Scorning Lying Slandering Envy Hatred Lightnesse c. with much more of which thou art guilty are the fruits of the flesh and of the Divel hence I querie of thee VIII Whether by this rule art thou not proved to be no Ministers of Christ but of the Devil and a servant to him and a liver to the flesh and not in the spirit in whom these fruits of darknesse and of the flesh are abounding Seeing the Scripture saith the Word of God was in the begining and Christ Jesus is the foundation and no other can be laid hence I querie of thee IX Whether by this rule thou art not proved a deceiver and thy doctrine false and error and contrary to Scripture who said the Scriptures are the Word of God which were not in the begining and said that the Scriptures which are not Christ are the foundation of foundations and whether this doctrine of thine doth not deny Christ and so art proved to be Antichrist answer according to truth Seeing thou confesses thou hast hire for preaching yet saist thou preaches not for hire hence I querie of thee X. Whether any of the People of Reading would give thee so much a year if thou didst not preach to them and if no then whether they do not give thee so much and thou receive it because thou preaches unto them or did they give thee so much before thou preachedst or will they give thee any when thou doth cease to preach to them try them when thou wilt and prove thy self a true Prophet by preaching some years and receiving nothing and till then I charge thee to be a false prophet Seeing the Ministry which Christ Jesus sent by the the Apostles did bring people that they needed no man to teach them but as the anoynting within them hence I querie of thee XI Whether by this rule thy Ministry is proved not to be of Christ Iesus nor thou sent of him by which none can come to this condition that they need no man to teach them produce any one if thou canst and so a Ministry of Anti-christ and thou of the Divel Seeing they that abide not in the Doctrine of Christ have not God hence I querie of thee XII Whether by this rule thou art not proved to be without Christ and without God who abides not in Christs doctrine but are called of men master and stand Praying in the Synagogue and hast the chief seat in the Assembly and contrary to Christs Command Answer these Queries with the Spirit of Sobernesse if thou hast it and shew thy self a man if thou hast the heart of a man and repent of thy wickednesse and own thy condemnation upon thy former words and works I am a Friend unto thy Soul but a witnesse against thy deceits E. B And after which time for the space of two years I had no Communication with Christopher Fowler till this last nineth month at a place called East-Hamsted where a meeting of dispute was appointed and challenged by some of his Brethren at which place again I mett with this my adversary where we had some houres discourse and many particulars of False Doctrine fell from Christopher Fowlers mouth some few of which hereafter followeth First one of his brethren in his prayer before the dispute prayed to God to forgive them the Athesm that were in their hearts of him and his Brethren Answer now an Athest is one that denies God and Athesm is denying of God according to common reputation Athesm is so taken so that how shall such a generation of men bring people to the knowledg of God by your Ministry or how should they ever convert people or profit them who yet in their owne hearts denyed God as the man acknowledged in his prayer before the Lord and many witnesses the poor people of England had thought that the spirit of God had been in your hearts but now we know that you deny God in your hearts and you have confessed it to you ownr shame are you Ministers of Christ and yet denyes God in your hearts and in whose hearts lodges Athesm Oh! let not people be deceived by you but repent yee that know not God but with your mouths confesse him and with your hearts do deny him Christopher Fowler also affirmed that day That the Scriptures are the Glorious everlasting Foundation of Foundations Answ. And hereby it is made manifest that he hath totolly denyed Christ and so proved with his brother confest in his prayer that indeed Athesm is in their hearts and so he hath denyed Christ whom the Scriptures say is the foundation and no other foundation can any man lay and upon him were the Saints builded in their faith and all their practices of Religion for he is the corner stone as it is written and thus he hath dishonoured Christ in setting the Scriptures above him and taking the Honnor from him and giving it to the Scriptures and I shall leave this his doctrine to be considered with a querie to these people of his Church in Reading whether he is worth hearing or giving money to for preaching that holds forth such doctrine and whether it is possible he should bring them to Christ who hath in effect denyed him to be the foundation and held forth that the Scriptures are the Glorious everlasting Foundation of Foundations much I need not say to uncover the error of such a doctrine Again he affirmed That a man at one and the self same time might be a Minister of Christ and a deceiver Answ. And here all may see the weaknesse and Ignorance of this strange paradox and indeed which is contrary to the Scriptures which saith No man can serve two maststers it s very certaine that he that serves the Divel doth not serve Christ at