' A !.

ioo

T II E • L I F

- p F

GsiVV

But as f6r. standirtg up at. the ; Gospel, h^tfenieth that-ever fie gave^ahyDirection for it, or made so muchr as an Enquiry about it,'but.left it.free andunmeddled. with, as appcareth \Art. Cap 4 and j- and Cap. y. 1 Art>A.~] neithercan he believe that' ever any Man was molested or disquieted for the samewhile he was Diocesan there.

As for any of the Persons named in this Article, this Defendant denieth,that they or any of them were eV.er cited or troubled by him: nor doth heknow, that they werd so, by any of the Officers-of the Courts in his Time.He therefore wholly referreth it to the Acts of Court, to shew what was done,and against which of them, and for what it was, and by whom it wasdone

To the sixteenth Article this Defendant anfwereth and denieth, that by himIgnorance, Superstition, or Prophanenefs were introduced, and humbly con-ceiveth, that the contrary thereof, viz. the means of Knowledge, true Re-ligion and Holiness were no less in Act than in true Intention, promotedand cherished by him, in that he did labour, as much as in him lay, to dravVChristian People to the Love and Practice of the Worship of God by Lavvhere established, and to an humble and awful Reverence of his divine Ma-jesty, and was careful that by the profitable Way of diligent and faithful cate-chising, the meaner and the under Sort should be brought to the betterKnowledge of God, and to a true Understanding of the Grounds of theChristian Religion.

He therefore denieth, that he suppressed Prayer, which he endeavourethso much to bring into holy Estimation and Use, or that he forbad Sermons,who denied not to licence any, that in an orderly Way desired the same,and who was (the rather for that) inclined to consent to the removing a-way of those obstinate Non-residents, as much rather fearing, lest it shouldbe objected unto him, that he had suffered sundry Parishes to stand so longdeserted and bereaved of the holy Word, the Prayers and Sacraments. Fora further Proof whereof, he also alledgeth, that whereas in the City of Nor-wich itself there are thirty four Churches, and there used not to be abovethree or four Sermons at them all on Sunday in the Forenoon, but un-der Pretence of going to the cathedral Church, People of all Ages and Sexeswere left to do what they would, this Defendant had no Rest in his Mind,till he got the Chancellor to take Order that in every Church of the saidCity, there should be a Sermon, (if possible it might be) on Sundays in theForenoon, and Catechising in the Afternoon.

He likewise faith, that to that part of the Charge for putting down ofLectures, no Answer can be expected, unless the particular Place, or the Menhad been named, and when and by whom it was done. But he further faith,that at St. Edmund's Bury the Clergy had of themselves discontinued a Lec-ture, which they held before by Combination on Mondays: whereof as soonas he had Notice, he readily gave his Consent and Directions for the re-assuift'ing of it again. He likewise ordered and confirmed the two single Lecture 5there on Wednesdays and Fridays. At Bungay also they had a Lecture : and at, Ipswich they might have had one, if they had desired any but him, who-nthis Defendant could not allow of, he being by Sentence of the High'commission suspended during the King’s Pleasure, and they would desk 6no Man else. At Lynn there \yas a Lecture, and at Norwich another, whichLecture the Chancellor (by reason of some Directions in the Fast-book) of > c\yhile causing to be intermitted, this Defendant, as soon as he understood there - 'of, sent presently to him, to pray him by any means to hinder the some.other Lectures at Norwich had, as this Defendant now finds, been raised l) P

2 with* 11