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truth_n	speak_v	true_a	word_n	8,834	5	4.4618	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A79473	Chillingworthi novissima. Or, The sicknesse, heresy, death and buriall of William Chillingworth. (In his own phrase) Clerk of Oxford, and in the conceit of his fellow souldiers, the Queens arch-engineer, and grand-intelligencer. Set forth in a letter to his eminent and learned friends, a relation of his apprehension at Arundell, a discovery of his errours in a briefe catechism, and a shorr [sic] oration at the buriall of his hereticall book. By Francis Cheynell, late fellow of Merton Colledge. Published by authority.	Cheynell, Francis, 1608-1665.	1644 (1644)	Wing C3810; Thomason E36_7; ESTC R13256	46,148	66

the second and third Epistles of John the Epistle to the Hebrewes the Epistle of Jude the book of the Revelation the books of Job Esther Ecclesiastes c. He saith he cannot in reason so undoubtedly beleeve those books to be Canonicall which have beene questioned as those which were never questioned At least I have no warrant to damne any man that shall deny them now having the example of Saints in Heaven either to justifie or excuse such their deniall chap. 2. sect. 38. pag. 67. Surely here is a pretty tempting excuse for if not a justification of those Libertines who question these books and may upon Mr Chillingworths principles question all the rest if they acknowledge one of the Gospels that containes as much as all the rest Ergo that is sufficient pag. 93. 101. But if they beleeve no booke to be Canonicall and therefore will not assent to any book of Scripture they doe not commit a sinne of derogation from Gods perfect and pure veracity for he onely gives God the lye who denies some book or point which he himselfe knowes or beleeves to be revealed by God chap. 3. sect. 15 16 17. Now it is impossible that a man should know one thing to be true and beleeve the contrary or know it and not beleeve it sect. 18. Whither these and the like principles which frequently occurre in his writings tend let the most sober and charitable men judge The only Fundamentall Errour in Mr Chillingworths judgement is to deny something which the party himselfe knowes or beleeves to be revealed by God and therefore in his judgement none but downe-right Atheists erre fundamentally cap. 2. p. 135. 136. Atheisme then as the Jesuites and Arminians conceive is the formality of an Heretick p. 100. for it is down-right Atheisme for any man to deny that to be true which he acknowledges to be spoken by the God of truth Qu. But if I doe beleeve the Scripture to be Gods word is it necessary to beleeve that controversies are to be decided by that Word An. No saith Mr Chillingworth this is no Fundamentall point his words are full I say that this position Scripture alone is the rule whereby they which beleeve it to bee Gods word are to judge all controversies in faith is no Fundamentall point chap. 2. pag. 115. His intent is by this assertion to make good a dreame of his that some controversies in faith need not be judged or determined at all Mr Chillingworth pretends that he holds the Scripture to be a perfect rule of faith and yet he saith it is not necessary to judge all controversies and those no small ones because they are controversies in faith by that perfect rule It is a perfect rule but we need not be ruled by it in all points of faith Qu. But is there then any other way to decide controversies which hath any colour of probability from the Scripture An. Yes nine or ten severall meanes of agreement offered themselves to Mr Chillingworth upon the sudden and haply more might have beene thought on if he had had time and these that are offered have as much probability from Scripture as that which Papists obtrude upon us And truly he was such a ready blasphemer that he could vent extemporary blasphemies yet such as the Licentious men at Oxford approved chap. 3. pag. 130. 131. First he saith we could if we would try it by lots whose Doctrine is true and whose false for which he cites Prov. 16. 33. It may be this Sophister did cast lots for his Religion and it was his hard lot to draw Popery first then Arminianisme and then his doctrine run lower and lower till it came almost to the very dregs of Socinianisme Secondly we could referre it to the King Prov 16. 10. and 21. 1. Mr Chillingworth might make merry with his owne prophane doctrine but I admire that he should dare to sport himselfe with the Majesty of Scripture and the Majesty of the King But truly I am afraid that some are so indifferent in point of Religion that they are content not only to referre it to the King but to the Queene It were proper for them to vent such Doctrine who have as the old Tradition and proverbe hath it taken an oath to be of the Kings Religion Thirdly to an Assembly of Christians assembled in the name of Christ Math. 18. 