the same time and he that serves Christ doth not serve the Devil and so his doctrine is Anti-christan which would make people believe that though they serve the Devil yet they are the servants of God and this is as much as he hath said that one may be a Minister of Christ and yet a deceiver now a deceiver is one that followes the spirit of the Devil and a Minister of Christ is one that followes the Spirit of Christ and these two spirits are contrary and not both ruling in one man at one time but then to helpe the matter he said a man might serve Christ in office but not in love to which my answer was let him say whether he and the Priests of England did serve Christ by way of office or love both or either and I should prove the contrary but that wee prosecuted no further some other things were affirmed by him that day not now remembred He said That Christ was a sinner from this argument laid down by him all that dies are sinners Christ died therefore c. These and such things he held forth all that day besides the unsobernesse of his words and carriages towards me who called
the place and nominated a certain day for the time and he had nigh a weeks notice from me and the time appointed I went to Reading to attend the Service but when I came there I understood that he would not meet me according to his own proposals and agreement but nominated another place and another time which was supposed by me and others to be but a present evading of the matter whereupon his denial to meet me at the time and place appointed by me this following Letter I sent unto him C. Fowler WHereas a Challenge of thine to us called Quakers for a Dispute upon ten Particulars was set up on the Steeple-house-door at Easthamstead and leaving it to us to appoint time and place I did appoint Reading for the place and the fourth day this week called Wednesday the 21. of this moneth for the time and in order to proceed upon the particulars in dispute with thee the place and time abovesaid I ordered my occasions so as to attend upon the Service the said time but I being come into the Town this night do perceive that thou art not content with the place and time though they were left to our appointing in thy Challenge but hast appointed another place and time upon some feeble Reasons which thou gives which I might shew the weakness of and might upon many better reasons say that Reading is the only place seasonable to dispute at for if thou be indeed a true Minister of Christ the people of this Town best deserves to know it by hearing it to be so and if thou art a Deceiver the people of this Town had the most need of any others to know it by hearing thee disproved So upon this place I have pitched and cannot now change my resolution nor alter neither time nor place by me before-mentioned my occasion will not admit me to it Therefore I thought good to write to thee to know for certain under thy hand whether you will give a meeting or not in this Town the fourth day next as aforesaid if not this matter must yet remain as it stands between us till a more clear opportunity for I cannot be at Okingham the day mentioned by thee because my service is already determined for that day and for some other reasons also in my own brest Let me have a plain answer from thee that I may dispose of my self as the Lord guides me for his service This is all for present I do desire who am a friend to all that love the Lord Reading the 19th of the 10th Moneth 1659. E. Burrough But to this Letter his Answer was he would not meet me at Reading for there was no need of Dispute there and therefore it is my present work at this time for to answer his ten Particulars in writing and to make them publike to all that all may judge of this matter And indeed but that for these ten particular Charges and that truth may be clear from those Charges in his ten Particulars I believe I had not thus proceeded in this publike manner but because he ceaseth not to speak evil of the Truth and yet will not come forth fairly to Tryal neither will answer me any Queries in publike but keeps a secret reviling and reproaching therefore do I thus proceed Answer to the first Position Thy Major and thy Minor are both lame and both false and thy so conclusion falls to the ground for the Quakers do not perniciously deny the Scriptures to be the Word of God but they in sincerity say that Christ is the Word of God Io. 1.1 Rev. 19.13 and the Scriptures are the Words of God and a Declaration and a Treatise and this testimony is according to the Scriptures Luke 1.1 Acts 1. And it is not Heresie nor Blasphemy to deny the Scriptures to wit the writings to be the Word of God but the truth written of and those things declared of in the Scriptures are the Word of God and not the writings which are Scriptures But this is further spoken to before and so I pass it Answer to the second Position Thy Major Position is utterly false and not grounded upon any part of the Scriptures so that the Minor and the Conclusion are both denied and cast out For a man may say that Christ is the Foundation of Faith and the Spirit of God is the Rule of Life for thus the Scriptures say And a man may lawfully deny the Scriptures to be the Foundation of Faith and Rule of Life and neither be Heretick nor Blasphemer Was the Apostle a Blasphemer and a Heretick who said No other Foundation could be laid but that which was laid already which