your Condition and believe a Priest confined by Lawful Matrimony may be as good a Member of the Church as a Town-Bull Tim. Yet we do not read that many of the Apostles were married Tit. Not that they made use of the Romish Remedy allowed to Priests unmarried Tim. God forbid any should think so they were holy Men. Tit. And Men in perpetual Travels to publish the Gospel to all Nations and under sore and continual Persecutions But if not many yet if any of them took upon them the holy and honourable Estate of Matrimony that is sufficient to justifie this Article of our Church encouraging her Clergy to the same In the Exhortation after Marriage But St. Peter himself was saith our Church a married Man And how the Popes come to lay claim to more Prudence Continency and Holiness than was in their pretended Predecessor I am to learn steadfastly believing none of them ever had such Measures of the Spirit of Purity and Infaâ—ibility as he was endowed with And I do farther believe that the licentious Practices of the Romish Priests and Jesuits of this kind suitable to their Principles hath been a great means of promoting Debauchery to so high a degree amongst us For if a Priest may keep a Whore why may not a Nobleman or a Gentleman do the like Nay some of our Lay-Hectors do not stick to aver that it is more pleasurable more prudent and as lawful to keep a Courtisan than a Wife And others that are married have by these Doctrines of Demons been so perverted and drawn away to Licentiousness as to rob their Families to maintain their Misses And from whom do they learn such Gospel but from Rome and her Agents with us Yet we must believe these Men under an inviolable Vow of Chastity Tim. In troth I am of your mind therefore I resolve Coelebacy no farther than I find it consistent with true Chastity and Honesty Tit. And while you can keep that Resolution I have nothing to say against it For you may marry or not marry as your Prudence shall direct and as it shall most promote an holy and godly Life saith our Church to whose Wisdom in this I subscribe Tim. So shall I for I think she is in the right Tit. 'T is but newly come on you then for but just now you thought she was in the wrong and the Church of Rome was in the right Tim. But I see my Errour Tit. 'T is well amend it too and I am satisfied but had you persisted in it I would have read the next Article to you my self to let you see what Punishment you deserved But now you may proceed to it as you have to them before ART 33. Tim. That Person which by open denunciation of the Church is rightly cut off from the Vnity of the Church and Excommunicated ought to be taken of the whole multitude of the Faithful as an Heathen and Publican until he be openly reconciled by Penance and received into the Church by a Judge that hath Authority thereunto Tit. Methinks I tremble at the very hearing of this word Excommunication It carrying in it the most severe and utmost punishment the visible Church can inflict upon any Offender Tim. What think you of suspension ab offieio beneficio or of deposition Tit. I look upon them as great Punishments and such as the Church may and ought upon just occasion to inflict But this Take him Goaler nay take him Devil all other are Fleabites to this Tim. As severe and sharp as 't is I wish it were more in use than ' t is Tit. Not too brisk with your Bulls 't is dangerous to play with edg tools It hath been too common to the great reproach and injury of our Church when at the command of a passionate Commissary the timorous Priest hath delivered over several to Satan for not answering immediately to their names though in Court at the same time And the fault lying rather in the voice of the Apparitor than any obstinacy in them Tim. A light Offence truly Tit. But an heavy Sentence and not to be taken off neither without paying their Fees as if that were the matter chiefly designed Tim. Had I been the Priest I should have paused a little ere I had pronounced Sentence Tit. And any one else who considers to whom it belongs to Excommunicate who are to be Excommunicated for what causes and the nature and end of Excommunication Tit. Pray for my satisfaction will you speak a little to these particulars for I am taken with them much Tim. I shall and as briefly and fully as I can Ex subno I say 't is to be considered 1. To whom it belongs to Excommunicate and here I find the Commission given to the Disciples of Christ Matth. 18.17 whom no lay Chancellour or Comminary can represent nor any but such as are in holy Orders as Bishops Priests c. And as the Constitution of our Church is I think Bishops only who are in chief Authority can Excommunicate and are the fittest Judges when and where that a Commissary's Sentence is to be paâ—…ed Though our Chancellours in our ordinary Courts take upon them to be Judges and to direct and command the Priesthood in this case Which to allow is neither better nor worse then to give the Government of our Church into Lay-hands a thing which we decry'd in the Presbyterians 2. For those that are liable to this Censure they must be more than ordinary Criminals this Censure is not to pass upon common and trivial occasions that makes it contemptible And I find there are three sorts of men Excommunicable by Scripture rule First Such as pervert the sound Doctrine of Truth as did Hymeneus and Alexander 1 Tim. â—… 20 Secondly Such as are defiled with notorious wickedness as the incestuous Person at Corinth 1 Cor. 5.1 5. Thirdly Such as obstinately persist in their Crimes and Offences after a double admonition or treble rather privately by himself after that before two or three and if that fails then openly before the Church and if he will not hear the Church then let him be to thee us an Heathen man or a Publican Matth. 