TO THE MOST HONOURABLE and Highest Court of PARLIAMENT, now assembled at Westminster,

Lionel Gatford, Batchelour in Divinity, wisheth all Wisdome, Courage, and Fear of the Lord, with all other graces necessary for his life, and all comforts and joyes reserved for a better.

Most Honourable, and truly honoured, BE pleased I most humbly beseech you
to receive by the hands of another,
what my present infirmities of body,
and poverty of condition, will not
permit me to present unto your Honours by mine
own. The following Petition, and certain Quæres
annexed thereto; both occasioned by the late
Ordinance for the ejecting of scandalous, ignorant,
and insufficient Ministers and School-masters.
An Ordinance deserving your strictest examination,
as being suggested to his Highnesse
by some grand, but close underminers of the
Protestant Religion, for the utter extirpation of
the Ministery thereof out of this Nation, and

A2

therefore already taken as I am informed into
your most pious consideration, as a work most beseeming
you and your known zeal and affection to
the said Religion. And if the said Petition, and
Quæres may contribute ought, though never so little,
to that great and glorious work, I shall give
God all the glory of it; as I shall never cease to
supplicate him for his assisting you therein, and
crowning your endeavours with an happy and
honourable successe. I have caused both the Petition
and Quæres to be Printed, and taken the best
order I could, at this distance with the Stationer,
to whose care I committed the Printing of them,
that your Honours might have each of you a perfect
Copy, to the intent that you might by your
selves in your retirements, as well as joyntly in
your Assembly if you see cause peruse and
scan every part and clause thereof. And if after
such a perusal, your Honours shall finde as I
trust you will nothing therein either repugnant
or prejudicial to truth, and the zealous and prudential
propugning thereof, or unbeseeming the
propugner, or unworthy of your Honours appearing
for; I humbly begge your further recommending
them if you shall think fit to a
more publique view, either of his Highnesse or
any other, with what advantage your better
Judgements, and more inflamed zeal to Gods
glory, and the true Reformed Religion shall
prompt you to. But if they obtain no other favor
but the being read by you, I shall repute it no small
recompence, as well as honour to have such
witnesses of my being really studious, and cordially
desirous to defend and maintain, to the
utmost of my weak power and ability, the said
true Reformed Protestant Religion established in
the Church of England, against all the enemies
and oppugners thereof; as also against whatsoever
scandalls, reproaches, or aspersions they
can cast on it. And that as readily and willingly
now in these times of frenzy and madnesse on the
one hand, as heretofore in those of imprudence
and incogitancy on the other. And perhaps the
known adversaries of our Religion whose
heads have been and still are very busie in all
the designs and contrivances against it, though
they have and doe make use of others hands to
act by may lose a great part of their present designe,
if they be not wholly frustrated, by this
single appearance of one poor stripling of the
Church of England; it being known to them
and to the world, that notwithstanding the fall
of so many thousand able and eminent professors
and repugners of the same Religion, by their
Jesuitical treacheries and conspiracies there
are yet whole Armies left of the same faith and
courage, though they have not so publiquely
declared themselves, nor indeed might without
incurring some censure, which they are desirous
to avoid. Howsoever, if that stripling be but
encouraged with your approbation as he hath
reason from former mercies and deliverances to
hope for Gods assistance he shall willingly hazard
himself in the defence of his Religion;
and, upon reasonable warning, will be ready
with his Shepherds Scrip, and Pastoral Instruments,
though he be sequestred from his flock
to encounter with any Philistine, to whom your
Honours shall send or call forth.
Your most devoted servant

TO THE MOST HONOURABLE and Highest Court of PARLIAMENT,

Now Convened at Westminster, for England, Scotland, and Ireland,

The Humble Petition of Lionel Gatford, B.D.

Most humbly sheweth, THat whereas it pleased his Highness,
the Lord Protector, upon the
subtil and malicious suggestions of
close, pernicious enemies to the true Reformed
Protestant Religion, as your Petitioner
in honour of his Highnesse and Council
is bound to conceive by his Letters to
the Judge of the Assises the last Spring, to
require the Justices of Peace to be more
particularly carefull of the suppressing of
Ale-houses and the Book of Common-Prayer;
And again since that, by an Ordinance intituled,
An Ordinance for the ejecting of Scandalous,
ignorant, and insufficient Ministers, &c.
to conjoin the publique and frequent reading
or using the said Book, with the horrid
crimes of holding or maintaining blasphemous
and Atheistical opinions, of being
guilty of Cursing, Swearing, Perjury, subornation
of Perjury, Adultery, Fornication,
Drunkennesse, and other abominable
crimes mentioned in the said Ordinance;
As also thereby to adjudge the so reading
the said Book to be a crime so scandalous, as
that he, that should be guilty thereof, how
thoroughly Orthodox or faithfully laborious,
how devoutly pious, and eminently religious
soever he otherwise be should be ejected
and displaced from his Cure of Souls,
Benefice, or other place or charge, to his
own and poor wife and childrens ruine, if
not to the extreme dammage or hazzard of
those Souls committed to his Charge, and
acknowledged to have been much benefited
by his Ministery.
Your humble Petitioner, in his zeal to Gods glory,
and the honour of the true Reformed Protestant
Religion of both which, the said
Book hath been instrumentally none of the
least promoter and advancer most humbly
craveth leave to offer these few particulars
to your most serious and pious consideration.
First, Wether the joining of the Book of
Common-Prayer, and Ale-houses in their suppressing,
and the reputing and accounting
the publique reading or using it amongst
such horrid crimes before mentioned, and
the adjudging him that so readeth or useth
it, to be therefore so scandalous, as to deserve
to be ejected out of his Cure or Charge,
be not to say the least of it very injurious
and prejudicial to the true Reformed Protestant
Religion it self, and highly dishonorable
both to it and to the true Professors
thereof, as also much advantagious to the
enemies of both, as well in their now more
then ordinarily endeavoured, and more
then wontedly prevailing seducements and
temptations, for the perverting and corrupting
many weak brethren, as otherwise, when
it cannot be denyed, but that the said Book
was at first composed by most pious, and religious,
as well as Learned and Orthodox

