The New English separate in but not in Europe. Peace. It will not be offence to charity to make conAmerica, jecture: first, herein New England churches secretly call their mother whore, not daring in America to join with their own mother's children, though unexcommunicate: no, nor permit them to worship God after their consciences, and as their mother hath taught them this secretly and silently, they have a mind to do, which publicly they would seem to disclaim, and profess against. The New brethren of Old England to enjoy their con their own numbers might exceed their own, or at least the Secondly, if such members of Old England should be mit not their suffered to enjoy their consciences in New Englandhowever it is pretended they would profane ordinances for sciences, lest which they are unfit (as true it is in that natural persons are not fit for spiritual worship), yet this appears not to be the bottom, for in Old England the New English join greatness of with Old in the ministration of the word, prayer, singing, assemblies contribution, maintenance of the ministry, &c.-if, I say, they should set up churches after their conscience, the greatness and multitudes of their own assemblies would decay, and with all the contributions and maintenance of their ministers, unto which all or most have been forced. their own and mainte nances de crease. Truth. Dear Peace, these are more than conjectures, thousands now espy; and all that love the purity of the worship of the living God should lament such halting. I shall add this, not only do they partially neglect to cut off the wicked of the land, but such as themselves esteemed beloved and godly have they driven forth, and keep out others which would come unto them, eminently godly by their own confession; because differing in conscience and reply, "That they were neither sepa- Prayer and ceremonies . . . because they judged the imposition of these things to be sinful corruptions of the word of God." Neal's Hist. of New England, i. p. 144. The two brothers were sent back to England in the same ship that brought them over.] worship from them, and consequently not to be suffered in their holy land of Canaan.9 But having examined that scripture alleged, let us now weigh their reasons. First, say they, the not cutting off by the sword, but tolerating many religions in a state would provoke God: unto which never ap to be cut off by the civil I answer, first (and here being no scripture produced to Christ Jesus these reasons, shall the sooner answer), that no proof can pointed all religions be made from the institutions of the Lord Jesus that all but his own religions but one are to be cut off by the civil sword; that national church in that typical land of Canaan being abolished and the Christian commonweal or church instituted. sword. mother. Secondly. I affirm that the cutting off by the sword A bloody other consciences and religions, is (contrarily) most provoking unto God, expressly against his will concerning the tares, Matt. xiii., as I have before proved; as also the bloody mother of all those monstrous mischiefs, where such cutting off is used, both to the souls and bodies of men. Thirdly. Let conscience and experience speak how in the not cutting off of their many religions, it hath pleased God not only not to be provoked, but to prosper the state of the United Provinces, our next neighbours, and that to admiration. Peace. The second reason is, such tolerating would [The law concerning heresy stood thus in New England: "Whoever denies the immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body, or the evil done by the outward man is sin, or that Christ gave himself a ransom for sins, or that we are justified by his righteousness, or the morality of the fourth command, or the baptizing of Christ's spiritual power most leaven, divide, and destroy the peace of the churches. Truth. This must also be denied upon so many former powerful. scriptures and reasons produced, proving the power of the Lord Jesus, and the sufficiency of his spiritual power in his church, for the purging forth and conquering of the least evil: yea, and for the bringing every thought in subjection unto Christ Jesus, 2 Cor. x. Christ for bidding his followers to permit leaven in doth not for bid to per mit leaven in the world. I add, they have not produced one scripture, nor can, to prove that the permitting of leaven of false doctrine in the church, the world or civil state, will leaven the churches: only we find that the permission of leaven in persons, doctrines, or practices in the church, that indeed will corrupt and spread, 1 Cor. v., and Gal. v.; but this reason should never have been alleged, were not the particular churches in New England but as so many implicit parish churches in one implicit national church. The wall, Peace. Their third reason is, it will dissolve the continuity of the state, especially theirs, where the walls are made of the stones of the churches. Truth. I answer briefly to this bare affirmation thus: discussed. that the true church is a wall spiritual and mystical, A spiritual wall cannot Cant. viii. 9. That consequently a false church or company is a false or pretended wall, and none of Christ's. The civil state, power, and government is a civil wall, &c., and Lastly. The walls of earth or stone about a city, are the natural or artificial wall or defence of it. Now, in consideration of these four walls, I desire it may be proved from the scriptures of truth, how the false spiritual wall, or company of false worshippers suffered in a city, can be able to destroy the true Christian wall, or company of believers. Again, how this false spiritual wall, or false church per impair the civil. mitted, can destroy the civil wall, the state and govern- properly ment of the city and citizens, any more than it can destroy the natural or artificial wall of earth or stone. Spiritual may destroy spiritual, if a stronger and victorious; but spiritual cannot reach to artificial or civil. Peace. Yea; but they fear the false spiritual wall may destroy their civil, because it is made of the stones of churches. Truth. If this have reference to that practice amongst them, viz., that none but members of churches enjoy civil freedom amongst them, ordinarily,' in imitation of that national church or state of the Jews, then I answer, they that follow Moses's church constitution, which the New English by such a practice implicitly do, must cease to pretend to the Lord Jesus Christ and his institutions. flourishing Secondly. We shall find lawful civil states, both before Many and since Christ Jesus, in which we find not any tidings civil states of the true God or Christ. Lastly. Their civil New English state, framed out of their churches, may yet stand, subsist, and flourish, although they did-as by the word of the Lord they ought-permit either Jews, or Turks, or anti-christians to live amongst them subject unto their civil government. where true churches are not found. CHAP. CII. Peace. One branch more, viz., the third, remains of this head, and it concerns the hearing of the word; "Unto which," say they, "all men are to be compelled; because hearing of the word is a duty which even nature 1 [See note before, p. 164.] Hearing discussed. Every religion prefers its own leadeth heathens to." For this they quote the practice of the Ninevites hearing Jonah, and Eglon, king of Moab's rising up to Ehud's pretended message from God, Judg. iii. Truth. I must deny that position: for light of nature leadeth men to hear that only which nature conceiveth to be good for it, and therefore not to hear a messenger, priests and minister, or preacher, whom conscience persuades is a false messenger or deceiver, and comes to deceive my soul as millions of men and women in their several respective religions and consciences are so persuaded, conceiving their own to be true. ministers before all other. Jonah's preaching to Secondly. As concerning the instances. Jonah did not Ninevites, compel the Ninevites to hear that message which he bearing of brought unto them. and their his message, examined. Eglon's rising up to Ehud's Besides, the matter of compulsion to a constant worship of the word in church estate, which is the question, comes not near Jonah's case. Nor did Christ Jesus, or any of his ambassadors, so practise; but if persons refused to hear, the command of the Lord Jesus to his messengers was only to depart from them, shaking off the dust of their feet with a denunciation of God's wrath against them, Matt. x.; Acts xiv. Concerning Eglon's rising up: first, Ehud compelled not that king either to hear or reverence, and all that can examined. be imitable in Eglon is a voluntary and willing reverence, message, which persons ought to express to what they are persuaded comes from God. But how do both these instances mightily convince and condemn themselves, who not only profess to turn away from, but also persecute or hurt, all such as shall dare to profess a ministry or church estate differing from their own, though for personal godliness and excellency of gifts reverenced by themselves. |