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hath been already given. But if you will let St. Jerom fpeak his own mind, I doubt you will think him a High-Flyer. For, fpeaking of Hereticks, not for their Herefie, but for their Schifm, he faith thus: Sit una Eva mater cunctorum viventium; & una Ecclefia, parens omnium Chriftianorum: Sicut illam maledictus Lamech in duas divifit Uxores: Sic hanc hæretici in plures Ecclefias lacerant; quæ juxta Apocalypfim Johannis Synagogæ magis Diaboli appellandæ funt, quam Chrifti conciliabula, (Ep. 11. ad Ageruchiam.) i.e. Let one Eve be the Mother of all Living; and one Church the Parent of all Chriftians: As curfed Lamech divided that into two Wives, fo Hereticks rent this into more Churches, which according to the Revelations of St. John are rather to be called Synagogues of the Devil, than Assemblies of Chrift. You fay, you beartily approve of what Clemens writes in his Epiftle to the Corinthians: Yet his whole defign is against Schifmi, though wrote in a melting Style, and with a moft fweet and Chriftian Spirit: Nor doth he forbear to fay, πᾶσα τάσις καὶ πᾶν χίσμα βολελυκτὸν ὑμῖν· i.e. Let all Sedition and all Schifm be an abomination to you, (cap. 2.) And farther makes it the Sin of Korab, which fo angred you, that you exclaim against it as far from true Reason, though you were wifer than to offer to prove what you faid. Καλόν γδ' ἀνθρώπῳ ἐξομολογείας περί τα πα απλωμάτων, ἢ (κληρωα, * καρδίου αὐτό, καθὼς ἐσκλη ρεύθη ἡ καρδία 7 σαζιόντων πρὸς θεράποντα το Θεό Μωσιν, ὧν τὸ κρῖμα πρόδηλον ἐγγυήθη, κατέβησαν δ' εἰς ἅδε ζώντες, και θάνατο καλέπιεν αὐτὲς i.e. It is better for a Man to confefs his Sin, than to harden bis Heart as their Heart was hardened who rofe up against Moses the Servant of the Lord, whofe Condemnation was openly; for they went alive down to Hell, and Death fwallowed them up, (cap. 15.) Your next Friend is Ireneus, from whom you tranflate

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translate what you please, and then cry out, Exceeding well spoken; who can chufe but like this? But if you like it, you ought not to like your own ways; for it is full in your Teeth, and exprefly condemns them. But if what you have cited be not plain enough, not above two Lines farther you might have found this: Nulla enim ab eis tanta poteft fieri correptio, quanta eft Schifmatis pernicies, (lib. 4. cap. 62.) i. e. No Punifb'ment fo great can be inflicted on thofe (i.e. Schif maticks) as can answer the Mischiefs or Plague of Schifm. Yet he, who faith this, was fo peaceable a Man, that nothing but the malignant Nature of the thing could have drawn fuch a Cenfure from him. Some other Fathers you mention, who, you tell us, fay the like. But then we must take it upon truft, for not one word do you cite from them: And I am not very forward to believe, that you would have been fo differviceable to your Caufe, as to cite Fathers, whofe Teftimony upon examination makes against you, if you could have found any who would fpeak for you; and therefore till you fhall make them fpeak out of their own Mouths, not yours, I fhall not trouble you with any farther buftle about them: Only I defiré this may be obferved, that Herefies and Schifmis began very early; and none could better know the Fudgment of the Apostles in this matter, than those who were nearest to their times; nor can we expect a more faithful Declaration of it, than from them who were either Martyrs or Confeffors for the Faith, as well as of undeniable Abilities; and still the nearer they are to the Apoftles times, the more warm and watchful are they againft Schifm: Nor can you produce one Father, who hath wrote of this matter, who hath not paffed fuch a deferved Cenfure upon Schifm, as according to your Principles ought to be thought very fevere

