archbishop; but his grace having consulted his brother of London, told the treasurer that he was a ringleader of the nonconformists; that he himself had received complaints against him, and was determined to bring him before the high commission.* Mr. Gifford had many friends, and was much beloved by his numerous hearers. The parishioners of Maldon, therefore, presented a petition to the bishop, in behalf of their minister, signed by fifty-two persons, two of whom were bailiffs of the town, two justices of the peace, four aldermen, fifteen head burgesses, and other respectable people. In this petition, they shewed that his former accusations had been proved to be false; that the present charges were only the slanderous accusations of wicked men, who sought to injure his reputation and usefulness; that they themselves and a great part of the town had derived the greatest benefit from his ministry; that his doctrine was always sound and good; that in all his preaching and catechising he taught obedience to magistrates; that he used no conventicles; and that his life was modest, discreet, and unreprovable. For these reasons they earnestly entreated his grace to restore him to his ministry. Indeed, the distresses of the people in Essex were at this time so great, that the inhabitants of Maldon and the surrounding country presented a petition to parliament for the removal of present grievances. In this petition, now before me, they complain, in most affecting language, that nearly all their learned and useful ministers were forbidden to preach, or deprived of their livings; and that ignorant and wicked ministers were put in their places.‡ These endeavours proved ineffectual. Mr. Gifford did not enjoy his liberty for several years, as appears from a supplication of several of the suspended ministers in Essex, presented to parliament, dated March 8, 1587, when he was still under the episcopal censure. It will be proper to give the substance of it in their own words: "In most humble and reverent duty to this high and honourable court of parliament, sundry of the ministers and preachers of God's holy word in the county of Essex, present this our earnest supplication, and lamentable complaint, beseeching you upon our knees for the Lord's sake, and the sake of his Strype's Whitgift, p. 152. + Strype's Aylmer, p. 111, 112. MS. Register, p. 748. people, whose salvation it concerneth, to bow down a gracious ear to this our most dutiful suit, and to take such order as to your godly wisdom shall be thought most convenient. Your humble suppliants having, by the goodness of God, conducted themselves at all times, both in their doctrine and life, as becometh their vocation, they submit themselves to any trial and punishment, if it should be found otherwise. Notwithstanding this, they have been a long time, and still are, grievously troubled and molested; of which troubles this is one of the heaviest, that we are hindered from the service of God in our public ministry. To this restraint we have hitherto yielded and kept silence. "We hoped, from the equity of our cause, the means that have been used, and the necessities of our people, that our suspension would have been taken off by those whose censure lieth upon us: but they neither restored us to our ministry, nor furnished the people with suitable persons to supply our places. We and our people have been humble suitors to them, desiring that we might be restored to our former service and usefulness among them; and, notwithstanding our cause hath been recommended to them by some of the chief nobility in the land, even of her majesty's honourable privy council, we have obtained no relief for ourselves, nor comfort for our distressed people. Therefore, to appear before this high and honourable court of parliament, is the only means left unto us; that if there be in us no desert of so heavy a sentence, it may please this high court to take such order for the relief of your most humble suppliants as to your godly wisdom shall be thought convenient. "We, indeed, acknowledge that divers causes of our restraint are alleged against us; but our earnest desire is, that this high court would by some means be informed of this weighty matter. The chief of them is our refusing to subscribe to certain articles relating to the present policy of the church, that every word and ceremony appointed to be read and used in the Book of Common Prayer, is according to the word of God. We declared that we could not, with a good conscience, subscribe to all that was required of us; and we humbly requested to have our doubts removed, and to be satisfied in the things required; but we have not received one word of answer to this day; and their former rigorous proceedings have not in the least been mitigated. "We humbly pray this high court to be assured of our dutiful obedience to all lawful authority, unto which, as the ordinance of God, and for conscience sake, with all our hearts, we promise and protest our submission. We seek unto you to obtain some relief for us. And we commit our lives and whole estate to Almighty God, to your gracious clemency, and to the care of her right excellent majesty, ceasing not, day and night, to pray that the blessings of grace and glory may rest upon you for ever." This supplication was signed by Messrs. George Gifford, Ralph Hawden, William Tunstall, John Huckle, Giles Whiting, and Roger Carr; but whether it proved of any advantage, is extremely doubtful. Most probably they continued much longer under suspension. Mr. Gifford subscribed the "Book of Discipline."+ He lived to a good old age, and died about the year 1620. His WORKS.-1. Country Divinity, containing a Discourse of certain points of Religion among the Common sort of Christians, with a plain Confutation thereof, 1581.-2. A Sermon on the Parable of the Sower, 1581.-3. A Dialogue between a Papist and a Protestant, applied to the capacity of the Unlearned, 1583.-4. Against the Priesthood and sacrifice of the Church of Rome, wherein you may perceive their Impiety in usurping that Office and Action which ever appertaineth to Christ only, 1584.