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A84425 An end to the controversie between the Church of England, and dissenters In which all their pleas for separation from the Church of England are proved to be insufficient, from the writings of the most eminent among the dissenters themselves. And their separation condemn'd by the reformed churches. 1697 (1697) Wing E725B; ESTC R224499 64,815 158

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An End to the CONTROVERSIE Between the CHURCH of ENGLAND AND DISSENTERS IN WHICH All their Pleas for Separation from the CHVRCH of ENGLAND are proved to be Insufficient from the Writings of the most Eminent among the Dissenters themselves And their Separation condemn'd by the Reformed Churches LONDON Printed for Richard Wellington at the Lute in St. Paul's Church-Yard 1697. TO THE READER THere are some 't is like who may think it an Vseless and Impertinent Piece of Work to write a Book on this Subject that has been lately so ingeniously handled by such Eminent and Learned Men as the Bishop of Worcester Dr. Comber Dr. Maurice c. But though no Man that I know will pretend to write better than they have done yet there are several things in this Book that have not been taken Notice of by any who have yet written on this Subject And since Mens Notions and Apprehensions are so different 't is like some may be mov'd with one Argument some with another according as it suits their several Judgments and Capacities But besides there are several Persons who desire to be satisfied concerning the Matters in Controversie between the Church of England and the Dissenters but are unwilling to bestow the Time or Pains to read over all the Books at large that have been written on this Subject For the Satisfaction chiefly of these sort of Men I have here as briefly as I cou'd set down the true state of the Controversie between us and the Arguments used on both Sides by the most Eminent Men that have written on this Subject From all which it does appear that the Church of England is as true a Part of the Catholick Church as any this day in the World and that all the Objections which the Dissenters make to her do arise from Ignorance and Mistaken Notions That all the Reform'd Churches beyond Seas do own her as a true Reform'd Church and do highly Condemn all those who Separate from her and declare them to be guilty of downright Schism And that the Dissenters in Condemning the Church of England do Condemn all the Reform'd Churches as well as this Church I cou'd have brought many more Authorities for the Proof of all this Matter but I purposely omit them because these which I have brought are sufficient and are such as the Dissenters never did nor I think never will Pretend to Answer Another Reason why I omit them is in hopes that the smallness of the Book may Invite some to the Reading of it that 't is like might be discourag'd at a larger Volume A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE CONTROVERSY BETWEEN The Church of ENGLAND AND The DISSENTERS WHEN God Almighty first created Man he gave him no other Law to walk by but that of Nature or Reason under which alone he liv'd for the first 2000 Years But at last this Law of Reason being greatly lett and blinded by Evil Customs it became necessary to give Men more Positive Laws and Rules to walk by Therefore God Almighty commanded Moses to write a Law for his People which we call the Mosaical Law and sometimes the Moral Law and is contained in the Old Testament And this Law God Almighty reveal'd to Men by the Mediation of an Angel but it being for a great part Typical and Ceremonial and therefore not so plain and easie to be understood as that of the New Testament God did then often appear to his People himself and teach them more immediately what he would have them do what not And under this Law of the Old Testament superadded to the Law of Reason or Nature which is the same in reasonable Creatures Men liv'd till God was pleas'd to reveal his Will to us after a more full and excellent manner by the Mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost in the New Testament And this Law of the New Testament is that under which we live at this Day a great part of the Old being hereby abolish'd See Galat. 4. And as this Law of the New Testament was reveal'd to us after a more excellent Manner than that of the Old so the Matter of it is most extraordinary containing nothing in it superfluous nor wanting any thing necessary to the directing all Men to Heaven on very easie terms It is so adapted and fitted to all Conditions of Men that the very meanest Capacities may easily understand every thing contain'd in it which is necessary to their Salvation And this Evangelical Law Christ and his Apostles have left as a Rule for all succeeding Ages to walk by But notwithstanding that our Saviour and his Apostles had left the World such Plain and Positive Rules to walk by that none that were not wilfully so cou'd be mistaken in them yet such has been the unhappiness of the Christian Church that it never wanted some within it of such restless and peevish Spirits as to disturb its Peace and Quiet by making Divisions and Schisms in it which St. Paul foresaw when he told the Elders Acts 20. 30. Also of your selves shall Men arise speaking perverse things to draw Disciples after them But though there have been always some Divisions in the Church ever since the first Planting of it yet for the first Three or Four Hundred Years they were much fewer than what have been since and those that were were much more discountenanc'd and oppos'd by the generality of Christians than they were afterwards In the Church of Africa a little before St. Augustine's Days there arose the Schism of the Donatists who separated upon the account that the Bishopricks were too Large and the Power of the Bishops too Great And because the Ministers were not so Able and Holy Men as they should be and because they dislik'd the Liturgies and Publick Prayers of the Church and for such-like Reasons And a little before in the Third Century began the Novatian Schism at Rome for that Novatus thinking the Bishopricks too Large would needs be chosen Bishop in the same City where Cornelius was chosen before But both these Schisms were condemned This by the Council of Carth. and the Council of Constantinople and by St. Cyprian Ep. 52. N. 4 c. And That of the Donatists by all the Catholick Bishops at the Conference at Carth. See Conference of the Third Day Chap. 4. And by St. Augustine in his Books against Permenian Petilian and the other Donatist Bishops But not long after about the Fifth and Sixth Century the Errors and Corruptions in the Church began to Increase more abundantly and appear more bare-fac'd and openly than formerly they had done for that as the Roman Empire began to decline there follow'd a general decay of Learning and gross Ignorance had over-spread the Earth insomuch that many of the Priests themselves cou'd not read Latin and then it was no difficult Matter to bring in what Heresies and Schisms Men wou'd And this was the time that most of the Errors and Corruptions of the