ROBINSON'S FAREWELL ADVICE. 399 XXV. to endeavour to close with the godly party of the CHAP. kingdom of England, and rather to study union than division, viz. how near we might possibly without sin 1620. close with them, than in the least measure to affect division or separation from them. And be not loath to take another pastor or teacher, saith he; for that flock that hath two shepherds is not endangered but secured by it."1 Many other things there were of great and weighty consequence which he commended to us. But these things I thought good to relate, at the request of some well-willers to the peace and good agreement of the godly, (so distracted at present about the settling of church government in the kingdom of England,) that These professions were undoubt edly heartfelt and sincere. And yet no sooner were these Nonconformists in a place where they could act for themselves, than they pursued precisely the course taken by the Separatists, adopted their form of ecclesiastical discipline and government, and set up Independent churches. Higginson, though a presbyter of the Church of EngĴand, was ordained over again by the members of his own congregation at Salem. Phillips, afterwards the minister of Watertown, who signed the above address with Winthrop, declared soon after his arrival, that if his companions would have him stand minister by that calling which he received from the prelates in England, he would leave them." And when Mr. Cotton came over in 1633, "by his preaching and practice he did by degrees mould all their church administrations into the very same form which Mr. Phillips labored to introduce into the churches before; " so that after a while there was no perceptible difference between the Puritans of Massachusetts and the Separatists of Plymouth. See Ma ther's Magnalia, i. 328; Hutchin- We have here this celebrated "Words," says Prince, speaking of this exhortation, almost astonishing in that age of low and universal bigotry which then prevailed in the English nation; wherein this truly great and learned man seems to be the only divine who was capable of rising into a noble freedom of thinking and practising in religious matters, and even of urging such an equal liberty on his own people. He labors to take them off from their attachment to him, that they might be more entirely free to search and follow the Scriptures." Annals, p. 176. 400 XXV. V. vi. Ephes. ii. 11, 12. ROBINSON NOT A RIGID SEPARATIST. CHAP. So both sides may truly see what this poor despised church of Christ, now at New Plymouth in New England, but formerly at Leyden in Holland, was and is; how far they were and still are from separation from the churches of Christ, especially those that are Reformed. 'Tis true we profess and desire to practise a separation from the world, and the works of the world, which are works of the flesh, such as the Apostle speaketh of. And as the churches of Christ are all Ephes. saints by calling, so we desire to see the grace of God 19-21. shining forth (at least seemingly, leaving secret things 9. to God) in all we admit into church fellowship with us, and to keep off such as openly wallow in the mire of their sins, that neither the holy things of God nor the communion of the saints may be leavened or polluted thereby. And if any joining to us formerly, either when we lived at Leyden in IIolland, or since we came to New England, have with the manifestation of their faith and profession of holiness held forth therewith separation from the Church of England, I have divers times, both in the one place and the other, heard either Mr. Robinson, our pastor, or Mr. Brewster, our elder, stop them forthwith, showing them that we required no such things at their hands,' but only to hold forth faith in Christ Jesus, holiness in the fear of God, and submission to every ordinance and appointment of God, leaving the Church of England to themselves and to the Lord, before whom they should stand or fall, and to whom we ought to pray to 1 Cotton too says, 66 When some Englishmen that offered themselves to become members of his church, would sometimes in their confessions profess their separation from the church of England, Mr. Rob inson would bear witness against such profession, avouching they required no such professions of separation from this or that or any church, but only from the world." Way, p. 9. CONGREGATIONALISM AN APOSTOLIC INSTITUTION. 