20. Let them not then blame the Parliament for consulting an Assembly of learned and pious Christians and most of them Ministers of the Gospel assembled in the name of Christ Fourthly to any Priest Malach. 2. 7. This makes well of the Queens side Fifthly to any Preacher of the Gospel Pastour or Doctour Math. 28. 20. Sure Mr Chillingworth was more independent then they that are commonly so called Sixthly to any Bishop or Prelate why not then to the Bishop of Rome for it is written Obey your Prelates Heb. 13. 17. Mr Chillingworth since his pretended conversion was very apt to be seduced by the vulgar or Rhemish translation or some version received at Saint Omers but this was a voluntary and devised meanes as he saith in the same page Seventhly to any particular Church of Christians seeing it is a particular Church which is called the house of God a pillar and ground of truth 1 Tim. 3. 15. and seeing of any particular Church it is written He that heareth not the Church let him be unto thee an Heathen Matth. 18. Mr Chillingworth is sometimes Prelaticall and sometimes Congregationall Eighthly we might referre it to any man that prayes for Gods spirit for it is written every one that asketh receives this is one steppe beyond the Brownists Matth. 7. 8. James 1. 5. Lastly we might referre it to the Jewes for without all doubt of them it is written My spirit that is in thee c. Isaiah 59. 21. And why not to the Socinians they have naturall reason a very competent Judge in Mr Chillingworths conceit What wonder is it that so many blasphemies and quibbles for every quibble upon Scripture is a blasphemy should be licensed by grave and learned Professours of Divinity what if Papists take liberty to blaspheme and put the Scripture upon the rack to force it to confesse what makes for their turn must Protestants or such a one who undertakes the common Cause of Protestants though he was no Protestant bee permitted to blaspheme by the Licence of an University Repent deare Doctors once more repent and I will proceed Qu. But how shall I know the true sense of Scripture there being such variety of conceits which passe for Interpretations Answ Here help mee Reason again and Implicit Faith For the last Resolution of my Faith in his conceit must be into Reason page 65. 96. and still he labours to prove that Reason is Judge and he frequently jeares at Knot for accounting it an absurdity for every man and woman to rely upon their Reason in the interpreting of Scripture p. 98. Reasons drawn

sinne in which the life and power of repentance doth consist A man may live and die in his sinnes and be saved by an universall sorrow Men are damned saith he who die in wilfull errours without repentance but what if they die in thir errours with repentance Answer to the Preface p. 20. That is a contradiction saith the Iesuit and he saith true but it appeares by that speech that Master Chillingworth conceived that an universall sorrow for sinne without any hatred of or turning from sinne was saving repentance Qu. What other condition is required in the Covenant between God and man in Christ Answ Sincere obedience Answer to the Preface p. 18. This indeed is the prime condition he meanes when he saith p. 134. That to beleeve in Christ is to expect remission of sinnes from Christ upon the conditions he requires This is pure Socinianisme to beleeve that we shall be pardoned upon our obedience or as the Socinians expresse it and justified according to the Covenant by our owne obedience not as we say by the obedience of Christ and freely pardoned for the al sufficient satisfaction of Christ made in our stead and put upon our account Besides if a man neglect never so many duties live in never-so many errors and commit never so many grosse sinnes he conceives that an Implicite Faith and a generall Repentance of all sinnes knowne and unknowne are sufficient Antidotes and his Obedience shall passe for sincere Obedience as you may clearly see in those places which have beene already alleadged If a man be not convinced that Christ is God by his principles an Implicit Faith and generall Repentance will serve the turne though that truth hath beene sufficiently propounded to him and it is meerly his own fault that he is not convinced for in his conceit as long as this man remains as he saith unconvinced but as we say obstinate so long he doth not derogate any thing from Gods veracity or truth His words are these But if the proposall be only so sufficient not that the party to whom it is made is convinced but