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A41272
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The creed-forgers detected in reply to a pamphlet falsely called the Quakers-creed, containing twelve articles / published by some, who have not joyned with Geo. Keith in his pride and contradiction, but testifie against both him, and them that joyn with him therein.
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Field, John, 1652-1723.
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Wing F862; ESTC R28417
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17,502
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THE CREED-FORGERS DETECTED IN REPLY to a Pamphlet Falsly Called The Quakers-Creed Containing Twelve ARTICLES Published by some who have not joyned with Geo. Keith in his Pride and Contradiction but Testifie against both him and them that joyn with him therein Let the lying Lips be put to silence which speaketh grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the Righteous Psal 31.18 For he that hideth Hatred with lying Lips and he that uttereth a Slander is a Fool Prov. 10.18 LONDON Printed and Sold by T. Sowle in White-Hart-Court in Gracious-street and at the Bible in Leaden-Hall street 1700. THE Creed-Forgers Detected c. INTRODUCTION IT 's no ways pleasant to us that we have occasion on this wise to appear against any but especially against such whom we love and are sorry they should draw back into those ways where some of them that have so done could find in days past no more true Peace and Satisfaction to their poor Souls than we could whilst we abode there which was the only Reason we left them And this encreases our Sorrow and we believe will their Condemnation That they should publish such things of us which we cannot but think they know in their own Consciences to be false viz. That they imbibed many hurtful Antichristian Principles which were instilled into them by our Leaders and Teachers and that they have been taught by them and their Preachments to slight and undervalue the holy Scriptures and to insinuate as if the Doctrine of Christ crucified and obedience to his holy Institutions were not minded by us and that we are no Christians and that they used their utmost endeavours not only to inform us of our vile and abominable Errors in Fundamentals but to Reclaim us and that we wilfully take to our selves Guilt of all our Antichristian Errors And when they have thus most falsly and uncharitably Charged us instead of Proving they query in their Introduction What Consequence can there be inferr'd but that they wilfully take on them the Guilt of all their Antichristian Errors So that from false Premises they draw wrong Consequences and from thence make undue Inferrences and then say To what purpose so many particular Persons giving forth Creeds palpably Contradicting the former Creeds And yet must tell them as we are not accountable for the sense of this they are not so fair and ingenuous as to name one of these Contradictory Creeds nor the Persons that made them they call Creeds but as boldly undertake to forge one as falsly to call it The Quakers Creed containing Twelve Articles to which we shall Reply But say they give us leave by the way to tell you That whatsoever the high Pretentions of any may be to Christianity yet in their bold opposing the Positive Commands of Christ they plainly demonstrate themselves to be no Christians and from such every sincere Person ought to withdraw and come out from their Communion But not too fast for sure the contrary is true and you do here but beg the Question and take that for granted which you neither have nor can prove and so have made too much haste For you say If any Quaker shall question the Truth we offer to give them a sight of the Originals from whence they are quoted but do not think meet to subscribe their Names nor we therefore but proffer to give any of them a sight of what we have quoted in Reply And hope our Negation to what they have Charged together with what we have urged may have that Credit with the Impartial as at least to prevail with them to suspend their Judgments till we are as truly Convicted as we are falsly Charged And we hope our Principles Doctrines and Conversations will appear upon a serious Examination and due Enquiry as Orthodox Christian and Agreeable to Holy Scriptures as any of theirs And that we shall by the Grace of God as we have so continued demean our selves in all Respects and to all Persons so as to keep a Conscience void of offence towards God and all Men although all manner of Evil may as Christ said it should be spoken against us falsly for his Name sake and not for our Evil-doing that 's our Comfort So desiring those that Read this little Book to follow this wise Advice Before Judgment Examine thy self and in the Day of Visitation thou shalt find Mercy SECT I. The Quakers deny the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity P. 13. The Proof as quoted by these Persons is as followeth IF God as the Scriptures testifieth had never been Declared or Believed W. P 's Sandy Foundation p. 12 13 15. but as the Holy One then will it follow That God is not a Holy Three nor doth Subsist in Three distinct and separate Holy Ones And since the Father is God the Son is God and the Spirit is God then unless the Father Son and Spirit are Three Distinct Nothings they must be Three Distinct Gods That frequent but impertinent Distinction That God is one Substance P. 12 15. but Three in Persons or Subsistances a most absurd Blasphemy They the Trinitarians must necessarily conclude their kind of Trinity a Fiction Now these Persons giving this as a Reason for their leaving the Quakers and charging them with Error for thus Writing and accounting it an Error against the very Foundation of the Christian Religion and an Antichristian Principle it may be taken for granted with them to be Truth to hold the contrary viz. That God as the Scriptures hath always declared and we believe is a Holy Three and doth consist in Three distinct and separate Holy Ones and since the Father is God the Son is God and the Spirit is God then they are not three distinct Nothings but three distinct Substances and three distinct Gods And that the frequent Distinction That God is one Substance but Three in Persons or Subsistances is Pertinent and no absurd Blasphemy and the Trinitarians do not necessarily conclude this kind of Trinity a Fiction Let these New Members of the Church enquire of Dr. Sherleek and Dr. South whether this be the Orthodox Opinion of the Church of England and is according to Scripture or of their Leader that hath caused them to Err. G. K. who said as followeth As concerning the Essence of the Christian Faith Serious Appeal p. 3. Writ 1692. as to the matter of it I declare sincerely without all Equivocation or mental Reservation in the true and general sense of the Words That I know not wherein I or the Quakers my Brethren of my Faith are guilty of any Fundamental Errors that are Repugnant to the Essence of the Christian Faith The only Exception we have is against the Unscriptural Term or Phrase of Three Persons or a Trinity of Persons but we own sincerely that our Faith ought to be and is in God the Father the Son and Holy Ghost and that these Names are Names of Relation respecting the Relations as well as the Relative
