Baxters Narrative of His Life and Times, Appendix · Section 1 · Letter 1
SIR,
BEING very much unsatisfied in the reading of your late Discourse concerning the Interruption of the Succession of the Ministry, I thought good to take Advantage from your own Offer, friendly and freely to debate the Question with you: And I shall lay out my Thoughts to you in this Method; 1. I will give you the Reasons which makes me (if it be Papistical) to abet the Papists in pleading for an uninterrupted Succession. 2. I will reply to your Arguments, whereby you dispute the Succession of the Ministry of England to be interrupted. 3. I will offer you some Reasons why an infallible Proof of the Point is not necessary in the Case. 4. I will produce such Arguments as shall put it beyond doubting, and so shall leave indubitable, though not infallible Proof of the Question in your Hands.
1. First, I shall give you the Reasons why I plead so seriously for the uninterrupted Succession, and I shall do this in the first place, because all the rest will be Supervacaneous, if it be a Matter of no great Consequence, whether there be a Succession or not. If therefore you can satisfy my Arguments whereby I plead for the Necessity, and give me Reason enough to understand, that an Uninterruption of the Succession is not much material, I will save my self the Trouble of Confuting what you have said against it, and you some Trouble of making a needless Repl.
Now the first Reason which induceth me to believe that it is a matter of much more Cosequence than you talk of, is the Seriousness of, our Divines in their Endeavours to prove that the Bishops in Edward VI. and Queen Elizabeth's Days were Ordained by Bishops, against the Calumnies of Sanders, Kellison, Chalmney, and other Jesuits, who in their Writings would have bore the World in Hand, that the Succession of the Ministry of England had been interrupted at the Reformation, because there were none but Popish Bishops to Ordain them, and they would not, and so none did. But as you know, had devised a Story of the Nag's-Head Ordination. Now you also know there hath been much Endeavour made by searching the Archiva at Lambeth to clear up the Ordination of our first Reformers, that thereby they might invalidate the Papists Calumny of our Succession… being interrupted. But if Succession in Office (for Succession in Doctrine I neither speak of, neither did they plead for) be a matter of so small a Consequence, our learned Country-Men might have saved themselves much Labour and Trouble, and in a few Words have told the Jesuits, that an Uninterruption of Succession was a thing not worth pleading for: But on the other side, we see them acknowledge Succession in Office to be necessary, and contend that there hath been no such Interruption in our Ministry.
II. The Second Argument which persuades me to believe that the pleading for a Succession is of great Moment, is this, viz. That without this I do not understand how we that are now Ministers can be said to have our Authority from Christ: For we must have it from him either mediately, or immediately. But we cannot have it mediately from him, if the Succession be interrupted; for if we have it mediately from him, we must have it by the Mediation of some Person, who at length had it immediately from him: But if the Succession be interrupted, we cannot have it from any Person that had it immediately from him, or his Apostles. This is a kind of Contradiction in adjecto, and therefore we cannot have it mediately from Christ: If you deny the Consequence, and say, that we may have our Authority from Christ mediately, though we have it not from some Person who had it immediately from him. I demand how; if you say by the Mediation of his written Word. I answer, that the written Word is no fit medium to convey the Authority of the Ministry now a days upon any Men: And that upon this Account; The giving of Authority which we talk of, is an Action terminated upon sum individuum in this Age. But the Scriptures meddle not with any of the Individuums of these times, and therefore it cannot give any Authority unto any single Person now a days.