-5. A Sermon on 2 Pet. i. 11., 1584.-6. A Catechism, giving a most excellent light to those that seek to enter the Path-way to Salvation, 1586.-7. A Sermon on Jam. ii. 14-26., 1586.-8. A Discourse of the subtile Practices of Devils by Witches and Sorcerers, 1587.-9. Sermons on the first four Chapters and part of the fifth Chapter of Ecclesiastes, 1589.— 10. A short Treatise against the Donatists of England, whom we call Brownists, wherein, by Answer unto their Writings, their Heresies are noted, 1590.-11. A Plain Declaration that our Brownists be full Donatists, by comparing them together from point to point out of the Writings of Augustin, 1591.-12. A Reply to Mr. Joh. Greenwood and Hen. Barrow, touching read Prayer, wherein their gross Ignorance is detected, 1591.-13. A Sermon at Paul's Cross, on Psalm cxxxiii., 1591.-14. A Dialogue concerning Witches and Witchcrafts; in which is laid open how craftily the Devil deceiveth not only the Witches, but others, 1593.-15. A Treatise of true Fortitude, 1594.-16. A Commentary or Sermons on the whole Book of Revelations, 1596.-17. Two Sermons on 1 Pet. v. 8, 9., 1598. -18. Four Sermons upon several parts of Scripture, 1598.-19. An Exposition on the Canticles, 1612.-20. Five Sermons on the Song of Solomon, 1620.-21. An English Translation of Dr. Fulke's Prelections on the Holy Revelations. *MS. Register, p. 818-820. + Neal's Puritans, vol. i. p. 423. JEREMIAH DYKE, A. M. was younger brother to the celebrated Mr. Daniel Dyke, and educated in Sidney college, Cambridge. He was beneficed at Epping in Essex, where he entered upon his pastoral charge, in the year 1609. He was a person of a cheerful spirit, richly furnished with divine grace, and eminently useful in his ministry. He was a divine of great peace and moderation, and is said to have been no zealot for the ceremonies, but to have quietly submitted to the use of them. This he certainly did, for the sake of peace, so far as he could do it with a good conscience. But he was a thorough puritan, and disaffected to the ceremonies. He died a pious death, says our author, in the year 1620, when his remains were interred in his own church.+ A minister of the same name became vicar of Stansted-Abbots in Middlesex, in 1640; but resigned it previous to April 23, 1644; and he became rector of Great Parndon in Essex, in 1645. But if the above account of Mr. Dyke's death be correct, this must have been another person.+ Mr. Dyke published the posthumous works of his brother, and was himself author of several excellent books. He is classed among the learned writers of Sidney college, Cambridge; and a high encomium is passed upon his sermons. He was author of a work on the Lord's supper, entitled, "The Worthy Communicant." Mr. Daniel Dyke, the silenced nonconformist, in 1662, was his son.1 THOMAS HELWISSE.-This zealous puritan was a man possessed of good natural parts, and some acquired endowments, though it does not appear whether he received any university education. He was a member of the ancient church of separatists, founded in the beginning of the reign of Queen Elizabeth; and was peculiarly serviceable to those people when, to escape the oppressions of the times, they fled to Holland. There he was esteemed a man of eminent faith and charity, possessing excellent spiritual gifts. When Mr. John Smyth raised the controversy about baptism, Mr. Helwisse became one of his disciples, received baptism from him by immersion, and is said to have been excommu * Newcourt's Repert. Eccl. vol. ii. p. 248. + Fuller's Worthies, part. ii. p. 29. Newcourt's Repert. Eccl. vol. i. p. 890. ii. p. 462. Wilkins's Discourse on Preaching, p. 82. 1 Palmer's Noncon. Mem. vol. ii. p. 304. nicated by the contrary party. He was one of the first in the constitution of the church to which Mr. Smyth was chosen pastor; and, upon Mr. Smyth's death, he was chosen to the pastoral office. Though he did not go forwards with an equal degree of comfort and success as Mr. Smyth had done, it was acknowledged that his preaching and writings promoted the cause he espoused. The chief opposers of Mr. Helwisse and his church, according to Crosby, were the Brownists, from whom they had separated. These persons, having incorrect notions of religious liberty, wrote against them with too much warmth, calling them heretics, anabaptists, &c.; yet made several concessions in their favour,clearing them of those extravagant opinions which distinguished the old anabaptists. They acknowledged, that Mr. Helwisse and his people disclaimed the doctrine of free-will; that, though they excluded infants from baptism, they believed in infant saivation; and that they even agreed with their opponents in the great truths of the gospel. And with respect to their morals, as our author adds, they confessed that they had attained to some degree of knowledge and godliness; that they had a zeal of God, though, in their opinion, not according to knowledge; and that when they found any person of their communion guilty of sin, they proceeded to censure him. People of whom these things could, with truth, be said, ought not to have received any unkind usage from their brethren, though they differed from them about baptism, or some other subordinate points. It is extremely probable, however, there was fault on both sides; and if each party had been less influenced by a spirit of intolerance, and more by a spirit of forbearance, their history would have appeared no less honourable in the eye of a discerning posterity. Upon Mr. Smyth's death, Mr. Helwisse and his people published a confession of their faith, entitled, " A Declaration of Faith of the English People remaining at Amsterdam in Holland." Mr. John Robinson, pastor to the English church at Leyden, published some remarks upon it. About the same time, Mr. Helwisse began to reflect. upon himself and his brethren for deserting their country on account of persecution. He resolved, therefore, to return home, that he might share the same lot with that of his brethren who had continued to endure the storm. Being * Crosby's Hist. of Baptists, vol. ii. Appen. p. 1–9. |