Offices and Works of those Three and this being granted by us in the sincerity of our Hearts we are excused and cleared And that we always did hold as above altho' falsly charged with Error is well known to them that well know us and notwithstanding these Persons pretend this for one of their Reasons for leaving us it 's Base as well as Foolish and very Idle for any to pretend to leave a People or Society for that which they never held and to alledge for Proof what was writ against those that did falsly accuse us many Years since in those things And the Orthodox antiently did not agree about these School-Terms which were invented since the Apostles days ibid. P. 4. to guard against the Arrian Sebellian and other Heresies and we are altogether free of them and detest them from our very Souls no sober Christian will therefore Judge uncharitably of us in that respect For what W. Penn argueth as concerning Three Persons he only argueth against the invented Names Persons as G. K. affirms Serious Appeal p. 10. if he may be believed by these New Creed-Makers and also that Persons in all proper Languages doth signifie Substances and not meer Properties or Relative Attributes which W. P will not deny to be in God SECT II. P. 9. The Blood of Christ outwardly Shed undervalued by some Quakers p. 10. Proof as Quoted The Sheding of that Blood Out of G. W's Ligot Life p. 64. let out by the Spear was an act of a wicked Man and the Spear an Instrument of Cruelty which to lay the meritorious Cause or Stress of Justification upon it 's false Doctrine says George Whitehead This is another pretended Antichristian Error against the very Foundation of the Christian Religion and one of the particular Reasons as they call it for which these Persons leave the Quakers Now if this be so the contrary sure must be Christian and Orthodox with them let 's therefore hear it and it will be as followeth The Sheding of that Blood let out by the Spear was not an act of a wicked Man and the Spear was not an Instrument of Cruelty which act to lay the meritorious Cause or Stress of Justification upon is not false Doctrine Will these new Creed makers say so But we who are so greatly Abused Rom. 8.24 25. 5.1 9. and foully Represented by our Adversaries Believe in him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the Dead who was delivered for our Offences and raised again for our Justification and therefore being Justified by Faith we have Peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ who dyed for us Being now Justified by his Blood we shall be saved from Wrath through him For if when we were Enemies we were reconciled to God by the Death of his Son much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his Life And if any would suggest from this Retortion of G. W. upon his Antagonist's words That the Quakers slight or undervalue the Blood of Christ that was Shed without the Gates of Jerusalem about 1700 Years since they grosly Abuse them and evilly Intreat them for as before we in Sincerity declare and in Humility and with true Thankfulness Bless God we have Peace with him through our Lord Jesus Christ who we firmly believe died for us and being now justified by his Blood we shall be saved from Wrath. And as G. K. saith It is only the true Believer who hath Faith in Christ Jesus whom God Justifieth so it is only he that is truly Sanctified Presb Ind. c. p. 122. and Regenerated and Born again of the Spirit of God whom God doth Justifie And it 's a true Figure of false Christians as G. K. saith p. 130. Ibid. who would have Christ divided and say They believe in Christ without them but do not believe and Receive Christ within them as God the Father doth Reveal him Nor saith G. Keith Serious Appeal p. 50. doth Edward Burroughs and William Penn if their words be duly construed contradict what I have affirmed But that Men are justified by Christ's Righteousness as the requisite Condition and Terms in order to that Imputation and that David lying in his Sins of Adultery and Murder remained justified we deny And let these New Creed-Makers prove that any owned by the Quakers or in Unity with them undervalue the Blood of Christ outwardly Shed for what they Cite out of G. W. doth not prove it SECT III. That God and Christ is in Heaven is denyed by some Quakers And the Proof brought by them is viz. But that the Outward Person which suffered Serious Apology by W. Penn. p. 146. was properly the Son of God we utterly deny This they pretend is against the Foundation of Christian Religion and as a proof of the Quakers Errors and Antichristian Principles which G. K. and others have endeavoured to render with as ugly a face as they can put on it Let us again try this backward and assert the contrary since it 's urged by them that are gone back and examine them a little on it That the outward Person that suffered was properly the Son of God we sincerely own Do you own this and condemn W. P. and some Quakers and leave all the Quakers for this and your other Reasons And do you know and believe that outward Person or Body only that suffered Death on the Cross which the Soldier pierced with the Spear was from all Eternity or of an eternal Generation and that That outward Person or Body only was Glorified with the Father before the World was as the Son of God who was before that Body that Suffered on the Cross Consider these things And whether these things do not proceed from a Spirit of Prejudice and Envy Serious Appeal p. 6. 15 to render us no Christians as G. K. said to C. Mather so far is he and we may say are you from that Candor of giving a favourable Construction upon W. P's Words that you shew more Inclination to Clamour and Reproach than Inform or Convince Come hear G. K. in this Case Because he C. M. cannot fix his false Charge upon me of denying Christ p. 25. Ibid. he essayeth but with as ill Success to fix it upon my Brethren as dear Isaac Pennington whom I well know to be a true Believer in the Lord Jesus Christ and a sincere Lover of him even the Crucified Jesus and whose Soul I believe is in Rest with Christ in Heavenly Glory And as to his words We can never call the bodily Garment Christ but that which appeared and dwelt in the Body it is easie to put a fair and charitable Construction on it as well as on Christ's words when he said ☞ He that hath seen me hath seen my Father and yet many saw Christ's Body of Flesh that never saw the Father But to clear the thing J. P. speaketh this in Opposition to Socinians and did