crown'd with some shameful conclusion When the infamous practices of Master Smith are objected to his party they have no leaf of excuse wherwith to cover them H The other supporter of languishing Brownisme in its dying dayes was Master Robinson the most learned polished and modest spirit that ever that Sect enjoyed it had been truely a marvel if such a man had gone on to the end a rigid Separatist This man having gone over from England to Leyden with a separate Congregation did write for a time very handsome Apologies and justifications of that evil way but Doctor Ames and Master Parker compassionating the man and pitying that so excellent parts should be so ill employed laboured him so by Conferences and Letters that there was great appearance if his days had continued he might have proved a happie instrument for the extinguishing and total abolition of that Schism but God in his wisedom intending some farther use of that great evil was pleased to take him away in the beginning of his good Work He came back indeed the one half of the way he ruined the rigid Separation and was the Author of a Semi-separatism printing in his later times against his former Books the lawfulnesse of communicating with the Church of England in the Word and Prayer albeit not in the Sacraments and Discipline This was a fair Bridge at least a fair Arch of a Bridge for union but the man being removed by death before he could perfect what he had begun his new Doctrine though it was destructive to his old Sect yet it became an occasion of a new one not very good It was the womb and seed of that lamentable Independency which in Old and new-New-England hath been the fountain of many evils already though no more should ensue as anon shall be declared Onely here we observe that the last two best-gifted Leaders of the Brownists have been the reall Overthrowers of that Way for ever since the time of their conduct these of England whose humour carried them out of the bosome of their Mother-Church have turned either to Smiths Anabaptism or to Robinsons Semi-separating Independency These kindes are multiplied exceedingly but for the old Brownists their number either at London or Amsterdam is but very small and their way is become contemptible not onely to all the rest of the world but to their own children also even they begin to heap coles of contumelies upon their parents heads as may be seen in the Elogies which both Master Cotton I and the five Apologists are pleased to give them in Print K Yea so much are these children ashamed of their fathers that they usually take it for a contumely to be called after their name No Independent will take it well at any mans hand to be called a Brownist either in whole or in the smallest part The Testimonies A Robinsons Justification p. 50. It is true that Bolton was though not the first in this way an Elder of a separate Church in the beginning of Queen Elizabeths days and falling away from his holy profession recanted the same at Pauls Crosse and afterwards hanged himself as Judas did B Giffard against the Donatists about the beginning Whosoever shall read Brown his Books and peruse all his Scholars writings shall see that they have no sharp arrow but which is drawn out of his Quiver C Robinsons Justif p. 50. Now touching Brown it is true as he forsook the Lord so the Lord forsook him else he had never so returned back into Egypt as he did And for the wicked things which Master B. affirmeth he did in this way it may well be as he saith and the more wicked things he committed in this course the lesse like he was to continue long in it D Johnsons Enquiry p. 63. About Thirteen yeers since this Church through persecution in England was driven to come into these Countreys A while after divers of them fell into the Heresies of the Anabaptists and so persisting were excommunicated by the rest Then a while after many others yea too many though not the half fell into a Schism from the rest and so many as continued therein were cast out Also Robinsons Justification p. 51. True it is that George Johnson together with his father taking his part were excommunicated by the Church for contention arising at the first upon no great occasion whereupon many bitter and reproachfull terms were uttered both in word and writing It is to us a just cause of Humiliation all the days of our lives that we have given and do give by our differences such advantages E Smiths Differences p. 4. The reading out of a Book is no part of Spiritual Worship but the invention of the Man of Sin Books and Writings are in the nature of Pictures or Images and therefore in the nature of Ceremonies and so by consequent the reading of a Book is Ceremonial The holy Scriptures are not to be retained as helps before the eyes in the time of Spiritual Worship It is unlawful to have the Book before the eyes in singing of Psalms The Presbytery of the Church is uniform the treeformed Presbytery consisting of three kindes Pastors Teachers and Elders is not Gods Ordinance but Antichristian and the image of the Beast F Bernards plain Evidences p. 19. Smith in his Epistle before his Differences because he is found so unconstant to wipe away the shame thereof and to cut off offence for afterward he without shame professeth to be unconstant and desireth that ever his last writing should be taken as his present judgement G Ibid. He hath founded a new Church he hath if ye will believe him recovered the true Baptism and the true matter and form of a true Church which now onely is to be found pure among a company of Sebaptists Master Smith will hold ever this word Se to himself for going into Brownism he was a Separatist he held differing opinions from them and now that he is in Anabaptism he is a Sebaptist he wholly goeth not with that heretical Sect. H Robinsons Justif p. 53. Master Smith his instability and wantonnesse of wit is his sin and our crosse I Vide caput tertium O. K Ibidem CHAP. II. The Doctrine of the BROWNISTS THe peculiar Tenents of the Brownists wherein they differ from other Protestants are many Those that occur to my minde from some slight and cursory reading of some of their Books shall briefly and plainly be set down but with this premonition That every thing mentioned be not taken for an Article of Brownism for it is needful at some times to interlace Tenents which are common to them with others for the clearing of those which they have peculiar Their differences run most upon the Constitution and Government of the Church They have also divers Singularities about the Circumstances and Parts of the Service of God also concerning the Magistrate and Schools and divers other things Without affectation or curious search of Method we
that new way began first to be dangerous to the rest of the world For Master Cotton a man of very excellent parts contrary much to his former judgement having faln into a liking of it and by his great with and learning having refined it without the impediment of any opposition became the great instrument of drawing to it not onely the thousands of those who left England but also by his Letters to his friends who abode in their Countrey made it become lovely to many who never before had appeared in the least degree of affection toward it Before his departure from England by conferences in London he had brought off Master Davenport and Master Goodwin from some of the English Ceremonies E but neither of these two nor himself at that time did minde the least degree of Separation F yet so soon as he did taste of the New-English air he fell into so passionate an affection with the Religion he found there that incontinent he began to perswade it with a great deal more zeal and successe then before he had opposed it G His convert Master Goodwin a most fine and dainty Spirit with very little ado was brought by his Letters from New-England to follow him unto this step also of his progresse and that with so high an estimation of his new Light that he was bold to boast of it in termes a little beyond the lines of moderation H It had been happy for England that Master Cotton had taken longer time for deliberation before that change of his minde He might have remembred his too precipitant rashnesse in former times both to receive and to send abroad to the world such Tenents whereof after he had cause to repent God in wisedom permits his dearest children to set black marks on their own faces not onely to keep themselves in humility and suspition of their own hearts but to divert others from idolizing their gifts and setting up their persons as a patern for their too sudden imitation I would not willingly detract from any mans reputation I am oft ready enough both to hear with contentment and liberally to speak to the praises of men much inferiour in my thoughts to Master Cotton Yet when his gifts are turned into snares when they become occasions of stumbling and contrary to the minde of the giver are made inducements to follow him in his wanderings I am of opinion that neither Piety nor Charity will hinder to remark his evident and known failings That as his eminent endowments are strong invitations to run after him so the mixture of cleer weaknesse may be a retractive to every prudent man and a caveat from God to beware of his wayes as well as of any other mans I take it for a great mercy of God to simple ones that the most if not all who have offred themselves to be Ringleaders in any Heresie or Schism or other by-way have ever bin permitted to fall into some evident folly to the end that they whose simplicity made them too prone to be misled by the strength of pregnant wits and the luster of excellent gifts which in the most of Sectaries to this day have ever been apparent might be held in the love of the truth and made cautious of being led aside by them in whose footsteps a very blunt eye might perceive the print of an evil spirit Not to speak of Master Cottons long continuance in the Errours of his education sundry whereof stuck to him as he confesseth all the time of his abode in England I Nor of his more dangerous fall into the gulf of Pelagianism some of the Arminian Errours from which the writings of Dr. Twisse are said to have reclaimed him K However the Doctor doth say that he hath no assurance of his recantation to this day and therefore was willing that his Treatise against Master Cottons erroneous writings should be published to the world To passe by also that which I have heard of some gracious Ministers of his old Montanism wherein some think he remaineth to this day That which I point at is another more dangerous fall which as already it hath much humbled his spirit and opened his ear to instruction and I trust it will not leave working till it have brought him yet neerer to his Brethren So to the worlds end it cannot but be a matter of fear and trembling to all who shall know it and of aboundant caution to be very wary of receiving any singularity from his hand without due tryal That which I speak of is his wandring into the horrible Errours of the Antinomians and Familists with his dear friend Mistresse Hutchinson so far that he came to a resolution to side with her and separate from all the Churches in New-England as legal Synagogues The truth of this horrible fall if ye will not take it from the parties themselves the followers of Mistresse Hutchinson who ofttimes were wont to brag of Master Cotton for their Master and Patron L nor from the Testimony of Master Williams M who had as much occasion to know it as any man else and if I mistake not the humor of the man is very unwilling to report a lie of his greatest enemy Yet we may not reject the witnesse of Master Winthrop the wisest of all the New-English Governours hitherto and of Master Wells a gracious Minister of that Land in their Printed Relations of the Schisms there both those albeit with all care and study they endeavour to save Master Cottons credit yet let the truth of Master Cottons seduction fall from their Pens in so clear termes as cannot be avoided for however what they speak of the erring of the most eminent in place might be applyed to the Governour for the time N 1. Yet when they tell us that the most of the Seducers lived in the Church of Boston and that the whole Church of Boston except a few were infected with that Leprosie and that none of them were ever-called to an account by the Presbytery of that Church till after the Assembly though the Pastor of that Church Master Wilson was alwayes exceedingly zealous against them also that in face of the General Court Mistresse Hutchinson did avow Master Cotton alone and Master Wheelwright to Preach the truth according to her minde and that Master Cotton himself before that same Court did openly dissent even after the Assembly from all his Brethren about Wheelwrights Doctrine These and other the like informations are so clear that no art will get Master Cotton freed N 2. I have been also informed by a gracious Preacher who was present at the Synod of new-New-England that all the Brethren there being exceedingly scandalized with Master Cottons carriage in Mistresse Hutchinsons processe did so far discountenance and so severely admonish him that he was thereby brought to the greatest shame confusion and grief of minde that ever in all his life he had indured But leaving the person of Master
other opinions wee have mentioned in the following Treatise I hope our Brethren will either disavow and passe from them or else be content to bury them in their owne breasts till time and better information make them die and vanish without more moyse Thirdly the intent of the Order is to bring up the dissenting Brethren â—o approve of the Government agreed upon in the Assembly and allowed by both Houses of Parliament or if that cannot be to see how in some practises they may be forborn This doth suppose that our Brethren shall not be permitted to print preach or publish any thing against the Goverment established by Parliament also that in the practice of this Government they shall be obliged to joyne so farre with their Brethren as their principles may suffer This being I doubt not but in many things they shaâ—l be much forborn for whatever be the unadvised rashnesse of some in their way yet if they may be pleased according to their frequent offers as I remember to be constant members of our Presbyteries and Synods and there to give were it but their consultative voyce I beleeve that few of them shall ever be pressed to much more for if they agree among themselves and governe well their owne Congregations no controversie that concerns them will ever come before any superiour Assembly and if any complaint of their male administration or any matter of ordination or excommunication should come from them to be cognosced in a Presbytery or Synod the result might ever be to them as a matter of advice to be executed in their owne Congregations by their owne Pastors if they did finde it right or if it appeared wrong the Generall Assembly or at least the Parliament would give them so much satisfaction as on earth can be expected Albeit I am in opinion that no case meerly Ecclesiasticall shall ever need to goe from a Generall Assembly to a Parliament these two bodies are so friendly and neare of kin that none who knowes their nature and constitution will ever feare their discord I dare say that all the jealousies which are presented to the Parliament of England of a Nationall Assembly are meere Bugbeares and childish frightments arising alone out of mis-information and unacquaintance for both reason and experience will demonstrate that the Parliament of England cannot have on earth so strong pillars and pregnant supporters of all their Priviledges as free Protestant Assemblies established by Law and kept in their full freedom from the lowest to the highest from the Congregationall Eldership to the Generall Synod of the Nation No such Barres as these are imaginable either against Tyranny or Anarchy they are the mightiest impediments both to the exorbitancy of Monarchs which has been and is our misery and to the extravagancy of the common multitude attempting to correct and subject all Parliaments to their owne foolish desires which is like to be the matter of our next exercise and trouble Protestant Assemblies examined to the bottom will be found reall and cordiall friends to all the Iust Legall and reasonable Prerogatives of a Monarch to all the equitable and profitable Liberties of the meanest subject but above all to every due priviledge of a Christian Parliament Sometimes we laugh sometimes we grieve to see men afraid out of meere ignorance with that which we know is their great good I am perswaded that after a little experience Congregationall Sessions Clâ—ssicall Presbyteries Provinciall Synods and Nationall Assemblies will be embraced and sluck to by the Parliament of England as the greatest and most usefull priviledges of their great Charter My fourth remarke upon the Order in hand is that it speakes alone of the questions of Government whereby the Assemblie was retarded but nothing of the constitution of Congregations which never came to any considerable debate much lesse did ever retard the Assemblies proceedings and albeit the words of the Order might be extended beyond the Government to the constitution yet wee may not thinke that the House doth intend to tolerate the gathering of separate Congregations in this point we hope that the desired accommodation shall satisfie our Brethren and all tolerations shall be needlesse Themselves are witnesses of our most earnest Desires of our very reall indeavours and we wish they had been much more our helperâ— and reall Assistants for purging of all Congregations so far as ever they have been in any time in any place for making them so void of ignorance and all scandalls as Scripture or any reason can require In these our earnest requests we trust the Parliament at last will shew us favour But when the Assembly and Parliament have done their uttermost to have the Churches purified so farre as is possible if notwithstanding of all that can be done our Brethren will yet separate and peremptorily refuse to communicate as Members in the best ruled Congregations either of England or of any other reformed Church wee confesse that by such a Declaration our Brethren would put us to a great deale of perplexity for such a separation as this were as we conceive the most palpable and unreasonable Schisme that ever yet was heard of in the Christian World much contrary to the word of God and evidently destructive of the necessary peace of all these Churches wherein it should bee tolerated beside its cleare contradiction in termes not onely to the Order of the House but to the solemn League and Covenant of the three Kingdomes Notwiihstanding wee trust that the grace and mercy of God shall be so richly powred out upon this revived Committee as shall enable them to expedit both us and our Brethren from these otherwise unextricable Labirynths Would to God that our Controversies with them were brought to a happy period that both they and we with all our power might concurre to reduce the rest of our poore Brethren who this day are pitifully intangled in manifold heresies and Errours that so all the childrâ—n of God being delivered from the snares and chaines of darknesse might make it their great taske and only contention who should honour most the name of their Father by the fragrancy of their godly charitable humble chaste and sober conversation Your Lordship is conscious to the first designes of the Noble Patriots of that your Nation it was never their mind to have trifled so much time in jangling with their Brethren of this Isle about new and needlesse questions but expecting a facility of setling truth and Peace within these Sâ—as their hearts were farther abroad their thoughts were large for the propagation not of ther owne but of Christs Kingdome and that not so much in the Light as in the heate and life thereof They have the more to answer who here and elsewhere have been the unhappy instruments not only to frustrate these great and gracious enterprises for the Weale-publick of Christendome but also to bring the undertakers to so low a condition that they be obliged this day to