18.15 16 17. Where our Saviour plainly teacheth us that as this must be the last remedy so he would have his Disciples and those that succeed them proceed to it with all caution and care endeavouring first by all other means to gain the Offender to Repentance Would to God all our Excommunications were always for such Causes and proceeded with such Cautions and Endeavours It would render both the Sentence more formidable and our Church more honourable Tim. I am fully of your mind for I perceive 't is a thing of weight Tit. 3. That is the next particular the Sentence it self Excommunication carries no less in it than the Apostles 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Cor. 5.5 and 1 Tim. 1.20 a delivering to Satan Hammonds Annot. on 1 Cor. 5.5
in him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and so our last Translation in the Margin Though it be rendered for that all have sinned yet must it be understood in him or sinned in Adam else it is not true that all upon whom death hath passed have sinned as namely Infants newly born Therefore 't is not said all are sinners but all have sinned which imports an imputation of Adams act unto his Posterity So that without question you and I are as guilty of this sin as if we had been present and joyned with Adam in it And the offering of another Adam to thee and me in the Church shews that the dispensation of God is not rigorous for we may share in his obedience as well as in the others disobedience It is as agreeable to the Wisdom and Justice of God by the sin of the First Adam to entail death upon all his Children as to the Wisdom and Grace of God by the Obedience and Righteousness of the Second Adam to confer Life upon his Children Have I said any thing towards your Conviction Tim. Yes a great deal but to little purpose for I don't understand this putative sin and putative Righteousness of the First and Second Adam Tit. Take heed Tim. of making a mock of these serious matters I could tell where you learned that word putative for a need But as merry as you and your Companions make your selves with it know that if imputative Righteousness don't justifie you you are in a worse condition than the Scribes and Pharisees whose Righteousness Legal I am afraid exceeded yours and yet insufficient to carry them to Heaven Matth. 5.20 And St. Paul who was as to the Law blameless doth yet desire not to be found in his own Righteousness but that which is by Faith through Christ Jesus the Righteousness putative as you in derision term it which is in God by Faith Phil. 3.9 But of this in a more proper place I only demand this of you Tim. that though you plaid the fool in subscribing this Article before you Read it yet that you would not play the Knave in disowning it now you have Subscribed it making a mock of it for you must needs understand it if you understand English for never any thing said more plainly that there is Original sin in all remaining in the best of men and that Adams sin is so far ours as we deserve Hell and Damnation for it And assure your self unless after this warning I hear you are Reformed as to this matter I shall acquaint the Bishop what a Subscriber and maintainer you are of the Articles of our Church who I doubt not will call you to an account For I stedfastly believe his Lordship holds it a less sin to be defective in the Ceremonies than in the Articles and will sooner Suspend for the latter than the former But I hope you will give me no cause especially when you have Read the next Article X. The condition of man after the fall of Adam is such That he cannot turn and prepare himself by his own natural strength and good works to faith and calling upon God Wherefore we have no power to do good works pleasant and acceptable to God without the Grace of God by Christ preventing us that we may have a good will and working with us when we have that good will Tit. The following Article Concords so well with this that 't is pitty to part them if you will therefore Read that too before we proceed farther Tim. I shall Article XI We are accounted Righteous before God only for the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by Faith and not for our own works or deservings Wherefore that we are Justified by Faith only is a most wholsome Doctrine and very full of comfort as more largely is expressed in the Homily of Justification Tit. As to these two Articles I need not ask your Opinion for I know you to be as rotten in these as an Egg nine days sat on Free Will and the necessity and efficacy of Works to Justifie without putative Righteousness is so much your tone in the Pulpit that the very Bells in the Steeple have learned the Tune And when you are