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talents. In this affcmbly, wliidi meets once a year, the king 

 prclides by his comiiiilTioncr, who is always a nobleman ; 

 but he has no voice in tlicir deliberations. Appeals are 

 brought from all the other ccclcliallical courts in Scotland 

 to the general affembly ; and in quellions purely religious, 

 no appeal lies from its determinations. Tlie liril general 

 aflembly of the church of Scotland was held in the year 

 1560; but it bore, fays Dr. Robertfon (Hiil. Scotl. vol.i. 

 p. 251.), all the marks of an infant and unformed fociety. 

 The members were few, and of no confiderablc rank; and 

 and, of courfe, a convention fo feeble and irregular, could 

 poflefs no great authority ; and conlcious of their own 

 weaknefs, the members put an end to their debates, without 

 venturing upon any decilion of much importance. By 

 degrees, however, it acquired dignity, authority, and per- 

 manence. 



AssF MBLV, Genera}, of the Jewifh Rabbis. See Agf.da, 

 AsEFMBLV of Divir.es, is the name given to an alTocialion 

 of minillcrs and others, fummoned by an ordinance of par- 

 liament, in the year 1643, to meet at AVeltminfter, "for 

 fettling the government and liturgy ot the church of Eng- 

 land, and for vindicating and clearing the faid church from 

 falfe afperiions and interpretations." This aiTembly confilKd 

 of 121 divines, and 30 laymen, "celebrated in tlvcir party," 

 fays Mr. Hume, " for piety and learning." Tiie feveral 

 parties in this aifeinlily were compofed of Preibyterians, 

 jErallians, and IndeMndents. By their advice, alterations 

 were made in the thirty-nine articles, the firlt fifteen of 

 which employed their committee for ten weeks ; and thcfe 

 alterations chiefly rcfpeiSed the doftrinal articles, and were 

 defigned to render their fenfe more exprefs and determinate 

 in favour of Calvinifm. It was of Hill greater importance, 

 that they utterly aboliilicd the liturgy, and, in its (lead, 

 eftabhdicd a new directory for worfliip, by whicii, fuitably 

 to the fpirit of the puritans, the ulmoll liberty, both 

 in praying and preaching, was indulged to the public 

 teachers. They alfo agreed in introducing and enforcing 

 the folemn league and covenant, by which epifcopacy was 

 abjured; and a" national engagement, attended with every 

 circumilance that could render a promife iacred and obli- 

 gatory, was entered into with the Scots, never to fulTcr its 

 re-admidion. All thefe meafures, fays JNIr. Hume, ihev.-ed 

 little fpirit of accommodation in the parliament ; and the 

 king's commifTioners were not furprifed to find the eftablifli- 

 ment of prefl^yters. and the direilory pofitively demanded, 

 together with the fubfcription of the covenant, b.ith by the 

 king and kingdom. This afTcmbly fubfilled till Feb. 22. 

 J64I, about three weeks after the kmg's death, having fat 

 live years, fix months, and twenty-two days, in which they 

 had 1 1 63 feflions. They were afterwards changed into 

 a committee for the examination of fuch minifters as pre- 

 fentcd themfelves for ordination or induction into livings, 

 and met once a week, till March 25, 1652; when the long 

 partiamcnt being turned out of the houfc by Oliver Crom- 

 well, they broke up without any formal dilfohilion. The 

 works oi the alTemljly, bcfides fome letters to foreign 

 churches, and occafional admonitions, were, i. " Their 

 humble advice to the parhamcnt, for ordination of minifters, 

 and fettling the pitroyterian government." 2. " A di- 

 reftory for public worlhip." 3. "Aconfeflion of faith." 