God alone for any tollerable subsistence and their very being albeit we are hopefull the Lord is reserving good things for them who had so much Faith charity and Courage as to venture all for the cause of God and their Brethren the more unkind men have proved unto them The Lord who hath been witnesse to all their intentions actions and sufferings will in his owne time accordingly reward them and will not let them be ashamed of their first hopes and constant desires upon the which himselfe for a long time did shine so evidently from the Heaven as ever upon any enterprise on the Earth Though now that brightnesse be much ecclipsed and overclouded yet we are expecting with passionate desires and confident hopes the dissolution of these clouds and the dispelling of the present darkenesse by the strength of the Beames of his ancient and undeserved kindnesse towards that now suffering and much distressed Nation But insensibly my pen hath runne beyond the bounds of a short Epistle albeit my experience of your Lordships readinesse to dispence with your friends indiscretion makes me secure of my pardon I will detaine your Lordship no longer I lay downe my Booke at your Lordships feet to be given to the world by your Lordships hand If it be received with so much candor and charity by every Reader as I know it is offered it may possibly prove serviceable Thus wishing to your Lordship in these dayes of deepe and dangerous tryalls and too great defection of many constancy and daily increase of affection to all truth Piety Iustice and every Vertue I remaine Your Lordships in all Christian duty to be commanded R. Baylie London Novemb. 19. 1645. The Principall Authors whose Testimonies are cited in the case of the Brownists 1 THe Brownists confession of Faith printed by themselves 160â— 2 The Brownists Apoâ—ogy printed 1604 3 Robert Brownes Life and manners of true Christians printed 1582 4 Henry Barrow his briefe discovery of the false Church 1590 5 Henry Barrow his plaine refutation of Mr Gifford 1590. 6 Francis Iohnsons enquiry and answer to Thomas Whites Discovery of Brownism 1606 7 Francis Iohnsons Christian plea 1617. 8 Iohn Cann his guide to Sion 1638 9 Iohn Cann his necessity of Separation 1638. 10 Apologia Iusta quorundam Christianorum c. per Iohannem Robinsorum 1619 11 Robinsons justification against Bernard reprinted at London 1640 12 Syons royall prerogative 1641. 13 A Light for the Ignorant 1638. The Principall Authors whose Testimonies are cited in the case of the Independents 1. An Apologeticall Narration by Thomas Goodwin c. 1643 2 Iohn Cottons Keyes published by Thom Goodwin and Philip Nye 1644. 3 Iohn Cottons way of the Churches in New-England 1645. 4 Iohn Cottons Sermons upon the seven Vialls 1642. 5 Iohn Cottons Catechisme or the Doctrine of the Church 1644. 6 An Answer to thirty two Questions by the Elders of the Churches in New-England published by Mr. Peters 1643. 7 An Apology of the Churches in New-England for Church-Covenant or a discourse touching Church-Covenant 1643. 8 A glimpse of Syons glory in a Sermon at a generall Fast-day in Holland by T. G. printed at London 1641. 9 Ieremy Burrowes Sermons upon Hosea 1644. 10 The personall raigne of Christ by Io Archer Pastor of the Church at Arnheim 164â— 11 Io Archers comfort for Beleevers 1645. 12 Mr. Burtons vindication of the Independent Churches 1645. 13 Iohn Goodwins Theo-machia 1644. 14 A short story of the rise reigne and ruine c. published with Mr. Welds large Preface 1644. 15 Mr Welds answer to Rathbans narration 1644. 16 Mr Cottons Letter to Mr. Williams 1643. 17 The Anatomist anatomised by Mr Simson 1644. We cite also for some matters of fact to which no satisfactory Answer hath been made hitherto by the Parties 1 Mr Edwards Antapologie 1644. 2 Mr Williams examination of Cottons Letter 1644. 3 Mr Williams bloody Tenet 1644. 4 Plaine-dealing or Newes from New-England by Thomas Lechford 1642. 5 The Anatomy of Independency by a Learned Minister of Holland 1644. 6 Doctor Bastwicks Postscript 1645. 7 Mr. Prinns fresh discovery 1645. The CONTENTS of the following Treatise The Preface THe chiefe and first meane to extinguish the flames of our warre is the waters of our heart poured out in prayers to God pag. 1 Reformation after mourning is the second step to a solid peace p. 2 The corruption of the Church is the fountaine of our present misery ibid. The State cannot be setled till the Church be first reformed 3 Every man would help what hee can to recover the languishing Church from her desperate disease ibid. The offer of a strange and easie remedy of a Looking-glasse 4 The malignity of Errour ibid. The Authors intention is to set down in a Table for the cleare view of all the errours which trouble us ibid. And that with Iustice and Love toward all persons 5 The partition of the ensuing Treatise 6 Episcopacy was the mother of all our present Sects ibid. Presbytery will be their grave 7 The Presbyteriall way of proceeding ibid. What England rationally may expect from Presbyteries and Synods 8 Chap. 1. The originall and progresse of the Brownists Satan is the great enemy of the Churches Reformation 9 His chiefe instruments alwayes have been professed friends to Religion ibid. Reformation at the begining did run with one impetuous current ibid. What was its first stop 10 The fountaine of Protestant discord ibid. The unhappy principle of the Lutherans ibid. And the more unhappy principle of the Anabaptists 11 Somewhat of both these wayes was entertained in England ibid. The originall of the English Bishops and Ceremonies ibid. The originall of the Separatists 12 Brownism is a daughter of Anabaptism 13 Bolton the first known Separatist in England hanged himselfe ibid. Brown the second leader of that way recanted his schism and to his death was a very scandalous person ibid. The humour of Barrow the third master of this Sect 14 The strange carriage of Iohnson and Ainsworth the next two leaders of the Brownists ibid. The horrible wayes of Smith their sixth master 15 The fearfull end of Smith his wandrings 16 Robinson the last grave and learned Doctor of the Brownists did in the end undermine his party 17 Robinson the authour of Independency ibid. Chap. 2. The Doctrine of the Brownists They hold that all Churches in the world but their own are so polluted that they must be separate from 20 Their injurious slanders of the Church of England ibid. Yet sometimes they say that communion maybe kept with her both in preaching and prayer ibid. Their like dealing with all the other Reformed 21 Their flattering of forraign Churches is not to be regarded ibid. The matter of a Church they make to be reall Saints only 22 Their unreasonable strictnesse in this one point is the great cause of their Schism ibid. They place the forme of their Church in an expresse Covenant 23 Seven may make a perfect Church
yea two or three ibid. The erecting of a Church requires neither the Magistrates nor Ministers assistance ibid. They put all Church power in a handfull of people without any Pastor 24 The election ordination deposition and excommunication of the Minister belongs to his flock and to it alone ibid. Every man of the Congragation may preach and publikely rebuke not only the Pastor but the whole flock yea and separate from it 25 Some of them give the celebration of the Sacraments also to private persons ibid. The solemnizing of marriage they give to Parents but Divorces they commit to the parties themselves 26 They make every Congregation independent and of Soveraigne Authority ibid. Their judgement of Synods 27 Their high conceit of their own way and injurious depressing of all others ibid. Churches Bels Tythes Glebes Manses and all set maintenance of Ministers are unlawfull not so much as a Church yard must be kept up for buriall but all must bury in the fields ibid. The dayes of the week the months the yeare of God they will not name 28 No Pulpits no Sand-glasses in Churches no Gowns ibid. All set prayer even the Lords prayer and all Psalms in meeter yea in prose if used as praises are unlawfull 29 Their opinion of preaching and Sacraments ibid. Their strange way of celebrating the Lords Supper ibid. They reject Catechismes the Apostles Creed and all reading of Scripture without exposition 30 After preaching they prophecy ibid. Then come their Questions ibid. After all they attend a very tedious discipline ibid. Brown is for liberty of Conscience ibid. His followers are against it 31 Their carriage towards the Magistrate ibid. They spoyle Kings and Parliaments of their Legislative power ibid. They oblige the Magistrate to kill all Idolaters ibid. But to spare all theeves 32 They will have the Vniversities destroyed ibid. Secular Authors and Learning must be abolished ibid. Preachers must study no other books but the Bible ibid. Chap. 3. The originall and progresse of the Independents and of their carriage in new-New-England Independency is the smallest of all the Sects of the time for number but greatest for worth of its followers 53 Independents are the Separatists off-spring ibid. When the spark of Brownism was dying out in Holland a little of its ashes carried to new-New-England broke out there into a lasting flame 54 By what meanes these ashes were kindled ibid. Mr Cotton at first a great Opposite to that way 55 Mr Cotton with little adoe became the great Patron of that Errour ibid Mr Cotton was the mis-leader of Mr Goodwin and others 56 Mr Cotton often deceived hath given his patrociny to divers grosse errours ibid. Why God permits great men to fall in evident errours ibid. His Prelaticall Arminian and Montanistick tenets 57 His Antinomy and Familism ibid. Independency full as unhappy as Brownisme 58 Wherefore so much of the Independent way lies yet in darknesse 59 The fruits of Independency in New-England ibid. First it hath put thousands of Christians in the condition of Pagans ibid. Secondly it hath marred the conversion of Pagans to Christian Religion 60 Thirdly it did bring forth the foulest heresies that ever yet were heard of in any Protestant Church ibid. A few examples of the many abominable heresies of the New-English Independents 61 The greatest part of their Churches were infected with these errours ibid. The piety of these Hereticks seemed to be singular ibid. Their malice against all who opposed them was singular especially against all their orthodox Ministers and Magistrates 62 Their errours in opinion did draw on such seditious practises as did well neare overturne both their Church and State ibid. Their proud obstinacy against all admonitions was marvelous p. 63 In the midst of their profession of eminent Piety the profanenesse of many of them was great p. 64 Notwithstanding of all this we desire from our heart to honour and imitate all and every degree of truth and Piety which did ever appeare in any New-English Christian p. 65 Chap. 4. The carriage of the Independents in Holland at Rotâ—rdam and Arnheim p. 75. Independency was no fruitfull tree in Holland p. 75 Mr Peters the first planter thereof at Roterdam ibid. Their Ministers Mr. Bridge Mr Simpson and Mr Ward renounced their English Ordination and as meere private men tooke new Ordination from the people ibid. They did quickly fall into shamefull divisions and subdivisions p. 76 The people without any just cause deposed their Minister ibid. The Schismes at Roterdam were more irreconcileable then those at Amsterdam p. 77 Anabaptisme is like to spoile that Church p. 78 These of Arnheim admire and praise themselves above all measure ibid. The easinesse of their banishment and afflictions p. 79 The new Light at Arnheim brok out in a number of strange errors ib. First grosse Chiliasme ibid. Secondly the grossest blasphemy of the Libertines that God is the Author of the very sinfulnesse of sinne p. 80 Thirdly the fancy of the Euthusiasts in contemplating God as God abstracted from Scripture from Christ from grace and from all his attributes ibid. Fourthly the old Popish Ceremonies of extreme Unction and the holy Kisse of peace p. 81 Fifthly the discharging of the Psalmes and the apointing of a singing Prophet to chant the Songs made by himselfe in the silence of all others ibid. Sixthly the mortality of the soule ibid. Seventhly the conveniency for Ministers to preach covered and celebrate the Sacraments uncovered but for the people to heare uncovered and to participate the Sacraments covered p. 82. Their publick contentions were shamefull ibid. Cap. 5. The Carriage of the Independents at London p. 90 The worke of the prime Independents of New-England Arnheim and Roterdam these five yeares at London p. 90 They did hinder with all their power so long as they were able the calling of the Assembly ibid. When it was called they retarded its proceedings p. 91 That the Churches of England and Ireland lye so long in confusion neither Papists nor Prelates nor Malignants have been the cause ibid. But the Independents working according to their Principles p. 92 The great mischiefe of that Anarchy wherein they have kept the Churches of England and Ireland for so long a time ibid. Independency is the mother of more Heresies and Schismes at London then Amsterdam ever knew ibid. Independency at London doth not only bring forth but nourish and patronize Heresies and Schismes contrary to its custome either in New-England or Amsterdam p. 93 How hazardous it may prove to the State of England p. 94 Chap. 6. An Enumeration of the Common Tenets of the Independents p. 101 Why it is hard to set downe the Independents Positions p. 101 They have declined to declare their Tenets more then hath ever been the custome of any Orthodox Divines ibid. When they shall be pleased to declare themselves to the full their principle of change will hinder them to assure us that any thing is their setled and firme
state of Pagans turning them all out of the Christian Church denying to them Sacraments Discipline Church-Officers and all that they would deny to the Pagans of America ibid. They open a doore to Anabaptisme by three farther Positions First they require in all to be baptised a reall holinesse above a foederall which in no Infant with any certainty can be found ibid. Secondly they esteeme none for their Baptisme and Christian education a Member of their Church till they have entred themselves in their Church Covenant p. 120 Thirdly they call none of their Members to any accompt before their Presbytery for obstinate rejecting of Paedo-baptisme although the Brownists doe excommunicate for that sinne ibid. They participate with none of the reformed Churches in the Lords Supper yet they scruple not to communicate with Brownists and Anabaptists ibid. Their way of celebrating the Lords Supper is more dead and comfortlesse then anywhere else p. 121 They have no catechising no preparation nor thanks-giving-Sermons ordinarily they speake no word of the Sacrament in their Sermons and prayers either before or after ibid. They have onely a little discourse and short prayer in the consecration of both the Elements thereafter in the action nothing but dumb silence no exhortation no reading no Psalme ibid. They require none of their Members to come out of their Pewes to the Table and they acknowledge no more use of a Table then the Brownists at Amsterdam which have none at all ibid. They teach the expediency of covering the head at the Lords Table p. 122 They are as much for the popular Government as the Brownists ibid. All Discipline must be executed in the presence and with the consent of the whole people and all must passe by the expresse suffrage of every one p. 123 Dissenters not onely loose their right of Suffrage for the time but are subjected to censure if they continue in their dissent ibid. They are much for private meetings for it is in them that they usually frame the Members of other mens Congregations into their new mould but the Brownists and they of New-England having felt the bitter fruits of such meetings have relinquished if not discarged them ibid. They flatter the Magistrate and slander the reformed Churches without cause p. 124 Some of them are for the abolishing of all Magistracy ibid. All of them are for the casting out and keeping out of the Christian Church all Princes all Members of Parliament all Magistrates of the Counties and Burrowes that now are and that ever have been and are ever like to be hereafter except a very few p. 125 These few Magistrates which they would admit have no security but by the errour or malice of a few to be quickly cast out of the Church without any possibility of remedy ibid. When they have put all who are not of their mind out of the places of Magistracy yea out of all Civill Courts the greatest Magistrates they admitt of be they Kings or Parliaments they subject them all to the free will of the promiscuous multitude ibid. When Magistrates will not follow their new errours they have been very ready to make Insurrections to the great hazard of the whole State p. 126 Many