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missioners be respected in the Assemblies, and about As sembly affairs, as representing the Sovereign's person; yet I doubt if they could claim any place or precedency in meetings of state, merely as Commissioners to the Assembly. But this is still kept undecided, as appears by their disappearing at such meetings while the General Assembly is sitting.

18. The presbytery of Caledonia in Darien, is authorised to send yearly two representatives to the General Assembly: they being a part of this national church, and subject to her Assemblies, as appears from the instructions given them by the commission of the General Assembly 1699.

19. The moderator of the former Assembly opens it with a sermon; but in case of his absence, his predecessor in that chair hath the sermon: and in absence of them both, the eldest minister of the town where they meet preacheth, and openeth the Assembly by prayer, and moderates till a new moderator be chosen. Thus it was done in the Assembly at Glasgow 1638. After sermon the members go into the Assembly-house, where, after prayer by him, who preached, a new moderator is chosen in the manner before mentioned, their clerk continuing by commission, sometimes during life. It is to be remembered, that before the new moderator is chosen, the rolls must first be made up; and at the calling of each presby tery, burgh, and university, their commission is read. After the Assembly is thus constitute, the person repre senting the Sovereign, produceth the commission to him for that effect, and ordinarily a letter also from the Sovereign to the Assembly, both which are publicly read with great honour and respect, the members standing all the time that the letter directed to them is reading; and by their appointment, both commission and letter are recorded in their books. And all the time of the Commis sioner's presence, the members sit uncovered. The Commissioner ordinarily has a discourse to the Assembly, as suring them of their Majesty's protection, and continued favour; and he intreats them to unanimity and dispatch in their affairs; to which the new moderator useth, in

name of the Assembly, to make a short and suitable return; both which are likewise recorded.

20. By the act of Assembly July 29. 1640, it is appointed, that the commissioners sit together unmixed, and the places where they sit be divided from the seats of others. As also, that four persons of respect have war-: rant to enjoin that there be no noise, no standing, nor disorderly behaviour; and if any shall disobey them, or direct his speech to any, except to the moderator, and that one at once, with leave first asked and given, he is to be rebuked by the moderator: and if he desist not, he is to be removed out of the Assembly for that session. As: also, that, the minutes of ilk session be read before. their rising; and if the matter concern the whole kirk, let it be read in the beginning of the next session. This order is to be read the first session of each Assembly, and the act is ratified 28th July 1641, and 6th August 1642.

21. The ordinary committees used in General Assem blies are, 1. The committee for overtures. 2. The com mittee for bills, references, and appeals. 3. The com mittee for elections and commissions. 4. Committees for revising synod-books and registers, and of commissions of General Assemblies. 5. A committee for censuring of absents, and nominating ministers to preach before the Commissioner, if present. 6. When the King or Queen honours them with a letter, there is, in the first place, ap pointed a committee for drawing an answer thereto. There are also other committees for particular matters, named as is found needful. All committees of Assemblies are to consist of ministers and ruling elders, members of several synods; and in more numerous committees, some out of every synod: all which committees are ordina rily named by the moderator, in presence, and approved by tacit consent, only sometimes members propose the adding of some others, whose motion useth likewise to be acquiesced in: so that there hath never yet been election of committees, either by synods giving in sepa rate lists, or by members giving in lists, as hath been done in our late parliaments. Only for preventing the per

any

plexing of Assembly business, it is fit that no member be put upon more committees than one.

22. Albeit no business ought to come in to the Assembly directly, till it be proposed to, and prepared by some committee to whom it properly belongs; yet no committee hath a negative over the Assembly: and it was never their intention to confine and restrict themselves only to consider of these matters which their committees were pleased to allow and transmit to their consideration: for, by act of Assembly, July 29. 1640, an overture (and from a parity of reason, a petition or any other thing) may be proposed in full Assembly, with the reasons thereof, after that the committee hath refused to transmit the same.

