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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50679	An antidote against the venom of Quakerism, or, Some observations, on a little pamphlet, stiled, The Christianity of the people commonly called Quakers by John Meriton ...	Meriton, John, 1666-1717.	1699 (1699)	Wing M1816; ESTC R11247	24,688	49

AN ANTIDOTE Against the Venom of Quakerism BEFORE I enter upon the Examination of the Quakers Principles as here Professed and as I suppose Owned by them I shall very briefly desire the Reader to take Notice what is understood by the Term Christianity or what is necessary in a strict and proper Sense to Entitle a Man to be a Christian For the making up then this good Composition it is not enough for a Man to know and acknowledge God as the One only true God Creator of all things to Depend upon and to be Subject to him to Love him our Neighbour and our Selves to walk Soberly and Honestly and to practice all those other Duties which by the Light and Law of Nature he may be Convinced of for these a Man may believe and be consormable thereto and yet be no Christian For who doubts but that some of the Heathens thus far believed and practiced who were not only altogether ignorant of Christ but also vehemently opposed him and the Christian Name Tho' according to Will Penn's Notion of Christianity in his Address to Protestants p. 119. Second Edition these must be Christians For what is Christ says he but Meekness Justice Mercy Patience Charity and Vertue in persection Nay even the Jews themselves who were once God's Chosen People and must be Saved thro' Faith in the Messiah that was to come cannot in a strict Sense be called Christians their State being no Christian State however Obedient they might be to the Legal Dispersation they lived under yet they could no from thence be Entituled Christians For to Entitle a Man to be a Christian 〈◊〉 must necessarily believe 〈◊〉 to be already come nay that Partic●●●● and Numeric●● Man Christ Jesus who was Born of the Vi●gin Mary and was of the Seed of Abraha● according to the Flesh to be the Christ 〈◊〉 God that was promised to come in due time that this very Man was Crucified Died a●● Rose again from the Dead and is Ascende● c. Without Controversie great is the M●stery of Godliness God was Manifest in t●● Flesh Justified in the Spirit Believed on the World Received up into Glory 1 Tim. 3. 〈◊〉 This Christ God-Man as come and crucified was that main Foundation of the Gospel and Christianity These were new Articles Founded upon a new Dispensation without the belief of which not to name some others which may be thought by some also necessary such as Baptism by Water and the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper by Bread and Wine a Man cannot be called a Christian Many there are indeed who lay Claim to this Holy and Honourable Profession but without a Just Title who fiercely contend for the Name tho' woful strangers to the Nature of Christianity who set up for more Pure and Refined Christians than are to be found in other Societies tho' they have scarcely any better Title to this Name than their being Born in a Christian Nation And thus the Quakers impose and put upon the World they set up for the great Modellers and Refiners of Religion and Condemn all others as full of Filth and Dreggs whenas they themselves as deceitful Workers 〈◊〉 themselves into the Apostles of Christ cannot be looked upon any otherwise at best than good Moral Heathens and many of them short of that Indeed could we take them at their word or would they take words in their common Acceptation it must be granted then that their Profession throughout the greatest part of this Pamphlet as well as some others viz. Will. Penn's Key Crook's Principles c. would seem Orthodox but this they will not do no you must Construe them by their Intentions for says George Whitehead in his Counterfeit Convert p. 72. I may see cause otherwise to word the Matter and yet our Intentions be the same You may then see Just Cause to mistrust them in these their seeming Orthodox Confessions They have a Nauseous Pill to give you but that it may not be Distasteful and Loathsom to the Palate they Gild it over as the Writers for Popery in the Late K. J's Reign the other Day did to make it the more Glib and Easie to a Protestant Gust and Swallow they are Masters at the Art of Painting using feigned words and fair Speeches which was the old way of deceiving the Hearts of the Simple by which means many Poor Unthinking and Well-meaning People are now Ensnared and Involved in the same Errors with themselves By these and the like plausible Professions and smooth Pretences have they endeavoured to insinuate into and impose upon our Governours who no doubt can easily discern however Artificially Gilded and Varnished their Blasphemous Opinions relating to Christianity as well as to our Government And to this end and purpose in the Month of March last past there were Two Books presented to Both Houses of Parliament the one Entituled A Brief Discovery of some of the Blasphemous and Seditious Principles c. The other Entituled Some few of the Quakers many Horrid Blasphemies Heresies c. And also a Sheet Entituled Some Reasons humbly Offered Why the Quakers should be Examined But to proceed to an Examination of their Pamphlet in its several Parts Quest What is your Belief concerning the Blessed Trinity as our Term is Answ Our Belief is That in the Unity of the Godhead there is Father Son and Holy Ghost these Three Divine Witnesses that bear Record in Heaven the Father the Word and the H. Spirit and that these Three are One according to Holy Scripture Testimony OBSERVATION Note It is said of the Oracles of the Heathen that they were made to look with Two Faces that they might the better effect their Deceits and agreeable hereto whatever was delivered by them was spoken in such Dubious and Equivocal Terms as that it should either way tend to the Satisfaction of the Devotee Just so do the Quakers now it being necessary to serve a present Turn give out a very cunning and plausible Profession but in such Dubious Terms as may look like Good and Orthodox and yet be in a great Measure Reconcileable to their Ancient Friends Principles and Testimonies It is well known that the most Virulent Poison may be Gilded over and that Varnish and Paint may be laid on the Foulest Cause and consequently the Quakers may be guilty of the grossest Errors under the Mask of Innocence and Zeal Religion and Purity But I shall not trouble the Reader with their Intentions and Meanings nor Trace them into all their Equivocal Reserves wherein they may be thought to exceed their Brethren the Jesuites but rather have recourse to their own Books which can't but be allowed to be the best and only way to know and understand their real Principles as well as Meanings they being most if not all pretended to be Wrote from the Mouth of the Lord. First They pretend to make the World believe that they own the Blessed Trinity that is they pretend to acknowledge a Three