of them deny to the Magistrate any power at all in the matters of Religion ibid. Their principles doe spoile Princes and Parliaments of their whole Legislative power they abolish all humane Lawes that are made and hinder any more to be made p. 127 The Civill Lawes which Mr Cotton permits men to make binde no man any further then his owne mind is led by the reason of the Law to Obedience p. 128 They put the yoke of the Iudiciall Law of Moses on the neck of the Magistrate ibid. They give to their Ministers a power to sit in Civill Courts and to voyce in the election of the Magistrates and to draw from Scripture civill Lawes for the Government of the State ibid. They offer to perswade the Magistrate contradictory Principles according to their owne interest in new-New-England they perswade the Magistrate to kill Idolaters and Hereticks even whole Cities men women and children p. 129 But here they deny the Magistrate all power to lay the lost restraint upon the grossest Idolaters Apostates blasphemers Seducers or the greatest Enemies of Religion ibid. No great appearance of their respect to secular Learning and Scholes ibid. Independency much more dangerous then Brownisme ibid. Chap. 7. It is unjust scrupulosity to require satisfaction of the true grace of every Church Member The Independents prime Principles p. 154 It s unjust scrupulosity to require satisfactorie assurance of the true grace of every Church-Member p. 154 Their Tenet about the qualification of Members is the great cause of their separating from all the reformed Churches though they doe dissemble it p. 155 In this they goe beyond the Brownists p. 156 The true state of the question is whether it be necessary to separate from a Church wherein we get no satisfaction of the true grace of every Member at their first admission ibid. For the negative we reason first from the practice of Moses and the Prophets who did never offer to separate for any such reason p. 157 The causes of a just separation were smaller under the Law nor under the Gospell ibid. Our second reason is from the example of Christ and his Apostles who did not separate for any such causes p. 158 The third reason It is impossible to finde true grace in every member of any visible Church that ever was or shall be in the world p. 159 The fourth This satisfaction in the true grace of all to be admitted is builded on foure errours p. 160 The fifth Argument Their Tenet is followed with diverse absurdities p. 161 Cottons reasons to the contrary answered p. 163 The first reason put in forme ibid. All the parts of it are vitious ibid His second Argument p. 168 His third Argument p. 169 His fourth Argument p. 170 His fifth p. 171 His sixth p. 172 His seventh ibid. His eigth p. 173 His ninth all his nine or twelve Reasons put in one will be too weak to beare up the weight of his most heavy conclusion Chap. 8. Concerning the right of Prophesying The state of the Question 174 The first Authors of this Question ib. The Independents difference among themselves hereabout ib. That none but Ministers may ordinarily prophesye we prove it first by Christs joyning together the power of Baptisme and the power of preaching 175 Secondly These that preach must be sent to that worke ib. Thirdly every ordinary Preacher labours in the word and Doctrine 176 Fourthly none out of Office have the gift of preaching for all that have that gift are either Apostles Evangelists Prophets Pastors or Doctors and all these are Officers ib. Fifthly no man out of Office might sacrifice ib. Sixthly all who have from God the gift of preaching are obliged to lay aside all other occupations and attend that work
if so it fall out that his insuperable obstinacy â—orce them to draw out the terrible Sword their proceeding here also is so exceeding leasurely and full of sensible grief and love to the party of fear and Religion towards God that it is a singular raâ—â—ty among them to see any heart so hard as not to be mollified and yeeld before that stroke be given Excommunications are so strange in all the Reformed Churches that in a whole Province a man in all his life will scarceâ—e witnesse to one and among them who are cut off by that dreadful Sword very few do fall in the States hand to be troubled with any civil inconvenience By this kinde of Government other Reformed Churches with ease have kept themselves pure and clean of all our Heresies and Schisms not onely Scotland Switzerland and divers parts of Germany but France it self which to this day was never blessed with any assistance from the secular Arm by this spiritual and divine adminicle alone have kept themselves safe from the irruption of all erroneous Spirits I confesse that Holland hath been a cage to these unclean birds but the reason is evident the civil State there walking in the corrupt principles of carnal Policy which cannot be blessed with final successe doth imped the exercise of Church-Discipline in its most principal parts these last fourty yeers that Land hath not been permitted to enjoy more General Assemblies then one and how great Service that one did towards the purging of the much corrupted Church and calming the greatly disturbed State all their Friends in Europe did see and congratulate while their foes did grieve and envy it It is not prophecy but a rational prediction bottomed upon reasons and multiplied experience Let England once be countenanced by her superior powers to enjoy the just and necessary Liberty of Consistories for Congregations of Presbyteries for Counties of Synods for larger Shires and National Assemblies for the whole Land as Scotland hath long possessed these by the unanimous consent of King and Parliament without the least prejudice to the civil State but to the evident and confessed benefit thereof or as the very Protestants in France by the concession of a Popish State and King have enjoyed all these four spiritual Courts the last fourscore yeers and above Put these holy and divine Instruments in the hand of the Church of England by the blessing of God thereupon the sore and great evil of so many Heresies and Schisms shall quicly be cured which now not onely troubles the Peace and welfare but hazards the very subsistance both of Church and Kingdom without this mean the State will toile it self in vain about the cure of such spiritual diseases CHAP. I. The Original and Progresse of the BROWNISTS THe greatest without comparison and most admirable work which the hand of God hath brought to passe upon earth in these later Ages is the Reformation of Religion from Antichristian pollution and tyranny No other could have been expected from the Prince of Darknesse but extreme opposition to this so high a prejudice to his Kingdom Incredible is the help which this unclean spirit hath made to Antichrist his chief servant for the upholding of his tottering Throne How many Princes and States hath he stirred up to persecute with Fire and Sword to the cruellest deaths the innocent Witnesses of the Truth How many learned Divines hath he bewitched with his Enchantments to spend their spirits and time in maintaining by Word and Writings the grossest abominations of that Romish Idol But the chief Artifice whereby this crafty Serpent hath most impeded the progresse of the Gospel and kept the Triple-Crown upon the Popes head is his powerful working in the midst of the Children of Light So cunningly hath he insinuated himself into the counsels and actions not onely of the Children of this World but of the Sons of Sion themselves that by their hands more then any other he hath laid in the way of Christs running Chariot scandals insuperable impediments irremovable by any humane might till the Lord from heaven put them out of the way The Light of the Gospel broke out so clear the heat of Zeal the truely heroick and more then humane wisdom and courage of the first Reformers were so irresistable that all the power of Papal Princes and all the learning of their Clergie were not sufficient obstacles unto the Torrent of their spirit all these humane Bulwarks were overflowed with the Flood of the Gifts of Gods Spirit in his Servants The whole Kingdoms of England and Scotland Denmark and Sweden Ireland and Navar were subdued to the Scepter of Christ much of France and Pole the most of Germany both above and below the most of Hungary and Switze were pulled out of the Popes mouth Italy and Spain were entred and fair beginnings of a gracious day did appear to both But behold in the midst of our Conquests and Triumphs while all our enemies without were upon the point of fainting and despair the Dragon and his angels got entresse in the heads of our friends and by their hands drew us back from the pursuing of our foes who were ready to have given over and submitted but remarking our unexpected halt and turning from them one upon another they got a time to breathe and to gather such strength that ever since they have been the pursuers and as long ago they have regained much of their losse so doubtlesse had it not been for the invincible strength of our Captain before this day they had totally ruined us To passe a number of stratagems whereby Satan hath diverted Protestants from carrying on their work against the Popish party I touch but upon two a double erroneous Principle whereby he hath infatuated many a thousand of men otherwise not irrational nor ungracious and brought divers whole Churches to such perplexities and confusions that they lie to this day entangled unable to disengage themselves of those snares and fetters that as all piety and reason do command they may joyn cordially their whole strength with their Brethren against the common enemy In our flight from Rome he got some perswaded to stand too soon before they had past the Territories of the Whore and the Line of her Communication Others he wrought to the contrary perswasion he made them run on too long not onely to the utmost Line of Errour but also far beyond all the bounds both of Charity and Truth Hence our greatest Woes all our Discords and mutual Wounds have sprung from these two Fountains This is the true original of our diversion from following the enemy to attend the worst of Wars our Civil and Domestike Combats By a very evil advice Luther and his followers stuck at the later parts of Reformation they could not down with the whole Body and in this their sensible infirmity they became utterly impatient of all contradiction That Calvin and his Brethren should
they spoke in English Ibid. p. 52. They give liberty to their wits in their learning to deface strive and dispute against the holy known Truth of God tossing it as a Tenice Ball amongst them both publikely in their Schools and privately in their Colledges amongst them VVVVV Bar. Refut p. 124. I would not here that any should think we condemn any lawful Art or any necessary Science or any Holy Exercise or Schools of Institution Let their Arts and Sciences be necessary and Godly not vain curious unlawful Let them be taught not in a vain-glorious or superstitious manner but in all sobriety and the fear of God If their Vniversities were framed to these Rules it were good CHAP. III. The Original and Progresse of the Independents and of their Carriage in new-New-England THe Sect if so without offence it may be called which this day is the subject of the most discourse and the object of the greatest passions some pouring out upon it more of their love and hope others of their anger and fear then were convenient is that of Independency Of all the by-paths wherein the wanderers of our time are pleased to walk this is the most considerable not for the number but for the quality of the erring persons therein There be few of the noted Sects which are not a great deal more numerous but this Way what it wants in number supplies by the weight of its followers After five yeers endeavours and great industry within the Lines of the Cities Communication they are said as yet to consist much within One thousand persons men women and all who to this day have put themselves in any known Congregation of that way being reckoned But setting aside number for other respects they are of so eminent a condition that not any nor all the rest of the Sects are comparable to them for they have been so wise as to engage to their party some of chief note in both Houses of Parliament in the Assembly of Divines in the Army in the City and Countrey-Committees all whom they daily manage with such dexterity and diligence for the benefit of their Cause that the eyes of the world begin to fall upon them more then upon all their fellows It will be requisite therefore that with the greater care we give an account of them Of this our Account there shall be three parts The first An History of their Original and Progresse to that height wherein now they stand The second A Narrative of their Tenents The third A Conâ—tion of some of their prime Principles Concerning â—eir Original the Separatists were their Fathers This is demonstrable not onely by the Consanguinity of their Tenents the one having borrowed all their chief Doctrines and Practices from the other but also by deduction of their Pedigree in this clear line Master Robinson did derive his way to his separate Congregation at Leyden a part of them did carry it over to Plymouth in New-England here Master Cotton did take it up and transmit it from thence to Master Goodwin who did help to propagate it to sundry others in Old-England first and after to more in Holland till now by many hands it is sown thick in divers parts of this Kingdom But the manner how this seed did grow is not unworthy consideration When the Separatists for whole Fifty yeers had over-toil'd themselves for little purpose their horrible Divisions wheresoever they set up marring their encrease behold at the very point of time when their Spunk was dying and their little smoke both at Amsterdam and Leyden was well-neer vanished God in his secret providence permitted the tyranny of Bishops which first had begotten them to put new life in their ashes and bring them back from their grave to that vigour wherein now they appear After the death of Ainsworth the Brownists at Amsterdam came to a small unconsiderable handful and so yet they remain No other at that time in the whole world were known of that Religion but a small company at Leyden under Master Robinsons Ministery which partly by Divisions among themselves and partly by their Pastors deserting many of their Principles was well-neer brought to nought Onely about the Twenty eighth as I take it or the Thirtieth yeer of this Age some of them going over for a more commodious habitation to New-England did perswade their neighbours who sate down with them there at New-Plymouth to erect with them a Congregation after their separate way A This Congregation did incontinent leaven all the vicinity The Planters in new-New-England so far as their own informations give notice not minding Religion for many yeers after their first enterprise B were ready to receive without great question any pious form which might be presented by their neighbours whose minde served them to be active in such â—ers Also that way of new Plymouth beside the more then ordinary shew of devotion did hold out so much liberty and honour to the people that made it very suitable and lovely to a multitude who had lately stepped out of the Episcopal thraldom in England to the free air of a new world However it was without any noise in a few yeers the most who settled their habitations in that Land did agree to model themselves in Churches after Robinsons patern This for a time was either not known or not regarded in England The first who appeared in any displeasure at it was Mr. Cotton for this reverend man howsoever he had faln off from the practise of som but of som of the Ceremonies was distasted with Episcopal Government yet so long as he abode in England minded no more then the old non-conformity In all his opposition to the Episcopal corruptions he went not beyond Cartwright and the Presbyterians With the way of the Separatists he was then well acquainted but declared himself against it in print as in his Preface to Master Hildershams Sermons upon John may be seen to this day C Neither thus alone but a very little before his voyage to New-England so soon as he understood of the prevailing of Robinsons way there such was his zeal against it he wrote over to the Ministers who had been the chief instruments of bringing these Churches under that yoke admonishing them freely of their falling from their former judgement and that their new Reformation was no other but the old way wherein the Separatists had walked to the grief and offence of the Anti-Episcopal party in England and of the whole Protestant Churches D Notwithstanding this admonition the Brethren there went on in their way yet without any hazard to others till the 1634. as I take it or 1635. yeer of our Lord God when the yoke of Episcopal persecution in England became so heavy on the necks of the most of the godly that many thousands of them did flee away and Master Cotton among the rest to joyn themselves to these American Churches Here it was when