The Major I think is clear, the Minor I prove thus: If the Scripture meddle with any of the Individuums of this Age, it doth it either quod Nomen, or quoad Adjunctum aliud incomunicabile, or by some general Discription which may be personally and particularly applied to some individuum. But I am confident you will not say it doth either of the two former ways, neither doth it (say I) by the third way, and therefore not at all. That it doth not give any Authority to any single person by way of general Discription I prove thus: If it doth, it must be in some such Form of Words, or Words of equivalent to these. They that are thus and thus qualified may be Ministers of the Word: but there is no such Form of Words in Scripture. There is I confess such a Form of Words in the Scripture as this, They that preach the Word shall be thus and thus qualified. But if any individuum shall venture upon the Application of this Proposition, to take the Authority of the Ministry upon himself; The Application I conceive must proceed in this Form. But I am thus, and thus, and thus qualified: therefore I may preach the Word. But this is to proceed ex omnibus affirmativis in the second Figure, which you know makes a wild Conclusion. If you say that there is such a Form of Words, which being the Major, may be so accommodated to any single Person in the Minor, as he may thereby infer this Conclusion; Therefore I, M. I. or I, R. B. have Authority to preach the Gospel, and this without respect to any Action to be performed by some Person, quasi mediante; then I will yield that I have been beating the Air all this while. I have said nothing to the first Branch of the first Proposition, concerning our having our Authority immediately from Jesus Christ, neither do I intend till I know that it will be denied.
Authority I conceive to be far different from either Abilities to undergo an Imployment, or a willing Mind to undertake it, or Conveniency of Habitation for the Discharge of it, or the Desire of any kind of Men inviting a Man to it: I say, I conceive Authority for the Discharge of any Office to be very far wide from any one of these, or altogether: For a Man may have all these, and yet want Authority. For Example, in civil Matters: A Gentleman may be abundantly qualified to be a Justice of the Peace, he may have a willing Mind to do his Country Service in that way, his Habitation for such an Imployment may be more than Convenient, he may be put upon it, and invited to it by his Country Neighbours; and yet for all this, no Man will take h…m for an Officer in the Commonwealth, till his Name be in the Commission from the Supreme Magistrate, and he taken his Oath as a Stipulation to the supream Magistrate on his Part, for his Faithful Discharge in it. Neither would any understanding Man think himself obliged to obey his Warrants, if he should have the Confidence to issue out any before these compleating Acts be done, notwithstanding all the former Preparations towards it.
In like manner to the thing in Hand about Ecclesiastical Officers: A Man, I doubt not, may have competent Qualifications for the Work of the Ministry, he may have a willing Mind to the Employment, he may have an Habitation fit for the Oversight of such a Congregation, he may be invited by them to undertake the Care and Oversight of them; and yet, for all this, till Jesus Christ, the Supreme Governor of his Church, shall by his Vicarios Episcopos, put his Name into the Commission and take reciprocal Security from him for his faithful Discharge in it, he neither can, nor ever was esteemed a Minister duly authorized. And therefore, though God as in the Case of a Civil Magistrate, may very fitly and properly be said to do all as you urge, I think out of Spalatensis: So he may be said in the Case of Ecclesiastiacal Officers to be said properly and fitly to do all; yet he doth not all the Work without the Mediation of his Vice-gerents, and I cannot see but that part of the Work which he hath left for them to do, is as necessary for the compleating and perfecting of the Work, as that which he doth without their Mediation; and by consequence, if that part of the Work be left undone, the whole Work is as imperfect and incomplete, as if this had been done, but the other Parts left undone. Here is in this, I confess, some thing taken pro confesso, that Jesus Christ hath some Vice-gerents here on Earth, and that he hath left some part of this Work in their Hands for them to do: Which being a Matter of Fact, shall be proved when I know it is denied.
III. But Thirdly, My Third Argument is this: I do therefore plead for an uninterrupted Sucession, because it appears to me that most of the Invaders and Intruders upon the Ministerial Office, are very much strengthened and justified in their Schism and Usurpation, if Succession be not material. For I will not deny but many of them are Men competently qualified, and all of them willing to undertake the Work, live conveniently, or will live conveniently to discharge the work, are chosen by a Number of Christians who call them out to it: Now if all this make them Ministers authorized, why do we clamour against them? why do we not give them the Right Hand of Fellowship and Brotherhood in the Work of the Lord? If you say, they take this Course for their Call, when there is no necessity; if you say, this is a Course only to be used in extream Necessity; when either the Parties think that there are no Church Officers in being, or those that are in being be so corrupt and wicked, as either they will not give them Orders, or they dare not take Orders from them. I answer, That this extreme necessity is their Case: They think there be no such things as Christs Church Officers now in being; or if they be, they are such as either will not give them Orders, or such as they dare take no Orders from: And therefore they are still excusable upon such an Hypothesis as you propound. Whereas, do but grant a Succession uninterrupted necessary, it will uncontroulably follow, that they are therefore no Ministers of Christ, because they have not been set a part by such who at length took their Authority from Christ's own Hands.
