260 LIFE OF ARCHBISHOP SHARP. 



should be silent." And then he proceeds upon 

 Christian principles to argue against schism and 

 Church divisions ; and shews how unreasonable 

 the pretence was, which was laid hold of after 

 the happy Revolution. And so again upon 

 another and more remarkable occasion, viz. 

 before the House of Lords, in a sermon which 

 was afterwards appealed to and quoted by both 

 sides in the trial of Dr. Sacheverell ; though 

 the discourse was professedly as the occasion 

 required, upon the duty of subjects to their 

 civil governors, yet he took care first to esta- 

 blish his own right to speak to that 'point in the 

 pulpit, and to answer all the objections which 

 are usually made to the clergy when they handle 

 that subject. And then he took care to speak 

 to it purely as a Christian duty, and to dis- 

 tinguish it from all questions of law, which 

 he professed he would not concern himself 

 about. 



" In all those instances (says he) wherein this 

 argument falls under the cognizance and determina- 

 tion of Parliaments, or judges, or lawyers, we do 

 not pretend to meddle with it. We meddle not with 

 the politics, we meddle not with prerogative or pro- 

 perty ; we meddle not with the disputes and controver- 

 sies of law that may arise about these matters, but 

 preach a company of plain lessons of peaceableness, 

 ^c Such as will at this day hold i?i all the 