her grosse lying HHH The prophanenesse also of these persons is considerable their profession of piety being so fair that they avow their standing aloof from all the Reformed Churches as unclean because of their mixture with the prophane multitude Beside all that is said of their Heresies Schisms Contentions Contempt of Magistrates and Ministers all which are the prophane works of the flesh We read of further pollution breaking out among them as both Master Cotton and Master Wells do testifie III Out of the Governour Master Winthrops Narration I remark one abomination which to me seems strange That the Midwives to their most zealous women should not onely have familiarity with the divel but also in that very service should commit divellish Malefices which so far as they tell us were not onely past over without punishment but never so much as inquired after KKK All this and more we read of the Independents in New-England in one short Narration of two or three yeers accidents among them what if we had their full History from any faithful hand it seems that many more mysteries would be brought to light which now are hid in darknesse It is not our intention to bring any man to a prejudice or the least distast of the Grace and Gifts which God hath bestowed on Master Cotton or any other in new-New-England would to God that all our Questions with them were come to that issue they should finde us here as willing as their greatest admirers to prize to embrace and as our weaknesse will permit to imitate what ever good did shine in any of them But we have made these Observations from what themselves have written to bring if it be possible their own hearts or if this be desperate yet the mindes of others to a suspition of that their new and singular way which the Lord hath so manifestly cursed with bader fruits and greater store of them then ever yet did appear upon the Tree of Brownism which they do so much disgrace as an unlucky Plant notwithstanding all the Gifts and Graces wherewith Ainsworth Robinson and some others of its Branches have been adorned by God in as rich a measure as have been seen in any who to this day have ingrafted themselves into their new and bitter root of Independency The Testimonies A Master Cottons Letter to Skelton p. 3. Your other Errour that our Congregations in England are none of them particular Reformed Churches requireth rather a Book then a Letter to answer it You went hence of another judgement and I am afraid your change hath sprung from New-Plymouth men whom though I much esteem as godly loving Christians yet their Grounds which for this Tenent they received from Master Robinson do not satisfie me though the man I reverence as godly and learned Rathbones Narration p. 1. The Church at New-Plymouth was as I am informed one of the first Churches that was settled in New-England having been a part of Master Robinsons Church in Holland that famous Brownist from whence they brought with their Church Opinions and Practises and which they there still hold without any alteration so far as ever I could learn Master W. an eminent man of the Church at Plimouth told W. R. that the rest of the Churches of New-England came at first to them at Plimouth to crave their direction in Church courses and made them their patern B Vide Purchase Pilgrims in his discourses of America in divers Letters from New-England C Cottons Letter to the Reader before Hildershams Commentary upon John 1632. That one Letter of his to a Gentlewoman against the Separation which without his consent a Separatist Printed and Refuted hath so strongly and cleerly convinced the Iniquity of that way that I could not but acknowledge in it both the wisedom of God and the weaknesse of the Separatists His wisedom in bringing to light such a beam of his Truth by the hand of an adversary against the minde of the Author and the weaknesse of the other to advance the hand of this Adversary to give himself and his cause such a deadly wound in open view as neither himself nor all his associates can be able to heal in which respect I conceive it was that the industrious Doctor Willet stileth this our Author Schismaticorum qui vulgo Brownistae vocantur Malleus The Hammer of Schismaticks whom they commonly call Brownists D Vide supra A. E Edwards Antapology p. 17. Knowing something of the story of Master Goodwins first coming to fall off from the Ceremonies having seen and perused the Arguments that past betwixt him and Master Cotton and some others Master Goodwin assured me some moneths after his going off that he had nothing to say but against the Ceremonies the Liturgy offended him not much lesse dreamed he of this Church-way he since fell into F Cottons Letter from New-England to his friends at Boston October 5. 1635. Some other things there be which were I again with you I durst not take that liberty which some times I have taken I durst not joyn in your Book-Prayers G Ibidem I durst not now partake in the Sacraments with you though the Ceremonies were removed I know not how you can be excused from Fellowship of their sins if you continue in your place While you and some of my other friends continue with them I fear the rest will settle upon their Lees with more security The wise-hearted that left their Stations in Israel I doubt not were some of them if not all useful and serviceable men in their places yet they did themselves and their Brethren more good service in going before their Brethren as the Goats before the Flocks Jere. 50.8 then if they had tarried with them to the corrupting of their own wayes 2 Chro. 11.14 16. Antap. p. 32. After his going into New-England and falling into the Church-way there and sending over Letters into England about the new way presently after these Letters began the falling off and questioning Communion in our Churches H Antap. p. 32. One of you to wit Master Goodwin was so ingaged in his thoughts of one of the Ministers of New-England to wit Master Cotton by whom I am sure he was first taken off that he hath said there was not such another man in the world again Ibidem p. 22. One of you told some friends that he had found out a Form of Church-Government as far beyond Master Cartwrights as his was beyond that of the Bishops Master Williams Examination of Master Cottons Letter p. 47. Some of the most eminent amongst them have affirmed that even the Apostles Churches were not so pure as the new English Churches I Vide supra F. K Antap. p. 40. He hath had his Errours and I refer you for proof to his discourse about cleering the Doctrine of Reprobation See the Preface of Doctor Twisse his Answer L The short Story in the Preface par 10. What men they saw Eminent in the Countrey and of most
esteem in the hearts of the people they would be sure still to father their opinions upon them and say I hold nothing but what I had from such and such a man Ibid. p. 65. She pretended she was of Master Cottons judgement in all things M Williams Examination p. 12. Some few yeers since he was upon the point to separate from the Churches there as legal Ibidem p. 33. How could I possibly be ignorant as he seems to charge me of their estate when being from first to last in Fellowship with them an Officer amongst them had private and publike agitations concerning their estate with all or most of their Ministers N Short story Preface p. 7. By this time they had to patronise them some of the Magistrates and some men eminent for Religion Parts and Wit Ibidem p. 25. Master Wheelwright had taught them that the former Governour and some of the Magistrates then were friends of Christ and Free-grace but the present were enemies The former Governour never stirred out but attended by the Serjeants with Halberts or Carrabines but the present Governour was neglected Ibid. p. 35. After that she had drawn some of eminent place and parts to her party whereof some profited so well as in a few moneths they out-went their Teacher Ibidem p. 33. Vpon the countenance which it took from some eminent persons her opinions began to hold up their heads in the Court of Justice N 2. Ibidem p. 32. It was a wonder upon what a sudden the whole Church of Boston some few excepted were become her new converts and infected with her opinions Ibid. Preface p. 7. In the Church of Boston most of these Seducers lived Ibid. p. 36. The Court laid to her charge the reproach she had cast upon the Ministery in this Countrey saying That none of them did preach the Covenant of Free-grace but Master Cotton She told them that there was a wide difference between Master Cottons Ministery and theirs and that they could not hold forth a Covenant of Free-grace because they had not the Seal of the Spirit Ibidem p. 50. All the Ministers consented to this except their Brother the Teacher of Boston Ibid. p. 52. Master Wheelwright being present spoke nothing though he well discerned that the judgement of the most of the Magistrates and near all the Ministers closed with the affirmative Ibidem p. 21. Albeit the Assembly of the Churches had confuted and condemned most of these new opinions and Master Cotton had in publike view consented with the rest yet the Leaders in these Erroneous wayes stood still to maintain their new Light Master Wheelwright also continued his preaching after his former manner and Mistresse Hutchinson her wonted meetings and exercises and much offence was still given by her and others in going out of the ordinary Assemblies When Mr. Wilson the Pastor of Boston began any exercise it was conceived by the Magistrate that the case was now desperate and it was determined to suppresse them by Civil Authority O Apologetical Narration p. 5. We had likewise the fatal miscarriages and shipwracks of the Separation whom you call Brownists as Land-marks to forewarn us of these Rocks and Shelves they run upon Cottons Letter to Williams pag. 12. I said that God had not prospered the way of Separation because he hath not blessed it either with peace among themselves or with growth of grace The Lord Jesus never delivered that way of Separation to which they bear witnesse nor any of his Apostles after him nor of his Prophets before him We do not come forth to help them against Jehovah this were not to help Jehovah but Satan against him We cannot pray in Faith for a blessing upon their Separation which we see not to be of God nor to lead to him It is little comfort to the true Servants of Christ that such inventions of men are multiplied P Answer to the thirty two Questions p. 7. Whether is the greater number these that are admitted to Church-Communion or these that are not we cannot certainly tell Q 1. Plain dealing p. 73. Here such confessions and professions are required both in private and publike both by men and women before they be admitted that three parts of the people of the Countrey remain out of the Church so that in short time most of the people will remain unbaptised Q 2. Williams of the name Heathen p. 6. Nations protesting against the Beast no Papists but Protestants may we say of them that they or any of them may be called in true Scripture sence Heathens that is the Nations or Gentiles in opposition to the people of God which is the onely Holy Nation Such a departure from the Beast in a false constitution of National Churches if the bodies of Protestant Nations remain in an unregenerate estate Christ hath said they are but as Heathens and Publicans Q 3. Plain dealing p. 21. There hath not been any sent forth by any Church to learn the Natives language or to instruct them in our Religion first because they say they have not to do with them being without except they come to hear and learn English R Williams of the name Heathen p. 10. For our new-New-England parts I can speak it confidently I know it to have been easie for my self long ere this to have brought many thousands of these Natives yea the whole Countrey to a far greater Antichristian conversion then ever was heard of in America I could have brought the whole Countrey to have observed one day in seven I adde to have received Baptism to have come to a stated Church meeting to have maintained Priests and Forms of Prayer and a whole form of Antichristian worship in life and death S Ibid. p. 11. Wo be to me if I call that conversion to God which is indeed the subversion of the souls of millons in Christendom from one false worship to another Williams Key unto the language of America p. 9. To which I could easily have brought the Countrey but that I was perswaded and am that Gods way is first to turn a soul from its idols both of heart worship and conversation before it is capable of worship to the true God T Short story p. 32. Many good souls were brought to waite for this immediate revelation then sprung up also that opinion of the indwelling of the person of the Holy Ghost Ibidem Preface p. 13. That their own revelations of particular events were as infallible as the Scripture V Short story Preface pag. 2. Sin in a childe of God must never trouble him Trouble in conscience for sins of Commission or for neglect of duties sheweth a man to be under a Covenant of Works X Short story Preface p. 2. A Christian is not bound to the Law as the rule of his conversation Y Ibid. p. 3. No Christian must be pressed to duties of Holinesse Z Short story Preface p. 13. Their Leaders fell into more hideous delusions as that the souls of
any thing as they were forced to go home others had their children taken with Convulsions which they had not before nor since and so were sent for home So that none were left at the birth but the Midwife and two other whereof one fell asleep at such time as the childe died which was about two hours before the birth The Bed wherein the mother lay shook so violently that all who were in the Room perceived it KKK 2. Ibid. p. 63 64. Then Master Cotton told the Assembly That whereas she had been formerly dealt with for matter of Doctrine he had according to the duty of his place being the Teacher of the Church proceeded against her unto admonition But now the case bring altered and she being questioned for maintaining of untruth which is matter of Manners he must leave the businesse to the Pastor Master Wilson to go on with her but withal declared his judgement in the case from that in the Revelation ch 22. That such as make and maintain a lie ought to be cast out of the Church and whereas two or three pleaded that she might first have a second Admonition according to that in Titus 3.10 He answered That that was onely for such as erred in point of Doctrine but such as shall notoriously offend in matter of conversation ought to be presently cast out as he proved by Ananias and Saphira and the incestuous Corinthian Ibid. p. 65. It was observed that she should now come under Admonition for many foul and fundamental Errours and after he cast out for notorious lying CHAP. IV. The Carriage of the Independents in Holland at Roterdam and Arnhem THe fruits of this way in Holland are not much sweeter then these we have tasted in New-England All the time of their abode there they were not able to conquer to their party more then two Congregations and these but very small ones of the English onely For to this day I have not heard of any one man of the Dutch French Scottish or any other Reformed Church who have become a Member of any Independent Congregation Their first Church in Holland was that of Roterdam which Master Peters A not the most settled head in the World did draw from its ancient Presbyterial Constitution to that new frame which it seemeth he also learned by Master Cottons Letters from new-New-England This Church became no sooner Independent then it run into the way of such shameful Divisions as their Mother at Amsterdam had gone before them Their Pastor Master Peters was soon weary of them or they of him for what causes themselves best know but sure it is he quickly left them and went for New-England The Church was not long destitute of Pastors for about that time Master Ward and Master Bridge came over to them from Norwich where they ever had lived fully conform without any contradiction either to Episcopacy or Ceremonies onely they withstood Bishop Wrens last Innovations B So soon as they came to Roterdam without any long time of adveisement they conformed themselves to the Discipline which Master Peters had planted C They renounced their English Ordination and Ministerial Office joyning themselves as meer private men to that Congregation which afterward did choose and ordain both of them to be their Ministers D It was not long before Master Simpson also came hither from London and renouncing also his Ordination E joyned himself as a private member with them Then did the Spirit of Division begin to work among them and so far to prevail that Master Simpson malecontent with Master Bridge for hindering the private members of the flock to prophesie after the Brownists way did separate himself and erect a new Congregation of his own F Betwixt these two Churches the contentions and slanders became no lesse grievous then those of Amsterdam betwixt Ainsworth and Johnsons followers and in this much worse that they of Roterdam abode not at one Schism but after Master Simpsons separation broke out again into another subdivision Master Bridges Congregation was so filled with strife so shameful slanders were laid upon his own back that displeasure did hasten the death of his wife G and did well neer kill himself making him oft professe his repentance that ever he entred into that society H As for Master Ward his Ministery became so unsavoury to that people that they did never rest till judicially by their own Authority alone for Presbytery they had none and Master Bridge did dissent from that act of unjust oppression they had deposed Master Ward from his pastoral charge I This act was much stumbled at by divers who were fully perswaded of Master Wards integrity and at last by the intercession of some from the Church of Arnhem he was restored to his place but the ground of the controversie was no wayes touched For when the four Commissioners from Arnhem Master Goodwin Master Nye Master Laurence and another had met in a Chamber of a private house in Roterdam with some Members of that faulty Congregation K and so made up their famous Assembly which the Apologists are pleased to equal if not to prefer to all the Assemblies they ever had seen L Whether that National Synod wherein Master Nye had seen the flowre of the Scottish Nation enter into the Covenant with very great devotion Or this great Assembly at Westminster where he and his Brethren oft have seen sitting the Prince Elector the most Noble Members of both Houses of Parliament the prime Divines of all England the Commissioners of the Church of Scotland That Assembly I say of Roterdam did not so much as touch the main question they drew a thin skin over the wound but durst not assay to lance it to the bottom For did they ever rebuke or so much as once speak to the people of that Congregation for usurping a Tyrannicall Authority to depose their Pastor Did they tell Master Ward of his siding with Master Simpson against Master Bridge in the matter of Prophesie did they ever attempt to cognosce on the great scandal the ground of all the rest Master Simpsons Separation did they make any hearty and solid reconciliation betwixt Master Ward and the Church It seems the Assembly was wiser then to meddle with evils which they found much above their strength to remedy Master Ward found himself after his restitution in so pittiful a condition with his new friends that he left their Company M The two Churches were irreconcileable till both Master Bridge and Mr. Simpson had removed their Stations to England and even then the concord could not be obtained till the Dutch Magistrate had interposed his authority N Neither by this means could Master Simpsons Church be perswaded to return to Master Bridges till for their meer pleasure they got that Congregation to remove one of their prime members without the alleadging of any cause but their own peremptory will and satisfaction O When by so much
