On that day, a few of the protesters, who had in vain endeavoured to convince their brethren of the critical situation in which the Presbyterian church stood, met at Edinburgh to draw up a humble address and supplication to the king, suited to the emergency. They were in all nine ministers, of whom the chief were Mr James Guthrie of Stirling, and Messrs Traill, and John Stirling of Edinburgh, with two ruling elders. As the meeting and its object were no secrets, the chancellor and committee dispatched messengers, who seized their papers, containing a scroll of their supplication, with copies of some letters to their brethren in Glasgow, requesting a full meeting for considering the subject; and immediately after issued a warrant for imprisoning in Edinburgh Castle the whole of those who had been present at the unlawful conventicle—terms about to become of frequent use and of fearful import.
The scroll consisted of declarations of their abhorrence of the murder of his majesty’s royal father, and the actings of the late usurping power—of thankfulness for the Lord’s preservation of his own sacred person, and for his quiet restoration without the effusion of Christian blood—professions of zeal for the glory of God, the good of the church, and faithful and loyal tenders of all the duties of honour, subjection, and obedience, due from humble and loving subjects to their native and lawful sovereign; but they expressed their fears of the popish prelatical and malignant party, of their attempting the overthrow of the pure religion as established, and the re-introduction of all the corruptions which were formerly cast out;[[6]] and they reminded his majesty of his and their solemn engagements to God, of the Lord’s mercy to him and them, and their mutual obligations to faithfulness in the performance of their vows.
[6]. These excellent men, for such undoubtedly they were, who had enjoyed undisturbed liberty of conscience and freedom of religious worship under Cromwell, thus adverted to that period, and thus would have requited their protectors.—“Neither are we less apprehensive of the endeavours of the spirit of error that possesseth sectaries in these nations, which, as it did at first promote the practice of a vast toleration in things religious, and afterwards proceeded unto the framing of the mischief thereof into a law, so we doubt not but it will still be active unto the promoting and procuring the same under the specious pretence of Liberty for tender consciences. The effects whereof have, in a few years past, been so dreadful, that we cannot think of the continuing of it, but with much trembling and fear.” Then follows a text upon which the whole annals of the persecution will form a most striking and instructive commentary. “Therefore, knowing that to kings, princes, rulers, and magistrates appertains the conservation and purgation of religion, and that unity and peace be preserved in the church, and that the truth of God be kept pure and entire, that all blasphemies and heresies be suppressed, all corruptions or abuses in discipline and worship prevented or reformed, and all the ordinances of God duly settled, administered, and observed, We, your majesty’s most humble subjects, do, with bowed knees and bended affections, humbly supplicate your majesty that you would employ your royal power unto the preservation of the reformed religion in the church of Scotland, in doctrine, worship, discipline, and government, and unto the carrying on of the work of uniformity in religion in the churches of God in the three kingdoms, in one confession of faith, form of church-government, directory for worship, and catechizing; and to the extirpation of popery, prelacy, superstition, heresy, schism, profaneness, and whatever shall be found contrary to sound doctrine,” &c.
They were therefore charged with proceedings expressly derogatory to his majesty’s royal prerogative, and tending to the disturbance of the present peace of his majesty’s dominions; and next day the committee of estates prohibited, by proclamation, all unlawful and unwarrantable meetings and conventicles in any place within the kingdom of Scotland without his majesty’s special authority; and likewise all seditious petitions and remonstrances under what pretext soever which might tend to the disturbance of the peace of the kingdom, or alienating or diminishing the affections of his majesty’s subjects from their due obedience to his majesty’s lawful authority, and that under the highest pains. Sheriffs and magistrates of burghs were ordered to be careful within their respective bounds, that no such pernicious or dangerous meetings should be permitted, but that they should be prevented, hindered, and made known to the executive. These proceedings were ostensibly directed against the remonstrants alone, but were intended to answer the double purpose of overawing the elections for the ensuing parliament, and paving the way for the complete overturn of freedom in the state and presbytery in the church.