approaching the Church the least jar out of it puts you into such an Arminian chafe that the Bells are presently forsooth Calvinistical Bells the Ringers Calvinistical Rogues wishing the Ropes in their hands fast about their Necks An admirable Devotion at your first entrance into Gods House Tim. And there are more of this Opinion besides my self Tit. What Opinion That the Ninth Tenth and Eleventh Chapters to the Romans were foisted into that Epistle by Calvin or at least he had an hand in Composing our Articles Tim. No neither but for Free Will and Justification without putative Righteousness that Christ came chiefly to be an Example to us and not to Justifie us by the imputation of his Righteousness this is the Opinion I know many are of besides me Tit. Aye too many but for you and I and those men you mean who have consented and Subscribed to these Articles to talk at this rate I must tell you is a fault not to be born with whatever others say that are free we that are obliged by Promises and Subscriptions should be honest and true to them Tim. Honest and True Yes so I ought but I have learned better since my Subscription and I hope you will give a man leave to improve his Reason and Understanding Tit. Yes by all means but suppose you were called to Subscribe these very Articles word for word again now your Reason is so mightily improved what would you do Tim. A needless question for that 's not likely Tit. Why not Put case the Patron of a Good that is a great Living or about two hundred or three hundred pounds per annum should out of his Generosity freely offer you the Presentation to it would you refuse his kindness rather than Subscratch for it Tim. I am afraid I should scarce withstand the force of so taking a temptation Tit. And you would Read them openly in the Parish Church the people being present and openly declare your approbation of them and full consent to them as the Law requires rather than lose such a Benefice Tim. I believe I should I wish some body would try me Tit. And Preach and Prate against them or contrary to them when you had done ha Tim. Not directly Tit. Directly or indirectly directly you would be a Knave for your pains not to say worse Tim. You would not have me talk contrary to what I believe would you Tit. What is that Tim. I believe every man hath a power and freedom of Will to good Works as well as Evil. Tit. What Naturally and in an unregenerate Estate Tim. Yes Tit. This is contrary to the Tenth Article as Aye and No directly Opposite to Scripture Which saith the Carnal mind is enmity against God for it is not subject to
not easie nay 't is almost impossible to miss it Tit. Why what is the sense say you Tim. That Believers or such as have received the Spirit of God and his saving Graces may fall away Tit. What totally and finally and perish Everlastingly Tim. Yes totally and finally and be Damned Tit. I judged I should find you as sound in this Point as that Sheep that shaking her self in a frosty Morning falls in pieces That this Article or our Church in it doth not intend a total and final Apostacy is apparent to me by these Two things 1. Because she saith not That such as have received the Holy Ghost c. may fall away but that they may fall into Sin as David Peter and others who Sinned or fell into great and gross Sins after Grace given yet no final Apostates 2. Because she saith in this Article That the grant of Repentance is not to be denyed to such as it is to be granted They which thus Sin after the Reception of the Holy Ghost and Grace given may Repent And by the Grace of God may rise again and amend their Lives as the forementioned Saints and Servants of God David and St. Peter did which no final total Apostate ever did or can do Therefore it cannot be meant of a final Apostacy or falling away from Grace And therefore if you have taught any such Doctrine you have Preached down this Article and many plain Texts of Scripture to boot as They should deceive if it were possible the very Elect. Whom he loveth he loveth to the end The gifts and calling of God are without Repentance Kept by the power of God through Faith unto Salvation 1 Pet. 2.6 Rom. 8.30 He that believeth in him shall not be confounded Whom he did predestinate them he also called whom he called them he also justified whom he justified them he also glorified And many more gracious and infallible promises assuring us of the stability and perseverance of true Believers of such as have received the Holy Ghost and Graces thereof Tim. Nay now we are in indeed if we are come to Election and Predestination Tit. Yea and good and proper mediums too to prove no final apostacy or falling away from grace for grant the one and the other follows Election and Predestination are inconsistent with a total and final defection But I hope Tim these are not frightfull terms to you you have heard of them before Tim. Yes but don't well understand them Election and Predestination 't is nonsense Tit. Such sense as you have subscribed to and consequently should believe and maintain against all Arminians and other Opposers Tim. I can't imagin any Article of our Church asserts any such thing so contrary to all reason as nothing can be more Tit. Yes this is such an unreasonable