not Heaven It s most probable that Christs soul never went into the highest Heavens till his Body went also Ibid. None but Christ and so none before Christ ever entered the highest Heavens The way to Heaven was never opened till Christ the high Priest entered Body and Soul into it The highest Heavens never had but one man into them namely Christ nor shall have till the worlds end Ibid. p. 25. If you ask where this place of Paradise is I answer It must be below the highest Heavens therefore surely it is in the Region or Element of fire where the Sun and Stars are or in the highest Region of the Ayr. SS 5. Archers personal raign p. 35. At the day of judgement the wicked shall be sent with the Devil unto Hell which Hell shall not be that which is now called Hell but another for the Hell that now is is but a prison and not the place of execution At the last day this Hell that now is shall cease This Hell which is at present to be sure is in some of the places of the Air or the Waters and not in the Earth But the Hell which shall be the everlasting torment of all the damned shall be all this lower and visible World All the places of the Earth Water Air Sun Moon Stars and the Fire called the Heavens and the Earth The things which God immediately made out of nothing shall never change As the highest Heavens and the Angels in them and the souls of men and this Chaos called the Earth but all other things being made out of something even out of this Earth or Chaos they shall after a time change and so all this World shall come to an Earth or Chaos again God in time did make two places Heaven and Earth immediately out of nothing to be eternal places the one of Joy the other of Torment Thus you see when Hell was made but it was quickly covered and shall not be uncovered till Christ do it at the last day TT Antap. p. 36. The Gentleman censured brings an accusation against Master Nye charging him with Pride want of Charity c. And this being brought before the Church continued in debate about half a yeer three or four days in a week and sometimes more before all the Congregation divers of the Members having callings to follow they desired leave to be absent Master Goodwin oft professed publikely upon these differences If this were their Church-fellowship he would lay down his Eldership and nothing was more commonly spoke among the Members then that certainly for matter of Discipline they were not in the right way for that there was no way to bring things to an end VV Vide supra TT CHAP. V. The Carriage of the Independents at London YOu have gotten a taste of the Fruits of this Tree as it grows in New-England and Holland When it is transplanted to Old-England consider if the Grapes of it be any thing sweeter These Five last yeers the chief of that party both from Arnhem Roterdam and New-England have kept their residence at London to advance by common counsels and industry their Way in these days of their hopes A full account of their courses in that place cannot be expected so long as many passages concerning them lie in the dark and the end is not yet come But three things seem to be clear which make their Way at London no more lovely then in the places mentioned First they have been here exceeding unhappie in retarding and to their power crossing the blessed Reformation in hand Secondly they have pregnantly occasioned the multiplication of Heresies and Schisms above all that ever was heard of in any one place in any former Age. Thirdly they have occasioned such Divisions in the State that had it not been for the extraordinary mercies of God the Parliament and all that follow them had long ago been laid under the feet of their enraged enemies and the whole Isle long before this totally ruined As for the first The Reformation of Religion so much wished for by all the godly for so many yeers all know it could never have been attained without the help of an Assembly of Divines Who opposeth the necessary Mean cannot be taken for a friend of the End The Assembly the necessary means of Reformation was for a very long time hindred by the diligence of the Independent party to be called A and when to their evident grief and discontent the Parliament had voted its calling they may remember their extraordinary industry to get it modelled according to their Principles both in its members and power B to have it an elective Synod onely for advice to consist of so many of themselves and of their favourers as was possible not any known Divine of any parts in all England of their opinion being omitted How cautious they were by great slight of hand to keep off so many of the old Puritan Unconformists and how much more enclinable towards men of Episcopal and Liturgick principles themselves do know This their underhand-working before the sitting of the Assembly was seen but by few but so soon as the Synod did sit it did then appear to the whole Company who were the men who made it their work and greatest studie to keep off by their endlesse Janglings the Assembly from concluding any thing that might settle the distracted Church C so that to this day after two yeers time and above in more frequent and learned Sessions then every we read of in any Assembly since the world began D There is nothing at all set up for the comfort of the afflicted Kingdom Their aversenesse to the Assembly doth appear not onely in their opposition to its calling in their retarding of its proceedings but in their pressing of its dissolution I do not speak of the huge Contumelies which some of their party have poured out upon the face of that most Reverend Meeting in a number of very wicked Pamphlets which to this day were never so much as censured though the Authors by name and sirname are complained of in Print But that which I speak of is the expresse Article of the Independent Petition desiring the Parliament in formal terms according to Master Peters dictates to dissolve the Assembly D 2. Had either the Popish faction or the Episcopal party or the malignant Courtiers procured the continuance of our woful Anarchie our anger would have been greater then our grief or shame But when the mercies of God now for some yeers have removed the Papists Prelats and Courtiers so far from us that by word or deed they have not hindred us in the least measure to heal the diseases of our Church at our pleasure that her wounds to this day should be multiplied and all kept open to drop out her best blood alone through the obstinacy of our Brethren though we compresse our indignation yet we cannot but be oppressed with a great measure of
grief nor can we chuse but to be covered with confusion and shame when we are forced to taste the most bitter fruits of our Brethrens principles though denied by them in words yet ingenuously avowed by their friends in Amsterdam and constantly practised in New-England to the uttermost of their power E 1. they must oppose the building of a Church any where in the world if it be not after their patern That as in New-England no Presbyterial Church on any condition may be tolerated so in Old-England no Presbyterial Church must ever be erected if all their skill and industry can hinder it Such a Reformation though expresly according to the National Covenant to them is a deformation which they cannot wish much lesse pray for or endeavour but with all their strength must crosse it as a corruption unsufferable where they have power It s plain and demonstrable that their Principles and Way have forced them to oppose the Reformation in hand and will ever force them so to do till they lay new grounds and be changed in the sence of their erroneous minde However the actions of our Brethren did proclame loud enough their intentions to delay so long as they were able the setting up of any Government yet when this evil is become so grosse and palpable that all in words do disclaim it and they who most do procure it do most in shew abominate it it seems a little strange that some of their Divines are now begun in Print expresly to own it and in Print to perswade the delay of this work E 2. It must be a heavie guiltinesse to be a powerful instrument of keeping two so great Kingdoms as England and Ireland without the Fold and Hedge of all Ecclesiastike Discipline for divers yeers together especially in the time of a devouring War How many thousand souls have perished by this means in their ignorance and profanesse who in a wel-governed Church might have been reclaimed Unto this great misery another great unhappinesse addeth much weight Beside their marring of the begun-Reformation they have occasioned the perishing of some millions of poor souls by the unheard-of multiplication of Heresies and Schisms F I believe no place in the world for this mischief is now parallel to London Amsterdam long ago is justified that City hath transmitted hither the infamy of her various Sects Now upon whom shall this blame be fastne◠〈◊〉 It is well known that the Sects at the time of the Independents return hither were inconsiderable in regard of that which now they are by their means It was their work to bring people into distaste with the way of all the Reformed Churches this by their labours was made vile in the eyes of the multitude and people once having leaped over that wall within the which all the Protestant Churches have dwelt in safety by all the skill of their first misleaders could not be holden from running farther away as in New-England Independency was a mother to Anabaptism Antinomianism Familism and many more Heresies We need not wonder to see it any where bring forth the like Brood But hereof indeed do we wonder that in so short a time this Way should change as it were its nature so farre to the worse In Holland and New-England Independency so soon as it had found and discerned the young brats of Anabaptists Antinomians or Familists in her bosom it was her custom incontinently to fling them away as Bastards But Independency at London hath learned not onely to beget but to cherish such children when they are brought forth Not onely the Churches of New-England but the very Amsterdam-Brownists have ever been zealous to cast out of their Society the Heretikes and Schismatickes we speak of but here in London it is far otherwise We have heard that many of the Independents here so soon as they have fallen into Anabaptism or other Errours of the time have quickly of their own accord run away and separated from the Independent Congregations as polluted as false as no Churches But that ever any of the London-Independents did cast out of their Churches any man or woman for Anabaptism Antinomianism or any other Errour we never heard By the contrary Independency here is become an uniting Principle it hath kept our Brethren in the midst of all their bitter Jarrs with the Reformed Churches abroad and the Presbyterians at home in a great entirenesse and familiarity with all the Sectaries that pleased to draw neer them They have by their debates and dissents laboured to hinder the Assembly from giving the least advice to the Parliament to take any order with the most absurd of the Sectaries when complained upon for their greatest Enormities yea they have preached and printed divers Tractates for a full liberty to all Sects G That so soon they should have run thus far out we could never have believed if our own eyes and ears had not been our perswaders As for the third Apple we observed on their Tree The endangering of the State it is no lesse visible then any of the former If there were no more but the keeping of the Church-wounds so long open the health yea the life of the State might justly be feared from this ground alone by all who know the sympathy of these Twins and the inseparable interest of these two much-united Companions But beside the keeping of the Church unsetled the growth of Schisms how pregnant a cause it is of a States ruine we need no other witnesse then the declaration of their Brethren in New-England H We are made here to believe that the Anabaptists and the Antinomians are so tame and harmlesse creatures that there is no danger of any violence from their innocent hands If it be so the General Court at New-Boston hath been extremely unjust who professed their wel-grounded apprehension of a total subversion not onely of all their Churches but of their Civil State also from a far lesse number of these Sectaries then are here among us and avowed to the world their necessity to banish out of that Countrey the leaders of that dangerous Faction whether men or women whether Church or States-men and to disarm many of their followers upon much much smaller provocations and lighter grounds of suspition then by the words and deeds of their kinsfolks have been offered lately unto this State I What more might be said of the London-Independents practices upon the State readily may come to the world ere long by a much better Pen. I for causes at this time abstain totally from writing on this subject The Testimonies A Antap. p. 51. I believe upon good grounds and so do many more you never took any great content or joy in the thoughts of the Assembly but have done your utmost to delay it and to put it by God knows your hearts and men some of your speeches about the meeting of this Assembly But seeing it could not be helped and that you could
Kingdom besides in all the Armies And they were all resolved to have the Liberty of their Consciences or else they would make use of their Swords which they have already in their hands Ibid. p. 68. I know not any Independent in England except one man and his wife that do not as maliciously and implacably hate the Presbyterians as the mortallest enemy they have in the world CHAP. VI. An Enumeration of the common Tenets of the Independents IT is not easie to set down with assurance the Independents positions both because they have to this day declined to declare positively their minds as also because of their principle of mutability whereby they professe their readinesse to change any of their present Tenets How unwilling they are to declare their mind may appeare by their obstinate silence and refusing to answer any of these Books that put them most to it also by hiding of their opinions from their brethren who most earnestly have prest their Declaration These divers yeares the Ministers of London have been dealing with them for satisfaction herein and once by importunity obtained a promise under their hand of a full and free Declaration but these foure yeares they have eluded that promise a Mr. Apollonius in name of all the Churches of Zealand with all earnestnesse did intreat this duty of them b but all in vaine When upon any occasion they have been moved to make any kind of Narration of their way it was ever with an expresse proviso of their resolution to keep up as yet from the World their positive Tenets so they conclude their Apologetick c so they begin their Keyes d And now when the indignation both of the Assembly and Parliament and of many more was likely to break out upon them for this that after so long time no plaine dealing hath been seen in them at last they have engaged themselves to declare their minds and yet since that their publike engagement there are six Months past and the Worlds expectation of understanding at last their mind is still suspended And though that their Declaration should come out to morrow yet with what assurance can we take any thing therein for their constant and settled Tenet so long as they professe it to be one of their cheife principles to be so loose and irresolute in any thing they maintaine for the time that they are ready to leave it and upon occasion to embrace the contrary e So long as this skeptick irresolution is avowed there is no hope there is no possibility of any fixed constancy These things considered no man is able to set down their full mind nor any one of their positions whereto any dare assure they will firmely stand only the chiefe of their singularities which they have been pleased to let come abroad and have not to our knowledge as yet revoked we shall set down as they come to our thoughts It hath been hitherto their earnest desire to decline the infamy of Brownisme and it was the charity of their Brethren to distinguish them from that Sect under the new name of Independents importing their chiefe difference from us to stand not in the point of separation which is our proper quarrell with the Brownists but alone in the point of Church-Government which against all the Reformed Churches they maâ—ntaine to be Independent that is not subject to the Authority and Jurisdiction of any Superiour Synod This was thought to be their proper distinctive and characteristicall Tenet till of late we finde them passionately reject the name of Independents and tell us that the dependency or independency of their Congregations will bee found one of their least differences and smallest controversies In this our long mistake we are content to be rectified albeit our charity should not be reproved who being ignorant of their willingnesse to differ from us in any thing higher or deeper then the Dependency of Congregations upon the Authority of Superiour Assemblies did put upon them no other name then that which implyed this difference alone It seemes that this Title is not only the most reasonable but the most innocent and inoffensive note of distinction which themselves could have chosen The terme not being invented by any of their ill-willers but by their own cheife Leaders f who did think that word most proper to notifie their Tenet of Government and since some name must be given to every eminently differing party it seemes none lesse irritative could bee fallen upon then that which most properly did signifie the chiefe matter in Controversie But now finding they avow their chiefe differences to lie elsewhere for my part I could yeeld to them to have the name of Independents buried did I not feare it behoved to be changed with another Title which would much more displease For since they are gone beyond the question of Independent Government and now doe question the constitution of our Churches so farre as puts them on a necessity of Separation and in this doe place the chiefe of their Controversies with us If a Sect may be denominated either from the Author or principall matter as they make no bones to Print us Calvinians g and Presbyterians h I cannot conceive why they ought not to take it in good part if when the name of Independents is laid by they have in place of it the Title of Brownists and Separatists fastned upon them Of their owne accord they take upon them openly the halfe of the thing we alledge professing themselves to lie halfeway off us towards Brownisme i avowing the truth to consist in this their middle way But whosoever considers better of the matter will find that however in some things they incline to a middle way yet in the chiefe and most they come up close to the outmost line of Brownisme and in many things doe expatiate so much beyond it that in place of the Semi-Separation they mention they may be justly argued to have drawn upon themselves the blot of Seâ—qui-Separation and more also how true this is it will appeare to any who will be pleased to make a paralell of the forementioned Tenets of the Brownists with these of the Independents which here are subjoyned First the worst and uttermost Tenet of the Brownists for which they cook to themselves and had bestowed upon them by others the stile of Separatists was their doctrine and practise accordingly to Separate from the Churches of England In this the Independents goe beyond them For beside that the practice of both is the same both actually Separating from all the Congregations of England the grounds of the Brownists Separation were a great deale more reasonable then that of the Independents albeit neither of them be good and sufficient For the Brownists did build their Separation on the Tyranny of Bishops on the Superstition of the Ceremonies and Service-Book on the grosse avowed and neglected profanenesse of the most in every Congregation if
