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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27066	Mr. Baxter's vindication of the Church of England in her rites and ceremonies, discipline, and church-orders as faithfully taken out of his own writings, without either false citation, or fraudulent alteration : to which is prefixed his epistle to the non-conformists, being a just and true abstract of his book entituled, A defence of the principles of love.	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1682 (1682)	Wing B1449; ESTC R1229	17,088	43

Mr. BAXTER's VINDICATION OF THE CHURCH of ENGLAND In her Rites and Ceremonies Discipline AND CHURCH-ORDERS As faithfully taken out of his own Writings without either false Citation or fraudulent Alteration To which is prefixed His Epistle to the Non-conformists being a just and true Abstract of his Book Entituled A Defence of the Principles of Love Schismaticks are they who unwarrantably separate from those Churches in which they ought to abide that they may gather new Congregations after their mind Mr. Baxter ' s Reasons of the Christian Religion p. 472. No Christian must pretend Holiness against Vnity and Peace and every tender Conscience should be as tender of Church-division and real Schisms as of Drunkenness Whoredom or such other enormous sins Mr. Baxter ' s Reasons of the Christian Religion p. 485. LONDON Printed for Walter Kettilby at the Bishops-head in St. Pauls Church-yard 1682. TO THE READER IT being evidently apparent as in most other cases so in our Church-divisions that a resolved prostration to the Authority and a confident adhaesion to the opinion of reputed-good men doth commonly seduce the Populace first into Prejudice then into Parties and so to a tenacious obstinacy in Errour Hereupon one probable way of Rescue and Remedy is to propose to the wandring People the Documents of one whose Authority is great among them Therefore have I thought on the Oracle Mr. Baxter who in this Book His Defence of the Principles of Love is not more Antesignanus than Eirenarches prescribing very well for Peace and Church-union as the ensuing Treatise especially the Epistle shews And to anticipate that prejudice and mistakes which a thing of this nature is very liable to let no man think it my design to accuse Mr. Baxter of Self-contradiction Inconsistency c. but that it is meerly for the conviction of those whom that learned Author calls Honest erroneous Christians and to let the World see that Mr. B. and other Non-conformist Ministers do not believe that intrinsick evil and sinfulness to be in Conformity which their unwary Followers are induced or rather seduced to believe and that there is more extrinsick danger and heinous sinfulness in their separation than his honest erroneous Christians do imagine that the difference between Conformists and Non-conformists is very small and as Mr. Baxter tells Mr. Bagshaw in his Defence that Non-conformists do injure Conformists and make the Case of Conformity more odious than it is And to obviate Objections let it be noted 2. That if here be found any small alteration in words it is meerly for the sake of brevity and ease in reading and no other than what doth fairly consist with and not at all pervert the sense and meaning of the first Author And since the renouncing of the Covenant which Non-conformists call the great Mountain in the way is now removed if the more peaceable Non-conformists have a mind to come into the conforming Churches here is that in this small Treatise will help a little to justifie and encourage their practice in so doing What acceptance this poor thing will have I am ignorant but not sollicitous since the testimony of my Conscience is that it is in vindication of Truth and defence of a good Cause nor would I fear the success much more than I do the acceptance would the honest erroneous Christian read it with as little partiality and prejudice as he would if coming from the first Authors hand Mr. BAXTER's EPISTLE TO THE Non-Conformists Being a just and true Abstract of his Defence of the Principles of Love BRETHREN IT grieves me to the heart that neither Party Conformable or Non-conformable is more sensible of the sin and danger of our distance though I know that in both Parties there are many wise and holy persons who I suppose lament it more than I do It layeth my soul in daily lamentations to see how we run further from each other to the apparent danger of the Protestant Cause and of the Kingdoms welfare and of all the hopes of our Posterity Our narrow Judgment draws many to think that it is the Interest of Religion now in England to have the Parish-Churches brought low in reputation and deserted and God's publick worship which they would have all religious People use to be onely that of tolerated or more private Churches by which they little know what they wish against the Interest of the Christian and Protestant Religion in this Land and what hurt they would do if in this they had their wills The Interest of the Christian Protestant Religion must be kept up by keeping up as much Truth Piety and Reputation as may be in the Parish-Churches I am very glad that the pious Lectures of Mr. Hildersham