The Condition of Catholics Under James I. Part 29

And, moreover, because it was presumed that every recusant would not be able to pay this 20_l._ a month for his recusancy, it was enacted that such as were not able to pay the said statute should pay two parts of three of all their lands and goods, so as he that should (for example) have three hundred should pay two hundred yearly to the Queen for his recusancy, and retain one hundred for maintenance of himself, his wife, children, and family.

In the same Parliament it was also enacted that if any person or persons, body politic or corporal, after the Feast of Pentecost then next ensuing, should keep any schoolmaster for their children which should not repair to the church, or not be allowed by the Bishop or Ordinary of the diocese (which allowance could not be had without abjuring the Pope's authority and the Catholic religion, as before hath been showed), then shall he or they forfeit and lose for every month(558) 10_l._, and the schoolmaster or teacher himself, besides his lying in prison for one whole year, shall be disabled for ever to be a teacher of youth or to exercise that office in any place afterwards.

And to the end that Catholic recusants might be able to pay these payments and pecuniary forfeitures to the Queen, and not be able to make away any part of their livings for their better relief, it was also enacted and declared in this Parliament that every grant or conveyance of goods or lands, every bond, judgment, or execution had or made from that time forward which should be judged to be done of purpose to defraud the Queen, or to save their lands or goods from being forfeited by virtue of(559) this statute, that all such conveyance made by any Catholic recusant since the beginning of the said Queen's reign, or after to be made for the use and relief of the said recusant, or any of his, should not be available in law, but all void, as if they had not been made. _Anno 28 Eliz. cap. 6._

But a little before this, to wit, in the precedent year, the said Queen, understanding that Priests and ecclesiastical men were multiplied in England by reason of the English Seminaries in Catholic Princes'

dominions,(560) caused terrible thundering statutes to be made against them. And first, that all and every Jesuit, Seminary Priests, and other Priests whatsoever, made and ordained out of the realm of England by any authority, power, or jurisdiction derived, challenged, or pretended, from the See of Rome, since the Feast of the Nativity of St. John Baptist in the first year of the said Queen's reign, 1559, shall within forty days depart out of the realm, and shall not return again without peculiar licence of Her Majesty, under pain of death and other losses and forfeitures accustomed in cases of high treason. _Anno 27 Eliz. cap. 2._

And then, secondly, if any subject of the realm whatsoever, after the said time of forty days expired, shall wittingly and willingly receive, relieve, comfort, or maintain any such Jesuit, Seminary Priest, or other Priest, Deacon, Religious, or ecclesiastical person as is aforesaid, knowing him to be such an one, such suffer the pain of death, and other losses, as in case of felony. _Ibidem._

Moreover, it was enacted by authority aforesaid, that if any of Her Majesty's subjects or their children, now being or hereafter shall be brought up in any College of Jesuits or Seminary already erected or hereafter to be erected in the parts beyond the seas, shall not within six months next after proclamation in that behalf, to be made in the City of London under the great seal of England, return into this realm, and thereupon, within two days next after his return, before the Bishop of the diocese, or two justices of peace of the county where he shall arrive, submit himself to Her Majesty and the laws, and take the oath of supremacy against the Bishop of Rome his ecclesiastical jurisdiction, set forth in the first year of the Queen's reign; that then every such person otherwise returning or abiding without such submission and forswearing his religion, as is aforesaid, shall be adjudged a traitor, and suffer, lose, and forfeit, as in cases of high treason. _Anno 21 Eliz. cap. 6._

And it was further enacted in the same Parliament that, if any subject of the Queen's, after the foresaid forty days expired, shall either by way of exchange, bank, merchandize, or any s.h.i.+ft or means whatsoever, wittingly and willingly, directly or indirectly, convey or send over the seas or out of the Queen's dominions any money or other relief to or for any Jesuit, Seminary Priest, Deacon, Religious, or ecclesiastical person, scholar, student, or the like, or for the maintenance or relief of any College or Seminary already erected or to be erected, that every such person so offending shall lose all his goods and lands and suffer perpetual imprisonment, as in case of _praemunire_. Also it was enacted that whosoever should send over any such students as aforesaid to the Seminaries shall for every time forfeit 100_l._

(M31) And yet further, in the year 35 of the Queen's reign it was enacted that every recusant persevering in denial to go to the Protestants'

churches should be bound to go to their ordinary places of dwelling, and not to depart from thence above five miles, under pain of losing all their goods and chattels. And they which should have no certain dwelling-place should repair to the place where their father and mother dwelt, under the same pains and forfeiture. And he that should fail in this either is condemned to live in perpetual prison or to abjure the land. _Anno 35 Eliz. cap. 2._

And yet this being not thought sufficient severity in this kind, another statute was made, ordaining that whosoever, by printing, writing, or express words, deeds, or speeches, should practise or go about to move or persuade any of the Queen's subjects to deny her power in ecclesiastical causes, or to abstain from going to the Protestants' church, or to be present at any unlawful a.s.semblies under colour or pretence of any exercise of religion contrary to Her Majesty's laws, or shall themselves refuse for three months' s.p.a.ce to go to the said churches and hear divine service, that then they shall be forced to abjure the realm and go into perpetual banishment, or if they refuse the same, they shall suffer death and other losses for it, as in cases of felony. _Anno 35 Eliz. cap. 1._

These are the chief statutes made against Catholic religion in general by the late Queen Elizabeth. For we do pretermit divers others more particular, and concerning particular persons. As, for example, that of the 28th of her reign (cap. 1), wherein the Lord Thomas Paget, Baron, Sir Francis Inglefield, Knight (one of the Privy Council to Queen Mary, of worthy memory), and other Catholic gentlemen, were attainted of treason, their goods and lands confiscate, upon the former statute of fugitives, for that they either went forth of England without licence, for preservation of their consciences, or returned not when their licence was ended.