common in their members are of easy disgestion dd Concerning the other part of the Church essence its forme their Covenant in this the Disciples go much above their Master Mr Cotton hath perfected by an expresse Treatise this part of Brownism ee as many others The Covenants of New â—ngland are much straiter then any that ever we heard of at Amsterdam It is true that of late both in Old and New England the Independents seem much to modify the rigour of their Covenant ff but whatever may be said of their profession I never could learne of their practice to admit any into their society who gave not full assurance of embracing their whole way and all their differences from the Reformed Churches Sure I am they did never admit any upon easier tearms then lately I my self did hear Mr Can admit a member into his Church at Amsterdam yet if Mr Prynnes information be well grounded they are become at London more rigid in their Covenant then ever he tells us that now it is their custome to make it a part of their Oath to oppugne the Government of the Reformed Churches and to defend Independency with armes and violence ff 2. Unto the constitution we may referre the efficient of a Church and the number of its members in both the Schollars follow punctually their Masters As for the efficient it is not only the Brownists but the Independents also who put the power of gathering Churches and joyning together by Covenant in a Church way in the hand of private Christians alone without any Officer or the authority of any Magistrate It is presumption in any Minister if he assay to make up a Church only people must associate themselves into a Church and then create their Ministers and other Officers gg In New England at the erection of a new Church they are content with the presence both of the Magistrate and Ministers of the neighbour Churches but they declare that neither is necessary and that the presence of either gives no authority to the action and the absence of both detracts no authority from it hh That the whole power to gather a Congregation and to erect a Church is alone in the covenanting persons ii As for the number of the members the Independents go as low as the Brownists avowing that seven persons make a full ministeriall and compleatly organized Church kk nor do they extend the number any farther then the Brownists avowing that no Church except the universall may have any more members then conveniently can meet and be accommodated in one place for the exercise of all holy duties ll not only preaching of the Word whereat thousands may be present but celebration of the Sacraments and administring all parts of Discipline to which acts a few hundreds cannot commodiously meet The Independents minde about the gathering and erecting of Congregations may be clearly perceived by their late practice in the Sommer Islands wherein they are applauded by the Churches of New England and defended by Master White against Master Prynnes Fresh Discovery with a great deale of confidence and high language there hee justifies the necessity of the dissolution of all the Churches in the Barmudaes which yet he professes were among the best of all the English Plantations there were above 3000 people in the Isle who had lived without all controversie with any of their Ministers from their first planting till the yeare 1641 when their Ministers perswaded by some writs of the Brethren of New England found it necessary to lay down their charges and become meere private men denying to administer to their old flocks any Ordinance till three of them entring in a Covenant and thereby becomming a new Church did perswade of the 3000 Islanders some thirty or forty at most to joyn with them in their new Church Covenant these covenanted persons did chuse one of their old Ministers for their Pastor and two others of them for Ruling Elders who as gifted men were content to joyne with the Pastor in preaching not only to the Church members but to the whole Isle to fit them to be Church members but all the three refused absolutely to celebrate any Sacrament or administer any Discipline or do any act of a Pastor to any but to the forty named only All this Mr White maintains as just and necessary and petitions the Parliament in print for their countenance and approbation whereby it seems it is the Independents avowed and cleare intention when they have power to dissolve and annull all the Churches of England yea of the world to spoile all Ministers living of their pastorall charge and all people of all Church priviledges and to erect new Churches of their own framing into which they are to admit at most not one of an hundred of those who now do count themselves Christians all this you may see at length in Mr Whites very peremptory Reply to Mr Prynnes Fresh Discovery Leaving the constitution their chiefe Tenets concerne the power of the Congregation so constitute as is said in this they come up fully to their Masters side for they give unto their Church that is their seven covenanted persons the whole Ecclesiastick power and that independently upon any person under heaven First they put it in their hands to create all the Officers they not only give them suffrages in their election mm but the whole power of Ordination also nn the examination of their Pastor in all the abilities requisite for his charge oo the laying all the parts of his Office upon him publique prayer imposition of hands and what other acts are requisite for a regular Ordination are all performed by one of the people whom the rest have appointed for that end pp As they have power to make all their Officers so they have power to unmake them to depose and excommunicate all their Ministers qq to cognosce and finally to determine without any appeal in all cases both in life and doctrine of all Heresies and Scismes of all Truths and Errours to order all things belonging to the worship of God and to do all things else rr which other Churches ascribe to the most Generall Assemblies of the most learned Divines Upon this passage of Power come in the differences which divided the Brownists among themselves whilst Iohnson would give all these acts of power to the Eldership and Ainsworth would keep them for the Congregation these same questions vex the Independents to this day and are likely to divide the Children as they did the Fathers The most of the New English Divines with Ainsworth attribute the whole Ecclesiastick power to the body of the people unto the Eldership they give the preparation of affaires ss but the judgement and determination of all doth passe by the plurality of the peoples voices tt the power of the keyes they put in the hand not of the Presbytery but of the fraternity ww as they speak And in some
relinquish these darlings which they have resolved to keep still in their bosome The fatuity of this Tenet they use to season with the graines of three more sapid positions First they grant the being of Classicall Psesbyteries and Synods sss Secondly they ascribe to them the censure of Non-Communion ttt Thirdly they allow the Magistrate to correct Hereticall and Shismaticall persons www But if they will consider they shall finde that in none of those positions they goe beyond the Brownists and by them all they doe not any whit cure the disease of Independency For the first they admit not of any Classicall Presbytery differing from a Synod for what ever they speak of their granting gladly unto us all the degrees and Subordinations of Assemblies which we could wish yet betwixt a Congregationall Eldership and a Synod they grant not any interposition of a Classis or compounded Presbytery over more Congregations then one xxx which kinde of Presbytery the Reformed Churches make the first and ordinary subject of Ordination and of sundry acts of Jurisdiction esteeming it a Iudicatory specifically different both from the inferiour Eldership of a single Congregation and the Superiour Synod whither of a Shire or a Province or a Nation or of more or of all Nations Besides that Synod whereof they approve is only a Brownisticall one such as needeth not to be moderated by any Preacher yyy at the which any man who pleaseth may be present to debate and vote decisively zzz Yea they goe here much beyond the Brownists and their Brethren of New-England also for they deny that the 15 of the Acts is either a pattern or ground for any Synod aaaa expresly contrary to Mr Cottons latest Doctrine neither will they have any ordinary or set Synods but only occasionall and when the occasion of a Synod commeth they will have it to be meerely elective bbbb 1. consisting of such persons alone as themselves please to chuse not only of the Churches of their own Independent way alone but also of such only among these as themselves think meet to pitch upon bbbb 2 if a Classis or Synod bee of any other temper they count it so corrupt and so tyrannicall a Court that they could not countenance it with their presence yea not so much as they would doe an Episcopall Sea cccc the one being much worse then the other that the Brownists Independency went ever thus farre I doe not know As for their sentence of Non-Communion it is one of Mr Cottons new additions to old Brownisme dddd which it seemes rather to embitter then sweeten for it is a meer humane invention to supply the ordinances of God which men injuriously have cast away when they have denied to Synods the power of these censures which God hath appointed and finde themselves straightned by the absolute necessity of the matter to take up againe either them or their equivalent they will not be so changeable as to resume the censures whereof God is the Author having once cast them away but in their place they are forced to finde out some of their own these their new declarations and abstentions from fellowship and such like new censures of their owne But which is worst of all these their new censures if there be any force in them advance their Independency to the highest degree of power or rather lift it up highly in the aire and by a repugnancy and contradiction make it evaporate to nothing for this Non-Communion giveth power to every one even the smallest Congregation over all the Churches in the World it pleaseth to deale with so farre as to admonish rebuke declare against them all and cast them all out of her Communion eeee The Reformed Churches contend only for a power to a great Assembly for censuring a faulty member of a small Congregation but this Non-Communion gives to the smallest Congregation of any seven persons the power of sentencing the whole Churches and all the Assemblies in the World Howbeit this Non-Communion seemes to be contradictory and destructive of that Independency which it was invented to salve For if every Congregation bee Independent how shall all Congregations be so dependent upon every one that any the least may inflict this high censure upon the greatest yea upon all Beside this Non-Communion is nothing but the highest straine of separation that ever any Brownist aimed at it giveth a power for any Church to deny Communion to all Churches and to live separate without all Communion with any Church for ever This produceth an other power of a farther separation to wit a power to every member of that separate Church upon any grievance not satisfied to separate himselfe and either live there alone as many do or to gather a new Church of any whom they finde willing to associate with them these things are brought not so much for reasons to evert the positions in hand as to shew how unfit limitations they are of the extravagancy which appeareth in Independency and how much they runne out beyond the bounds which they pretend to hem in As for their third Tenet of the Magistrates concurrence to second their sentence of Non-Cummunion besides that the Brownists goe as farre as ever any of them did in this ffff we see now that the chiefe of them have recalled the Tenet though all the Protestant Churches and none more then they of New-England doe maintaine the Magâ—strates power to suppresse errours yet this unhappy love towards liberty whereinto the Independent party here among us have lately fallen makes them to entreat the Magistrate to let alone the affaires of Religion though they runne into all the confusion whither Satan and his Instruments are able to carry them gggg If the Magistrates feare of God doth stop his eare to such impious petitions then they flee up very high even to the deniall and decrying of all the Magistrates power in matters of Religion hhhh which yet the Papists in England and the Arminians in Holland who have been the greatest pleaders hitherto for liberty were never bold to impugne but of this more hereafter I hope I have demonstrated that in the point of Separation and of the constitution and government of the Church the great and only intended Articles of the Brownists our brethren the Independents come nothing behind them Sure in these their conceits they applaud themselves no lesse then the former they put in these things the very Kingdome of Christ all their opposites in these fancies they make them enemies to Christs Kingdome iiii they avow Independency to be a beginning and a part of that glorious Kingdome which Christ for a thousand yeares is to enjoy upon earth kkkk Concerning the worship of God and other heads of Divinity whatever crotchets the Brownists have fallen into the Independents punctually doe follow the most and worst of them and if in any they come short they are sure to exceed in other
eeeee but the greatest difference is that the Independents of Arnheim did stop the mouthes of all but one who did sing the Hymne which himselfe had composed in the midst of the Congregation for their edification fffff In Prayer they fall short of their masters for however they use no set Prayer yet they are so farre from esteeming of it Idolatry that they professe both set and read Prayer to be lawfull ggggg The Lords Prayer they commend to be said even in publike and they permit private men to read prayer in their families hhhhh in this they have Mr Robinson for their guide yet at London their pactice is constantly to forget the Lords Prayer In the Sacrament of Baptism the Independents lay a path-way to Anabaptism for first they come close up to the most rigid Brownists denying Baptism to the most part of Christian Infants yea they will grant it to a very few to these alone whose immediate parents are members of their Congregation iiiii who are a wonderfull poor handfull all other Infants they will have unbaptized till they come to the yeares of understanding and declare not only their actuall faith and holinesse but their subjection to the Kingdom of Christ that is to their Independency they will have no stipulation made for the Infants education they dispute much for dipping though they deny not the lawfulnesse of sprinkling kkkkk But that which maketh men most afraid for their Anabaptism is their open deserting all the Reformed Churches and the Brownists themselves in three grounds First they deny the federall holinesse of Christian children against this Tho. Goodwin did preach and deny openly that common distinction of Protestants of reall and federall holinesse requiring in every Infant to be baptized a reall and inherent sanctity If this ground be maintained I see not how Anabaptism or else Arminianism will be avoyded for if this reall holinesse above foederall be the great ground of Baptism and this cannot be asserted in the judgement of verity of any Infant for whatever we say of the judgement of charity yet in the judgement of truth and with the certainty of faith wherewith we must assent to every Scripture who can say that any particular Infant is holy and so that any Infant should be baptized or if we can say in the judgement of truth that every baptized Infant is really sanctified as it seems Mr Robinson hath taught Mr Goodwin if Mr Rathband understand right the 309 p. of Rob. justification kkkkk 2 the Arminians have wonne the field for no man doubts but many baptized Infants even in their way do fall away totally and finally from whatsoever holinesse can be supposed to be in them If these inextricable difficulties did move Mr Goodwin to stop the Presse that it went not on with his Sermons against the Anabaptists himselfe doth know Secondly they esteem not baptized Infants to be members of their Church before they have entred into their Covenant till then they hold them from the Lords Table and all the acts of Discipline as people without the Church and not members of it lllll If it be so their Baptism was of so small use that well they might have wanted it to the time of their admission to be members Thirdly they account Anabaptism a very tolerable errour so farre as ever we heard to this day they did never so much as rebuke any of their members for it much contrary to the practice of the Brownists and of their Brethren in New England who ever have removed the Anabaptists from their Churches as Sectaries of a speciall evill note We have long observed the great affection of Independents here towards them who professed opposition to Paedo-Baptism but did never expect to have