Mr. Rogers and such other old Non-conformists are in so good esteem among good people where they will read them urgeing the people not onely against Separation but to come to the very beginning of the publick Worship and preferring it before their private duties And I need not tell those that have read the Writings of the good old Non-conformists Ames Parker Bains Fox Dearing Greenham c. that these did some of them read the Common Prayer and most of them judged it lawful to join in it or else Mr. Hildersham Rogers c. would not write so earnestly to men to come to the beginning and prefer it before all private duties When I think what learned holy incomparable men abundance of the old Conformists were my heart riseth against the thoughts of separating from them If I had come to their Churches when they read the Common-prayer and administred the Sacrament could I have departed and said It is not lawful for a Christian here to communicate with you What! Such men as Mr. Bolton Mr. Whateley Mr. Fenner Mr. Crook Mr. Dent Mr. Dike Mr. Stock Mr. Smith Dr. Preston Dr. Sibbs Dr. Taylor and abundance other such yea such as Bishop Jewell Bishop Grindall Bishop Hall Bishop Potter Bishop Davenant Bishop Carleton c. yea and the Martyrs too as Cranmer Ridley Hooper Farrar Bradford Philpot Sanders c. I think not my self worthy to be compared with Mr. Bolton Whateley Fenner Preston Sibbs White Field Usher Jewell and abundance other old Conformists and you might forgive me if I tell you again that if they were all alive and used now the same Liturgy and Ceremonies as they did then I could not find in my heart to think their communion in Prayer and Sacrament unlawful nor to censure that man as injurious to the Church who should write to persuade others not to separate from them on that supposition I am sure the Assembly of Divines that sate heretofore at Westminster were so conformable when they went thither that I never heard of five Non-conformists among them except the five dissenting Brethren their Judgment was as Mr. Sprints that Conformity was lawful in case of necessity rather than to be deprived of Liberty to preach

would make us giddy that we may rest on them as our Supporters and when they saw us weak would be ready to devour us all Three ways especially will Popery grow out of our divisions 1. By the odium and scorn of our disagreements inconsistency and multiplied Sects they will persuade people that we must either come for unity to them or else all run mad and crumble into dust and individuals Thousands have been drawn into Popery and confirmed in it already by this Argument and I am persuaded that all the Arguments in Bellarmine and all other Books that ever were written have not done so much to make Papists in England as the multitude of Sects among us Yea some Professors of religious strictness of great esteem for godliness have turned Papists themselves when they were giddy and weary with turnings and when they had run from Sect to Sect and found no consistency in any And 2. Who knows not how fair a Game the Papists have to play by the means of our divisions Methinks I hear them hissing on each Party and saying to one side Lay more upon them and bate them nothing and to the other Stand it out and yield to nothing And who is so blind then as not to see their double game and hopes viz. that either our divisions and alterations will carry men to such distances and practices as shall make us accounted seditious rebellious and dangerous to the publick Peace and so they i.e. Papists pass for better Subjects than we or else that when so many Parties under sufferings are constrained to beg for Liberty the Papists may not be shut out alone but have toleration with the rest And shall they use our hands to do their work We have already unspeakably served them in this And 3. It is not the least of our danger nor which doth least affect me lest by our follies extremities and rigours we should so exasperate the common People as to make them readier to join with the Papists than with us in case of any competitions or their invasions or insurrections against the King and Kingdoms peace Let us do nothing by unlawful alienations and singularities or fierce and disobedient oppositions which tend to make the People think better of Papists than of us In the Year 1634. Mr. Roger Williams Assistant to Mr. Ralph Smith Pastor of Plimouth removed from thence to Salem where in one years time he filled the place with principles of rigid Separation and tending to Anabaptistry The prudent Magistrates of the Massachusets jurisdiction sent to the Church of Salem desiring them to forbear calling him to Office which they not hearkening to he proceeded more vigorously to vent many dangerous opipinions as that the Magistrate had nothing to do in matters of the First Table but onely the Second and that there should be a general and unlimited toleration of all Religions and for any man to be punished for any matters of his Conscience was persecution That if the Church of Salem would not separate not onely from the Churches of England but of New-England too he would separate from them The more prudent part of the Church being amazed at his way would not yield