in all Humility prostrate my self at his Royal Feet with this humble Supplication That it would graciously please his Majesty according to his wonted Goodness and Princely Clemency to consider and pity the distressed condition of many of his faithful Subjects who dissent from the Church of England in the case of Infant-Baptism and some other Ceremonies and cannot in Conscience to God conform to them nor deny the exercise of their Religion of which they are convinced and persuaded to be according to the Will of God O let our Lord the King consider that this is the greatest strait that any honest Christian can be put upon either to deny what he believes to be true or profess that to be true which he believes to be otherwise O let the God of Heaven be always his Majesties Chief Counsellour That by his direction he may rightly distinguish between those that are harmless in his Realm and such as have abused his Kindnesses which have been very great and thankfully to be remembred and that the present Severities against the Innocent may be abated and removed lest they be made miserable in their Native Countrey God Almighty bless the King c. FINIS The SECOND PART of the APOLOGY FOR THE Baptized Believers Wherein the GROUNDS of INFANT-BAPTISM Are REVIEWED In ANSWER to Fourteen ARGUMENTS delivered by Mr. Nathaniel Taylor M. A. in a SERMON on Matth. 28. 19. entituled 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And therewithal The Reasons of the Separation of the Baptized Believers from the Pedobaptists modestly propounded Upon the occasion of their great and long-continued Sufferings By T. Grantham a Servant of Christ LONDON Printed for the Author 1684. AN APOLOGY FOR THE Baptized Believers c. PRESENTED To all Pious and Well-disposed Christians in the Church of ENGLAND SECT I. Honoured and Beloved Brethren TO prevent a Mistake and to remove an Aspersion too frequently cast upon us be pleased to know that tho we differ from you and others in some things relating to the Constitution and Government of a true Church yet we do not therefore arrogate to our selves alone the Christian Name nor exalt our selves in our Imaginations above others but do believe and hope that the Number of the saved Ones will be gathered out of all sorts of Christians who heartily love God and our Lord Jesus Christ and live holily and charitably among Men tho they be diversified in respect of Ceremonies by reason of the Place and Government where they live Yea we have Charity for all Men who are faithful to the Means of Grace afforded them how small soever knowing that our God delights in Mercy and does not exact the utmost Farthing of any Man But for all this as it is certain there hath been abundance of Errors introduced among Christians so it has pleased God to raise up a People still to testify against them the Memories of whom are blessed tho they were frequently persecuted So we believe it a Duty incumbent upon us to bear our Testimony to what Truth we know and not to partake with any in their By-Paths in Life or Religion and yet endeavour as much as in us lieth after Unity and Concord with all that fear God and own the Christian Profession To which purpose we have humbly proposed what we thought concern'd us in order to a better Understanding and Compliance in our Friendly Epistle to the Bishops and Ministers of the Church of England published some Years ago but has not been publickly taken notice of till lately one Mr. Taylor a Person of Worth for his Integrity and Zeal for the Protestant Interest and for his gentle Disposition towards such as fear God tho differing from him in the Case of Ceremonies It hath pleased him I say to take notice of our said Epistle and to offer something in order to a Composure of Differences which I confess with him to be a thing greatly to be desired But then he is pleased to shew us nothing of Mitigation or Hopes of the removal of the Things which hath occasioned our Disunion but does rather wholly charge the Cause of Division upon us and supposes our Difference about Baptism to be the chief Cause of our dissenting from the Church of England But tho this is indeed a matter of great Importance because true Baptism is antecedent to Church-Communion yet that which is greater in our Judgment is that open Prophaneness which God knows reigns and rages in the Church of England and therewithal the utter Neglect of Discipline to reform those Iniquities and also that persecuting Spirit which appears even in too many of the Guides of the Church by whose Cruelty our Sufferings have been much augmented For these Causes we have thought our selves concerned to make this our Christian Apology in which we crave leave to use that Freedom of Speech which the Matters depending do require And yet seeing we must acknowledg that we are not infallible as neither does the Church of England pretend so to be we shall speak under Correction and by the help of God with resolution to submit to a clear Conviction if indeed it shall appear that the Things wherein we dissent are justifiable on the part of the Church of England but till this be done it would be Hypocrisy and Baseness in us to violate our Consciences in Things pertaining to Religion to obtain Favour from Men for if we should so please Men we should not be the Servants of Christ Gal. 1. 