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BOOK

OF

Common Prayer,

And Administration of the

SACRAMENTS,

AND OTHER

Rites and Ceremonies

OF THE

CHURCH,

According to the Use of the

Church of England;

TOGETHER

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With the PSALTER or PSALMS OF
DAVID, Pointed as they are to be
Sung or Said in CHURCHES.

LONDON,

Printed by John Baskets Printer to the Kings most Ex-
cellent Majesty, And by the Affigns of Thomas New-
comb, and Henry Hills, deceas'd. 1718.

CUM PRIVILEGIO.

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I

T hath bees the wisdom of the Church of Angland, ever fince the firit compiling of Her Publick Liturgy to keep the mean between the twe extremes, of too mach tifineis in refuting, and of too much eafineis in admitting any variation from it. For as on the one fide common experience fneweth that where a change bath bren made of things advitedly eltablished (no evident neceffity to requiring) fundry inconveniencias have thereupon enfued ; and those many times more and greater than the evils that were in tended to be remedied by such change: So on the other fide, the particular Forms of Divine. Worship, and the Eites and Ceremonies appointed to be ufed therein, being wings in their own narure indifferent, and alterable, and fo acknowledged; it is but reasonable, that upon weighry and important confiderations, according to the various exigency of times and occafions, fuch changes and alterations should be made theren, as to those that are in place of Authority should from time to time seem either neceffary or expedient. Accordingly we find, that in the Reigns of leveral Princes of bleffed memory fince the Reformation, the Church, upon jult and weighty confiderations thereunto moving, hath vielded to make fuch alterations in some particulars, as In their refpective times were thought

t: Yet

fo, as

Her

that the main of it fas well in

the

convenient Body and Effentials chiefeft materials, as in the frame and order thereof) have itill continued the fatme unto this day, and do vet itand firm and unfhaken, norwichitanding ell the vain attempts and impetuous alfaults made againft it, by tuch men, as are given to change, and have always discovered a greater regard to their own private fancies and interelts than to hat daty they owe to the publick. By what undue means, and for what arifchievous purpoles the ase of the L turg (though enjoyned by the Laws of the Land, and Laws never ver rePealed) came, during the late unhappy confufion, to be difeontinued, is too well known to the world, and we are not willing here to remember. But when upon His Majelties happy ReitauFation it feemed probable that amongit other things, the use of the Liturgy alo would return of course the same having never been legally abolished) unless fo ne timely means were used to prevent it; those men who under the late ufurped powers had made it a great part of their bufiness to reader the people difaffected thereunto, faw themselves in point of reputation and interest concerned (unless they would freely acknowledge themselves to have erred, which fuch men are very hardly brought to do) with their utmoff endeavours hinder the reftitution mereof. In order whereunto divers Pamphlets were publined against the Book of Common Prayers the old Objections mustered up,

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of tender Confciances: hereunto His Majelty, out of His pious inclinatios to give fatisfaction (fo far as could be resionably expected) to al His Subjects of what perfwafion forver, did gracioully condescend.

fome

in which ikeview we have endeavour ed to obferve the like moderation, as we find to have been used in the lika cafe in former times. And therefore o the fundryalcerations proposed unto ass we have rejected af luch as wereither of dangerous confequence (2 Secretly (triking at ne established Doctrine, or laudable practice of the Church of England, or indeed of the whole Catholick Church of Chritt)og elfe of no confequenre at all, but us terly frivolous and vein. But fuch siterations as were tendred to us (by what perfons, funder what pretences, or to what purpose soever fo tendred) as seemed to us in any degree requifire of expedient, we re have have willingly, wi and ot of our own accord aflented onto not enforced so to do by any itrength of Argumenta convincing us of the neceffity of making the faid'Asterationss For we are fully perswarded in our judgments( and where profess it to the work) that the Book as it stood before etablished by Law, dom nor contain in it am thing contrary to the word of God, found Doctrine, or which a godly man may not with a goed Confcience ute and fubmit unto, or which is not fairly defenfible against any that thail oppofe the fame; if it shall be allowed fuch inft and favourable construction as in corsanion Equity ought to be allowed to at Humane Writings, efpecially inch as are fet forth by Authority, and even to the very beit Tranilations of the holy Scripture it feif.

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Our general aim therefore in this andertaking was net to gratifie this or that party in any their unreasonable demands; but to do that which, to our beft un ertandings, we conceived might molt tend to the prefervation of Peace and Unity in the Church; the procuring of of Reverence, and exciting of Piety, and Devotion in the publick Worship of God; and the cutting off occafion from them that feek occafion of cavil, or quarrel against the Liturgy of the Church. And as to the fevetal variations from the former Book, whether by Alteration Addition, or otherwise, it shall fuffice to give this general account, That moff of the Alterations

for

were made, either firit. the better direction of them that are to officiate in any part of Divine Services which is chiefly done in the Kalendars and Ru. bricks: or fecondly, for the more preres

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