to him whereupon he never came to the Church-Assembly more professing separation from them as Antichristian Divers of the weaker sort of Church-members did by degrees fall off to him insomuch that he kept a meeting in his own house unto which a numerous company did resort Whereupon he was banished the Massachusets Colonie and came to a place called Providence was followed by many of the Church of Salem who zealously adhered to him and cried out of the persecution that was against them others resorted to them from other places They had not been there long but from rigid Separation they fell to Anabaptistry N.B. renouncing their Baptism received in Infancy and taking up another Baptism and so began a Church in that way But Mr. Williams stopt not there long for after some time he told the people that followed him that he was out of the way himself and had misled them for he did not find that there were any upon Earth that could administer Baptism and therefore their last Baptism was a nullity as well as their first and therefore they must lay down all and look for the coming of new Apostles and so they dissolved themselves and turned Seekers To which I add that this man was one of the greatest Instruments after all this of sublimating the English Separation to the same heighth and gratifying the Papists by raising up the Sect of Seekers And sad sad indeed was the case of the Barmuda's when in so disciplined a Plantation one Minister turned away the greater part from Church-communion till they became Aliens and the rest whom he gathered as the onely worthy persons so many turned Quakers Seekers and such like The case of three or four Churches in New-England grieves my heart but the case of the Summer-Islands as related to me by Mr. Vaughan a worthy Minister lately discouraged and come from thence would make a Christian heart to bleed to hear how strict and regular and hopeful that Plantation once was and how one godly Minister by Separation selecting a few to be his Church and rejecting all the rest from the Sacrament the rejected Party are grown to doleful estrangedness in Religion and the selected Party much turned Quakers and between both how wofull are the Fruits But the case of England Scotland and Ireland which I foretold in my Book of Infant-Baptism is yet a more lamentable proof what Separation hath done against Religion so full a proof that it is my wonder that any good man can overlook it Yea before our eyes the most pernicious Heresies even that of Quakers are still not onely continued but increased and we see men that to day condemn communion with the Parish-Churches and then with the Presbyterians do shortly fly from communion with the Independents too It 's commonly known how many of late have turned Quakers and shall we stand by and see such work and neither lament their sins that drive men to this nor warn them of the passions and principles that lead to it Separation will ruine the separated Churches themselves at last it will admit of no consistency Parties will rise in the separated Churches and separate again from them till they are dissolved I beseech my dear Brethren that are otherwise minded to open their eyes so far as to regard experience I am not able to bear the thoughts of Separating from almost all Christs Churches upon Earth but he that separateth from one or many upon a reason common to almost all doth virtually separate from almost all and he that separateth from all among us upon the account of the unlawfulness of our Liturgy and the badness of all our Ministry doth separate from them upon a reason common to almost all or the far greatest

part as I conceive Therefore pray we Mr. Baxters Prayer O That the God of love would pity and undeceive the selfish and passionate sort of professed Christians and teach them to know what manner of spirits they are of O that he would rebuke the evil spirits that are gone forth the Spirit of Covetousness and Pride the Spirit of Hypocrisie and religious Imagery of Self-conceitedness of Malice and Wrath of Back-bitings and False-accusing before that both Christianity and Humanity be turned into Devillism and before Earth be more conformable to Hell O that the Spirit of Light would make us of one mind and the Spirit of Love would mortifie both mens malignant and religious passions contentiousness and malice and cause us to love our Neighbours as our selves That as the Envious and striving Wisdom from beneath hath caused Confusion and every evil work so the Wisdom from above which is first pure then peaceable gentle and easie to be intreated might bring forth mercy and good fruits without partiality or hypocrisie that we might edifie the body of Christ in love Eph. 4.16 and frustrate the hopes of the enemies of our peace who wait for our total dissolution and triumph already in our Divisions when it is their own Mill which grindeth us to Powder but God can make their Oven to bake us into a more Christian and salubrious consistency that I may use Ignatius's Allegory but it must be first by fermenting us with unfeigned love and then we shall be lovely in his sight and the God of love and peace will be with us Amen Mr. BAXTER's VINDICATION OF THE CHURCH of ENGLAND