Article and by good luck the very next in course and so full mouth'd for Election and Predestination that you 'ld think some body spoke it through Calvin's Mouth or at least that that wretched stiff Predestinarian guided the hand of him that writ it Look there 't is Tim. nay ne'er start at it but out with it like a man of metal Article 17. Tim. Predestination to life is the Everlasting purpose of God whereby before the Foundations of the World were laid he hath constantly decreed by his Counsel secret to us to deliver from curse and damnation those whom he hath chosen in Christ out of Mankind and to bring them by Christ to Everlasting Salvation as Vessels made to Honour wherefore they which be endued with so excellent a benefit of God be called according to Gods purpose by his Spirit working in due season they through Grace obey the calling they be justified freely they be made Sons of God by Adoption they be made like the Image of his only begotten Son Jesus Christ they walk Religiously in good works and at length by Gods mercy they attain to Everlasting Felicity As the Godly consideration of Predestination and our Election in Christ is full of sweet pleasant and unspeakable comfort to Godly Persons and such as feel in themselves the working of the Spirit of Christ mortifying the works of the Flesh and their Earthly Members and drawing up their mind to high and Heavenly things as well because it doth greatly establish and confirm their Faith of Eternal Salvation to be enjoyed through Christ as because it doth fervently kindle their love towards God So for curious and carnal persons lacking the Spirit of Christ to have continually before their eyes the sentence of Gods predestination is a most dangerous downfall whereby the Devil doth thrust them either into desperation or into wretchlesness of most unclean living no less perillous than desperation Furthermore we must receive Gods promises in such wife as they be generally set forth to us in Holy Scripture and in our doings that will of God is to be followed which we have expresly declared unto us in the word of God Tit. Bless me what 's the reason of this sudden paleness in your countenance you look as though you were fainting away Tim. Not so Sir but I am stricken with a strange horror and astonishment to think how our Pulpits ring of Doctrines directly contrary to this Article for though I was so careless as never to read the Articles till now yet I concluded these great Dons had and never questioning their honesty I was confirmed in it by their constant preaching no such Article could possibly be but now I see they are out as much as I I pity them with all my heart Tit. Pity thy self man Tim. I do so but them more because I declare it mine was a sin of Ignorance I am afraid theirs is otherwise and because being leading men they have drawn me and many more into this error by their authority Tit. I am more than half of your opinion For our Church as fore-seeing how prone men would be to dance after Arminius his Pipe hath taken more pains in framing this Article than ordinary on purpose to prevent them and 't is so full so plain and punctual that one would think no mistake can arise but what is willfull Tim. Full and punctual there is all that ever can be thought on against Universal Redemption Free Will Falling away from Grace and the use of those points which are most what their subjects especially on popular occasions Tit. Take the contents of the Article and you will be confirmed in your opinion which are these 1. There is a predestination of Men unto Everlasting Life 2. Predestination hath been from Everlasting 3. Not all men but certain are Predestinated to be saved 4. They which are Predestinate unto Salvation cannot perish 5. In Christ Jesus of the meer will and purpose of God some are Elected and not others to Salvation 6. They who are Elected unto Salvation if they come unto years of discretion are called both outwardly by the word and inwardly by the Spirit of God
to it by a lawful Magistrate Now touching the former some are too forward and as to the latter some too backward And all that I shall say here having spoken somewhat to you of this nature already is this I heartily wish that as some Dissenters from our Church may justly be charged for Swearing too little so that they could not as justly charge many of our Church with Swearing too much Tim. I wish so too the Lord grant it Tit. Sure I am that because of Oaths such as this Article forbids c. our Land mourns I pray God therefore that all Christians Ministers especially may learn of the Prophet David to set a watch upon the door of their Lips that they may not in this kind above all at any time offend with their Tongues Tim. Amen Tit. Now you have heard this short account of the Articles of our Church which you have subscribed give me your serious thoughts of them Tim. In brief and sincerely as I subscribed them I am convinced they are sound and good That those Ministers who deviate from them in Doctrine or Practice as I and many more have done God forgive both me and them are greatly to blame and justly deserve to be censur'd for it by the Governours of our Church And that such as hold them firm and inviolable Preaching and Living