nd not
the doctrinal part, which he casts upon an uncertainty whether the world
hold out any such thing.

2. "Church government as mentioned in the covenant is a spiritual, not a
civil thing. The matters of religion are put together,--doctrine, worship,
discipline and government. The privileges of Parliament come after in the
third article." The reverend brother replies, "What if it be? therefore
the Parliament is not to meddle with it, and why?" And here he runs out
against me, as if I held that the Parliament is not to meddle with
religion, an assertion which I abominate. Princes and magistrates' putting
off themselves all care of the matters of religion, was one of the great
causes of the church's mischief, and of popish and prelatical tyranny. But
is this just and fair, Sir, to give out for my opinion that for which you
are not able to show the least colour or shadow of consequence from any
thing that ever I said? That which was to be replied unto was, Whether do
not the materials of the first article of the covenant differ from the
materials of the third article of the covenant? or whether are they the
same? Whether doth the privilege of Parliament belong to the first article
of the covenant? Whether is that government mentioned in the first article
a civil thing or a spiritual? If civil, why is discipline and government
ranked with doctrine and worship, and all these mentioned as parts of the
reformation of religion? If spiritual, then why doth the brother make it
"civil or temporal?" p. 11. To all this nothing is answered, but, "What if
it be?" Then is my argument granted.

And to put it yet further out of question, I add other two arguments from
that same first article of the covenant. One is this: In the first part of
that first article we swear all of us to endeavour "the preservation of
the reformed religion in the church of Scotland, in doctrine, worship,
discipline, and government," where all know that the words "discipline"
and "government" (especially being mentioned as two of the principal
things in which the reformed religion in that church doth consist) signify
church government and church discipline distinct both from doctrine and
worship (which, by the way, how Mr Coleman endeavoureth to preserve, I
will not now say, but leave it to others to judge), therefore, in that
which immediately followeth,--our endeavouring "the reformation of religion
in the kingdoms of England and Ireland, in doctrine, wors