by authority; and ordains all disobeyers to be fined in a sum not exceeding 100L., and every minister who shall not obey, to be processed before the lords of their majesties’ privy council; and requiring sheriffs to make report of the ministers who shall fail of their duty herein, to the privy council.”  But it is to no purpose to multiply instances of this kind, seeing it has been the common practice of every sovereign since the revolution, to appoint and authorize national diets of fasting, with civil pains annexed.  And as the state has made these encroachments upon the royalties of Christ, so this church, instead of bearing faithful testimony against the same, have finally submitted thereto.  In agreeableness to the royal appointment, they observed the monthly fast for the success of the war against Lewis XIV (of which above), and in favor of the Pope, which king William was bound to prosecute by virtue of a covenant made with the allies at the Hague, February, 1691, to be seen in the declaration of war then made against France, wherein it is expressly said, “That no peace is to be made with Lewis XIV, till he has made reparation to the Holy See for whatsoever he has acted against it, and till he make void all these infamous proceedings (viz., of the parliament of Paris) against the holy father, Innocent XI.”  Behold here the acknowledgment of the Pope’s supremacy, and his power and dignity, both as a secular and ecclesiastical prince; and in the observation of these fasts, the church did mediately (tell it not in Gath—­) pray for success to the man of sin—­a practice utterly repugnant to Protestant, much more to Presbyterian, principles, and which will be a lasting stain upon both church and state.  As this church did then submit, so since she has made a resignation and surrender of that part of the church’s intrinsic right to the civil power, see Act 7th, Assem. 1710:  “All ministers and members are appointed religiously to observe all fasts and thanksgivings whatever, appointed by the church or supreme magistrate; and the respective judicatories are appointed to take particular notice of the due observation of this, and Act 4th, 1722, Act 5th, 1725.”  From which acts it is manifest, that the Revolution Church has not only declared the power and right of authoritative indicting public fasts and thanksgivings for ordinary, even in a constituted settled national church, to belong, at least equally, to the civil magistrate, as to the church; but, by their constant practice, have undeniably given up the power of the same to the civil power altogether—­it being fact, that she never, by her own power, appoints a national diet of fasting, but still applies to the king for the nomination thereof.  And further, as a confirmation of this surrender, it appears from their public records, that when some members have protested against the observation of such diets, the