substance of it I will repeat, and answer as briefly as I can. "They run up and down from place to place, and from county to county:" that is, they preach in several places. This is undoubtedly true. "They draw after them confused multitudes of people:" that is, many come to hear them. This is true also. "But they would do well to remember, God is not the author of confusion or of tumult, but of peace." I trust we do; nor is there any confusion or tumult at all, in our largest congregations: unless at some rare times when the sons of Belial mix therewith, on purpose to disturb the peaceable worshippers of God. "But our Church has provided against this preaching up and down, in the ordination of a Priest, by expressly limiting the exercise of the powers then conferred upon him, to the congregation where he shall be lawfully appointed thereunto." I answer, 1. Your argument proves too much. If it be allowed just as you propose it, it proves, that no Priest has authority, either to preach or minister the sacraments, in any other than his own congregation. 2. Had the powers conferred been so limited when I was ordained Priest, my ordination would have signified just nothing. For 1 was not appointed to any congregation at all; but was ordained as a member of that "College of Divines," (so our statutes express it,) "founded to overturn all heresies, and defend the Catholic Faith." 3. For many years after I was ordained Priest, this limitation was never heard of. I heard not one syllable of it, by way of objection, to my preaching up and down, in Oxford or London, or the parts adjacent, in Gloucestershire, or Worcestershire; in Lancashire, Yorkshire, or Lincolnshire. Nor did the strictest disciplinarian scruple suffering me to exercise those powers wherever I came. 4. And, in fact, Is it not universally allowed, that every Priest, as such, has a power, in virtue of his ordination, either to preach or administer the sacrament, in any congregation, wherever the Rector or Curate desires his assistance? Does not every one then see through this thin pretence ? 10. The Bishops and Universities indeed have power to grant licenses to Itinerants. But the Church has provided in that case; they are not to preach in any church (Canon 50) till they shew their licence." The Church has well provided in that case. But what has that case to do with the case of common Clergymen ? Only so much as to shew, how grossly this Canon has been abused, at Islington in particular: where the Churchwardens were instructed to hinder, by main force, the Priest whom the Vicar himself had appointed, from preaching, and to quote this Canon; which, as you plainly shew, belongs to quite another thing. In the note you add, " Mr. Wesley being asked, by what authority he preached, replied, By the authority of Jesus Christ, conveyed to me by the (now) Archbishop of Canterbury, when he laid his hands upon me and said, Take thou authority to preach the Gospel. In this reply he thought fit, for a plain reason, to leave out the latter part of the commission: for that would have shewn his reader, the restraint and limitation, under which the exercise of the power is granted." Nay, I did not print the latter part of the words, for a plainer reason, because I did not speak them. And I did not speak them then, because they did not come into my mind. Though probably if they had, I should not have spoken them: it being my only concern, to answer the question proposed, in as few words as I could. But before those words, which you suppose to imply such a restraint, as would condemn all the Bishops and Clergy in the nation, were those spoken without any restraint or limitation at all, which I apprehend to convey an indelible character, "Receive the Holy Ghost, for the office and work of á Priest in the church of God, now committed unto thee, by the imposition of our hands. Whose sins thou dost forgive, they are forgiven, and whose sins thou dost retain, they are retained. And be thou a faithful dispenser of the word of God, and of his holy sacraments, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." You proceed, "In the same Journal he declares, That he looks upon all the world as his parish, and explains his VOL. XII. K meaning as follows: In whatever part of it I am, I judge it meet, right, and my bounden duty, to declare unto all that are willing to hear, the glad tidings of salvation. This is the work which I know God hath called me to."" Namely, by the laying on the hands of the Presbytery: which directs me how to obey that general command, "While we have time, let us do good unto all men." 11. You object farther, "That the Methodists do not observe the Rubric before the Communion Service; which directs, so many as desire to partake of the holy Communion, to signify their names to the Curate the day before.” What Curate desires they should? Whenever any Minister will give but one week's notice of this, I undertake, all that have any relation to me, shall signify their names within the time appointed. You object also, that they break through the twenty-eighth Canon, which requires, "That if strangers come to any church from other parishes, they should be remitted to their own churches, there