to dictate what should be their faith and form of worship, remained
utterly unquestioned by any man of note. The sentiments on which such a
theory rested indeed for its main support, the power of historical
tradition, the association of "dissidence" with danger to the State, the
strong English instinct of order, the as strong English dislike of
"innovations," with the abhorrence of "indifferency" as a sign of
lukewarmness in matters of religion, had only been intensified by the
earlier incidents of the struggle with the king.

[Sidenote: Growth of dissidence.]

The Parliament therefore was steadily pressing on the new system of
ecclesiastical government in the midst of the troubles of the war. An
Assembly of Divines, which was called together in 1643 at Westminster,
and which sat in the Jerusalem Chamber during the five years which
followed, was directed to revise the Articles, to draw up a Confession
of Faith, and a Directory of Public Worship; and these with a scheme of
Church government, a scheme only distinguished from that of Scotland by
the significant addition of a lay court of superior appeal set by
Parliament over the whole system of Church courts and assemblies, were
accepted by the Houses and embodied in a series of Ordinances. But while
the Divines were drawing up their platform of uniform belief and
worship, dissidence was growing fast into a religious power. In the
terrible agony of the struggle against Charles individual conviction
became a stronger force than religious tradition. Theological
speculation took an unprecedented boldness from the temper of the times.
The shock of war had broken the bonds of custom, and given a violent
impulse to the freest thought. "Behold now this vast city!" cried Milton
from London, "a city of refuge, the mansionhouse of liberty, encompassed
with God's protection! The shop of war hath not there more anvils and
hammers working to fashion out the plates and instruments of armed
justice in defence of beleaguered truth than there be pens and heads
there, sitting by their studious lamps, musing, searching, revolving new
notions and ideas wherewith to present us, as with their homage and
fealty, the approaching reformation; others as fast reading, trying all
things, according to the force of reason and convincement." The poet
himself had drifted from his Presbyterian standpoint and saw that "new
Presbyter is but old Priest writ large." The same change was going on
widely abo