10. And we do the 〈◊〉 desire to be heard at this time partly for that Mr. Taylor is pleased to impute Folly to us in separating from the Church of England because we allow of the most of the Thirty Nine Articles but especially being thereunto required by some of Eminency and great Authority in the Church of England who also told us That unless we could shew that the Church of England does hold some Error in point of Faith or that she does practise something in her Religion which is sinful we cannot justify our Separation from her And whether we be able on this wise to vindicate our present Separation is the Business which we pray may be seriously considered SECT II. A brief Account of the Reasons why the Baptized Believers cannot conform to the Ceremonies of the Church of England REserving all due Honour to the Church of England so far as she holds the Truth in the Thirty Nine Articles and as she is a good Fortress against much Popish Superstition and Idolatry we shall humbly make our Objections in three Particulars 1. Concerning Infant-Baptism 2. Concerning her Discipline 3. Concerning her Imposing of Ceremonies From all which we think we may safely argue thus It is lawful just and needful to maintain a prudent and friendly Separation from such a Church as does believe hold and maintain such Things as are evidently and actually destructive of that Christian Liberty wherewith Christ hath made his Churches free and of that sacred Baptism and holy
given to Swearing Lying Drunkenness and lascivious Talking as God knows a great Number of the Members of the Church of England are known to be such your Discipline seems to have no power in such Cases for thus saith one of your own Ministers Who minds Canon 109 that prohibits common Swearers common Drunkards notorious Whoremasters and Whores c. from the blessed Sacrament of the Lord's Supper Do not even Bishops hear Men swear a thousand Oaths and either do not or dare not use any Discipline against them But now if a good Man do not stand up and bow to the Altar at the Name of Jesus when the Creed is read because he dares not pay greater Reverence in a religious way to any Writing than he pays to the holy Scriptures If he dares not use the Sign of the Cross in Baptism nor sprinkle his Child c. then shall he be prosecuted as a great Sinner cast to the Devil and laid in Prison yea he is sentenced already For in Canon 6. thus we read Whosoever shall affirm that the Rites and Ceremonies of the Church of England are superstitious or such as Men who are zealously and godlily affected may not with any good Conscience approve them use them or as Occasion requireth subscribe unto them let him be excommunicated ipso facto and not restored until he repent and publickly revoke such his wicked Errors 4. Thus as we conceive the Discipline of Righteousness Mercy and Charity established by Christ is laid aside and a Mercenary Court set up holding the Traditions of Men instead of Christ's Institutions in Ecclesiastical Government who also live voluptuously upon the Sins of the People But as for the Reformation of evil Manners or the making Peace and Concord alas it is not sought for nor indeed expected from these Courts And as the Reverend Grosthead said at Rome when he saw all things ruled by Money so may I say of the Courts under consideration O Money Money what wilt thou not do there As for the opprobrious Language prohibited by the Canon we think it uncomely for any to use it tho we dissent from the Ceremonies themselves SECT IV. Concerning Imposing of Ceremonies 1. ALL Divine Ceremonies ordained by Christ or his Apostles we reverence and religiously observe and keep as they were delivered 2. That any Church since their days hath just power to make and ordain Divine Ceremonies to be any necessary parts of the Worship of God we see no ground to believe much less that such Ceremonies may lawfully be imposed under pain of Excommunication Banishment Imprisonment Loss of Estate and Life For tho it is certain God has given power to the Rulers of the World to make change or disannual Laws in point of Civil Government yet we believe all the Power on Earth cannot make one Institute or Divine Ceremony in Religion And therefore we cannot but think the Church of England erred from the Rule of Righteousness in decreeing Rites and Ceremonies which God has not commanded 3. For when we see how sharply fome were reprehended by St. Paul for bringing the Christian Churches in Galatia under some Legal Ceremonies which once had a divine Original and Use in the Church of God as Invaders of the Liberty wherewith Christ had made them free averring also That if they were subject to them Christ should profit them nothing Gal. 5. 