heard them declare any thing towards the Arminian errours of the Anabaptists The Lords Supper they desire to celebrate at night after all other Ordinances are ended mmmmm albeit the Brownists now take it in the forenoon In the persons who do communicate they are as strict as any of the Brownists for notwithstanding all that their Brethren of New England and themselves also and their Apology do professe of their communicating of the Sacrament with the rest of the Reformed Churches which sometimes also is the Brownists profession yet it is told them without reply to this day that in London however they have admitted Brownists and Anabaptists to their Sacrament and they have communicated in the Brownists Congregations nnnnn yet that none of them have ever offered to participate of the holy Communion in any other Congregation nor have admitted any to communicate with them who were not of their owne way ooooo For the manner of their celebration they who have seen it professe it to be in a very dead and comfortlesse way it is not as in New England once in the month but as at Amsterdam once every Lords day ppppp which makes the action much lesse solemn then in any other of the Reformed Churches and in this too much like the daily Masses of the Church of Rome They have no preparation of their flock before they are so happy as to have all their members prepared alwayes sufficiently for the Lords Table from their first entrance into their Church to their dying day for all this time there is no catechising among them this exercise is below their condition altogether needlesse in any of their Congregations They will have no Sermon in the week before nor so much as any warning of the Communion This practice of New England to give warning the Sabbath before is disliked now at London nor must there be any Sermon of Thanksgiving after that Sacrament They use not so much as a little application of the Doctrine in the Sermon before it to that occasion qqqqq When they come to the action there is no more but one little discourse and one short prayer of the Minister all the time of the participation there is nothing in the Congregation but a dumb silence no reading no exhortation no Psalmes their people need no such meanes to furnish them in their Sacramentall meditations they have also learned from the Brownists a double and distinct consecration one for every element apart They have another difference from all the Reformed and in a part also from their Brethren of New-England That their Conformity with the Brownists may bee full the New-English doe count sitting at a Table not only to bee necessary but to be a part of our imitation of Christ and a Rite significant of divers heavenly Priviledges and Comforts rrrrr but as the Brownists at Amsterdam this day have no Table at all as they send the Elements from the Pulpit the place where the Minister preacheth and celebrateth the Sacrament by the hand of the Deacon to all the Congregation where in their meeting house they sit up and down in their severall places So the Independents at London doe
make the Temple a type not only of Christs body and the Church universall but of every Congregation yet by what Scripture will they make legall uncleannesse typifie the estate of irregeneration And above all how will they make the exclusion from the Temple for legall uncleanesse a type of rejection from Church-membership for irregeneration Nothing more common then legall cleanesse in a person irregenerate and legall uncleanesse in a person regenerate Legall uncleanesse did never hinder any from Church-membership under the old Testament albeit for a time it might impede their fellowship in some services but irregeneration did never hinder communion in any service It is a question whether very scandalous sins did keep men ceremonially clean from the Temple and Sacrifices but out of all doubt irregeneration alone was never a bar to keep any from the most holy and most solemn services whether of the Tabernacle or Temple There are two other arguments couched in the conclusion of the debate First from the 3 of Matth. Iohn the Baptist excluded the Scribes and Pharisees and the profane people from his Baptism Ergo the officers and body of the people should not admit irregenerate people to be members of the Church Ans The consequence is not good from Iohn the Baptist to all the officers and body of the people nor from Baptism or any Sacrament to Church-membership nor from the Scribes Pharisees and profane people to every irregenerate person what loosnesse is in such reasoning But the worst is that the antecedent is clearly against the places of Scripture alledged Iohn the Baptist did not exclude either the Scribes or the Pharisees or the common people from his baptism but received all that came both the Scribes and Pharisees and Ierusalem and all Iudea and all the region about Iordan requiring no other condition for their admission to his Sacrament then the confession of sinne and promising of new obedience acts very feasable to irregenerate people His last argument is from Acts 8. Philip admitted none to his baptism but upon profession of Faith Ergo none should be admitted members of a Church without an evidence of their regeneration For shortnesse I mark but one fault in the consequence yet a very grosse one That profession of faith is made a certain argument of true grace and sanctification Will any of our Brethren be content to admit their members upon so slender tearms as Philip or any of the Apostles did require of their new converts Will the profession that Iesus is the Christ or such a confession of faith as Simon Magus and all the people of Samaria men and women after a little labour of Philip among them could make be an evident and convincing signe of regeneration Thus we have considered all Mr Cottons arguments let any man according to his conscience pronounce what strength he findes in any of them whether or not in them all together there be such firmnesse as to sustaine the unspeakable weight that is in the conclusion builded upon them I mean a necessity of separation from all the Reformed Churches except these of the Indepent way I may adde from them also and all else that ever have been in the world from the beginning to this houre for in none of them these hard conditions of satisfactory evidences of regeneration before persons can be admitted members were ever so much as required and among the Independents where these conditions have been required they were never found nor possibly can be found as they doe require them CHAP. VIII Concerning the right of Prophecying THe second question I propounded concerneth the dogmatick power so to call it of their Church-members They teach that the power of prophesie or publike preaching both within and without the Congregation belongeth to every man in their Church who hath ability to speak in publike to edification The Reformed Churches give this power only to Pastors and Doctors who are called by God and the Church to labour in the Word They do not deny to every Christian all true liberty in private as God gives them occasion in an orderly way to edifie one another nor do they deny to the sons of the Prophets who are fitting themselves for the pastorall charge to exercise their gifts in publike for their preparation and triall but publike preaching they do not permit to any who are not either actually in the Ministry or in the way unto it The Socinians and Arminians the better to advance their design of everting the publike Ministry do put it in the hand of any able man to preach the Word and celebrate the Sacraments The Brownists upon the mistake of some Scriptures give liberty to any of their members whom their Church thinks able to preach Mr Cotton and his Brethren in new-New-England did follow for a long time the Brownists in this practise yet of late feeling as it would seem the great inconveniency of this liberty of prophecying they are either gone or going from it for in their two last books The way of their Churches and the Keyes they not only passe this popular Prophesying in silence but also do evert the chiefe grounds whereupon before they did build it our Brethren here of Holland and London seem not yet to be accorded about it these of Arnhem did to the last day of their Churches standing maintaine it their gentlemen preaching ordinarily in the absence of their Ministers but at Roterdam Mr Bridge would never permit it yet Mr Simpson thought it so necessary an ordinance that the neglect of it was the cheife cause of his secession from Mr Bridge and erecting a new Church neither ever could these two Churches be united till after both Mr Bridges and Mr Simpsons removall their Successor did find a temper in this question permitting the exercise of prophesie not in the meeting place of the Congregation but in a private place on a week day our Brethren at London are for this exercise not only upon the former grounds but especially to hold a doore open for themselves to preach in the Parish-Churches where they neither are nor ever intend to be Pastors only they preach as gifted men and Prophets for the conversion of these who are to be made members of their new Congregations The reasons we bring for our tenet are these First Who ever have power to preach the word ordinarily have also power to baptise But only Ministers have power to baptise Ergo only Ministers have power to preach the Word ordinarily The Minor how ever the Arminians and some few of the late Brownists deny yet all the Independents grant it but they deny the Major which we prove by two Scripturall reasons first Christ conjoyns the power of baptism with the power of preaching Ergo who have the power of preaching have also the power of baptising which Christ hath anexed to it Matth. 28.19 Go and teach all Nations baptising them Their Reply that Christ speaks
antiquity as our Brethren It is marvellous if in earnest they should encourage themselves in their Tenet by such testimonies of the Fathers as by the Catholick consent of all posterior antiquity and the unanimous profession both of Protestants and Papists this day are censured of error Who pleases to know the minde of antiquity in this subject Let him consult especially with Augustin de civitate dei Booke 20. almost through the whole and the Commentaries of Vives and Coqueus thereupon If humane authorities either ancient or moderne could give our Brethren any satisfaction in this question it were easie to present them with great store thereof Thus farre had I proceeded when by my Superiours I was called away from these Studies to an other imployment so what I intended to have spoken to the Anabaptists the Antinomians the Erastians and especially to the remainder of the Popish and Prelaticall Malignants I must remit it to another Season FINIS Isa 2. â— Mic. 4.3 Ioel 3. â— The first and chief Mean to extinguish the flames of our War is the waters of the heart poured out in prayers to God Lam. 2.3 Reformation after mourning is the second step to a solid peace Prov. 16.7 Psal 81.15 2 King 9.22 The corruption of the Church is the fountain of our present Misery The State cannot be 〈◊〉 til the Church be sâ—â—â— reformed Every man must help what he can to recover the languishing Church from her desperate Disease The offer of a strange and easie remedy of a â—ooking-glass The malignity of Errour 2 Tim. 2.17 â— Pet. 2.1 2 3 4 The Authors intention is to set down in a Table for the clear view of all the Errors which trouble us And that with justice loâ—â— towards all persons Onely forth is râ—gaâ—nâ—ng to the Truth The partition of the ensuing â—reatise Episcopacy was the Mother of all our present Sects Presbytery will be their Grave The Presbyteriall way of proceeding What England 〈◊〉 may expect from Presbyteries and Synods Satan is the great enemy of the Churches Reformation His chief instruments always have been professed friends to Religion Reformation at the beginning did run with an impetuous current What was its first stop The fountain of Protestant Dâ—scord The unhappy Principle of the Lutâ—eranes And the more unhappy Principle of the Anabaptists Somewhat of both these ways was entertained in England The original of the English Ceremonies and Episcopacy The original of the Separatists Brownism is a daughter of Anabaptism Bolton the first known Separatist in England hanged himself Brown the second Lâ—ader of that way â—ecanted his Schism and to his death was a very scandalous person The humour of Barrow the third Master of this Sect. The strange carriage of Johnson and Ainsworth the next two Leaders of the Brownists The horrible ways of Smiâ—â— their sixth Master The fearful end of Smith his wandrings A remarkable vengeance upon an erring spirit Robinson the last grave and learned Doctor of the Brownists did in the end undermine his Party Robinson the author of Independency They hold that all Churches in the world but their own are so polluted that they must be separate from Their injurious slanders of the Church of England Yet sometimes they say that communion may be kept therewith both in preaching and prayer Their like dealing with all the other reformed Their stâ—ing of 〈◊〉 Chu◠〈…〉 The matter of a Church they make to be real Saints onely Their unreasonable stricknesse in this one point is the great cause of their Schism The least sin of any Member of a Church defended is a just cause of Separation They place the Form of their Church in an expresse Covenant Seven may make a perfect Church yea two or three The erecting of a Church requireth neither the Magistrates nor Ministers assistance They put all Church power in a handful of people without any Pastor The Election Ordination Deposition and Excommunication of the Minister belongs to the flock and to it alone Every man of the Congregation may Preach and publikely rebuke not onely the Pastor but the whole flock yea and sâ—parate from it Some of them give the power of the Sacraments also to priâ—ate persons The solemnizing of marriage they give to parents but divorces they commit to the parties themselves They make every Congregation Independent and of soveraign Authority Their Judgement of Synods Their high conceit of their own way and injurious depressing of all others Churches Bells Pulpits Tithes Glebes Manses and all set maintenance of Ministers are unlawful Not so much as a Church-yard must be kept up for burial but all must bury in the fields They drive the abolishing of Church-rents so high as to make all goods common The days of the weâ—k the moneths the yeer of God they will not name No pulpits no hour-glâ—sses no Churches no Gowns All set prayer even the Lords prayer and all Psalms in meeter yea in prose if used as praises are unlawful Their opinion of preaching Sacraments Their straâ—ge way of celebrating the Lords Supper They reject catechisms the Apostles Creed and all reading of Scripture without exposition After preaching they prophesie Then comes the conference Brown for liberty of conscience His followers against it Their carriage towards the Magistrate They spoil Kings and Parliaments of their Legislative power They obliege the Magistrate to kill all Idolaters But to spâ—re all theeves They wil have the Universities destroyed Secular authors and learning must be abolished Preachers must studie no book but the Scriptures Independency the smallest of all the Sects of the time for number but greatest for worth of its followers The division of the following matter Independents the Separatistâ— off-spring When the fire of Brownism was dying out in Holland a little of its ashes carried to New England broke out there into a lasting flame By what means these ashes were kindled Master Cotton at first a great opposite to that way Master Cotton with little ado became the great patron of that Errour Master Cotton the misleader of Master Goodwin and others Master Cotton often deceived hath given his patrociny to divers grosse Errours Why God permits great men to fall in evident Errours His Prelatical Arminian and Montanistick Tenents His Antinomy and Familism Independency large as unhappy as Brownism Wherefore so much of the Independent way lies yet in darknesse The fruits of Independency in New England 1. It put thousands of Christians in the condition of Pagans 2. It marrs the conversion of Pagans to the Christian Religion 3. It did bring forth the foulest Heresies that ever yet were heard of in any Protestant Church A few examples of the many abominable Heresies of the New-English Independents The greatest part of thâ—ir chief Churches were infected with these errours Thâ— piâ—â—ty of these Hereticks seemâ—d to be singular Their malice against all who opposed them was singular especially against all their Orthodox Ministers and Magistrates Their Errours in opinion did