was Christ And was he a Heretick and a Blasphemer that said the Sons of God were led by the Spirit of God and exhorted to walk by the Rule of the Spirit And are the Quakers Blasphemers and Hereticks who holds forth that truth the Apostles hold forth and who walks by the Spirit walks according and not contrary to the Scriptures O thou Perverter of the right way of God who hast falsly accused the Innocent in thy illiterate Logick Answer to the third Position In this thou hast falsly accused but yet let us consider thy words There was a Nature in that Man Jesus Christ that was born of the Virgin that was subject to cold heat thirst and hunger and subject to be tempted of the Devil and this Nature was not God whose Nature is Infinite Eternal Unmeasurable not subject to hunger nor thirst nor to heat and cold nor subject to temptations so that a man may say lawfully and be no Blasphemer That there was a Nature in him which was not God and yet the fulness of the Godhead dwelt in him to and he is the Everlasting Father and the Father is in him and he in the Father And thus by a sound interpretation of the Word God by Nature thy Major and Minor and Conclusion are all made void Answer to the fourth The good works of the Saints are wrought in God and by his Spirit and its God that works in them to will and to do and all such works are worthy works glorious works and blessed works even unto eternal life as the Scripture saith Glory Honor and Peace be to every man that worketh good Rom 2.7.10 And no man by Faith without works is justified for Faith without works is dead and a dead Faith doeth not justifie This is our Faith and the Faith which the Apostles were of and we are neither Hereticks nor Papists no more than were the Apostles and thus thy argument is vain and falls to the ground and hath no weight in it unto sober minds though self-righteousness is altogether abomination to the Lord and justifies not any man Answer to the fift A man may deny the sprinkling of Infants and the Administration of Bread and Wine as is held forth in your Assemblies and be neither Antichristian nor a Heretick for the Institution
The first opposition that fell out between him and me was at a meeting challenged by himself in that Town about the ninth Month in the year 1657. and I shall at present forbeare his detestable and abominable practices and speeches against me and the Truth at that Meeting for indeed the remembrance of it is much passed from me but many in that Town may well remember to this day how he howted and clapped his hands in the Pulpit as if he had been Hunting on a Mountaine and also his ungodly speeches and revilings towards me as calling me dogg and vilain and such like names and when some of his owne people reproved him for such words he said the worst words he had in his mouth was to good for me and indeed such was his carriages and words towards me at that time farr off civility and not like a sober Heathen much lesse like a Christan or Minister of Christ and here followes what was written to him and to the Major and whole Town and sent the next morning after the dispute which is some account of that dayes proceeding and finding a copy of it by me I thought meet here to insert it Friends Rulers Priests and People of Reading A Few words to cleare my Conscience to you all in the sight of God I send among you occasioned by this dayes meeting ye people be ashamed of your Priests and ye Priests be yee ashamed of your People and all of you together cover your lips and hide your faces and be ashamed of your Profession in Religion or to make mention of the name of the Lord in that nature in which you stand whose lightnesse and foolishnesse and rudenesse and wickednesse exceeds some others yea many with whom I have had to do in disputes you excel in unreasonablenesse in words and Behaviour manifesting your selves some of you not to be civil men much lesse Christians and this very day much of your vanity bruitishnesse and uncivility appeared to your shame in the sight of all just and sober men and to your condemnation in the sight of God who takes notice of your wickedness and unseemely behaviour which you may call to mind and remember that you may repent of your ungodly words and cruel speeches and rude brutish gestures which appeared in you without any feare of God to your shame be it spoken and like Priests like People all out of the way in folly and vanity erring through lightnesse and wantonnnesse not knowing the Scriptures nor the Power of God but perverters of the one and despisers of the other the sin of the Priest will be charged upon the People because you love to have those things so and uphold him in his wickednesse and the sin of the people will be charged upon the Priests who through lyes and lightnesse causes you to erre and profits them not at all but is a blind leader of yee blind people till both fall into the ditch together who closes your eyes that you may not see and shutts your eares least you should heare and hardens your hearts that you may not understand and your destruction is of your selves and your blood is upon your own heads who scorns to be reproved and despiseth the way of the Lord and will not receive his Truth in the Love of it that you may be saved but is a blind willful and stifenecked people some of you who hath hearts and cannot understand Is these the fruits of your long Profession Railing