or Government, or the Conftitution of the realm, fave only on fuch special feafts and fafts as are or fhall be appointed by public authority; and then, no farther than the occafion of fuch days fhall ftrictly require. Provided always, that nothing in this direction fhall be understood to dif charge any perfon from preaching in defence of our regal fupremacy, established by law, as often, and in such manner, as the first Canon of this Church doth require. 5. That the foregoing directions be alfo obferved by those who write any thing concerning the said subjects. 6. Whereas alfo we are credibly informed, that it is the manner of fome, in every diocefe, before their fermon, either to use a Collect and the Lord's Prayer, or the Lord's Prayer only, which the fifty-fifth Canon prefcribes as the conclufion of the prayer, and not the whole, prayer, or at leaft to leave out our titles, by the faid Canon required to be declared and recognized; we do further direct, that you require your Clergy, in their prayer before fermon, that they do keep ftrictly to the form in the faid Canon contained, or to the full effect thereof. 7. And whereas we also understand, that divers perfons, who are not of the Clergy, have of late prefumed not only to talk and to difpute against the Chriftian faith concerning the doctrine of the bleffed Trinity, but alfo to write and publish books and pamphlets against the fame, and induftriously spread them through the kingdom, contrary to the known laws in that behalf made and enacted; and particularly to one Act of Parliament, made in the ninth year of King William the Third, intituled, An Act for the more effectual fuppressing of Blasphemy and Profaneness: we taking all the matters above mentioned into our royal and ferious confideration, and being defirous to do what in us lies to put a stop to these disorders, do ftrictly charge and command you, together with all other means fuitable to your holy profeffion, to make use of your authority according to law, for the repreffing and reftraining of all fuch exorbitant practices. And, for your affiftance, we will give charge to our Judges, and all other our civil officers, to do their duty herein, in executing the faid Act, and all other laws, against all fuch perfons as fhall, by these means, give occafion of fcandal, difcord, and difturbance in our church and kingdom. Given at our Court at St. James's, the eleventh day of By his Majefty's command, DIRECTIONS to our Archbishops and Bifhops, for the preferving of Unity in the Church, and the Purity of the Chriftian Faith; particularly in the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity. Anno Dom. 1721. GEORGE R. MOST Reverend and Right Reverend Fathers in God, we greet you well. Whereas we have been given to understand, that divers impious tenets and doctrines have been of late advanced and maintained with much boldness and opennefs, contrary to the great and fundamental truths of the Chriftian religion, and particularly to the doctrine of the holy and ever bleffed Trinity; and that moreover divers perfons, as well of the Clergy as Laity, have prefumed to propagate fuch impious doctrines, not only by public difcourfe and converfation, but also by writing and publishing books and pamphlets in oppofition to the faid facred truths, to the great difhonour of Almighty God, the disturbance of the peace and quiet of this our church and nation, and the offence of all pious and fober-minded Chriftians: We therefore, out of our princely care and zeal for preferving the purity of the Chriftian faith, of which we are, under God, the chief defender; and alfo for preferving the peace and quiet of Church and State, do ftrictly charge and require you our Archbishops and Bifhops, to whom, under us, the care of religion more efpecially belongs, That you do, without delay, fignify to the Clergy of your feveral diocefes this our royal command, which we require you to fee duly published and obferved; namely, That no Preacher hatfoever, in bis fermon or lecture, do prefume to deliver any other doctrine concerning the great and fundamental truths of our most holy Religion, and particularly concerning the bleffed Trinity, than that are contained in the boly Scriptures, and are agreeable to the three Creeds, and the thirty-nine Articles of Religion. And whereas divers good laws have been enacted for the reftraining the exorbitant liberties aforefaid, one particularly in the thirteenth year of Queen Elizabeth, intituled, An Act for Minifters of the Church to be of found Religion; by which it is provided, "That if any perfon "eccle "ecclefiaftical, or which fhall have ecclefiaftical living, "fhall advisedly maintain or affirm any doctrine directly "contrary or repugnant to the thirty-nine Articles, and "being convented before the Bishop of the diocefe, fhall 66 perfift therein, or not revoke his error, or after fuch re"vocation eftfoon affirm fuch untrue doctrine, fuch main❝taining, or affirming, and