draw on such seditious practises as did well neer overturn both their Church and State Their proud obstinacy against all admonitions was marvellous In the midst of their profession of eminent piety the profanity of many of them was great Notwithstanding all this we desire from our heart to honour and imitate all and every degree of Truth or Piety which did ever appear in any New-English Christian Independency no fruitful Tree in Holland Master Peterâ— the first Planter of that Weed at Roterdam Their Ministers Master Bridge Master Simpson and Master Ward renounced their English Ordination and as meer private men took new Ordination from the people Incontinent they did fall into shameful divisions and subdivisions The people without any just cause deposed their Minister The Commissioners from Arnhem durst not come neer the bottom of the businesse The Schisms at Roterdam were more irreconcileable then those at Amsterdam Anabaptism is like to spoil that Church They of the Church of Arnhem admire and praise themselves above all measure The easinesse of their banishment and afflictions The new light at Arnhem broke out into a number of strange Errours First Grosse Chiliasm Secondly The grossest blasphemy of the Libertines that God is the Author of the very sinfulnesse of sin Thirdly the fancy of the Enthusiasts in knowing God as God abstracted from Scripture from Christ from Grace and from all his attributes Fourthly The old Popish Ceremonies of extreme Unction and the holy kisse of Peace Fifthly The discharging of the Psalms the appointing of a singing Prophet to chant the Songs made by himself in the silence of all others Sixthly The mortality of the soul Seventhly the conveniency for Ministers to Preach covered and celebrate the Sacraments discovered but for the people to hear discovered and to participate the Sacraments covered Their publike contentions were shameful The work of the prime Independents of New England Arnheim and Roterdam these five yeers at London They did hinder with all their power so long as they were able the calling of the Assembly When it was called they retarded its proceedings That the Churches of England and Ireland lie so long in confuon neither Papists nor Prelates nor Malignants have been the cause But the Independents working according to their principles The great mischief of that Anarchy wherin they have kept the Churches of England and Ireland for so long a time Independency is the mother of more Hereresies and Schisms at London then Amsterdam ever knew Independency at London doth not onely bring forth but nourish and patronize Heresies and Schisms contrary to its custom either in New-England or Amsterdam How hazardous it may prove to the State of England Why it is hard to set downe the Independents positions They have declined to declare their Tenets more then has ever been the custome of any Orthodox Divines When they shal bee pleased to declare themselves to the full their principle of change will hinder theÌ„ to assure us that any thing is their settled and firm Tenet wherein they will bee constant The chief Tenets which hitherto they have given out and not yet recalâ—ed are these following They reject the name of Independents unreasonably and for their own disadvantage When it is laid aside the more infamous name of Brownists and Separatists wil justly fall upon them They avow a Semi-Separation but a Sesqui-Separation will bee proved upon them The Independents doe separate from all the Reformed Churches upon farre worse grounds then the Brownists were wont to separate Their acknowledgment of the Reformed for true Churches doth not diminish but encrease their Shisme They refuse all Church communion and membership in all the Reformed Churches they preach and pray in them as they would doe among Pâ—gans only as gâ—ftâ—d men to gather new Churches About the matter of the Church and qualification of members they are large as strict as the Brownists admitting none but who convinces the whole Congregation of their reall regeneration Besides true grace they require a sutablenesse of spirit But in this they are laxer then the Brownists that they can take in without scruple Anabaptists Antinomians others who both in life doctrine have evident blots if so they bee zealous and serviceable for their way About the forme of the Church a Church Covenant they are more punctuall then the Brownists They take the power of gathering and erecting of Churches both from Magistrates and Ministers placing it only in the hands of a few private Christians who are willing to make among themselves a Church covenant This power of erecting themselves into a compleat and perfect church they give to any seven persons neither admit they more into a Church then can altogether in one place commodiously administer the Sacraments Discipline The Independents will have all the standing Churches in England dissolved and all their Ministers to become meerly private men and any three persons of their way to bee a full Church Vnto this Church of seven persons they give all and the whole Church power and that independently Vnto this congregationall Church alone they give the full power of election and ordination of deposition and excommunication even of all their officers and of the finall determination of all Ecclesiastick causes The difference of Iohnson and Ainsworth about the power of the people and presbytery distinct one from the other is not yet composed among the Independents The common Doctrine of New England is Ainsworths Tenet that the people aâ—one have all the power may excommunicate when there is cause all their officers Mr Cotton the other year did fall much from them and himselfe towards Iohnson that the whole power of authority is only in the Officers and the people have noâ—hing but the power of liberty to concurre that the Officers can doe nothing without the people nor the people any thing but by the Officers Yet that both officers people or any one of them have power to separate themselvs from all the rest when they find cause The London Independents give more power of Ecclesiastick Iurisdiction then the Brownists unto women Some of them permit private men to celebrate the Sacraments Brownists and Independents do perfectly agree in the point of Independency If a corrupt or negligent Presbytery doe not censure their own members all the Assemblies in the world may not attempt to censure any of them though most apparently they did corrupt a whole Nation with the grossest Heresies or most scandalous vices The point of Independency is either the root or the fruit of many errors To temper the crudity of this Tenet they adde to it three moderating positions but for little purpose They grant the being of Synods but not of Classicall Presbyteries Their Synods are meerely Brownisticall without all Iurisdiction wherein every one of the people may vote also meerely elective and only occasionall The sentence of Non-Communion is Mr Cottons invention to supply that defect which themselves make in the
Ordinances of God It puts in the hand of every man a power to sentence all the Churches of the world It carries to the highest degree of Separation Their supply of the defects of Independency by the power oâ— the Magistrate was a remedy which they learned from the Brownists but now they have cast it aside denying to the Magistrate all power in matters of Religion The Independents doe advance their fancies to as high a pitch of glory as the Brownists They are the Brownists scholars in many more things beside the Constitution and Government of the Church They give to the Magistrate the Celebration of marriage Mr Milton permits any man to put away his wife upon his meer pleasure without fault and without the cognisance of any Iudge Mr Gorting teaches the wife to put away her husband if he will not follow her in any new Church way which she is pleased to embrace They are against all determinations of the circumstances of worship and therfore all church Directories are against their stomacks The common names of the dayes of the week the months of the year of many Churches and Cities of the Land are as unlawfull to them as to the Brownists All tithes and set maintenance of Ministers they cry down but a voluntary contribution for the maintenance of all their Officers they presse to a high proportion with the evident prejudice of the poore In their solemn worship oft times they make one to pray another to preach a third to prophesie a fourth to direct the Psalm and another to bless the people They make it a divine institution without any word of preface to begin the publike worship with solemne prayer for the King and Church After the Pastors prayer the Doctor reads and expounds In preaching they will bee free to take a Text or not as they find it expedient After Sermon any of the people whom they think able are permitted to prophesie All are permitted to propound in the face of the Congregation what questions upon the Sermon they think meet About the Psalms they have divers strange conceits but the speciall is their new Ordinance of a singing Prophet who in place of the Psalms singeth Hymnes of his own making in the midst of the silent Congregation They grant the lawfulnesse of read prayer in divers cases They will have none to be baptized but the children of their owne members so at one dash they put all England except a very few of their way into the state of Pagans turning them all out of the Christian Church denying to them Sacraments Discipline Church-Officers and all that they would deny to the Pagans of America They open a door to Anabaptism by 3 farther positions 1. They require in all to bee baptised a real holiness above a foederall which in no Infant with any certainty can be found 2. They esteem none for their Baptism and Christian education a member of their Church till they have entred themselvs in their church covenant 3. They call none of their members to any account before their Presbytery for obstinate rejecting of Paedo-baptism although the Brownists doe excommunicate for that sinne They participate with none of the Reformed Churches in the Lords Supper yet they scruple not to communicate with Brownists and Anabaptists Their way of celebrating the Lords Supper is more dead and comfortlesse then any where else They have no Catechising no preparation nor thanksgiving sermoÌ„s ordinarily they speak no word of the Sacrament in their Sermons and prayers either before or after They have only a little discourse short prayer in the consecration of both the Elements there after in the action nothing but dumb silence no exhortation no reading no Psalme They require none of their members to come out of their Pewes to the Table And they acknowledge no more use of a Table then the Brownists at Amsterdam who have none at all They teach the expediency of covering the head at the Lords Table They are as much for the popular Government as the Brownists All Discipline must be executed in the presence and with the consent of the whole people all must passe by the expresse suffrage of every one Dissenters not only lose their right of suffrage for the time but are subjected to censure if they continue in their dissent They are much for private meetings for it is in them that they usually frame the members of other mens Congregations into their new mould but the Brownists and they of New-England having felt the bitter fruits of such meetings have relinquished if not discharged them They flatter the Magistrate and slander the Reformed Churches without cause Some of them are for the abolition of all Magistracy All of them are for casting out and keeping out of the Christian Church all Princes all Members of Parliament all Magistrates of the Counties Burroughes that now are and that ever have been and are ever like to be hereafter except a very few These few Magistrates whom they would admit have no security but by the errour or malice of a few to be quickly cast out of the Church without any possibility of remedy When they have put all out of the places of Magistracy yea out of all civill courts who are not of their mind the greatest Magistrates they admit of bee they Kings or Parliaments they subject them all to the free-wil of the promiscuous multitude When Magistrates wil not follow their new erroâ—â—s they have bin very ready to make insurrections to the great hazard of the whole State Many of them deny to the Magistrate any power at all in the matters of Religion Their principles do spoile Princes and Parliaments of their whole â—egislative power they abolish all humane Lawes that are made and hinder any more to be made The Civill Lawes which Mr Cotton permits men to make bind no man any further then his own minde is led by the reason of the Law to obedience They put the yoak of the judiciall Law of Moses on the neck of the Magistrate They give to their Ministers a power to sit in civill Courts to voyce in the Election of the Magistrats and to draw from Scripture Civill Lawes for the government of the State They offer â—o perswade the Magistrate contradictory principles according to their own interest In New England they perswade the Magistrats to kill all Idolaters and Hereticks even whole Cities men women and children But here they deny the Magistrate all power to lay the least restraint upon the gâ—ossest Idolaters Apostats Blasphemers Seducers or the greatest enemies of Religion No great appearance of their respect to secular learning and Schools Independency much more dangerous then Browniâ— The Independents prime principles Their Tenet about the qualification of members is the great cause of their separating from all the Reformed Churches though they doe dessemble it In this they goe beyond the Brownists The true state of the question is whether it be necessary
things more dangerous First for the marriage blessing they applaud the Brownists Doctrine they send it from the Church to the Town-house making its solemnization the duty of the Magistrate llll â— this is the constant practice of all in New-England the prime of the Independent Ministers now at London have been married by the Magistrate and all that can bee obtained of any of them is to be content that a Minister in the name of the Magistrate and as his Commissioner may solemnize that holy band Concerning Divorces some of them goe farre beyond any of the Brownists not to speak of Mr Milton who in a large Treatise hath pleaded for a full liberty for any man to put away his wife when ever hee pleaseth without any fault in her at all but for any dislike or dyspathy of humour mmmm for I doe not know certainely whither this man professeth Independency albeit all the Hereticks here whereof ever I heard avow themselves Independents what ever therefore may be said of Mr Milton yet Mr Gorting and his Company were men of renown among the New-English Independents before Mistrisse Hutchinsons disgrace and all of them do maintaine that it is lawfull for every woman to desert her husband when he is not willing to follow her in her Church way and to take her selfe for a widow loosed from the bond of obedience to him only because he lives without that Church whereof she is become a member nnnn Concerning the circumstances of the worship of God they will have nothing determined but all which Scripture hath not determined to be left so free that all Directories are much against their stomacks How much they did crosse that gracious and excellent work of the Directory for the three Kingdoms and when it was begunne how long they did retard it and after it was brought to an end through all the mountaines of impediments which they did cast up in its way how earnest they were by slight of hand to have put in its Preface such phrases as might have altogether made frustrate the use of it is well known to many yea when a Directory for the three Nations is established by the Assemblies and Parliaments of both Kingdoms they are bold so farre to slight it as to write unto the very Parliament that uniformity is but a matter of forme in the which for peace sake men will come up so farre as conscience can permit intimating that all our covenanted uniformity must be resolved into the free-will or erroneous conscience of every private man In the abolishing of the monuments of Idolatry they agree so farre with the Brownists that they will not name the dayes of the week the months of the yeare the places of meeting after the ordinary manner oooo yet they make no scruple to use the Churches builded in the time of Popery nor of Bels though invented by a Pope and baptized with all the Popish Superstitions how this doth stand with their principles I doe not well know especially with their practice about another circumstance the Church-maintenance For the ancient way of maintenance by Tythes or Lands or set Stipends they do refuse pppp and require here the reduction of the Apostolique practice They count it necessary that all the Church Officers should live upon the charge of the Congregation the Ruling Elders and Deacons as well as the Pastors and Doctors qqqq but all they will have them to receive is a meer Almes a voluntary Contribution layd down as an offring at the Deacons feet every Lords Day and by him distributed to all the Officers and the poore of the Congregation according as they have need rrrr This is their Doctrin but it seemes they are weary long ago of its practice The Brownists as I heare are yet constant to practise what they teach allowing their Ministers for their better supply and that they may not be too burthensom to the Congregation the use of handy Trades but the Independents of New-England have a better provision not only a proportion of Land but a certayn Tax of money layd on by the Magistrate both upon the members of the Congregation and upon all the neighbours though not received members of any Church ssss These also of London Arnheim and Roterdam have been famous for a sufficient care of a set provision above the ordinary to the rate of two or three hundred pounds a year tttt And lest their Income should decrease with too large deduction for the supply of the poore it hath been their providence to admit none or few poore members of their Congregations wwww Concerning other circumstances the form of their Church and Pulpit and such like I have not observed any difference in the Meeting-houses of the one at Roterdam and the other at Amsterdam For the parts of the worship as I take it there is little difference only the Independents seem in their administration more to vary the persons sometimes they make one to pray and another to preach a third to prophesie and a fourth to dismisse with a blessing xxxx In the ordering of the parts of their worship after Mr Cottons invention they take it for an Apostolick injunction to begin first of all with a large solemne Prayer for the King and the Church applying the words of the Apostle against the cleare scope of the Text and all the writers which I have consulted upon it to this very method of the ordinances and to this matter of the first Prayer yyyy After the Prayer the Doctor proceeds to read and expound their ordinary practice here agrees with the other but their Doctrine differeth for the Independents at London grant that reading by it selfe without exposition is a divine Ordinance however in their practice they conjoyne both In preaching they differ from the Brownists and us and joyn with the Popish Monks they will not be tyed to a Text of Scripture for the ground of their discourse but will be at liberty to run out on whatsoever matter they think most fit and expedient for their hearers zzzz About prophesying after Sermon they are at a full agreement permitting to any private man of the flock or to any stranger whom they take to be gifted publikly to expound and apply the Scripture to pray and to blesse the people They permit two or three of these after the end of the Sermon to exercise their gifts aaaaa When the exercise of the Prophets is ended they use another Ordinance of questioning the Preachers and Prophets by any member of the Congregation about any point of the Doctrine bbbbb but this exercise as also the former hath proved so unhappy in New England that gladly there they would be quit of both ccccc In the Psalms the Independents wander wider then their Teachers some of them will have no songs in the time of publike Iudgements ddddd others will not permit women to sing in the Church