to receive the Communion with their neighbours." But what if there be no Communion there? Then this Canon does not touch the case, nor does any one break it, by coming to another church purely because there is no Communion at his own. As to your next advice, "To have a greater regard to the rules and orders of the Church," I cannot, for I now regard them, next to the word of God. And as to your last, "To renounce communion with the Church," I dare not. Nay, but let them thrust us out. We will not leave the ship: if you cast us out of it, then our Lord will take us up. 12. To the same head may be referred the objection some time urged, by a friendly and candid man, viz. “That it was unlawful to use extemporary prayer, because there was a Canon against it." It was not quite clear to me, that the Canon he cited was against extemporary prayer. But supposing it were, my plain answer would be, "That Canon I dare not obey: because the law of man binds only so far as it is consistent with the word of God." The same person objected, my not obeying the bishops and governors of the Church. I answer, I both do and will obey them, in whatsoever I can with a clear conscience. So that there is no just ground for that charge, that I despise either the Rules or the Governors of the Church. I obey them in all things where I do not apprehend there is some particular law of God to the contrary. Even in that case, I shew all the deference I can; I endeavour to act as inoffensively as possible and am ready to submit to any penalty, which can by law be inflicted upon me. Would to God every Minister and member of the Church, were herein altogether as I am! VII. 1. I have been considering the chief objections that have lately been urged against the Doctrines I teach. The main arguments brought against this manner of teaching, have been considered also. It remains to examine the most current objections, concerning the effects of this teaching. Many affirm, "That it does abundance of hurt; that it has had very bad effects; insomuch that if any good at all has been done, yet it bears no proportion to the evil." But to come to particulars: "First then, you are disturbers of the public peace." What, do we either teach or raise sedition? Do we speak evil of the Ruler of our people? Or, do we stir them up against any of those that are put in authority under him? Do we directly or indirectly promote faction, mutiny, or rebellion? I have not found any man in his senses yet, that would affirm this. "But it is plain, peace is broke and disturbances do arise, in consequence of your preaching." I grant it. But what would you infer? Have you never read the Bible? Have you not read, that the Prince of Peace himself was, in this sense, a disturber of the public peace? When he came into Jerusalem (Matt. xxi. 10,) all the city was moved (soon) shaken as with an earthquake. And the disturbance arose higher and higher, till the whole multitude cried out together, "Away with him; crucify him, crucify him, and Pilate gave sentence it should be done." Such another disturber of the public peace, was that Stephen, even from the time he began "disputing with the Libertines and Cyrenians, till the people stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, and cast him out of the city and stoned him." Such disturbers of the peace were all those ringleaders of the sect of the Nazarenes, (commonly called Apostles) who wherever they came, "turned the world upside down." And above all the rest, that Paul of Tarsus, who occasioned so much disturbance at Damascus, (Acts ix,) at Antioch of Pisidia, (chap. xiii,) at Iconium, (chap. xiv,) Lystra, (ver. 19,) at Philippi, (chap. xvi.) at Thessalonica, (chap. xvii.) and, particularly, at Ephesus. The consequence of his preaching there was, that "the whole city was filled with confusion.' And they all ran together with one accord, some crying one thing, some another: inasmuch that the greater part of them knew not wherefore they were come together." " 2. And can we expect it to be any otherwise now? Although what we preach is the gospel of peace, yet if you will violently and illegally hinder our preaching, must not this create disturbance? But observe, the disturbance begins on your part. All is peace, till you raise that disturbance. And then you very modestly impute it to us, and lay your own riot at our door! But of all this, our Lord hath told us before. "Think not that I am come to send peace upon earth:" that this will be the immediate effect, wherever my gospel is preached with power. "I am not come to send peace, but a sword:" this (so far as the wisdom of God permits, by whom "the hairs of your head are all numbered") will be the first consequence of my coming, whenever my word turns sinners from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God. I would wish all you who see this scripture fulfilled, by disturbance following the preaching the gospel, to remember the behaviour of that wise Magistrate at Ephesus on the like occasion. He did not lay the disturbance to the Preacher's charge, but beckoned to the multitude and said, "Ye men of Ephesus-Ye ought to be quiet, and to do nothing rashly. For ye have brought these men, who are |