which is the proper English for Baptizing in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost The Quakers indeed to enervate and make void this Command will tell you that this Place is to be taken Figuratively and meant of the Inward Baptism the Washing or Cleansing of the Heart or that of the Holy Ghost but that it is to be taken Literally and meant of the Outward Baptism by Water you may discern from our Saviour's Example Mark 9. 10. and from His Practice as you may read in the 3d of St. John v. 26. They came unto John and said unto him Rabbi he that was with thee beyond Jordan to whom thou bearest witness behold the same Baptiseth and all Men come to him That this was Water Baptism cannot be doubted because the Inward Baptism of the Holy Ghost was not yet given no not till 50 Days after the Resurrection See the 2d of the Acts and the 3d of St. John v. 22. Jesus came and his Disciples into the Land of Judea and there he tarried with them and Baptized Nay further it appears that before our Saviour Baptized those in Judea he represented the Solemnity of Baptism as a thing necessary to enter Men into that Kingdom of God to which He invited them our Saviour not only telling Nicodemus John 13. 5. That except a Man be born again he could not see the Kingdom of God but yet more plainly That except he was born again of Water v. 5. and of the Spirit he could not enter into it Agreeable hereto see the Practice of the Apostles Acts 8. 36 38. And as they Philip and the Eunuch went on their Way they came to a certain Water and the Eunuch said See here is Water what doth hinder me to be Baptized And he commanded the Chariot to stand still and they went both down into the Water both Philip and the Eunuch and he Baptized him And as deep a Penitent as Paul was who no doubt but he was as much or more endued with the Holy Spirit than any Quaker in the World yet Ananias Acts 22. 16. bid him arise and be Baptized and wash away thy Sins I say no one can pretend to a more sincere and truer Conversion than this Penitent yet you see that inward Baptism as the Quakers call it was not sufficient but to that must be added the outward Baptism or washing by Water for the Remission of his Sins Arise and be Baptized and wash away thy Sins nay further and which is more express and plain see Acts 10 44. whilst Peter was preaching to Cornelius and others we read that the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the Word whereupon St. Peter said Ver. 47. Can any Man forbid Water that these should not be Baptized which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we And he commanded them to be Baptized Ver. 48. Note They had that which the Quakers call the inward Baptism yet that was not sufficient no it was but a necessary Qualification for the reception of the outward Baptism by Water For after it appeared that they had received the Holy Ghost nothing then could hinder them from receiving the outward Baptism Can any Man forbid Water c. For further proof and satisfaction I refer the Reader to that Excellent Piece of Water Baptism writ by that Worthy and Ingenious Author of The Snake in the Grass c. Printed 1697. And that they do disown and reject this outward Baptism by Water see Parnel's Shield of Truth p. 12. where he says We the Quakers are Accused to deny the Baptism He answers The Baptism we own which is the Baptism of Christ with the Holy Ghost and with Fire but we deny all other See Will. Penn his Reason against Raising p. 108 109. I affirm saith he that Circumcision is as much in force as Water Baptism and the Paschal Lamb as the Bread and Wine for the continuing of them would have been a Judaizing of the Evangelical Worship to assert their continuance would be as much as in such lies to plack up the Gospel or Spiritual Worship by the Roots Hence that Appellation Ordinances of Christ I do ren●●nce as unscri●●●ral and unevangelical and can testifie 〈◊〉 the same Spirit by which Paul renounced Circumcision that they are to be rejected as not now required Note How this deluded or rather designing Man Patronize his Notorious Falshoods to the same Spirit that St. Paul had which was the Spirit of Christ Now what is this but Blaspheming the Holy Spirit See further Smith's Primer p. 36. it is there affirmed that our Baptism r●se from the Popes invention and that it had its Institution from the Pope and was never so ordained of Christ and their Famous Teacher Ed. Burr p. 190 191. tells you To say that sprinkling Infants with Water is Baptism into the Faith of Christ this is the Doctrine of the Devil Good God! Tho' these poor deluded Wretches will not own this Divine and Sacred Institution that is Baptism by Water as the one Baptism yet it behoveth them not thus to Calumniate Vilifie and Abuse it I shall say to these as well as to some others that look upon it to be but an Arbitrary Ceremony which I hope they will seriously lay to Heart as Naaman the Syrian did What means this washing seven times in Jordan What Vertue can there be in that poor Flement to do away Sins and to work upon our Souls I say I shall say as Naaman's Servants said 2 Kings 5. 13. If Christ had bid thee do some great thing couldst thou not have done it How much rather then when he saith to thee wash and be clean As necessary as the Waters of Jordan were to the cleansing of Naaman so necessary are the Waters of Baptism to the cleansing of our Souls None sure dare say That God could not have cleansed Naaman otherwise but God having by his Prophet appointed the Means if Naaman had neglected it he had not otherwise been Cured how much more 〈◊〉 when God has appointed the Means of Baptism by his Son if we neglect it shall we 〈◊〉 Saved without it Again when the Blind Man in the Gospel John 9. 7. was commanded to go and wash in the Pool of 〈◊〉 which is by interpretation sent and then shalt be recovered no Man sure but an Infidel will here be inquisitive and curious First In searching out the reason of this why upon so washing he should be recovered of his Distemper but would set his Reason aside and cheerfully submit to the Prescription not at all doubting but the Means so used however little shew of Reason they carry along with them will fully answer the End designed If God gave a Miraculous Vertue to the Waters of Jordan Siloam and Bethesda for healing of the Flesh we cannot doubt but that the same Spirit can and will sanctifie the Waters of Baptism to the Mystical washing away of Sin especially having the positive