Puslapio vaizdai
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The want of this patience has been the undoing of all.

But fome will object, O! but it is not ignorance! it is obftinacy and oppofition.' Hardly judged, my friend! But admit it were fo, here is a receipt for the malady, and that of the apoftle's prefcribing. Observe the following words: "In meeknefs inftructing those "that oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance, to the acknowledging of the "truth." Then not fining, plundering, beating, ftocking, imprisoning, banishing and killing, even oppofers themselves, for religion; unless there be a way of doing these things with gentleness, patience, and meeknefs; which I confefs I think nobody ever heard of.

But as the apostle gives Timothy another method than is now used by the fons of violence for reclaiming oppofers, fo the reafon of the counfel makes all other ways unlawful, viz. "If God peradventure will

give them repentance to the acknowledgment of "the truth." I would hereupon enter the lifts with a perfecutor: is repentance in my own power, or is it in thine to give me? The apoftle fays neither: it is God's gift alone; "If God peradventure will give "them repentance, &c. Since repentance then is in the cafe, and that God alone can give it, of what use are violent courfes, which never beget repentance? On the contrary, they have rarely failed to raise prejudice, and beget hardness in the fufferer, and pity in the beholder.

But was this the evangelical rule and practice? Yes, that it was. O then! whence comes impofition, force, cruelty, fpoil of goods, imprisonments, knockings, beatings, bruifings, ftockings, whippings, and fpilling of blood for religion? What church is that whofe officers are fo far from clothing the naked, that they ftrip the clothed; from feeding the hungry, that they take their bread from them; and those, fome of them, poor widows and helpless orphans? And fo remote are they from vifiting the fick and imprisoned, that they

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drag away their beds from under them, and caft their perfons into prifon, for confcience fake. Nay, fome have been fo unnatural, that they haled away an honeft man from a meeting to gaol at Reading, a while fince, not permitting him to take leave of his poor wife, newly delivered, and in a dying condition, though fhe much defired it, and lived but juft by the meeting from whence they took him; with an hundred more things, that I forbear being particular in, because I would not be thought to provoke, when I aim only at Christian reproof and amendment. In fine, What are they that for no other cause pass fuch dreadful excommunications, as render the excommunicants little better than outlawed perfons, fubjecting their civil and natural rights to their pride, paffion, intereft, or revenge, unless they will purchase their enjoyment at the dear rate of giving their own confciences the lie? For what else can be the confequence of conforming to that I do not believe? Is not this to destroy fincere men, and make and fave hypocrites? When it is but too palpable that vice reigns without controul, and few of these busy men, these conscience-hunters, give themselves the thought of correcting manners, defending virtue, or fuppreffing vice.

O that fuch as are concerned would foberly confider if any thing be fo fcandalous to true religion as force L who can think that evidence good that is extorted? And what a church is that which is made up of fuch profelytes, or that employs fuch means to make them? It is bafe coin that needs impofition to make it current, but true metal paffeth for its own intrinfic value.. O where is that Christian meeknefs, patience, and forbearance! how many have been ruined, that were never exhorted, and excommunicated before they were once admonished? This is not to ferve God, but worldly intereft: it is quite contrary to Chrift's counfel and his followers practice. He came to fave, and not to destroy nature, to magnify his grace. You pretend, most of you, to diflike J. Calvin's unconditional reprobation, yet practise it: if you fay, No < conformity

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⚫ conformity is your condition;' I anfwer, it is as unreasonable to require an impoffibility, as cruel damn men for not doing it: for, as you fay, bis doctrine makes God to command them to repent, that cannot repent; and yet damn them if they repent not: fo you enjoin men to relinquish their present faith and worship, and conform to yours, which is not in their power to do, yet damn them, in a temporal refpect, if they refuse it: for you make fuch an unavoidable diffent punishable with the destruction of mens liberties and eftates. You had better leave off valuing yourselves upon the mercy and well-naturedness of that tenet of the universal love of God to mankind, 'till you love more than yourselves, and abominate that the church of England should be the elect to the civil government, and all others as reprobates, fince you pretend to deteft the like injustice in John Calvin's notion of election and reprobation.

