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A25701
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An apology for the Parliament, humbly representing to Mr. John Gailhard some reasons why they did not at his request enact sanguinary laws against Protestants in their last session in two letters by different hands.
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1697
(1697)
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Wing A3552; ESTC R170358
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34,745
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43
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Complaint of Mr. G. against the Bishops is I need not stand to prove but I appeal to the Reader whether my Censure is not just If he had not been a rank Socinian or worse he would not when he pretended to write against the Socinians have so sliely and desperately wounded the Honour of the chief Defenders of the Orthodox Faith Indeed it looks a little odly that they should explain one and the same Article contradictory ways both of which can hardly be true but then since a way is discover'd whereby contradictory Expositors may both firmly hold the Orthodox Article tho they have different Notions of it I could wish that Mr. G. would not involve no not the Arminian Party in the same Condemnation with the Socinians for tho the Socinians also will agree to the Article if they may explain it yet they mu t be deem'd not to agree to the Article unless they will take up with one of the contradictory Explications which our Church can endure for I trow the Church may choose what contradictory Explications she will endure and is not obliged to endure all that may be offer'd that were not only to restrain her from imposing on backward Believers but subjecting her to be impos'd on by others which is prodigiously unreasonable But Mr. G. not only sliely intimates that the Bishops do not act their parts against Heresy having an Arminian Touch thereof themselves but that they actually stop the Course of Justice which he can never prove unless by the Argument of his own Impunity who so boldly calumniates and slanders them but however he intimates it and then pronounces that upon the failure of the Bishops the Magistrate is to look into 't The Roman Clergy take upon themselves all the Labour of convicting and condemning Hereticks and leave the Magistrate no trouble but to burn them but Mr. G. devolves the whole upon the Magistrate that is the meaning of those words The Magistrate is to look into it and he proves it to be their Duty because it is very just that every Man's hand should be against those Infidels whose hand is against every Man Which Argument is so happily form'd that it not only evinces it to be the Magistrate's Duty to burn Hereticks but it also proves that every Man is a Magistrate i.e. every Man that contributes to the burning of Hereticks his contributing to the burning of Hereticks constitutes him a Magistrate but I suppose he means that every Man who is constituted a Magistrate by his own Authority in taking upon himself to persecute Hereticks is a Magistrate only quoad hoc when the Heretick is burnt there 's an end of the Magistrate he becomes a private Man again Mr. G. would not do so extravagant a thing as to make every Man a Magistrate any longer than he had need of him to kill and burn But what if the lawful Magistrate does not and Mr. G's private Magistrate empower'd by his own Malice and ill Nature dares not defy the Toleration and push on the burning of Hereticks What then What then why then let them both look to 't he bombs them with Denunciations of Curses and Judgments from Scripture but the same not being levell'd against Patience and Long-suffering against brotherly Love and Charity against Toleration of Opinions which neither blaspheme God nor trouble the State it is reasonably presum'd that those minatory Bombs will neither in this World nor the next endamage the King or the Parliament who have enacted no Sanguinary Laws this last Session neither against Jews Turks nor infidels no nor against Church-Nominalists Socinian Unitarians nor real Tritheistick Trinitarians Thus I have examin'd the third Head and it appears that Heresy has not met the Opposition which Mr. G. could wish In the last place I will examine what Treatment he judges it to deserve Now here he comes in with a sage Aphorism or two There ought to be a Proportion betwixt the Distemper and the Remedy extream Distempers require extream Remedies And to prove the Extremity of the Distemper whereof he complains He tells us That to deny the Holy Trinity and our Saviour's Divinity is as much as in a Man lieth to pull our Religion up by the very Root and quite to overthrow it Which that the Socinians do he takes for granted tho those who are yet injuriously call'd Socinians declare that they only dispute some unscriptural Terms with us but are well satisfied with the sense put upon those Terms and Explications which a considerable Majority of the Church seem to be agreed in and together with them abhor the Tritheistick Doctrine abhor it as much as if it were Convocationally condemn'd only they would not give their consent for burning the Persons of the Tritheists whose Heresy tho very absur'd and of unhappy Influence yet is not worse than uncharitable and ill-natur'd Calvinism Farther to prove the extremity of the Distemper whereof he complains Mr. G. affirms that Idolatry and Blasphemy by which latter he