Single Fathers may err, especially wherein they are fingular; but in this cafe the Judgment of the Fathers is as confiderable as in any whatfoever; because herein they are one and all agreed. And to flight the concurrent Teftimony of them all, and expofe it as falfe, is the fame in effect as to fay, That the Univerfal Church for not lefs than five hundred Years, immediately from Chrift's time, lay under an Error, which you are pleafed to call abominable, and which (if you fay true) muft make them anfwerable in a great measure for all thofe Disorders and Violences, which were acted upon their cauflefs condemning of Schifmaticks. And thus to fave your Schifmaticks, you do nothing less than fend all the Fathers to Hell: For if that was a Sin in them, they never repented of it. Yet this is what you must perfuade us to, before ever you can fairly bring us over to your Opinion.

(10.) I fhould now have done with what he hath faid on this Topick, but that I cannot forbear taking notice of his comical and confident way of fumming up his Evidence, and making his conclufive Inference: Since (faith he, p. 84.) this damning Opinion is much taken from the DoEtors of the Church of Rome, &c. And yet had before confeffed, that it was taken from Fathers, who were long before Rome was what it is now, or those Doctors were in being. Since it hath no ground in Scripture, but is against it: And yet he hath not alledg'd fo much as one fingle Text of Scripture in this whole particular Head of Argument in his defence, that there might be the leaft fhew of proof; though he could not but be fenfible, that the Fathers did prove the contrary from Scripture. Since it cuts off a great part of the Church of God, and oft-times fome of the best of it. How are they the Church of God, when cut off from it? But if

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the botteft Schifmaticks muft pafs for the best of Chriftians, I think Religion as well as the World is turn'd upfide-down. But let us fee what he will infer from all these Since's: Truly it is to give his Adverfaries fair warning, That they learn to be more mild in their Cenfures, and to take beed left they, on fome accounts, be not found Schifmaticks themselves, and ftand in need of the mildeft Cenfure that may be justly given them. The plain English of which is this: Look to your hits; for if we get the management of the Government into our hands, which we are in a fair way to, then the English Moderation fhall be turn'd into Scotch; and the Toleration of Epifcopacy fhall be call'd eftablishing Iniquity by a Law; and we will have an Act of Parliament pafs'd, that it fhall be Death for any Man to speak or write in behalf of it. This will be doing business indeed, if better care be not taken: For the Church and State are next Neighbours; and when the one's Houfe is on fire, the other's cannot be out of danger. And if you will not believe them upon former Experience, let them be try'd again, and they will thoroughly convince you, that they never want a Will to deftroy both, when they have it in their Power.

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The Cafe of Communion with Schifmaticks ambiguonfly propounded by the Author, more clearly explain'd, §. 1. The Fathers defended against bis Objections, 2. His Denial of the Affertion not true, 3. The Rules of the Primitive Church against Communion with Schifmaticks, 4. Concerning the Force of Ecclefiaftical Canons, 5. The Difufe of ancient Difcipline, whether by Papifts or others, no good Plea in bis Cafe, 6. The Mitigation of Punishment in the offending Clergy against him, 7. The Cafe of two Bishops in one City, 8. His Argument borrowed from Mr. Selden not good, 9. The Cafe of the Lapfi against bim, 10. The Plea of the Orthodox Communion with Novatians at Conftantinople answered, 11. And that of the Orthodox with Arians at Antioch, 12. His Inference from the Example of Satyrus trifling, 13. Other Inftances already anfwered, and his Boaft vain, 14. That Schifmatical Communion endangers the Faith, 15. St. Cyprian wronged by, and the Epifcopal Power explained against him, 16. The Defign of the Author difcovered and confuted, 17. His Citation from St. Cyprian full against him and his Party; and farther, the Power of the Civil Magiftrate in Religious Affairs confidered, 18.

(1) H

Itherto our Author hath employed his ut

moft Skill to set off Schifm with the fineft Colours, and to make a Beauty of a Bedlam, Now comes on the other part of the Queftion, concerning Communion with Schifmaticks, which he lays down' thus :

2dly, It's faid, we may not worship God at any time with fuch as are guilty of Schifm,

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