51.
JOHN HALES.
'The Ever Memorable Mr. John Hales, of Eaton-Colledge.'
Born 1584. Died 1656.
By CLARENDON.
M'r John Hales, had bene Greeke Professor in the University of Oxforde, and had borne all[1] the labour of that excellent edition and impressyon of S't Chrisostomes workes, sett out by S'r Harry Savill, who was then Warden of Merton Colledge, when the other was fellow of that house. He was Chaplyne in the house with S'r Dudly Carleton Ambassador at the Hague in Hollande, at the tyme when the Synod of Dorte was held, and so had liberty to be present at the consultations in that assembly, and hath left the best memoriall behinde him, of the ignorance and passyon and animosity and injustice of that Convention, of which he often made very pleasant relations, though at that tyme it receaved to much countenance from Englande. Beinge a person of the greatest eminency for learninge and other abilityes, from which he might have promised himselfe any preferment in the Church, he withdrew himselfe from all pursuites of that kinde into a private fellowshipp in the Colledge of Eton, wher his frende S'r Harry Savill was Provost, wher he lyved amongst his bookes, and the most separated from the worlde of any man then livinge, though he was not in the least degree inclined to melancholique, but on the contrary of a very open and pleasant conversation, and therfore was very well pleased with the resorte of his frends to him, who were such as he had chosen, and in whose company he delighted, and for whose sake he would sometymes, once in a yeere, resorte to London, only to injoy ther cheerefull conversation.
He would never take any cure of soules, and was so great a contemner of mony, that he was wonte to say that his fellowshipp, and the Bursers place (which for the good of the Colledge he held many yeeres) was worth him fifty poundes a yeere more then he could spende, and yett besydes his beinge very charitable to all poore people, even to liberality, he had made a greater and better collection of bookes, then were to be founde in any other private library, that I have seene, as he had sure reade more, and carryed more about him, in his excellent memory, then any man I ever knew, my L'd Falkelande only excepted, who I thinke syded him. He had, whether from his naturall temper and constitution, or from his longe retyrement from all Crowdes, or from his profounde judgement and decerninge spiritt, contracted some opinions, which were not receaved, nor by him published, except in private discources, and then rather upon occasion of dispute, than of positive opinion; and he would often say, his opinions he was sure did him no harme, but he was farr from beinge confident, that they might not do others harme, who entertained them, and might entertayne other resultes from them then he did, and therfore he was very reserved in communicatinge what he thought himselfe in those points, in which he differed from what was receaved.
Nothinge troubled him more, then the brawles which were growne from religion, and he therfore exceedingly detested the tyranny of the church of Rome, more for ther imposinge uncharitably upon the consciences of other men, then for ther errors in ther owne opinions, and would often say, that he would renounce the religion of the church of Englande tomorrow if it oblieged him to believe that any other Christians should be damned: and that no body would conclude another man to be damned, who did not wish him so: No man more stricte and seveare to himselfe, to other men so charitable as to ther opinions, that he thought that other men were more in faulte, for ther carriage towards them, then the men themselves were who erred: and he thought that pryde and passyon more then conscience were the cause of all separation from each others communion, and he frequently sayd, that that only kept the world from agreeinge upon such a Lyturgy, as might bringe them into one communion, all doctrinall points upon which men differed in ther opinions, beinge to have no place in any Liturgye. Upon an occasionall discource with a frende of the frequent and uncharitable reproches of Heretique and Schismatique to lightly throwne at each other amongst men who differr in ther judgement, he writt a little discource of Schisme, contayned in lesse then two sheetes of paper, which beinge transmitted from frende to frende in writing, was at last without any malice brought to the view of the Arch-Bishopp of Canterbury Dr. Lawde, who was a very rigid survayour of all thinges which never so little bordred upon Schisme, and thought the Church could not be to vigilant against, and jealous of such incursyons. He sent for M'r Hales, whome when they had both lived in the University of Oxforde he had knowne well, and told him that he had in truth believed him to be longe since dead, and chidd him very kindly, for havinge never come to him, havinge bene of his old acquaintance, then asked him whether he had lately writt a shorte discource of Schisme, and whether he was of that opinion which that discource implyed; he told him, that he had for the satisfaction of a private frende (who was not of his minde) a yeere or two before, writt such a small tracte, without any imagination that it would be communicated, and that he believed it did not contayne any thinge that was not agreable to the judgement of the primitive fathers; upon which the Arch-Bishopp debated with him upon some exspressions of Irenæus, and the most auntient fathers, and concluded with sayinge that the tyme was very apt to sett new doctrynes on foote, of which the witts of the Age were to susceptable, and that ther could not be to much care taken to præserve the peace and unity of the Church, and from thence asked him of his condition, and whether he wanted any thinge, and the other answeringe that he had enough, and wanted nor desyred no addition: and so dismissed him with greate courtesy, and shortly after sent for him agayne, when ther was a Præbendary of Windsor fallen, and told him the Kinge had given him that præferment because it lay so convenient to his fellowshipp of Eton, which (though indeede the most convenient præferment that could be thought of for him) the Arch-Bishopp could not without greate difficulty perswade him to accept, and he did accepte it rather to please him, then himselfe, because he really believed he had enough before. He was one of the least men in the kingdome, and one of the greatest schollers in Europe.
[Footnote 1: 'the greatest part of' in place of 'all' in another hand in MS.]
52.