easily discern the truth, and so be enabled to reduce our religion to its first principles. For thus much I perceive by mine own experience, who being otherwise of no great abilities, yet setting myself with the aforesaid resolution for sundry years together upon an impartial search of the Scripture, have not only detected many errors, but here presented the readers with a body of religion, exactly transcribed out of the word God; which body, whosoever shall well ruminate and digest in his mind, may, by the same method wherein I have gone before him, make a farther inquiry into the oracles of God, and draw forth whatsoever yet lies hid, and being brought to light, will tend to the accomplishment of godliness amongst us, for at this only all the Scripture aimeth. The Scripture, which all men who have thoroughly studied the same, must of necessity be enamoured with as breathing out the mere wisdom of God, and being the exactest rule of a holy life (which all religions whatsoever confess to be the way unto happiness) that can be imagined, and whose divinity will never even to the world's end be questioned by any, but such as are unwilling to deny their worldly lusts, and obey the pure and perfect precepts thereof. Which obedience, whosoever shall perform, he shall not only in the life to come, but even in this life be equal unto angels.

JOHN BIDDLE.

MR. BIDDLE'S PREFACE

BRIEFLY EXAMINED.

IN the entrance of Mr. B.'s preface he tells the reader, very modestly, 'that he could never yet see or hear of a catechism, (although I presume he had seen, or heard at least of one or two written by Faustus Socinus, though not completed; of one by Valentine Smalcius, commonly called the 'Racovian Catechism,' from whence many of his questions and answers are taken; and of an exposition of the articles of faith in the creed, called the apostle's, in way of catechism, by Jonas Schlichtingius, published in French, anno 1646; in Latin, anno 1651) from whence the true grounds of Christian religion

might be learned, as it is delivered in Scripture ;' and therefore, doubtless, all Christians have cause to rejoice at the happy product of Mr. B.'s pains, wherewith he now acquaints them (ushered in with this modest account), whereby at length they may know their own religion, wherein as yet they have not been instructed to any purpose. And the reason of this is, because all other catechisms are stuffed with many supposals and traditions, the least part of them being derived from the word of God,' Mr. B. being judge. And this is the common language of his companions, comparing themselves and their own writings with those of other men. The common language they delight in is, though Christians have hitherto thought otherwise.'

Whether we have reason to stand to this determination, and acquiesce in this censure and sentence, the ensuing considerations of what Mr. B. substitutes in the room of those catechisms which he here rejects, will evince and manifest. But to give countenance to this humble entrance into his work, he tells his reader, 'that councils, convocations, and assemblies of divines have justled out the Scripture, and framed confessions of faith according to their own fancies and interests, getting them confirmed by the civil magistrate; according unto which confessions, all catechisms are and have been framed without any regard to the Scripture.' What councils' Mr. Biddle intends, he informs us not, nor what it is that in them he chiefly complains of. If he intend some only, such as the apostatizing times of the church saw, he knows he is not opposed by them with whom he hath to do; nor yet if he charge them all for some miscarriages in them, or about them.

If all, as that of the apostles themselves, Acts xv. together with the rest that for some ages followed after, and that

a Quicunque si literas assidua manu versat, quantumvis nescio quos catechismos, vel locos communes et commentarios quam familiarissimos sibi reddiderit, is statim cum nostrorum libros vel semel inspexerit, intelliget quantum distant æra lupinis. Val. Smal. Res. Orat. Vogel. et Peuschel. Rac. An. 1617. p. 34. Scripta hæc, Dei gloriam et Christi Domini nostri honorem, ac ipsam nostram salutem, ab omni traditionum humanarum labe, ipsa divina veritate literis sacris comprehensa repurgare nituntur, et expeditissima explicandæ Dei gloriæ, honoris Christo Domino nostro asserendi, et salutis consequendæ ratione excerpta, ac omnibus proposita eam ipsissima sacrarum literarum authoritate sancire et stabilire conantur Hieron. Moscorov. Ep. Dedic. Cat. Rac, ad Jacob. M. B. R. nomine et jussu Ecclesiæ. Polon. Neque porro quemquam esse arbitror, qui in tot ac tantis Christianæ religionis placitis, a reliquis hominibus dissentiat, in quot quantisque ego dissentio. Socin. Epist. ad Squarclalup. An. 1581.

as to the doctrine by them delivered, fall under his censure, we have nothing but the testimony of Mr. B. to induce us to a belief of this insinuation; his testimony in things of this nature, will be received only by them who receive hist doctrine.

