THis being Your Majesty's Birth-Day , I thought no time more proper than this , to return you Thanks for Your Majesty's Speech , and more especially for declaring , That the Church of England is one of the greatest Supports of the Protestant Religion , and for the Defence whereof Your Majesty was ready again to venture your Life . Which was graciously said of Your Majesty , and for which I return Your Majesty Thanks ; and indeed so She is , for She was , and is ( and I hope ever will be ) the only Bulwark against Popery ; and that is the only cause that makes Roman Catholicks not to love her ; and ill Men , and Men that cannot understand her , are always Plotting against her to do her Mischief , in incensing her Children against her , and perverting her Members ; thinking to weaken her , that they may the better over-power her : But the Most High GOD doth Preserve her , therefore Men nor Devils shall not destroy her , neither shall the Gates of Hell prevail against her . It was the Unhappiness of my late Soveraign to be perswaded to alter her Government , which was the sole Cause of bringing Your Majesties hither to Vindicate her ; and therefore I humbly beseech Your Majesties not to thrust out her Members , nor put the Woolfs to keep the Sheep ; for I count those Men which have always disturbed the Peace of the Church , are not fit to come into her Government : For hath God done such great Things for any Congregation , as he hath done for this distressed and despised Church of England ? For when the Presbyterians got Power , they got it by Deceit and Blood , and by Destroying the best of Kings , Your Majesties Grandfather , and then they thought the Church should die with him , and never rise again ; but yet see the Miraculous Providence of God , in bringing in my Precious Soveraign King Charles the Second , and your Father and Uncle , without the shedding of Blood , tho' in humane Reason it seemed impossible , when the Godly sober Party had gotten it all into their own hands . I love Godliness , but hate when Men make it a Cloak , that makes me I cannot love Dissenters , till they repent of the Faults , and acknowledge the Sins of their Fathers ; those that hated the name of a Bishop , and cried it was Popish ( tho' Christ's Disciples Instituted them ) yet they could dispence with their Lands : They did not own Kingly Authority , but they could have the Power of Kings , and destroy the Dignities of Kings and Princes ; they did not make long Prayers to destroy Widows Houses only , but to destroy Three Kingdoms at once ; and yet for all that , tho' they had Bishops Lands , and Lords Livings , yet God re-established his Church again , and for this Church I have been always very Zealous , and for its Government , for it 's God's Government ; therefore I often made Application to my late Soveraign , who is your Father and Uncle , and told him , That he should never be able to do what he designed , and that every step he trod towards Rome , must be untrod again ; and thro' the Providence of God , my words was made true , by Your Highness's coming , and the whole Nation rejoyced at your coming , as a Reconciler , but not half the Nation thought You would have accepted of the Crown , as long as the King your Father was alive , but Established all according to your Declaration , by a Free Parliament , then Your Majesties would not have wanted Money , nor there would have been no War nor shedding of Blood ; but since it 's so , I beseech Your Majesty to forget your own Countrey and Fathers House , and study the Good and Welfare of this Nation , and Pray for the King Your Father , That God would Convert and Convince him , and establish him in his Truth , that he may be qualified for his Kingdom ; and when he is so qualified to resign them freely . This will make you so Great and so Glorious , that Your latter end will be more Glorious than your beginning ; Then all will Admire You for Your Piety and Vertue . And since Providence hath sent Your Majesty hither to keep the Church of England from being imposed upon by Popery , I humbly beseech Your Majesty , That she should not be imposed on by any other : For methinks it is unkind that the Bishops should suffer for not Swearing , when Christ saith , Swear not at all ; and those Pious Men who were Imprisoned for their Conscience , to lay down all for Your Sake who came to be their Defender ; surely Your Majesties needs not mistrust their Fidelity , for they who make Conscience of an Oath , they will make Conscience of their Word ; they will engage for their good Behaviour , and I dare believe them : Therefore I beseech Your Majesties to be kind to the Arch-bishop and all the rest of the Bishops , if Your Majesties intend God should Bless You ; for as Your Majesties doth by those Pious Men , so God will do by Your Majesties . The Lord Guide Your Majesties to Act here that you may be Eternally Happy , is the Prayer of