Mocking Scorning Laughing Hooting Foolish and Vain Words Nicknaming and Reproaching these things abounds openly among you to your shame especially at such a time when Meeknesse and Sobernesse and Moderation had much better become you to have been brought forth by you Your Priests exceeding the rest in vilenesse and some of your Rulers hardly being clear remember your work and call to mind your words and wayes and let shame cover your heads from the highest to the lowest of you and thou proud wild reproachful professed Minister cease thy vain presumptious boastings against the Innocent and now when thou puts off thy armor if thou hast gotten a victory glory or rather hide thy face for shame stop thy mouth in the dust whose lightness wildnesse hath super-abounded some of thy fellows who may be ashamed of thee in thy words and behaviour whereby thou art sufficiently proved to be one that was never sent of God if we had no other testimony Thy proud presumptious boast against the Quakers was with sobernesse and in the feare of the Lord answered to thy shame in the sight of all such whose hearts are not altogether hardned and given up to believe Lies and to do Wickednesse that they may be damned that believe not the Truth and first as to the manner of the dispute on his part was his Railing Envious Reproachful unsavory filthy words of God or of the Devil with much impudency many times uttered in the discourse as Villain Sirrah Wretch Blasphemer Rogue and such like lying words of Bitternesse more like the words of a brawling Drunkard then for a Minister of Christ and was his hooting laughfing and clapping his hands and rude and unseemly gestures and behaviour of God or of the Devil more like in appearance to a Stage player then to a Minister of Christ to his shame I mention it consider and answer these things and let that of God in your Consciences Judge to which I stand to be approved in meeknesse and he to be reproved and condemned in his filthinesse and bruitishnesse in the sight of God may not you who owned him in that discourse be ashamed of him in these his words and actions which appeared who boastingly gave a Challenge to dispute of the things of God and then to manage it in rudenesse and wildnesse without any feare of God in lying and slandring and at the end when things came to the head for tryal to run away and not to stand to the end though several times he was charged to it I appeale for Answer to the light of Christ in all your Consciences not like a Minister of Christ in any measure he appeared But as one that knows not the living God nor his Law and fear nor Judgements and an unfit fellow upon tryal I found him to dispute the Pretious things of God and through some Nations I have hardly mett with a worse which caused me to be the more silent then otherwise I would for I chosed rather to be accounted a fool by silence then to offend the Just Law of God by giving holy things to doggs or casting pearls before Swine in which nature he and some of you appeared who Falsly Slandered the Innocent with the name of Jesuite and such like crying away with him with bitter and cruel words and gestures pushing with your hands and crying a prison were the fitest or such like even like unto your fore-Fathers the Pharisees who persecuted Christ under the account of
themselves being righteous and he a blasphemer and they laid snares for him to entrap him in his words as you did who when I would not answer according to your provoking that you might ensnare me would hardly suffer me to answere any thing to clear and defend to the Truth against the boast of the Wicked but by Hooting and Laughing and Clapping of Hands and Foolish Jeastings and unreasonable Rudenesse prevented me from speaking and them that would have heard from hearing as much as you could even as bruit beasts or Heathens and not like civil people much lesse like godly Christians nor like such as would or could soberly debate the Truth of God to edification and truly may I say I fought with beasts at Reading after the manner of men but all was to make your selves and your pretended Minister manifest and all could not be so blind but might understand his wayes and words no to be guided by the Spirit of God but by the spirit of the Devil who is the Father of such Works and Confusion as was brought forth by him in the meeting in many uncivil actions and reproachful words of envy And also as to the matter of dispute on his part managed was but a vain contention boastingly uttered without the fear of the Lord in a proud presumptious spirit and a snare laid in the mid'st of his questions and arguments to entrap the Just but in vain was the snare laid in the sight of the Bird and I chose rather to appear a fool to your wisdom then to be made a prey upon by you and caught in your deep-laid snare for we are learned to be as wise as serpents and deeply did he and some of you fall into the snare of Confusion and Wickednesse and False Doctrine as would have been laid open if he had durst to have staid or you to have heard The Principal Question was whether the Scriptures are the Word of God which he affirmed but could not prove by plaine Scripture unto which much might have been answered and said if patience or any moderation had ruled over your despiteful spirits but because I could not to satisfy your wills and to fulfil your purpose answere yea or nay and thereby