will mean Socinianism are the two greatest Abominations in the sight of God and then with impudent Reflection on the King and Parliament he gives it us as his Judgment That to the Toleration of those two transcendent Wickednesses we may chiefly attribute the Cause of the heavy Chastisements which make the Nation uneasy i.e. expressing it in plain Words The King and Parliament have tolerated Popery and Socinianism and the Toleration of those two transcendent Wickednesses is the Cause of the War with the French and all the foul Miscarriages attending it of the debasing and clipping the Old and the scarcity of the New Money of the unseasonableness of the Weather of the rot among Sheep and the dearness of Mackeril One may be tempted to think that the Gentlemen of Mr. G's Kidney entertain the Opinion that the settled Course of Nature is sometimes chang'd by particular and special Providences for no other reason but that they may have the opportunity to charge this and that and th' other evil Accident on the Doctrines and Persons which for their Doctrines sake they mortally hate We are told that the Primitive Christians who for ought I know had as much Socinianism in them as the very Considerer himself were injuriously us'd just as they are now who are injuriously term'd Socinians If any evil Accident afflicted the Publick if Tiber overflow'd and damag'd the Country Christianos ad Leones throw the Christians to the Lions 't is long of their being tolerated that the Gods are so angry with the Romans Well! but Mr. G. reckons that he has fully shown the extremity of the Distemper Now let us see how he will proportion the Remedy In one place he declines the invidious Office and professes that he leaves it to the Piety and Christian Wisdom of the Parliament to find out and apply the true and proper Remedy but this is only a Copy of his Countenance and a Protestation against Fact for he 'll not trust the
Christian it will make him for ever asham'd of Persecution I dare not say it will make an angry Calvinist so for it is I am afraid impossible that such a fated Zealot should fall from the Grace of implacable Anger against all that reject the Geneva Platform of Christianity I have now finished the Remarks which I thought proper upon Mr. G's Epistle Dedicatory to the Parliament and upon the Preface to his Book of which I made a shift to read six or seven Pages The reason which mov'd me to this was a just Indignation that this siery Gentleman should pretend that no man was fit to write against the Socinians but a Calvinist and that the chief Doctors of the Church of England who are of the Arminian Perswasion favour the Socinians go hand in hand with them and mince the matter with them For is it not the highest Impudence in him after he had condemn'd the Socinians to the Fire which perhaps might be born with to go about to prove that the Arminian Clergy and Laity are little better than Socinians In the beginning of this running Century we had few or no Calvinists but among the Puritans they governed all during the Civil War yet at the Restoration were set aside again and discountenanc'd that we have some of them crept into the Church now is I much fear for no other reason but to betray it I am confirm'd in this fear by the very Title of another Book just come to my hands it is inscribed The Growth of Errour being an Exercitation concerning the Rise and Progress of Arminianism and more especially Socinianism c. The first part of the Title is pointed against the Growth of Deism which Pamphlet I believe was wrote by a sincere Christian with a real Design however he is mistaken to prevent the Growth of Deism The Author of this Growth of Errour now I have a little lookt into him designs to prevent the spreading of Arminian and Socinian Doctrines both which he takes to be much the same and equally erroneous In his Preface he says that there are sundry Principles advanced by Men of Reputation among the sound in Faith that do in their tendency lead to what these drive at who are of the worst sort i.e. the English Socinians and in the Introduction to his Book he tells us Many of them who cannot see how they differ from their Brethren but in the way and method of explaining the same Doctrine which they both hold slide into Arminianism and from thence pass over unto the Tents of Socinus A little after he says Tho they set up for a middle way between the extreams of Calvin and the Excesses of Van Harman commonly called Arminius yet on their turn from the former they fall in so far with the latter that 't is impossible for them to make a just defence of what they hold contrary to the Arminian System and therefore they fall in with them and run their Length As much as say deviate but one Hair's Breadth from the System of John Calvin and you are presently over head and ears in Arminianism Again he says That the Arminians who pretend a middle way between the Orthodox and the Socinian are in the twinkling of an eye fallen under Socinus his Banner His Book produces some sort of Instances to make good this Charge which tempts me to compare Mr. Gailhard and this Author to Brutus and Cassius of whom the Historian Vbicunque ipsi essent ibi praetexebant esse Rempublicam Wheresoever they were there they gloried was the Commonwealth of Rome So these bonny Calvinists exclusively to all others especially the Arminians will be the Church of England I would old Peter Heylin were alive to tell 'em their own in truth I think he was over-modest which