on prescribeth, yet in that case his conscience must be ruled by
the will of the law, and not by his own judgment. And Bishop Spotswood, to
such as object, that their conscience will not suffer them to obey,
because they are persuaded that such things are not right, answereth; that
the sentence of their superiors ought to direct them, and make their
conscience yield to obedience. Their words I have before transcribed. By
which it doth manifestly appear, that they would bear dominion over our
consciences, not as lords only, by requiring the willing and ready assent
of our consciences to those things which are urged upon us by their sole
will and authority, but even as tyrants, not caring if they get so much as
constrained obedience, and if by their authority they can compel
conscience to that which is contrary to the {~GREEK SMALL LETTER PI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER LAMDA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER ETA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER RHO~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER PHI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER RHO~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA~} and full persuasion
which it hath conceived.

_Sect._ 2. It will be said, that our consciences are in an error, and
therefore ought to be corrected by the sentence of superiors, whose
authority and will doth bind us to receive and embrace the ceremonies,
though our consciences do condemn them. _Ans._ Giving, and not granting,
that our consciences do err in condemning the ceremonies, yet, so long as
they cannot be otherwise persuaded, the ceremonies ought not to be urged
upon us; for if we be made to do that which our consciences do condemn, we
are made to sin, Rom. xiv. 23. It is an audacious contempt, in Calvin's
judgment,(134) to do anything _repugnante conscientia_. The learned
Casuists teach us, that an erring conscience, though _non obligat_, yet
_ligat_; though we be not obliged to do that which it prescribeth, yet are
we bound not to do that which it condemneth. _Quicquid fit repugnante et
reclamante conscientia, peccatum est, etiamsi repugnantia ista gravem
errorem includat_, saith Alsted.(135) _Conscientia erronca obligat, sic
intelligendo, quod faciens contra peccet_, saith Hemmingius.(136) This
holds ever true of an erring conscience about matters of fact, and
especially about things indifferent. If any say, that hereby a necessity
of sinning is laid on them whose consciences are in an error, I answer,
that so long as a man keeps an e