make my self a transgressor Therefore hardly would you suffer me to say any thing in any manner of arguing but by wickednesse endeavoured to stopp my mouth My answer was and is the Scriptures the writings which are one are but a declaration and witnesse of the word of God which word was in the begining and endures for ever as Iohn and Peter testifies and the Scriptures which are writings were not in the begining but began to be written by Moses many hundred years after the begining Therefore the Scriptures which were not in the begining are not the Word of God which Word was in the begining further the Scripture saith the Worlds were made and framed by the Word of God but the Scriptures made not the Worlds therefore the Scriptures are not the Word of God which as the Scripture it self saith made the Worlds many such like witnesses might be alledged from the Scriptures to prove the Scriptures are not the the Word God but a Declaration of the Word of God which cannot endure for ever then he said he would prove the Scriptures should endure for ever but could not bring any plaine Scriptures as I demanded of him to prove the assertion but went about in Logick to prove it and could prove no more then that the truth written of in the Scripture should endure for ever which thing I never did or shall deny and so needed not to be contended against by any sober men but unreasonable men who have not faith will say any thing for advantage to themselves and disadvantage to the Truth which they are set to oppose and he instanced and said it is written Christ is God blessed for ever and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and said this should endure for ever to which I answered that which is written of only shall endure for ever but the Scripture and writings should not endure for ever and further instanced God was written and was Scripture and should not endure for ever though God should endure for ever and he could not be written nor contained in a book and through your vanity in scorning and hooting and unreasonablenesse according to your own purpose least your deceiver should be made manifest you prevented me and would not suffer me further to speak in what much more I had to say in this particular I observed that in all the questions and arguments against me was hatched secretly a snare to entrapp me into suffering and to this purpose some of you said wickedly I would presently dispute my self into prison and further he instanced Thou shall honor thy Father and thy Mother it is so written and said he this is a command of God and the Word of God and shall endure for ever with presumptuous boasts and scornful invented terms not beseeming any man much lesse a Minister he could prove this to be the Word of God against all the Quakers in the world and and against all the Fiends in Hell and against all the Jesuits at Rome or filthy words to this purpose and much I desired moderation from you with dilligence to heare my defence thereupon many times desired the Mayor who was present to command silence but I could hardly obtain any from you you were so generally rude rash unreasonable and to him I replyed that to honor father and Mother in the Lord was a command of God and was the Word of God and should endure for ever but Lukes writings the Scripture were but a Declaration of this Command and not the Command it self nor the Word of God and would perish and not endure for ever and bid you read Luke 1.1 There Luke calls his writings which are Scriptures a Declaration and much more might I have spoken to this thing if I had been yoaked against a reasonable man or if the Auditors had been but civil but you could not endure to hear but said I subtilly Insinuated into their people and thereupon several times some of you spake to the Mayor to dismisse the people I thinke least your hirelings should be discovered and your wickednesse reproved and thus the thing came nere an end he not being able to prove by any Scripture or right argument the Scripture to be the Word of God which shall endure for ever but must if his and your eye ever be opened confesse to what I held forth that only that which is written of in the Scripture or which the Scripture declares of shall endure for ever to be the Word of God and nor the Scripture or writings then presumptuously he said prove him if I could to be a False Prophet to which I answered and desired much your moderation but could not obtaine it as though you had
set your selves to be rude and vain to prove a False Prophet was either by conversation or doctrine or both and by his fruits he was known to preach for hire and to didivine for money is fruits and signes of a False Prophet as the Scripture testified which should be my rule to try him by if he durst stand to it and they that preached for hire were False Prophets and he preached for hire and therefore was a False Prophet according to the Scripture rule then he said he preached not for hire yet he had hire for preaching a poor shift to cover the devils deceipts but it will not hide his shame and it was proved that he preached for hire to all but such who stopped their ears and it was manifested in his face that he sued some at the law which would not pay him tithes and then I asked him to give any examples from the Ministers of Christ where ever they took tithes or sued men at the the law who would not pay them wages but to this