1 2. We can see no ground to free the Protestants from Sin who either take up Scriptureless Ceremonies from the Papists or invent Ceremonies themselves but least of all when they force Men will they nill they to conform to such Ceremonies or else to be ejected and delivered up to Satan And surely it was very unreasonable for her Bishops to consent to a Law that pious Men only dissenting in these things from the Church of England should be banished or else hanged as Felons without Benefit of the Clergy And we humbly desire that the Severity of that Law may be considered and mitigated 4. But if it shall be said That the Ceremonies of the Church of England as the Sprinkling of Infants the Sign of the Cross in Baptism bowing to the Altar to name no more at present are not sinful then how shall we be ever able to reprove a Papist for using holy Water bowing to the Image of Christ c. Certainly if we must submit to the Ceremonies of the Church of England in her present Constitution we must submit to theirs too where they have power on their side to enforce them But he that shall impartially consider what a learned Protestant hath said of the Sinfulness of that one Ceremony of the Sign of the Cross in Baptism in his Book entituled Against Symbolizing with Antichrist in Ceremonies will see great cause to avoid touching with any such Inventions however they may be supposed to have had an harmless Use among Christians at the first But who sees not that when such Ceremonies have got the Reputation of Religion upon them and are forced on by humane Laws what incredible Miseries they have brought upon the Christian World How have they lorded it over Kings and Kingdoms over the Estates Liberties and Lives of Christians Who sees not that being thus set up they are sometimes more set by than sincere Faith and an holy Life as if all true Religion and Loyalty too were only to be judged of according to Mens Submission to those Humane Innovations For it is notorious even in this our Land that let a Man but conform to all the Ceremonies he shall live honourably let his Life be never so debauched almost But let a Man refuse these Ceremonies out of conscience to God because they are not from Heaven then he is Envy's Mark let his Life be never so just and harmless Such Effects should lead us to consider what the Causes are And because we are speaking of Ceremonies we crave leave to enquire What means the Ceremony of the Ring in Marriage Why are we forced not only to use it but to use it in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy-Ghost The Church of England blames the Papists for saying Marriage is a Sacrament but shall we then make a Sacrament of a Ring Sure you make the Ring as sacred in Marriage as you make the Water in Baptism Such Usages as these we fear give the Papists too much cause to use this Speech A Protestant is but a Papist scar'd out of his Wits It is not then any thing of Prejudice or Obstinacy which makes us to stand off from the Communion of the Church of England but an unfeigned Desire to serve God aright and a godly Fear lest by touching with these unwritten Traditions we should bring our Souls under Guilt in the sight of God Howbeit if any can convince us that the Church of England is justifiable in these things here objected we shall suspect our selves to be mistaken in other things which we here
be restrain'd from Seditious Practices as well as others and we do by as good Right think it unlawful for us to be so restrained We hope our Legislators did not intend at all to exalt their Authority against the Lord whose Power is above all But yet when these Laws come to be executed upon good Men by the Industry of mercenary Fellows meerly for worshipping God then are they turned into Snares to the ruin of the Innocent and dishonour of that Power which gave them being And all this falls out for want of better provision in the said Laws to convict Men of Sedition than only because they were observ'd to preach or pray 4. Wherefore being fully satisfied that our Assemblies are true Church-Assemblies and that upon the strictest enquiry we are able to make into the due Nature and Order of such Assemblies we conceive our selves indispensibly bound by the Word of God the Examples of the first and best Churches and the Tie of Conscience as regulated by a sincere Love of Religion to hold fast the Profession of our Faith without wavering or changing by reason of the Change of Times or Man's Laws Being also rationally persuaded that the more publick and free Men are to serve the Lord the less danger of Sedition Wherefore with innocent Hearts and pure Hands as to any Design of Sedition in the strength of Christ we will keep his Way and let the Lord do with us as seemeth him good SECT V. Of the Baptized Believers Call to Christianity and to the Work of the Ministry WHen our Saviour commanded his Apostles to teach all Nations and to preach the Gospel to every