23. To avoid altercations and debates in open Assembly, which might prove dangerous, and are always very indecent, after matters have been prepared by committees, they are transmitted to the Assembly. Now this design and order may be much struck at and inverted, when members or particular persons do print their peti tions or overtures to the General Assembly and nation, before they be orderly brought in: Therefore by the 17th act of Assembly 1700, all persons are discharged to presume to print any petition, appeal, reasons, or an swers, or any part of any process to be brought in to the General Assembly, or any other church judicatory, without leave given by them, with certification, that the same shall not be read nor considered.

24. It is the laudable custom of Assemblies, before they begin close to their work, to appoint betwixt nine and twelve in the forenoon, to be set apart by the members for public prayer in the Assembly-house, to the Almighty God, for his countenancing and directing them in the matters that shall come before them: where the Commissioner is likewise pleased to attend and join in prayer: as may be seen in the first three printed acts of Assembly since the Revolution, and among the indices of unprinted acts thereafter.

25. Conform to ancient custom, by the 3d act of Assembly 1702, all synod books are appointed to be punc

tually brought in and presented to the General Assembly yearly, in the beginning thereof: Which books, after hearing a report concerning them, from the committee appointed to revise them, the Assembly does approve or disallow thereof as they find ground. All references from synods, appeals, grievances, petitions and complaints, are here examined and answered: Acts and constitutions for all the churches are agreed upon with common consent, conform to the 9th act of Assembly 1697, of which hereafter about preventing of innovations. Here course is taken for planting of churches with well qualified ministers: Rules are set down, by which inferior judicatures shall be directed in all their proceedings. It is their business to see that the small part of the patrimony of the church yet remaining be preserved and rightly applied. They join or disjoin parishes from presbyteries, and presbyteries from synods: They indict national fasts and thanksgivings: They are concerned to appoint fit persons and methods for drawing up the history of the church; they also ought to take care that works of charity, for sustentation of the poor, be promoted. By the wisdom and authority of this Assembly, gangrenes of errors and divisions are prevented, that they spread not against truth and unity. But they decline to meddle in these matters they judge civil, as being incompetent to them, as may be seen by the index of unprinted acts of Assembly 1690. Church judicatures ought not to meddle formally with civil matters, no more than the state ought to meddle formally with matters ecclesiastic; but the object materially considered may be the same, and fall under consideration, both of church and state, in different respects. By the 5th article of the 31st chapter of our Confession, synods or councils are to handle or conclude nothing but what is ecclesiastical, and are not to intermeddle with civil affairs which concern the commonwealth, unless by way of humble petition in cases extraordinary, or by way of advice for satisfaction of conscience, if they be thereunto required by the civil magistrate.

26. What matters General Assemblies cannot overtake M

themselves, they do refer to their commissions; in pro priety of speech, they do import the same thing with committees; yet, de praxi, a committee is appointed only to prepare matters, whereas a commission determines in matters committed to them, and from whose sentence therein there lieth no appeal to the ensuing General Assembly, though a complaint may be tabled before the next Assembly against the commission their proceedings. The power of the General Assembly is never lodged in them, as to making acts in any case: And it is both more expedient and decent that the Assembly determine in cases of appeals from synods, where they have been unanimous in their sentence, than to refer the final decision to a commission, who may be of a smaller number than the synod, and whose quorum is but about the eighth part of some synods. Delegation or commission to determine, seems inconsistent with the principles of presbyterial government: For if the Assemblies of the church can give power to delegates to determine in one point, they may in more, and consequently in all, and thereby may introduce a prelacy. General Assemblies should not give any other delegations but executive, except in extraordinary cases: For they being delegates themselves, ought least of any church Assembly to delegate: And if they can commit their power to twenty-one, certainly they may commit the same to fourteen. Commissions may have sub-committees for preparing and reporting, but not to determine, or so as to roll the commission upon -them. The commission and the proceedings, and register of their actings are always subject to the censure of a General Assembly; if the Assembly do not appoint their moderator and clerk to attend them in those stations, they may then nominate their own moderator and -clerk. Their quorum is twenty-one, whereof fifteen to -be always ministers, and they continue till a new General Assembly meet, as may be seen in the printed com- missions in the acts of Assemblies.

27. The General Assembly, by their 6th act 1705, does appoint that the whole presbyteries of this national church be equally represented in commissions, and that

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