a

men, eminent for their wisdome and prudence
in assisting the Reformation of Religion,
and renowned for their fidelity and
constancy in sealing their profession with
their bloud: And hath been since revised,
and farther approved and established by all
our pious Protestant Princes, with the advice
and consent of their most Judicious and
Religious Parliaments; And contains in it
the form and matter of the publique worship
of God by Prayer, and the form and
manner of the publique dispensing the holy
Sacraments, and other necessary publique
observances, constantly practised and observed
by the Protestants here in England, ever
since the Reformation, and no ways repugnant
in any essential part thereof to the
publique form of Prayer, and Administration
of the Sacraments, used in other Reformed
Churches: So that, if that way and
manner of the publique worship of God by
Prayer, and of the publique dispensing or
administring the Sacraments, which hath bin
the only constant and approved way here
in the Church of England, be such as deserves
not onely utterly to be abolished and suppressed,
but to be joined in the abolishing
and suppressing it, with those sinks of sin,
and nurseries of vice, common Ale-houses,
and to have the using that way and manner
reputed amongst such horrid crimes as by
the said Ordinance ‘tis reputed, and to be
adjudged so scandalous, as that they who
use it ought to be deemed and censured as
unfit & unworthy to officiate in the Church;
and for that cause alone to be ejected and
displaced: It will thereupon easily be inferred
and concluded, that the Church of
England the acknowledged Bulwark and
Fortresse, as well as asyle and refuge of all
the Protestants in Christendome hath hitherto
foully and grosly, yea, criminously
and scandalously erred in two main Fundamentals
of Religion, and discriminating
notes of a true Church, viz. the true worshipping
of God, and the right and lawful
administration of the Sacraments. And whether
the granting or supposing this, be not
very injurious and prejudicial to the true
Reformed Protestant Religion it self, and
highly dishonourable both to it and to the
true Professors thereof, &c. as is before alledged,

a2

is humbly submitted to your Judgements.
Secondly, for the vindicating of the true
Reformed Protestant Religion, and the
professors thereof, from this foul, but most
unjust scandal and aspersion, and from the
injury, prejudice and dammage, that it and
they may suffer thereby; Your humble Petitioner
further prayeth, that his Highnesse
the Lord Protector, may be so fairly and
observantly treated with, and advised by
your Honours, his now greatest Council,
concerning that particular, that without
the least reflection of diminution upon his
Honour and Wisdome, so far as is possible
his own opinion, or rather sudden
conception upon others suggestions, concerning
the Book of Common-Prayer, may bee
taken off, & changed into better thoughts;
and so the honour of that Book so far at
least, as concerns the honour of God, himself,
and the true Reformed Protestant Religion
be preserved, which is no more then
the Apostles themselves did in the abolishing
of Jewish Rites and Ceremonies, how
inconsistent soever with the Christian Profession,
and practise, and may much more
be indulged to the reverend and religious
worship of many thousands and ten thousands
eminently renowned Christians.
And for the same ends, your Petitioner
in the third place, offereth to your Honors
this humble motion and earnest supplication,
That you would be pleased with the
consent of his Highnesse first obtained to
publish a decree or command, That all persons
of what religion or profession soever,
that have ought to object or except against
set forms of publique Prayer, and administration
of the Sacraments in general, or against
the Book of Common-Prayer in particular,
do by some few of their own religion
and profession, chosen by them for that purpose,
for the avoidng of tumults and confusion
within such a time give in to your
Honours, either written or printed, all or
the chief of the reasons & grounds of those
their objections and exceptions. And that
your Petitioner, though very weak and unworthy
to appear in so great a cause together
with some few other of those many
that are of his judgement, may, upon sufficient
notice thereof given to them, and some
small charges, by reason of his and their
known poverty, allowed them, be admitted
to return answer to those objections and
exceptions; and then have some further time
assigned them to clear and make good to
his Highnesse and to your Honours, these
three Assertions.
I. That Set Forms of publique Prayer,
and dispensing of the Sacraments, are more
agreeable to and consistent with the precepts
and rules of Prayer, and dispensing the
Sacraments contained in sacred Scripture,
then ex tempore Prayers and Arbitrary modes
of dispensing these Ordinances are.
II. That it is requisite and necessary for
every settled Church in every Nation to
have as anciently and lately they had
known Set-Forms both of publique Prayers,
and of publique dispensation of the
Sacraments, that so errors in both may be
the better avoided, and the uncharitable
judging of each other prevented, and peace
and truth preserved.
III. That the Book of Common-Prayer,
and administration of the Sacraments formerly
established and used here in England,
is absolutely the best Form and freest from
all just exceptions in all essentiall points
and practises of Religion, that ever yet saw
light in the Christian world, and none of
the weakest Forts, that the Church of England
had against Popery, and other errors,
and heresies. And therefore may by your
Honours mediation to his Highnesse, and
with his and your joint approbation and
confirmation, be still continued in this
Church at least in those Congregations
that shall accept and desire it without the
scandal of any, or prejudice to those that
shall use it.

And for this your justice, and zeal for the
honour of God, and the true Reformed
Protestant Religion, your Petitioner
with many thousands shall
faithfully and devoutly pray, &c.