Creature We do not doubt but their performance of this his gracious Will may truly be said to be the calling of the Gentiles or Nations And that Men enjoy a great Mercy for which they ought to be very thankful to be born in a Nation to whom the Gospel has been preached and received by their Progenitors And that it is also a great Blessing to be born under the Government of Christian Princes and we believe we ought to love and honour our Nation and the Rulers of it upon this very account as well as for the Obligation of Nature and Laws viz. because they assert the Interest of Christ Jesus in general as well as we Nor is it our Business to destroy the State of Christianity received in any Nation nor at all to despise the Ministry that conscientiously upholds it but only to labour that Christianity may be delivered from the Errors that have encumbred it by reason of the change of Governments and Interests or Corruptions of the Ages past And in this Consideration as we look upon our Nation to be a Christian Nation so we count our selves much more happy in being Members of a Nation that owns the true God Christ Jesus to be the Saviour of the World the Scriptures to be holy and true and that Faith and Holiness is the way to true Blessedness than to have been of any other Nation whatsoever But yet for all this there is a great Truth in the Words of Tertullian i. e. We are not born but made Christians And therefore we do not think that our meer Birth of Christian Parents does qualify us or give us an actual Right to Christ's Ordinances but to this end we believe and know that every Person ought to have the Gospel preached or some way made known to them and that a work of real Grace or the new Birth at least by a solemn Profession must precede our Baptismal Covenant to this the Scriptures give full consent John 1. 12 13. 2 Cor. 5. 17. Eph. 2. 10. 1 Pet. 1. 23. And thus we and ours so many of them as the Lord our God does call by the preaching of the Gospel are actually incorporate with the Church of Christ Militant and engaged thenceforth in the high and holy Calling and actual Profession of the Christian Religion 2. But now Whether we have any lawful Call to the work of the Ministry is the business to be a little considered partly for that some of our late Persecutors were pleased to suggest the contrary and partly to put our selves upon the strictest Trial even in this case where we are supposed to be the most deficient The Questions in this case to be resolved are 1. Whether a succession of Ordination from Man to Man down from some of the Apostles be absolutely necessary to a due Call to the Ministry or 2. Whether the same Means that is of Authority sufficient to make Men Christians be not also sufficient to make Ministers In answer to these Questions we shall do little more than offer what we have formerly written upon this Subject And tho the Papists are the Men who stand most stifly for Succession as necessary yet of late we find our Friends of the Church of England looking that way as if they would justify their Ordination in a successive Line from Man to Man through the Papacy which thing is disclaimed by Dr. Luther with the greatest vehemency in these words Whoso loveth Christ ought to endure any thing rather than to be ordained by the Papists because in their Ordinations all things are carried with such wicked preposterousness that if they were not mad and blind they would perceive how they mock God to his Face being stricken with an universal blindness they do not so much as know the Word of God specially the Bishops who ordain Let me be counted a Fool a Knave a Lyer if there be any one of them ordain'd by them who dare say that at such time as he received Orders he was commanded to dispense the Mysteries of Christ or to teach the Gospel but they ordain Sacrificers of the unbloody Sacrifice of the Mass and to hear Confessions c. Thus far Luther And the Oath which they take at their Ordination as set down by Mr. Bullinger is very un-gospel-like the sum of it is in these Words That the Priest will be a true Subject to the Pope obey the Decrees of the Fathers and of the Church i. e. the Roman Church and that he will persecute Hereticks Beza censures all Ordination taken from the Papists Let us hear him speak What ordinary Vocation is that which you say the first Reformers had excepting some few of them is it not the Pall Shall we think then that the Popish Orders are valid in which there is not any preceding enquiry into manners No such Enquiry or Procedure as is inviolably to be made or observed by Divine Right in Elections and Ordinations Shall we think so highly of their Ordinations that as often as any false Bishops are converted to true Christianity immediately all the Filth Uncleanness and Impurity collated is washed away Nay but with what Face or Conscience will he be able to forsake Popery and not abjure his irregular Ordination or if he do abjure it how can he by virtue thereof claim Authority to