Another statute was also made in the 39th year of Queen Elizabeth's reign (cap. 8), wherein it was decreed that all such Archbishops, Bishops, Deans, and other spiritual Prelates of Queen Mary's time, as were deprived by this Queen's ecclesiastical authority, for that they would not accommodate themselves unto the form of religion by her set forth, were well and lawfully deprived, and by their deprivation the said bishoprics were made merely void, and the others invested in their places by the Queen's authority were only the true Bishops and had lawful episcopal jurisdiction.(561) And divers other such particular things, which in this place we think good to pa.s.s over.

All these statutes, then, of Queen Elizabeth against Catholic people and their religion, being so grievous and rigorous, as you see, were confirmed by His Majesty that now is, without any restraint or mitigation, in the first Parliament, as before hath been said, with divers other aggrievances thereunto added of new; as that Catholic recusants should not only pay the 20_l._ a month ordained by the former statute for such as refused to go to the Protestants' church and service for conscience sake, but, besides this 20_l._ a month to be paid for himself, he should also pay 10_l._ a month for his wife or children that shall refuse to go to the said churches, yea, and another also for his servants.

Moreover, that all such young men or children that shall study on that(562) side the seas (being Catholics) or frequent the schools or Colleges of any of the Jesuits, or shall not return home within a certain time limited to give account of themselves and their religion, shall forfeit their inheritances in England and other dominions of His Majesty, and the next of his kindred shall enjoy the forfeiture that will conform himself, &c.

And furthermore, whereas, in the beginning of his said reign, certain new canons, const.i.tutions, and ordinances were agreed upon by those of the Protestant clergy to molest and afflict Catholics withal, by pretended censures of excommunications, as, namely, that four times at least every year all preachers, readers of divinity, and all other ecclesiastical persons, in sermons, collations, and lectures, shall teach open and declare to the people that all authority and jurisdiction of the Pope of Rome (as a thing not having any ground by the law of G.o.d) is, for most just causes, taken away and abolished, and that therefore no manner of obedience or subjection is due thereunto, but only that the King's power, which in his dominions and countries is the highest power under G.o.d, above all other powers and potentates upon earth; and that whosoever denieth this, let him be excommunicated _ipso facto_, and not restored but only by the Archbishop after his repentance and public revocation of those his wicked errors. These are the words of his first two canons.

And the same punishment is laid upon whomsoever shall hold or affirm that the Church of England now established by law under His Majesty, is not a true and Apostolical Church, teaching and maintaining the doctrine of the Apostles.

And many other things like unto this, pa.s.sing from one article to another of their sect, and binding Catholics, under pain of excommunication, to believe and hold all that they hold, or else to be vexed with citations, condemnations, excommunications, and other vexations, together with the writs and processes _de excommunicato_ capiendo, as before you have heard suggested by the Chancellor. Unto all which His Majesty gave consent and authority by his letters patent, under the great seal of England, upon the year 1603, and first of his reign, in these words:-

"We have, for us and our heirs and lawful successors, of our especial grace, certain knowledge and mere motion given, and by these presents do give our royal a.s.sent to all and every of the said canons, orders and ordinances and const.i.tutions, and to all and everything in them contained.

And we do, by our said prerogative royal and supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical, notify, confirm, and establish, by these our letters patent, the said canons, orders, &c., and all and everything in them contained. And, moreover, do straitly enjoin and command by our said authority, and by these our letters patent, that the same be diligently observed and executed," &c.

So His Majesty, in the first year of his reign, after he had confirmed and revived all the laws of Queen Elizabeth made and executed against Catholics; by all which he made it evident unto his Catholic subjects that he would not only continue and go forward in the steps of Queen Elizabeth touching the persecution of Catholics, but increase and add unto the same.

For this increase of afflictions, which was laid upon Catholics the first year of his reign, was little in respect of that which was intended against them. Which divers of the forward Puritans did not stick to affirm and to threaten in the King's name, as Roboam did in the beginning of his reign, saying, "Minimus digitus meus grossior est dorso patris mei. Et nunc pater meus posuit super vos jugum grave, ego autem addam super jugum vestrum; pater meus cecidit vos flagellis, ego autem caedam vos scorpionibus."(563) To the like effect did many of his officers give out His Majesty's intentions to be; which, though we may presume to have been contrary to his royal disposition, yet they did so far prevail with him, that he afterwards verified what they had foretold, by confirming the former laws of Queen Elizabeth and adding unto them as you have heard. But especially when he called the second Parliament, and in that suffered to be packed together all the princ.i.p.al Puritans of the realm, whose insatiable hatred against Catholics we knew very well would never take up until they had made laws answerable to their mind and malice against us.

Then they all before the Parliament consulted, and concluded of the bills and laws they would urge to be pa.s.sed against Catholics, as afterwards, indeed, it was performed. And many of those intended laws were known to divers Catholics long before the Parliament time, which, as it is thought, was a great motive unto the gentlemen to undertake their rash and dangerous conspiracy, as deeming so desperate a course to be a needful remedy in so desperate a case.(564)

End Of The Narrative.