In her Rites and Ceremonies Discipline AND CHURCH-ORDERS 1. Standing up at the Creed and the Antiphones Mr. Baxter's Scripture-Proof of Infant-Church-membership Part. II. cap. 6. p. 121. I Humbly propound meaning to the Assembly of Divines that the Custom of standing up at the Creed may be reduced to its Primitive nature and vigour i.e. as 't is now in use in the Church of England it being then quite out of use And in the next Page he reckons this among one of those five plain Duties which he says must not be wiped out lest the Directory be found more defective than the common-prayer-Common-Prayer-Book In his Sacrilegious Desertion of the Ministry Rebuked he says that the Conformists in standing up at the Antiphones viz. Gloria Patri Te Deum Jubilate c. do better than the Non-conformists in not standing up 2. Episcopal Confirmation Scripture-Proof of Infant-Church-membership Part. II. cap. 6. p. 120. I humbly propound says Mr. Baxter that the ancient practice of Confirmation may be reduced to its primitive nature i.e. as 't is now used in the Church of England as plainly appears by his calling it in the same page The old Order of Confirmation by Bishops For this he cites Calvin as earnestly desiring it Instit l. 4. cap. 19. In the 122. page he intimates Confirmation also to be one of those plain Duties not to be wiped out lest the Directory be found more defective than the Common Prayer-Book and left the World be made believe that 't is such things i.e. such plain Duties as these that we find fault with He adds that since there are so many learned and judicious opposers meaning the Episcopal Divines observing the alterations therefore says he 't is but modest and rational to desire either the establishment of the fore-mentioned particulars viz. Confirmation Standing up at the Creed c. or the publication of satisfactory Reasons against them And in his Political Apherisms Thes 236. Let Ministers says he be restrained by Law from admitting the uncatechised and unconfirmed to Communion intimating very well that he would have them looked upon as excommunicate persons that refuse to be chatechised and confirmed to which he prefixeth that if Magistrates force not the grosly ignorant to hear and learn and submit to chatechising and such means of instruction till they are confirmed their Baptism will but let in corruption and confusion into the Churches He hath in his Treatise of Confirmation p. 206 307 208. alibi soundly asserted the cause of Conformity in this point which his deluded Followers do so profanely and scornfully not onely neglect but contemn and deride Nor can I find that ever Mr. Baxter found much fault with the manner of its Administration as now in the Church of England If he would have every Parish-Minister invested with the power of Confirming 't is no more than what the Canons of the Church allow if the Bishop think fit the Bishop or Suffragan says the 60. Canon Every Parish-Minister may be made a Suffragan if the Bishop so please 3. Church-Musick by Organs or such like Instruments In his Christian Directory Ecclesiastical Cases Q. 86. Mr. Baxter renders these five Reasons for the Use and Lawfulness thereof 1. God set it up long after Moses's Ceremonial Law by David Solomon c. 2. It is not meerly an instituted Ceremony but a natural help to the Minds alacrity and 't is a duty and not a sin to use the helps of Nature and lawful Art As it is lawful says he to use Spectacles in reading the Bible so it is to use Musick speaking of Church-Musick to exhilarate the Soul 3. Jesus Christ joined with the Jews that used it 4. No Scripture forbids it therefore it is not unlawful 5. Nothing can be against it that I know of but what may be said against Tunes and Melody for whereas they say 't is humane invention so are our Tunes Metre and Version nay it is not a humane invention as the last Psalm and many others shew which call us to praise the Lord with Instruments of Musick The last Book he hath printed that I know of viz. Poetical Fragments hath in its Preface more to the same purpose 4. Godfathers and Godmothers Infant-Church-membership p. preliminary to the Epistle Mr. Baxter there tells us that the currant consent of Historians assures us of the use of Godfathers and Godmothers at the Baptizing of Infants in Hyginus's time who lived as he alledgeth from Nicephorus Paraeus Prideaux and others within about 40 Years of S. John the Apostle and conversed with the Disciples and Familiars of the Apostles and therefore says he could not be ignorant of the practice of the Apostles in Baptizing Infants Thus hath he well proved the use of Godfathers and Godmothers in all probability to be Apostolical at least 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and beyond all reach of scruple to be of greatest antiquity in the Church viz. forty years within the Apostles times 5. The Antiphones or the Peoples bearing a Part with the Minister in Divine Service Christian Direct Cases Ecclesiast Q. 83. 1. Says Mr. Baxter the Scripture no where forbids this 2. If the People may do this in the Psalms in Metre there can be no reason given but they may lawfully do it in Prose 3. The Primitive Christians says he were so full of the zeal