) States, fur some centuries ; but particularly
to Irelatid, during the last 300 years. Tim tol-
. lowing short extracts will suffice to give the reader
an idea of their tetuieney :—By the 27th thapter
of the Sti Lateran council, held in the year 1179,
it is decreed, " that all those who are any way
bound to heretics are absolved front all- delity
and ,obedience doe 'to sheer," Concil, Biult, vol.
vii. p. 608. Pope Gregory VIII, decreed thus,
.41 the I 'iith century, and his decree is entered in
,the body of the canoti law :—Be it' known to
all, who are under the dominion of heretics,
that` they are yet free front every tie of fide-
lity, all oaths and solemn engagements to the
-contrary -notwithstannifig„ Dovret. Greg. lib. v.
tit. 7. According to the determination of Pope
Innoeent_lll.," they were not to be called oaths
bait perjuries,
„which are entered into contrary to
the interest of the Church, Decret. ii. tit. 29,
-zap, 27, ity the. third canon of the boort h Late-
ran
~:tortteil, the. Pope is not only empowered, but
cOnsmairded and sworn to dethrone heretical
Princes, or such as shall- refuse- to extirpate here-
tics -their territories, by absolving their
_ati.l4i4LClS -from- their-oatha 'of allegiance; antl4o7
transfer Qictu to others, who shall enjoy them,