perfifting, or fuch eftfoon af"firming, fhall be juft caufe to deprive fuch person of his "ecclefiaftical promotion; and it fhall be lawful to the "Bishop of the diocefe, or the Ordinary, to deprive such "perfon fo perfifting, or lawfully convicted of fuch eft"foons affirming; and upon fuch fentence of deprivation pronounced, he fhall be indeed deprived:" And one other Act of Parliament, made in the ninth year of King William the Third, intituled, An Act for the more effectual Suppreffing of Blafphemy and Profaneness; by which it is provided, "That if any perfon fhall, by writing, printing, "teaching, or advised speaking, deny any one of the "Perfons in the holy Trinity to be God, or fhall affert or maintain there are more Gods than one, or fhall "deny the Chriftian religion to be true, or the holy "Scriptures of the Old and New Teftament to be of di"vine authority, and fhall, upon indictment or information "in any of his Majefty's Courts at Weftminster, or at "the affizes, be thereof lawfully convicted, by the oath "of two or more credible witneffes; fuch perfon, for "the first offence, fhall be adjudged incapable and dif"abled in law to have or enjoy any office or employ"ment, ecclefiaftical, civil, or military; and that if any perfon fo convicted, as aforefaid, fhall, at the time of his conviction, enjoy or poffefs any office, place, or em"ployment, fuch office, place, or employment fhall be "void; and if he offend, and be convicted a second time 3 66 of any of the faid crimes, he shall be difabled to fue, "profecute, plead, or use any action or information in any court of law or equity, or to be guardian of any child, or executor, or administrator of any perfon, or capable "of any legacy or deed of gift, or to bear any office, civil or military, or benefice ecclefiaftical, for ever, within "this realm, and fhall alfo fuffer imprisonment for the σε fpace of three years, without bail or mainprize, from the time of fuch conviction:" We therefore, being defirous to discountenance and fupprefs all fuch impious attempts and practices to the utmost of our power, do ftrictly charge and command you to make ufe of your own authority for that end, according to the tenor and direction direction of the faid Act, made in the thirteenth year of Queen Elizabeth; together with all other means and endeavours fuitable to your holy profeffion, for oppofing and fuppreffing all fuch practices. And we, on our part, will give ftrict charge to our Judges, and all other civil officers, to do their duty, in executing the faid Act, made in the ninth year of King William the Third, and all other the good and wholefome laws made for the prefervation of our holy religion, upon fuch perfons as fhall offend again ft the fame, and thereby give occafion of fcandal and disturbance in our church and kingdom. Given at our Court at St. James's, the feventh day of May, 1721, in the seventh year of our reign. BY THE KING. A Proclamation for the Encouragement of Piety and Virtue, and for preventing and punishing of Vice, Profanenefs, and Immorality. GEORGE R. WH HEREAS we cannot but obferve, with inexpreffible concern, the rapid progrefs of impiety and licentiousness, and that deluge of profanenefs, immorality, and every kind of vice, which, to the fcandal of our holy religion, and to the evil example of our loving fubjects, hath broken in upon this nation: We therefore, effeeming it our indifpenfable duty to exert the authority committed to us for the fuppreffion of thefe fpreading evils, fearing left that they should provoke God's wrath and indignation against us, and humbly acknowledging that we cannot expect the bleffing and goodness of Almighty God, (by whom kings reign, and on which we entirely rely,) to make our reign happy and profperous to ourself and our people, without a religious obfervance of God's holy laws to the intent that religion, piety, and good manners, may (according to our moft hearty defire) flourish and increafe under our adminiftration and government, have thought fit, by the advice of our Privy Council, to iffue this our royal Proclamation, and do hereby declare our royal purpofe and refolution to difcountenance and punith all manner of vice, profanenefs, and immorality, in all perfons of whatsoever degree or quality, within this our realm, and particularly in fuch as are employed near our royal Perfon; and that, for the encouragement of réligion and morality, we will, upon all occafions, diftinguith perfons of piety and virtue, by marks of our royal favour: and we do expect and require, that all perfons of honour, or in place of authority, will give good example by their own piety and virtue, and to their utmoft contribute to the discountenancing perfons of diffolute and debauched lives, that they, being reduced by that means to fhame and contempt for their loofe and evil actions and behaviour, may be thereby alfo enforced the fooner to reform their ill habits and practices, and that the vifible dif X pleasure |