only that he should but for his own fault would have beene convinced of the divine verity of the doctrine proposed The crime then is not so great for the beliefe of Gods veracity may well consist with such an errour Yet a fault I confesse it is and without Repentance damnable if all circumstances considered that is mens passions hindrances c. considered as above said the proposall be sufficient p. 18. of his answer to the Preface Now what he meanes by repentance hath beene shewen a generall sorrow for all sinnes knowne and unknowne such a repentance as will consist with a mans obstinate deniall of a truth for he may die in this errour with Master Chillingworths repentance and neither the errour nor the obstinancie shall be imputed to him because he is sorry for he knowes not what and remained unconvinced of his errour though it was meerly his owne fault that he was not convinced This is a ready way to save Iewes Turkes Socinians Papists Infidels and all for he doth meerly retaine the names of faith repentance sincere obedience without the substance life and power of them The Faith he talkes of leaves the will at liberty he starts at the Apostles phrase the obedience of faith You saith he to Knot say there is some merit in faith we some obedience in it which can hardly have place where there is no possibility of disobedience as there is not where the understanding doth all and the will nothing p. 329. Sure I am the Devill hath such a saith an assent without obedience his faith is no faith because grounded meerly upon probabilities he only saith that the precepts of Christianity are most likely to come from God p. 36. chap. 1. but the Spirit of God being implored by devout and humble prayer and sincere obedience may and will by degrees advance his servants to an higher certainty p. 36. 37. But this certainty is a reward given to beleevers so then men are beleevers before the Spirit gives them any certainty that the Christian religion did proceed from the fountaine of goodnesse Now he who only beleeves the Christian religion of all other religions to be most likely to be true is not very likely to implore the Spirit very earnestly either by prayer or obedience for who will obey the precepts of Christianity till he be assured that they and the promises are divine But saith Master Chillingworth men may talke their pleasure of an absolute and most infallible certainty but did they generally beleeve that obedience to Christ were the only way marke that the onely way to present and eternall felicity but as firmly and undoubtedly as that there is such a City as Constantinople nay but as much as Caesars Commentaries or the History of Salust I beleeve the lives of most men both Papists and Protestants would be better then they are chap. 6. pag. 327. Sure Christs obedience for us is the way to happinesse therefore our obedience is not the only way 2. It is certaine that all true Protestants do beleeve the Gospel more firmly then Caesars Commentaries or Salust prophane Histories 3. Such a Faith as this will not implore the Spirit by devout and humble prayer or by sincere obedience 4. I appeale to all indifferent men what kind of obedience is like to spring from an implicite faith in unsanctified reason a faith that is a bare assent without obedience the faith of Devils not the faith of Christians 5. The repentance of obstinate men I meane in sensu composito as Master Chillingworth means a generall sorrow which he cals repentance that is humiliation without reformation repentance of sinnes which I love and live in and damnable errours which I die in is not that repentance from dead works which Christ requires sure Heresie in the language of the Apostle is a work of the flesh and therefore as dead a work as any other we may then safely conclude that an implicite faith in unsanctified reason or fallible tradition and a generall sorrow for I know not what sinnes and errors though grosse enough for to be known such sinnes and errours as the party doth love live and die in and never so much as confesse to be sinnes or errours because he is so obstinate that he will not be convinced of them I say safely conclude that this faith and this sorrow are both unchristian if not Antichristian He that hath an implicite faith in his owne unsanctified reason makes himselfe a Pope Sanctified reason sees but in part and therefore unsanctified reason is spiritually blind it cannot see any thing which is spiritually discerned Besides I feare that he conceived there was some merit of congruity in the lame obedience of this blind beleever because he saith the sincere obedience of such a beleever doth implore the Spirit Now whether a man that relies upon his owne reason and his