he gave no answer at all and thereby he was proved to be a False Prophet and a deceiver and much more might have been said as to this to prove him and his generation to be false Prophets as may be done at any time but such was the unreasonablenesse at this passage that you were nigh to lay violent hands upon me some of you and least your deceiver should be made manifest you would not suffer me to spake what I had to say but cryed away with me and tell me any of you when he preached any year or time at this town when he had no hire and therefore he is a hireling because he preacheth not without it but for it and so is a False Prophet and he being I judge sorely afraid least he should be discovered went out of his pulpit door two or three times till I called him back again and charged him to stay if he was a man and I would prove him to be a preacher of false doctrine who in my hearing said the Scripture was the foundation of foundations but when he heard this he rann away and fled like a hireling and would not stay and I was and am ready in the presence of God any sober men to prove this to be false doctrine of the devil and him to be no Minister of Christ who holds it forth And all you sober minded men may be ashamed of him who managed his work with so much wickednesse and impudency while he staid and when it came to the very tryal then he runn away and would not stand though I desired him hereby did his guilt appear in flying the tryal and this is the substance of the business though not every particular word and I have gathered it up to send you and him that when you see it and consider and read what you have done you may be ashamed of him and of your own unreasonablenesse and further he is already proved and may be more largely hereafter to be one that God never sent both by conversation and doctrine and no Minister of Jesus Christ and not onely in the house but when we were come forth such was your violence to the stopping of us when we were passing and had not the Mayor prevented it our suffering from some of you had been more than it was let the feare of the Lord strike you and let his light search wicked and ungodly hearts and repent of your doings and cease to do evil and turn from your deceiver if you love your own souls and learn the way of righteousnesse and Peace which you have not yet known for in the broad way you are and the end of it will be unto your everlasting destruction and to you this is a warning and a visitation from the Lord by a lover of your souls who is true though by you called and counted a deceiver and this in love to your souls is sent unto you E. B. Here also followes certain Queries to Christopher Fowler the same time to which he never yet could give any sober Answer therefore I here Insert them that he may yet give his Answer Christopher Fowler SEeing thou art a man so irrational and so unsober to speak and fairly to debate things in discourse and thy Auditory so rude and inhumane in behaviour and words Therefore to thee these few Queries I propound to try thee whether thou wilt shew the spirit of a man by writing more than by speaking seeing therein I have tried thee to be more like a wild inhumane creature than a sober and upright Christian Seeing the Scripture saith the Word of God was in the begining and the world was framed by it and it shall endure for ever hence I querie of thee I. Whether the Scriptures be the very Word of God yea or nay Seeing the Scriptures were not in the begining neither was the World framed by them neither can they endure for ever hence I querie of thee II. Whether the very Word of God be Scripture yea or nay Seeing it is confessed that which is written of and declared of in the Scriptures is the word of God and the Truth which shall endure for ever hence I querie of thee III. Whether the Scriptures the writings and the thing or subject declared and written of are not two distinct things so as one may have the one and not the other yea or nay Seeing God and his Word will and mind is eternal infinite and endlesse hence I querie of thee if thou hast an understanding Answer IV Whether God his Word will and mind is or can be contained or holden in Scriptures and writings or but onely part of the declaration of him of his word will and mind yea or nay Seeing such were false prophets which preached for hire and divined for money and sought for gain from their quarter hence I querie of thee V. Whether by this rule art not thou proved a false prophet who preaches for hire and takes hire for preaching and hath a quarter reading of some part of it from which thou seeks gain answer in plainnesse Seeing every tree is known by its fruit as Christ saith hence I querie VI Whether by this rule thou that brings forth the same fruits as the false prophets did viz. lies lightnesse pride covetuousnesse and false accusing art not the same tree viz. a false prophet Seeing they were false prophets who rann and were not sent and did not profit them the people at all but clothed themselves with the wool and prepared warr against them that put not into their mouths c. hence I querie of thee VII Whether by this rule thou art not proved a False Prophet who canst not prove that thou art sent of God neither are the people profited by thee but are rude and wanton and wicked and thou prepared warr against them that put not into thy mouth by suing them at law for tithes c Seeing