Mr Sharpe, on his arrival from London, gave a keener edge to the proceedings of the committee, and, by his duplicity, prevented the good men among the resolutioners from taking any steps, either for their own security or the relief of their oppressed brethren. In answer to an epistle from his employers to the king, entreating his favour and countenance for their church, he brought the following, addressed to Mr Robert Douglas, minister, Edinburgh, to be by him communicated to the presbytery:—
“Charles R., trusty and well beloved, we greet you well. By the letters you sent to us with this bearer, Mr James Sharpe, and by the account he gave of the state of our church there, we have received full information of your sense of our sufferings and of your constant affection and loyalty to our person and authority: And therefore we will detain him here no longer—of whose good services we are very sensible—nor will we delay to let you know by him our gracious acceptance of your address, and how well we are satisfied with your carriage and with the generality of the ministers of Scotland in this time of trial, whilst some, under specious pretences, swerved from that duty and allegiance they owed to us. And because such, who by the countenance of usurpers have disturbed the peace of that our church, may also labour to create jealousies in the minds of well-meaning people, we have thought fit by this to assure you, that, by the grace of God, we resolve to discountenance profanity and all contemners and opposers of the ordinances of the gospel. We do also resolve to protect and preserve the government of the church of Scotland as it is settled by law, without violation, and to countenance in the due exercise of their functions all such ministers who shall behave themselves dutifully and peaceably as becomes men of their calling. We will also take care that the authority and acts of the General Assembly at St Andrew’s and Dundee, 1651,[[7]] be owned and stand in force until we shall call another General Assembly, which we purpose to do as soon as our affairs will permit. And we do intend to send for Mr Robert Douglas, and some other ministers, that we may speak with them in what may further concern the affairs of that church. And as we are very well satisfied with your resolution not to meddle without your sphere, so we do expect that church judicatories in Scotland and ministers there will keep within the compass of their station, meddling only with matters ecclesiastick, and promoting our authority and interest with our subjects against all opposers: and that they will take special notice of such who, by preaching, or private conventicles, or any other way, transgress the limits of their calling by endeavouring to corrupt the people, or sow seeds of disaffection to us or our government. This you shall make known to the several presbyteries within that our kingdom. And as we do give assurance of our favour and encouragement to you, and to all honest, deserving ministers there, so we earnestly recommend it to you that you be earnest in your prayers, publick and private, to Almighty God, who is our Rock and our Deliverer, both for us and for our government, that we may have fresh and constant supplies of his grace, and the right improvement of all his mercies and deliverances to the honour of his great name, and the peace, safety, and benefit of all our kingdoms; and so we bid you heartily farewell.”
[7]. The acts of these Assemblies were almost entirely levelled against the remonstrators.
Delighted with this most gracious epistle, the Edinburgh presbytery printed and caused it to be transmitted to all the presbyteries in Scotland, praised it from their pulpits, and procured a silver box to preserve the precious original. It was not to be supposed that, under language so explicitly guaranteeing the government of the church of Scotland, as settled by law, that, by any lurking inuendo, Episcopacy could be meant, the resolutioners therefore considered the day as their own, and, with premature speed, hasted to chant their victory. They warmly thanked his majesty for his letter, which they told him in their address they had received upon a day formerly devoted by them to mourning, September 3,[[8]] which had revived their spirits, and excited them to bless the Lord who had put such a purpose in his royal heart to preserve and protect the government of the church without violation; nor was the “choice of such an able and faithful person,” as Lauderdale, “for the weighty employment of secretary less an object of gratulation!” But while we look back with pity upon the speedy dissipation of all the good men’s hopes and anticipations, it is impossible not to feel that they in some measure merited them for the facility with which they allowed themselves to become the dupes and the tools, in persecuting their own brethren, of these very men by whom they themselves were afterwards persecuted.
[8]. The anniversary of the battles of Dunbar and Worcester—an ominous coincidence as it turned out. Another was remarked at the time. “It was a sad observation, that that very day of the month being the 23d of August, on which the protesters were apprehended, was the very same day whereon 100 years before the popish religion had been abolished, and the true religion established in parliament; and some feared this might be the turning of the tide backwards.” Kirkton, p. 73.
Sharpe, whose composition the letter was, followed out his plan of dividing the ministers. He was well aware that the remonstrators were the most acute and least liable to be imposed upon of the Presbyterians; he knew also that they suspected him, and he hated them; he therefore, by an insinuation in it, pointed them out as persons who, under specious pretences, had swerved from their duty during the usurpation; and the church judicatories hastened to inflict punishment upon them for this indefinite crime—“Our synods after this,” says Kirkton, “doing little other thing than censuring and laying aside those of that way. And though the preceding harvest before the king’s return all the synods of Scotland hade agreed to bury by-past differences, yet, upon the receipt of this blessed letter, the old wounds opened; and wherever the public resolution-men were the plurality, the protesters were censured upon the burried differences. In the synod of Merse, they laid aside five ministers; in Lothian, many were laid aside both in Lithgow and Biggar presbyteries; so it was in Perth and in the north: and the truth is, had not the course of synods been interrupted by the introduction of bishops, few had keeped their places who were afterwards ejected by that infamous proclamation at Glasgow in the year 1662.”