That when Almighty God dictated the firft Chapter of Genefis to Mofes, and came to the 26th Verfe, Let Us make Man; Mofes was startled, and pray'd him to alter that Expreffion, left it might be interpreted of a Plurality of Gods; but was answered, Write as I command you: So I fancy if you had been the Amanuenfis to the Apoftles, you would have propos'd to them to alter thofe facred and infpir'd Writings, which fo expressly alfert the Divinity of the Son and Holy Ghoft; and they would have answered you, as God did Mofes, or as St. Paul tells the Corinthians in the Cafe of the Lord's Supper, What I deliver to you I I Cor. xi. received of the Lord; and as he tells the Ephefians, I must not 23. fhun to declare unto you all the Counsel of God; for there will arife Acts xx. Men Speaking perverfe Things, &c. and other Foundation can no v. 27. Man lay, than what is laid, which is Jefus Chrift.

Ver. 30.

I Cor. iii.

To conclude: Faith, fays the Apoftle, is the Evidence of 11. Things not seen, not to be judg'd by our Senfe or fhallow Rea- Heb. xi. I. Joning grounded upon it: Hardly do we guess aright at Things Wifd. ix. that are upon Earth, but the Things that are in Heaven, who hath 16. Searched out? For the more thou searcheft, the more thou shalt mar- 2 Efdr.iv. vel, at the infinite Wisdom and Goodness of God in vifiting his 26. Creatures, till we come to fee him as he is, and to know him even I John iii. as we are known.

2.

I pray God to enlighten your Eyes, that you may know at 1 Cor. xiii. leaft in this your Day the Things which belong to your Peace: And 12. God grant that we may meet in Communion with the Church Luke xix. of God here, and with the Saints hereafter: That beginning 42. our Praises upon Earth, we may be admitted to join with the Eph. i. 18. heavenly Choir in eternal Alleluiahs, to the Glory of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghoft, One God, Blessed for ever. This is the fureft Mark, I can give you, of Friendship And that

P. 38.

h

POSTSCRIPT

T

HERE are fome Things in your Letter relating to this Controverfy, but not properly the Subject of it, which I have not taken notice of in the foregoing Letter, though they feem more particularly addrefs'd to me than all the reft; and therefore I will now tell you what you may expect from me concerning them.

You wish that I may be a happy Means of bringing all the Parts of our old genuine Chriftianity to fuch a fair, open and • impartial Examination, as you have propos'd.

If you mean, as you ought, that Method, which in all Ages has been the Practice of the Church in determining Controverfies, I heartily concur with you; and we have in our happy Conftitution that Method establish'd by Law: The Convocation is a Part of the Parliament, and as of Right it must be summon'd with the Parliament; fo that Summons will be rendred infignificant and nugatory, if they are not permitted to fit and act in taking Care of that Flock of Christ, of which the Holy Ghoft has made them Overfeers, and which the Laws of the Land have committed to them; efpecially at a Time when the DoErines of our moft holy Faith, and the Apoftolical Inftitution of the Government of our Church, are fo virulently attack'd, and in fo open and infolent a Manner.

It was the Advice of Mecanas to Augustus, never to fuffer any Innovation in Religion; because the Peace of the State depended upon it: That Prince had Peace in all the World; but what Disturbances, what Miseries, Innovations in Religion have caus'd in this Nation, the Hiftory of the last Age informs us fufficiently; and how fatal the Feuds and Animofities, occafion'd by the Pretenders to Religion, in this may be, no Man can foretel, every good Man fears.

Now whatever ill Ufe has been made of the Text for fuffering the Tares, which were fown by the Enemy, to grow up with the Wheat; yet furely we are not to lay our felves to fleep on purje to give the Enemy an Opportunity to low them. The Jews

reckon

reckon they are forbid even by the Law of Mofes to revile the Gods of other Nations, which were no Gods: But that the Son of God, whom we, and all Christendom, adore as the God of our Salvation, fhould be revil'd, trampled upon, and put to open Shame by thofe of our own Nation, in Contempt of the Laws of the Land as well as of God, uncontroul'd, without any Animadverfion, without giving the proper Champions of our Faith an Opportunity to refute and reclaim them from their Errors, is fo unaccountable a Proceeding both in Prudence and Religion, that I will hope a speedy Remedy will be apply'd to it; and that thofe, who are in Authority, will free themfelves not only from the Sufpicion, but from the real Guilt too of being Partakers of other Men's Sins; for, qui non prohibet, cùm potest, jubet: And therefore that they will advife his Majefty to give the Fathers and Paftors of our Church Leave to speak for themselves, and indeed for the King: For Defender of the Faith is not an empty Title. The Defense of the Church of England, and the holy Religion profefs'd in it, is the Foundation of the Revolution, and of His Majefty's Succeffion to the Throne. And, after all our Experiments, this Church will be found to be, as was faid of the Sanctuary, The Excellency of our Strength, and indeed of all the Ezekiel Proteftants in Europe; who, as much as they want our Support, xxiv. 21. will have little Reason to think we fhall be much concern'd for them, with whom, in fome Points we differ, if we fhew but little Zeal for our common Chriftianity, in which we agree.