401 XXV. reform what was amiss amongst them.' Now this re- CHAP formation we have lived to see performed and brought about by the mighty power of God this day in a good measure, and I hope the Lord Jesus will perfect his work of reformation, till all be according to the good pleasure of his will. By all which I desire the reader to take notice of our former and present practice, notwithstanding all the injurious and scandalous taunting reports [that] are passed on us. And if these things will not satisfy, but we must still suffer reproach, and others for our sakes, because they and we thus walk, our practice being, for aught we know, wholly grounded on the written word, without any addition or human invention known to us, taking our pattern from the primitive churches, as they were regulated by the blessed Apostles in their own days, who were taught In 1634, nine years after his death, there was published "A Treatise of the lawfulness of hearing of the ministers in the Church of England; penned by that learned and reverend divine, Mr. John Robinson, late pastor to the English church of God in Leyden; printed according to the copy that was found in his study after his decease." From this rare work I extract the concluding paragraph. "To conclude. For myself, thus I believe with my heart before God, and profess with my tongue, and have before the world, that I have one and the same faith, hope, spirit, baptism, and Lord, which I had in the Church of England, and none other; that I esteem so many in that Church, of what state or order soever, as are truly partakers of that faith, (as I account many thousands to be,) for my Christian brethren, and myself a fellow member with them of that one mystical body of Christ scattered far and wide throughout the world; that I have always, in spirit and affection, 402 XXV. PRESBYTERIANS TOLERATED IN NEW ENGLAND. CHAP. and instructed by the Lord Jesus Christ, and had the unerring and all-knowing spirit of God to bring to their remembrance the things they had heard, I say if we must still suffer such reproach, notwithstanding our charity towards them who will not be in charity with us, God's will be done. The next aspersion cast upon us is, that we will not suffer any that differ from us never so little to reside or cohabit with us; no, not the Presbyterian government, which differeth so little from us. To which I answer, our practice witnesseth the contrary. For t' is well known that Mr. Parker and Mr. Noyce,' who are ministers of Jesus Christ at Newberry, are in that way, and so known, so far as a single congregation can be exercised in it; yet never had the least molestation or disturbance, and have and find as good respect from magistrates and people as other elders in the Congregational or primitive way. 'Tis known also, that Mr. Hubbard, the minister at Hengam, hath declared him 2 Thomas Parker and James things according to the presbytery, as of Newbury, &c. The assembly concluded against some parts of the presbyterial way, and the Newbury ministers took time to consider the arguments," &c. For further par ticulars concerning them, sce Mather's Magnalia, i. 433-441; Savage's Winthrop, ii. 137; Allen's Am. Biog. Dict.; and Eliot's New England Biog. Dict. Peter Hobart, the first minister of Ilingham, was from the town of the same name in Norfolk, England. He was educated at Magdalen College, Cambridge, where he received the degree of A. B. in 1625, and A. M. in 1629. He came to New England in June, 1635. Hubbard says "he was not so fully persuaded of the congregational discipline as some others were; he was reported to be of a presbyterial spirit, and HOBART, OF HINGHAM. 403 XXV. self for that way; nay, which is more than ever I CHAP. heard of the other two, he refuseth to baptize no children that are tendered to him, (although this liberty stands not upon a Presbyterian bottom,) and yet the civil state never molested him for it. Only coming to a Synod held in the country the last year, which the magistrates called, requesting the churches to send their elders and such others as might be able to hold forth the light of God from his written word in case of some doubts which did arise in the country, I say he coming the last sitting of the Assembly, which was adjourned to the 8th of June next, was in all meekness and love requested to be present and hold forth his light he went by in baptizing all that were brought to him, hereby waiving the practice of the churches; which he promising to take into consideration, they rested in his answer. So also 't is well known that before these unhappy troubles arose in England and Scotland, there were divers gentlemen of Scotland that groaned under the heavy pressures of those times, wrote to New England to know whether they might be freely suffered to exercise their Presbyterial government amongst us; and it was answered affirmatively they might. And they sending over a gentleman to take a view of some fit place, a river called Meromeck, near Ipswich and managed all affairs without advice of the brethren." Some idea of his character may be gathered from the following passage in Winthrop's History; "There was a great marriage to be solemnized at Boston. The bridegroom being of Hingham, Mr. Hubbard's church, he was procured to preach, and came to Boston to that end. But the magis trates, hearing of it, sent to him to forbear. The reasons were, first, for that his spirit had been dis- |