according to them are not only in regard of their subscription the most Conscientious Person but must needs be also the Truest Friends to our Church and strongest Foes to Rome and all other our Churches Enemies Tit. God be thanked for this Conviction and while you are in this good mind with my Prayers to God that you may continue so I bid you Farewel A Friendly and Cordial Exercitation to my Brethren in the Ministry Whose Lives are unbecoming their Function Reverend Brethren I Call God and his Holy Angels to Witness I have had many sad and serious thoughts for the Misery and Destractions of our Church And can truly say the former discourse is the effect and result of such thinking and how would my heart rejoyce and my sadness be turned into singing might I conduce any thing by what I Preach or Write to her Settlement and Union But who can hope this till all her Sons shall speak and do the same things Preaching according to her Articles and acting and living answerable to her Prescriptions which are Sober Righteous and Godly Nothing gives a greater blow and bane to Religion than the discords and loose lives of her Professors and much more of her Ministers If Pride and Covetousness if Envy and Malice if Slander and Censoriousness if Division and Uncharitableness if Debauchery and Loosness look ill and are of ill Consequence in other men much more in Ministers We are not called the Salt of the Earth to corrupt others Lights to walk in Darkness Stewards to be Unfaithful and Angels to like like Devils We cannot Sin at so easy a rate as other men for as our evil examples do more hurt than others solour doom will be more dreadful when we come to give up our account to our Lord Jesus the Bishop of our Souls and of the Souls committed to our frust whom he hath redeemed by his Precious Bloud It is noted among King Alphonsus sayings that a great man cannot commit a small Sin I may say much more that a learned man and a Teacher of others cannot commit a small Sin or at least that Sin is great in him which is smaller in another For we Sin against more knowledg and against more light and means of knowledg there must needs therefore be more wilfulness in our Sins If we Sin 't is because we will Sin Yea our Sins must needs have more Hypoorisy in them than other men's by how much the more we have spoke against them O what an hainous thing is it in us to study how to disgrace Sin to the utmost by setting forth the Author Nature and danger of Sin thereby to make it as frightful and odious to our People as we can and when we have done to live in it and secretly cherish that which we openly disgrace To cry it down in others and keep it up in our selves in our own Hearts and Lives To call it publickly all to naught beastly Drunkenness hellish Swearing damned Covetousness Body and Soul destroying Whoredom c. and yet make it our Bedfellow and Companion what vile Hypocrisy is this is not this to bind heavy Burthens for others and not to touch them our selves with a finger what can you say to this in the day of Judgment Did you think still of Sin as you spake or did you not If you did not why did you dissemble if you did why would you keep and commit it if Sin be evil why do you live in it if it be not why do you disswade men from it if it be really dangerous how dare you venture on it if it be not why do you tell men so if God 's threatnings be true why do ye not fear them if they be false why do you trouble Men needlesly with them and put them into such frights without cause Do you know the Judgment of God that they that commit such things are wanthy of Death and will you do them O my Brethren yet lot not any of us who bear the Name of Christs Ambassadors bear the Badge of a miserable dissembling Pharisee They say but do not Our Sins have more persidiousness in them than other Mens We have more engaged our selves against Sin Besides all our common Engagements as Christians we have many more as Ministers How oft and how earnestly for God's sake Religions sake and their own Souls sake have we called others from it how oft have we declared the Terrors of the Lord against it All these did imply that we renounced it our selves Every Sermon that we preach against it every private Exhortation and Admonition every Confession of it in the Congregation is a renewed engagement upon us to forsake it Every Child that we Baptize and receive into Covenant with Christ every Administration of the Holy Supper of our Lord wherein we call upon Men to repent and forsake Sin to renew their Covenant with God and lead a new Life according to his Word doth import our own renouncing of Sin the World and the Devil and our Engagement to Christ and Obligation to live according to his Gospel And shall we entertain and encourage Sin in our Lives against all these Professions and Testimonies of our own O what Treachery and Perfidiousness is this to make such a stir against Sin in the Pulpit and yet to give it Countenance by our Practice O 't is this promotes Atheism and Debauchery 't is this that casts Contempt upon our Church reflects great Dishonour upon God and obstructs the Power and Prevalency of the Gospel Methinks if we are sincere Christians to whom the Glory of God is dearer than their Lives it must