through
ignorance, disorder of the affection of covetousness, or ambition, defile
the Lord's sanctuary." At such extraordinary times, princes, by their
coactive temporal power, ought to procure and cause a reformation of
abuses, and the avoiding of misorders in the church, though with the
discontent of the clergy, for which end and purpose they may not only
enjoin and command the profession of that faith, and the practice of that
religion which God's word appointeth, but also prescribe such an order and
policy in the circumstances of divine worship as they in their judgment of
Christian discretion, observing and following the rules of the word, shall
judge and try to be convenient for the present time and case, and all this
under the commination of such temporal losses, pains, or punishments as
they shall deprehend to be reasonable. But at other ordinary times, when
ecclesiastical persons are neither through ignorance unable, nor through
malice and perverseness of affection unwilling, to put order to whatsoever
requireth any mutation to be made in the church and service of God, in
that case, without their advice and consent, princes may not make an
innovation of any ecclesiastical rite, nor publish any ecclesiastical law.

_Sect._ 24. When Dr Field(959) speaketh of the power of princes to
prescribe and make laws about things spiritual or ecclesiastical, he
saith, That the prince may, with the advice and direction of his clergy,
command things pertaining to God's worship and service, both for
profession of faith, ministration of the sacraments, and conversation
fitting to Christians in general, or men of ecclesiastical order in
particular, under the pains of death, imprisonment, banishment,
confiscation of goods, and the like; and by his princely power establish
things formerly defined and decreed, against whatsoever error and contrary
ill custom and observation. In all this the Doctor saith very right; but I
demand, further, these two things: 1. What if the thing have not been
decreed before? and what if the free assent of the clergy be not had for
it? Would the Doctor have said that in such a case the prince hath not
power by himself, and by his own sole authority, to enjoin it, and to
establish a law concerning it? For example, that king James had not power
by himself to impose the controverted ceremonies upon the church of
Scotland at that time when as no free assent (much less the direction) of
the clergy was had fo