If you say that there is a necessity of a Dispensation in case of a general Apostacy, although the dispensing with Ordination in such Extremity doth furnish Sectaries with a Foundation to build their Schisms upon. I answer, 1. That we suppose that which yet never fell out, nor ever is likely to fall out. There was never yet such a general Apostacy but Christ kept some Church Officers in being, who might from Age to Age continue the Propagation of the Ministerial Office to his Church. Nay, it is admirably worth our Consideration, that when God stirred up the drouzy World to depart from Rome's Superstitions and Idolatries, he then bowed the Hearts of some of the Church-Officers to go along with them, who might be instrumental for the conveighing of the Ministerial Office to the next Generation: and took away the Subject of this over anxious Enquiry, what must we do if all apostarize? what God did then, we may probably hope he will always do in the like Exigency. But if you should be importunate, and demand still what must be done in such a general Apostacy. I answer, I cannot tell either what Impiery or Absurdity would follow, if I should affirm, that in such an extraordinary Dispensation of Providence, the faithful might safely wait for some extraordinary Revelation of God's Mind what they should do in such an unknown, unpresidented Case. And if this be to turn Seeker, I confess I something incline to it, and should much more if I thought it could indubitably be proved that the Succession hath been interrupted.
IV. My Fourth Argument is this; We ought therefore to contend for an uninterrupted Succession, because if the Succession be interrupted; then that Person who immediately comes into the Ministry after the Interruption, must come into it without Imposition of Hands; and so if he without Imposition of Hands be still a lawful Minister, then it will follow, that Imposition of Hands is a matter rather of Convenience than of Necessity. But Imposition of Hands is essential to Ordination. I know there are some Schoolmen that contend against this: But this is a Question not subjected to any Man's way of reasoning a Naturâ Res… For if Christ hath declared, that it is his Mind any Ordinance shall be performed after such or such a Maner, it is too much Confidence for any Man to say, or go about to prove, that such an Ordinance may be performed as well another Way, or after another Manner; when as the Fitness of the Manner of doing to the thing done, is not founded in Naturâ Rei, but in bene placito instituentis. Forasmuch therefore as Christ hath revealed to his Church that it is his Mind, or Will that his Churches Officers should be set a part by Imposition of Hands, it doth therefore follow that Imposition of Hands is necessary and essential to their Separation: If you ask me how I know that it was Christ's Will and Mind, that Imposition of Hands should be used in the Ordination of Ministers. I answer, first, That if you expect I should shew an express Command for it, I acknowledge there is none: Or any implicite Command, I acknowledge I know none: But rejoin with all, that the Mind and Will of Christ may be otherwise made known. Those Scriptures where Imposition of Hands is spoken of, commented upon by the Universal Practice of the Church of Christ from the first Age, until this wild, exorbitant, last Century, seem to me a most clear Evidence what the Will of Christ is in that Particular, and will still appear so, till you shew me a better way how to discover the Mind of Christ in such Cases as these at this Distance. If you expect that I should prove that it hath been the constant, universal Practice of the Church of God: I shall likewise do that when I know that it is required, and all the rest in the Argument granted.
And now, Sir, if this Interruption of Succession, being yielded, doth necessarily cast out some of the Essentials in Ordination, if it strengthens the Hands of Intruders, if it hinders us from having our Authority from Christ; if our learned Country-men have taken so much Pains to clear up an Uninterruption, then I think it follows, that it is a Matter worth the pleading for: Which is the only foreign of this Paper.
M. Iohnson.