was but rarely his fault to esteem a Presbyterian i.e. a Calvinist for so it was in his days worse than a Papist For my part I esteem a Christian from whatsoever Sect denominated not excepting the Socinians more honourable than a persecuting Calvinist and this is my comfort that tho the Courage of this zealous Sect is great yet their Number is small they have but half the Retinue which Mr. G. allows the Socinians there are no real Deists nor Arminians among them and but few Papists not more than there are Dominicans some handfuls of conceal'd Hugonots in France a pugil of ingrateful Refugees in England Their main Strength lies among Mahometans and Atheists of which Confederates they have so few within call that I may venture to apply to them dat Deus immiti Cornua curta Bovi In English we say Curst Cows have short Horns Let me by the way commend the discerning Spirit of the Church of Rome who commits the management of her flaming Inquisition to the Order of St. Dominic a Race of bloody Calvinists as wisely knowing what Priests are by their Principles best fitted to do the work of Devils But I wonder in my Heart how the Author of the Growth of Errour having condemned the English Socinians as the worst of Men that so they might be given up to his and Mr. Gailhard's Mercy and taken a great deal of pains to lay the Arminians under the same Condemnation should yet have the confidence to tell his Readers that many who knew him think his Charity towards Men of very different Principles of a Latitude to a Fault whenas all that I can find by his Book is that his Soul is never so disturb'd with tormenting Regret as when an Orthodox Brother is not able to make good his false Accusation against an Arminian Festus Hommius had plaid the knave a little and put the change on Episcopius his Words tho for no other reason in the world but to fasten the Imputation of Socinianism upon him this foul play the honest Author of the Growth of Errour takes notice of and makes this charitable Reflection upon it I must confess that in an instance or two the report made of Episcopius was not so well grounded as might be wished p. 72. When I consider St. Paul's Character of Charity in the 13th Chapter of the 1st Epistle to the Corinthians I cannot but conclude that our Author's Friends banter'd him when they found fault with the Latitude of his Charity for my part I cannot see how any Charity at all can be honestly laid to his charge for he desies Long-suffering and Kindness is full of Envy and Pride behaves himself unseemly seeketh to serve the Cause of his own Party is easily provoked thinketh evil in his Heart rejoiceth in Iniquity and not in the Truth beareth nothing but believeth as ill as he can of his Neighbour and still hopes and wishes the worst What would this Gentleman have giv'n that the Report made of Episcopius had been true why what would he have got by 't Why then the poor Man might have been ran down like a Wolf hang'd like a Dog or burnt for an Heretic whereas he was only banish'd a small satisfaction that in respect of what our Author might have received had the States of Holland treated Episcopius with Mr. Gailhard's extream Remedy I am sorry I have not Health and Leisure to do this Author farther Justice but must break off without so much as commending his Learning Wit and Reasoning which are of a Latitude equal to his Charity I beg his Excuse But the Debt which I cannot pay him I have some Temptation to hope that a couragious Master among the Tritheists will because some pages are particularly aim'd at him in one of which p. 161. there are these words If the contradictory Affirmation of three individual Essences being but one individual Essence will clear the Notion from being Heresy then Val. Gentilis Lismaninus Blandrata and the many other Propagators of the Socinian Abominations must be also for the same reason clear'd from Heresy Upon this Passage I have but one Observation and the Reader is at an end of his trouble If Dr. Sh ck be cleared from Heresy so also must the Socinians in the judgment not of this Author only but of Dr. S th also with whom are a Moiety if not a Majority of the Church If Dr. S th be clear'd from Heresy so also must the Socinians in the judgment of Dr. Sherlock who concludes all the Opposers of his real Tritheistic Trinity under Sabellianism and with him are some great Names and no contemptible Numbers What to do with these Socinians if I know never trust me if I brand them for Hereticks let me assign what merit I please I shall be thought as Growth of Errour phrases it to bereticate one or other Division of the Church If I pass them without censure Mr. Gailhard will vouch that I mince the matter with them notwithstanding the Protestation which I make that I am an obedient Son of the Church of England I think I had best after the example of the Areopagites engag'd in a Difficulty which puzzl'd them as much as this does me bid the Cause come before me a hundred Years hence FINIS ADVERTISEMENT Lately printed An Essay concerning the Power of the Magistrate and the Rights of Mankind in Matters of Religion With some Reasons in particular for the Dissenters not being oblig'd to take the Sacramental Test but in their own Churches and for a General Naturalization Together with a Postscript in answer to the Letter to a Convocation-man The Art of Memory A Treatise useful for all especially such as are to speak in publick By Marius D' Assigny B. D. Both sold at the Cross-keys and Bible in Cornhil