 4. " A larger and rtiorter catechifm." 5. " A review of 

 fome of the thirty-nine articks." ♦' When pofterity," 

 fays Mr. Neal, " (liall impartially review this aflembly 

 of divines, and confidcr the times in which they lived, 

 they will have a juft veneration for their memory; for 

 though their fcntiments in divinity were in many iciftances 

 too narrow and coatrafted, yet, with all their faults, amongft 



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which their perfecuting zeal for religion was not the leaftt 

 they were certai'ily men of real i>icty and virtue, who meant 

 well, and had the interell of religion at heart; and moft of 

 them poUefled as much learning as any of their cotempo- 

 raries: the names of Lighttoot, Selden, Gataker, Greenhill, 

 Arro'.vfjnith, Twifle, bilhop Reynolds, Waiiis, &c. will 

 always meet with cTleem from the learned world; and 

 had they not grafped at coercive power or jurildidtion over 

 the confciences of men, tlu-ir cbaraiters would have betii 

 unblen.idKd." Lord Clarendon (vohi. p. 530.) allows, 

 " that about twenty of them were revtrtnd and worthy 

 perfons, and epifcopal in their judgments; but as to the re- 

 mainder, they were but pretenders to divinity; fome were 

 infamous in their lives and coiiverfations; and mod of them 

 of very mean parts and learning, if not of fcandidous igno- 

 rance, and of no other reputation than of malice to the 

 church of England." Mr. Eachard confefl'es, that his 

 lordihip has, perhaps with too mudi fevcrity, faid, that 

 fiime of thefe divines were infamous^ in their lives and 

 char.:<fteis ; but Mr. Baxter, who kne^v moft of them, fays, 

 " they were men of eminent learning, godiinefs, minifterial 

 abilities, and fidelity; and being not worthy to be one ol 

 them myfelf," fays he, " I may more iully fpeak the 

 truth, which I know, even in the face of malice and envy, 

 that as far as I am able to judge by the information of ; 

 hiftory, and by any other evidences, the Chriftian world, 

 fince the days of the apoftles, had never a fynod of more 

 excellent divines than this fynod, and the fynod of DoTt." 

 " The clhine ri'^ht," fays Mr. Neal, " of the prtft^yterian 

 government, full threw them into heats, and then divided 

 them ; engaging them firft with the parliament, and then 

 with the Independents and Eraftians. Their oppofing a 

 toleration, raifed them a great many enemies, and caufed a ~ 

 fccellion in their own body; for after they had carried the 

 quellion of " divine right," the Independents and Eraf- 

 tians defevtcd them, after which they found it very difficult 

 to mufter as many as would make a houfe. Had the parlia- 

 ment diffolved them at this junfture, they had feparated 

 with honour; but they dwindled by degrees, and the 

 bufinefs of the church was tranflated to the provincial af- 

 femblies. Hume's Hift. vol. vii. p. 32. Ncal's Hift. Pur. 

 vol. ii. p. 35, &c. p. 335. 410. 



Assemblies of the fflm/w MarlU, or Mail, of the field 

 of I\Ijrs, or Aliiy; fee Filld of Mars, &c. — Rebi-llious 

 aflembly; fee Rebellious. — Unlawful aflembly; fee 

 Unlawful. "~ 



Assembly is ])articnlarly ufi.d in the Icau-mondc, fur 

 a ftated and general meeting of the polite perfons of both 

 fexcs, for the fake of converfation, dancing, and play. 



Assembly is alfo ufed in the Military Art, for the 

 fecond beat of the drum, being that before tlie march. On 

 hearing this, the fokiiers ilrike their tents, roll them up, and 



then (land to their arms The third beating is called the 



march, as the firll is called the general. 



ASSEMON, AzMON,or Jeshimon, in Ancient Geography, 

 a city in the wildernefs of Meon, fouth of the tribe of Judah, 

 I Sam. xxiii. 25. Jofh. xv. 4. Alfo, an encampment of 

 lirael in the delert. Azmon was the neareft city to Egypt, 

 fouth. Numb, xxxiii. 29. xxxiv. 4, 5. 



ASSENA, in Geography. See Esse. 



ASSENEDE, a town of Flanders, one mile fouth-weil 

 of Sas de Ghent. 



ASSENEPOWALS, a lake of America, weftward of 

 Chriilianaux lake, through which its waters run into Albany 

 river, in New South Wales. 



A-SSENHEIM, a town of Germany, in the circle of 

 the Upper Rhine, acd county of Solms Rodelheim, at the 



couflu& 