By what I have now faid, and in the foregoing Letter, you may eafily conclude, what my Opinion will be of your Demand of an open Toleration: If the Lord Jefus be a Creature, and you worship him, 'tis Idolatry: If he be God, and you deny him, 'tis Blafphemy. And what Punishment Almighty God ordain'd for both these Sorts of Offenders you know. What Texts have you to quote for an Exemption from those Penalties; or, at least, fuch as the Laws of the Land inflict? What can we fay in Confcience for an Indulgence, and thereby, in fome Measure, establishing these Iniquities by a Law? When the Jews affaulted the Chriftians, and were beaten even before the Judgment-Seat, twas no fmall Reproach to the Greeks. Gallio, that he cared for none of thofe Things. Shall the States Ats xviii. of the Realm out-do that stupid Governor, and even countenance, 17. nay authorize Affaults upon the Lord Jesus himself? Thus we fhould expofe our felves to that fevere Rebuke, These are the Z ch. xii Wounds, which I receiv'd in the House of my Friends.

But if this were not the Cafe, with what Face can Arians ask fuch Favour from any who have ever read the Hiftory of their Barbarities? I might fay, They have taught us a Leffon against themselves; but I am far from inferring from thence a Retaliation; but furely 'tis a prudent, and, in this loofe Age, a neceffary Caution, hot to admit fuch Enemies

F 2

within

* i. e. By

6.

P. 40, 41.

Acts xx. 27.

within our Walls, nor make it poffible for them ever to be in a Condition to practise the like again.

As for that wonderful Book, as you call it, p. 40. The Apoftolical Conftitutions, by which you would have the Doctrine, Difcipline, Government, Worship and Canons of the Church amended; or rather that it might be admitted entirely as an • Original Rule and Standard in these Matters: I am not learned but enough to argue from Authorities that This is not genuine ; I have fome Things against the Ufe You have made of it, and which you defire others and the whole Church of God to do too.

You your felf fay, p. 41. That you believe it to be genuine, and for the main uncorrupt. I cannot well reconcile thefe Two: For if there be any known Corruptions in it, then it is not genuine and Authentick; or at least it must be purg'd of thofe Corruptions, before it can be of any Authority: And how fhall we diftinguish them? I know you have a fhort Rule for it, viz. Whatever does not fuit with your Opinion is corrupt; and by the fame Reafon, whatever does not fuit with your Adverfaries Opinion, must be judg'd by them to be corrupt: And at this Rate the whole must be laid afide; and indeed it is very fit it fhould be fo.

For how can This be a Rule and Standard, which must it felf be try'd by fome other Rule, before it can in Reafon be admitted to be fo? And if in the Scriptures the Whole Counsel of God hath been made known to us; if, as in the 6th Article of our Church, they contain All Things neceffary to Salvation, or as St. Paul fays, are able to make us wife unto Salvation, What need have we to feek for another Rule? Or to heap to our felves 2 Tim. iv. Teachers, having itching Ears? For 'tis, as St. Paul tells us, an Evidence, that we will not endure found Doctrine.

2 Tim. iii. 15.

3.

But I will fuppofe your Quotations out of this Book, (for I have not compar'd them) are, not like your other Quotations, but, in all Refpects, right and fair: Then if these are inconfi ftent with the avow'd Writings of the Apoftles, as most certainly they are; Which of the Two thall Man, that is to form his Faith, be guided by? Thofe Writings which are acknowledg'd by Both to be genuine, and written by Inspiration; or thofe, which are controverted? The Choice is Eafy; and befides the genuine Scriptures being first written, St. Paul fays, tho' an Gal. i. 8. Angel from Heaven fhould preach any other Gospel than that which we have preach'd unto you, Let him be accurfed.

But fuppofe you could answer every Objection to this wonderful Book, (which I am confident you cannot as a Scholar; and I am fure you cannot reconcile or maintain the Contradictions in it to the true Scriptures) I pray you to confider the Confequence of it, and the Mischief you do to Religion by the Attempt of it; for the genuine Scriptures and this Book cannot both be true; but if both be afferted and made out to be of equal Authority, the Confequence must be (and wicked Men, Atheists

and

and Deifts will not fail to infer it) that we must believe neither; for tho' one Part of a Contradiction must be true, yet a Witness, who affirms both Parts, is never believ'd, but is fet afide as a falfe one in all Courts of the World; because one Part of what he fays must be false; and there can be no Reason or Obligation from him to believe one Part of what he fays more than the other: So that if the Apostles have really writ or dictated both the facred Books and the Conftitutions, they must lose all Credit of Inspir'd Writers, and confequently you have furnish'd a fufficient Argument to fer afide all reveal'd Religion: So that I may juftly fay of this Book, as the Roman Prætor Liv. I. 40. Petillius did of That of the Laws of Numa Pompilius; which, like This, was dug our of Rubbish; that it was fitted only to diffolve all Religion; or rather that This forms a Religion that is it felf fit to be diffolv'd, and therefore fhould be burnt, as That was by the Senate, rather than brought into the Canon of the Scriptures, which we are fure are the Word of God.

The Jefuits in China have form'd a new Gofpel, representing our Saviour only in his most exalted State, concealing his Crucifixion: On the other Hand, you are depreffing him into a Creature, not concealing, but denying his Deity. They might have learnt a better Leffon from St. Paul, of glorying only in the Cross of Chrift; and St. John hath told You, that he who denies the Son is Antichrift: They take away the Means of our Salvation, John ii. You take away the Power, by which he can bestow and give it to us: They speak fome Truth, but not the whole Truth: You deny the Truth, which, St. John fays, is no less than making God 1 John v. a Liar, by not believing the Record which God gave of his Son.

Gal.vi. 14.

22.

10.

FINI S.