6

What I have to offer on this account, I have spoken otherwhere. That the confessions of faith which the first general councils, as they are called, during the space of four hundred years and upward, composed and put forth, were framed according to the fancies and interests of men, besides the word, is Mr. B.'s fancy and his interest to have it so esteemed. The faith he professeth, or rather the infidelity he is fallen into, was condemned in them all, and that upon the occasion of its then first coming into the world: 'Hinc illæ lachrimæ:' if they stand, he must fall. That the catechisms of latter days (I suppose he intends those in use amongst the reformed churches) did wholly omit the Scripture, or brought it in only for a shew, not one quotation amongst many being a whit to the purpose,' you have the same testimony for, as for the assertions foregoing. He that will say this, had need some other way evince that he makes conscience of what he says; or that he dare not say any thing, so it serve his turn. Only Mr. Biddle hath quoted Scripture to the purpose. To prove God to be 'finite, limited, included in heaven, of a visible shape, ignorant of things future, obnoxious to turbulent passions and affections,' are some of his quotations produced; for the like end and purpose are the most of the rest alleged. Never, it seems, was the Scripture alleged to any purpose before. And these things, through the righteous hand of God taking vengeance on an unthankful generation, not delighting in the light and truth which he hath sent forth, do we hear and read. Of those who have made bold ἀκίνητα κινεῖν, and to shake the fundamentals of gospel truths or the mystery of grace, we have daily many examples. The number is far more scarce of them who have attempted to blot out those Kovai volaι, or ingrafted notions of mankind, concerning the perfections of God which Mr. B. opposeth. 'Fabulas vulgaris nequitia non invenit.' An opposition to the first principles of rational beings must needs be talked of. ἐι ὁ αὐτὸς ἄπιστος, ἐι τούτου λόγοι ἐσονται πιστο. Arist. Rhet. lib. 3. • Calumniare fortiter; aliquid adhærebit.

υ "Ατοπον γαρ,

cap. 15.

Other catechists, besides himself, Mr. Biddle tells you, 'have written with so much oscitancy and contempt of the Scripture, that a considering man will question whether they gave any heed to what they wrote themselves, but refused to make use of their reason, and presumed others would do so also.'. And so you have the sum of his judgment concerning all other catechisms besides his own, that he hath either seen or heard of. They are all fitted to confusion of faith, composed according to the fancies and interests of men, written without attending to the Scripture or quoting it to any purpose, their authors (like madmen) not knowing what they wrote, and refusing to make use of their reason that they might so do;' and this is the modest humble entrance of Mr. B.'s preface.

All that have gone before him were knaves, fools, idiots, madmen. The proof of these assertions you are to expect. When a philosopher pressed Diogenes with this sophism, 'What I am, thou art not; I am a man, therefore thou art not;' he gave him no other answer, but begin with me and the conclusion will be true.' Mr. B. is a Master of Arts; and knew doubtless, that such assertions as might be easily turned upon himself, are of no use to any, but those who have not ought else to say. Perhaps Mr. B. speaks only to them of the same mind with him; and then, indeed, as Socrates1 said, it was no hard thing to commend the Athenians before the Athenians, but to commend them before the Lacedemonians was difficult; no more is it any great undertaking to condemn men sound in the faith unto Socinians, before others it will not prove so easy.

It is not incumbent on me to defend any, much less all the catechisms that have been written by learned men of the reformed religion. That there are errors in some, mistakes in others, that some are more clear, plain, and scriptural, than others, I grant. All of them may have, have had, their use in their kind. That in any of them there is any thing taught inconsistent with communion with God, or inevitably tending to the impairing of faith and love, Mr. B. is not I presume such a pilóπovos, as to undertake to demonstrate. I shall only add, that notwithstanding the vain plea of having given

· Ου χαλεπὸν ̓Αθηναίους ἐν Αθηναίοις ἐπαινεῖν, ἀλλὰ ἐν Λακεδαιμονίαις. Socrat. apud Plat. in Menexem. Cit. Arist. Rhetor. lib. 3. cap. 14.

all his answers in the express words of Scripture (whereby with the foolish bird he hides his head from the fowler, but leaves his whole monstrous body visible; the teaching part of his catechism being solely in the insinuating, ensnaring, captious, questions thereof, leading the understanding of the reader, to a misapprehension and misapplication of the words of the Scripture, it being very easy to make up the grossest blasphemy imaginable out of the words of the Scripture itself); I never found, saw, read, or heard of any, so grossly perverting the doctrine of the Scripture, concerning God, and all his ways, as these of Mr. B. do. For in sundry particulars, they exceed those mentioned before of Socinus, Smalcius, Schlictingius, which had justly gotten the repute of the worst in the world; and for an account of my reason of this persuasion, I refer the reader to the ensuing considerations of them.

This then being the sad estate of Christians, so misinformed by such vile varlets, as have so foully deceived them, and misled them, as above-mentioned; what is to be done, and what course to be taken, to bring in light into the world, and to deliver men from the sorrowful condition, whereinto they have been catechised? For this end he tells the reader, doth the shew himself to the world (Oɛòç ȧrò μexavñs), to undeceive them, and to bring them out of all their wanderings unto some certainty of religion. This he discourses pp. 4, 5. The reasons he gives you of this undertaking are two; 1. To bring men to a certainty. 2. To satisfy the pious desire of some, who would fain know the truth of our religion. The way he fixes on, for the compassing of the end proposed, is, 1. By asserting nothing. 2. By introducing the plain texts of Scripture to speak for themselves. Each briefly may be considered.

1. What fluctuating persons are they, not yet come to any certainty in religion, whom Mr. B. intends to deal withall? Those, for the most part, of them who seem to be intended in such undertakings, are fully persuaded from the Scripture, of the truth of those things, wherein they have been instructed. Of these, some, I have heard, have been unsettled by Mr. B. but that he shall ever settle any (there

e Multa passim ab ultiina vetustate vitia admissa sunt, quæ nemo præter me indicabit. Scalig.