"Unto youre Grace, and unto yow, Rycht Honorable Lordis of this
present Parliament, humlie meanes and schawes your Grace's
faithfull and obedient Subjectis: That quhare we ar dalie molested,
sklandered, and injured be wicked and ignorant personis,
place-haldaris of the ministers of the Churche, who most untrewlie
cease nott to infame us as Heretickis, and under that name thei
most cruellie haif persecuted diverse of our brethrein; and farder
intend to execute thare malice against us, onles be some godlie
ordour thare fury and raige be brydilled and stayed; and yitt in us
thei ar able to prove no cryme worthy of punishment, onless that to
read the Holie Scriptures in our assembleis, to invocat the name of
God in publict prayeris, with all sobrietie to interprete and open
the places of Scripture that be redd, to the farther edificatioun
of the brethrein assembled, and trewlie according to Christ Jesus
his holy institutioun to minister the Sacramentes, be crymes
worthy of punishment. Other crymes, (we say,) in us thei ar not
abill to convict. And to the premisses ar we compelled; for that
the saidis place-haldaris discharge no parte of thare deuiteis
rychtlie till us, nether yitt to the people subject to us; and
thairfoir, onless we should declair our selfis altogether
unmyndfull of our awin salvatioun, we ar compelled, of verray
conscience, to seak how that we and our brethrein may be delivered
from the thraldome of Sathan. [SN: PROTESTATIOUN.] For now it hath
pleased God to open our eyes, that manifestlie we see, that without
extreame danger of our sowlles, we may in no wyise communicat with
the damnable idolatrie, and intolerable abuses of the Papisticall
Churche; and thairfoir most humblie requyre we of your Grace, and
of yow Rycht Honorable Lordis, Baronis, and Burgesses assembled in
this present Parliament, prudentlie to wey, and as it becum[757]
just judges, to grant these our maist just and reasonable
Petitionis.--
"First, Seing that the contraversie in religioun, which long hath
continewed betuix the Protestants of Almany, Helvetia, and other
provinces, and the Papisticall Churche, is not yitt decyded by a
lauchfull and Generall Counsall; and seing that our consciences ar
lyikwyes towcheit with the fear of God, as was thares in the
begynnyng of thare contraversie, we most humlie desyre, that all
suche Actes of Parliament, as in the tyme of darknes gave power to
the Churche men to execute thare tyranny aganis us, be reasoun that
we to thame wor delated as Heretiques, may be suspended and
abrogated, till a Generall Counsall lawfullie assembled have
decyded all contraverseis in religioun.
"And least that this mutatioun shuld seame to sett all men at
libertie to lyve as thame list, We Secundarelie requyre, That it be
enacted by this present Parliament, that the Prelattis and thare
Officiaris[758] be removed from place of judgement; onlie granting
unto thame, nocht the less, the place of accusatouris in the
presence of a temporall judge, befoir whom the Churche men
accusatouris salbe bundin to call any by thame accused of heresye,
to whome also thei salbe bundin to deliver ane authentik copy of
all depositionis, accusationis, and process led against the persone
accused; the judge lykewyis delivering the same to the partie
accused, assignyng unto him a competent terme to answer to the
same, after he hath takin sufficient cautioun _de judicio sisti_.
"Thridly, We requyre, that all lawfull defences be granted to the
personis accused; as yf he be able to prove, that the witnesses be
personis unable by law to testifie aganis thame, that then thare
accusationis and depositionis be null according to justice.
"_Item_, That place be granted to the partie accused, to explane
and interprite his awin mynd and meanyng; which confessioun we
requyre be inserted in publict Actes, and be preferred to the
depositionis of any witnesses, seing that nane owght to suffer for
religioun, that is not found obstinat in his damnable opinioun.
"Last, We requyre, that our brethrene be not dampned for
Hereticques, onles, by the manifest word of God, thei be convicted
to have erred from that faith whiche the Holy Spreit witnesseth to
be necessarie to salvatioun; and yf so thei be, we refuise nott bot
that thei be punished according to justice, onles by holsome
admonitioun thei can be reduced to a better mynd.
"These thingis requyre we to be considered of yow, who occupy the
place of the Eternall God, (who is God of ordour and trewth,) evin
in suche sorte as ye will answer in the presence of his throne
judiciall: Requyring farder, that favorablie ye will have respect
to the tendernes of our consciences, and to the truble which
appeareth to follow in this commoun wealth, yf the tyranny of the
Prelattis, and of thare adherentis, be nott brydilled by God and
just lawis. God move your hartes deeplie to considder your awin
dewiteis and our present trubles."
These our Petitionis did we first present to the Quein Regent, becaus
that we war determined to interprise nothing without hir knowledge, most
humlie requyring hir favorable assistance in our just actioun. Sche
spared nott amyable lookis, and good wordes in aboundance; bot alwayis
sche keaped our Bill close in hir pocket. When we requyred secreatlie of
hir Grace, that our Petitionis should be proponed to the hole Assemblie,
sche ansured, "That sche thought nott that expedient; for then wold the
hole Ecclesiasticall Estate be contrarie to hir proceadingis, which at
that tyme war great;" for the Matrimoniall Croune was asked, and in that
Parliament granted.[759] "Bot, (said sche,) how sone ordour can be
tacken with these thingis, which now may be hyndered by the Kirk men, ye
shall know my goode mynd; and, in the meantyme, whatsoevir I may grant
unto yow, shall glaidlie be granted."
We yitt nothing suspecting hir falshode, was content to geve place for a
tyme to hir pleasour, and pretended reasoun; and yitt thocht we
expedient somewhat to protest befoir the dissolutioun of the Parliament;
for our Petitionis war manifestlie knowen to the hole Assemblie, as also
how, for the Quenis pleasour, we ceassed to persew the uttermost. Our
Protestatioun was formed in manor following:--