And the truth of it is, this helps on atheifin, as much as any enormity in the land; when witty men are not willing to take pains to examine after the truth and excellency in religion, fo that people, that call themselves Chrift's minifters and the apostles fucceffors and followers, affect and feek government, and yet twice deny it, when they go to receive it: that fome others grow lordly, live voluptuously, and watch after the biggeft preferments, not being excited by most fervice for God, but earthly power and wealth for themselves; and that, at the fame time, they perfecute men of more felf-denial, for matters of opinion about faith and worship towards God; fo that no conformity to the church, no protection from the ftate, Which, among Proteftants, is fo much the more unreasonable; first, because they, by thefe courses, implicitly own and affume the higheft infallibility and perfection, and yet deny any fuch thing. For it fupposes that nothing is truer, nothing perfecter; or else they both perfecute men to embrace a fallible and imperfect religion, and with cruel penalties provide against any thing more true or infallible; which is

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the greatest injury to the world that can be, inafmuch as it is a plain endeavour to fruftrate all thofe excellent prophecies and gracious promises God hath given, and the holy fcriptures declare of the latter days. But, Secondly, It expofes Proteftants to the lash and fcorn of the Papist unavoidably; for, at this rate, you that, with reason, think it ignorance and irreligion in the Papift to imagine himself difcharged in God's açcount, by believing only as the church believes, conceive yourselves, at the fame time, juftified by believing only as a few of your own doctors, or elfe as the state believes. But if the church cannot use force in religion, because fhe cannot infallibly determine to the confcience without convincement, much less ought a few doctors, or the civil authority, to use force where they can much lefs judge. Unless you would make them the civil executioners of your displeasure, who have no civil power to give them fuch commiffion; and, to be fure, no ecclefiaftical authority to exercise any force or violence about religion. For the Papift, judging by his principles, punishes them that believe not as the church believes, though against fcripture; but the Proteftant, who teaches every one to believe the fcripture, though against church-authority, perfecutes, against his own principles, even them that in any particular fo believe, as he, in general, teaches them to believe. This is hard, but true, upon the Proteftant; for what is plainer than that he afflicts thofe, that, according to his own doctrine, believe and honour holy fcripture, but against it will receive no human interpretation. Them, I fay, who interpret fcripture to themselves, which, by his pofition, none but they to themselves can interpret; them, that ufse the fcripture no otherwife, by his own doctrine, to their edification, than he himself ufes it to their punishing; and fo thofe whom his doctrine acknowledges true believers, his difcipline perfecutes as

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To fum up all at this time; if we must believe as Cæfar appoints, why not then as the church believes?

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But if not as either, without convingement, pray how can force be lawful? Let me recommend one book to you, that of right claims a place with you, and that is, Bishop Taylor's, of Liberty of Prophecy;' never anfwered, that I have heard of, and I have reafon to believe never will be attempted; for indeed it is unanswerable. That was the judgment of a doctor under perfecution; I could be glad if it might be the practice of bishops in their power: I may fay the fame of J. Tillotfon's Sober and Seasonable Difcourfe before the Commons on the fifth of November. And, the truth is, I am the more earnest with you at this time, because I find that God daily fhews us he has great goodwill to poor England. O why fhould we drive him from us, by our difobedience to him, and our feverities to one another! he has lately put a prize into our hands, and continues to pour his favours upon us: all depends upon a fincere reformation, and our perfeverance therein.

To give teftimony of this, let us with our whole hearts turn to God, and keep his holy law; and let us but be jealous of his glory, by punishing vice, and cherifhing virtue, and we may affure ourselves he will intereft himself in our fafety. Of this we cannot doubt; for he who has begun to do it under our difobedience, will not defert us in our fincere repentance. And as this is our duty to God, without which we vainly hope for deliverance, fo is there a duty we owe to one another, that is the next requifite to our preservation.

Let, therefore, all afperities be avoided, nick-names forbidden, and the oppreffed Proteftant delivered. Revive the noble principle of Liberty of Confcience, on which the reformation rofe: for in vain do we hope to be delivered from Papifts, 'till we deliver ourselves from popery. This coercion upon confcience, and perfecution for religion, are that part of popery which is most justly hated and feared: and if we either fear or hate popery for its cruelty, fhall we practise the cruelty we fear or hate it for? God forbid! no, not

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