Baxters Narrative of His Life and Times, Part 2

Baxters Narrative of His Life and Times · Part 2

p. 139THE LIFE OF THE REVEREND Mr. Richard Baxter.

LIB. I. PART II.

§ 1. IN the Time of the late unhappy Wars in these Kingdoms, the Controversies about Church Government, were in most Mens mouths, and made the greatest Noise, being hotly agitated by States-men and Divines, by Words and Writings: which made it necessary to me, to set my self to the most serious study of those Points: The result of which was, this confident and setled Judgment, that of the four contending Parties, (the Erastian, Episcopal, Presbyterian and Independant) each one had some Truths in peculiar, which the other overlookt, or took little notice of, and each one had their proper Mistakes which gave advantage to their Adversaries; though all of them had so much truth in common among them, as would have made these Kingdoms happy, if it had been unanimously and soberly reduced to practice, by prudent and charitable Men.

§ 2. 1. The Erastians, I thought, were thus far in the right, in asserting more fully than others the Magistrates Power in Matters of Religion; that all Coercive Power (by Mulcts or Force) is only in their hands (which is the full sence of our Oath of Supremacy); and that no such Power belongeth to the Pastors or People of the Church; and that thus (as Dr. Ludov. Molinae… pleadeth) there should not be any Imperium in Imperio, or any Coercive Power challenged by Pope, Prelate, Presbytery, or any, but by the Magistrate alone: that the Pastoral Power is only Perswasive, or exercised on Volunteers; yet not private, such as belongeth to every Man (to perswade) that hath a perswading Faculty… but Publick and Authoritative by Divine appointment: And not only to perswade by Sermons or general Speeches, but by particular oversight of their particular Flocks! much like the Authority of Plato or Zen… in his School, or a Master in any Academy of Volunteers, or of a Physician in his Hospital, supposing these were Officers of God's Institution, who could as the ground of their perswasitant… produce his Commission or Command for what they said and did.

But though the Diocesans, and the Presbyterians of Scotland (who had Laws to enable them) opposed this Doctrine or the Party at least, yet I perceived that indeed, it was but on the ground of their Civil Advantages, as the Magistrate had impowered by them by his Laws) (which the Erastians did not contradict); except some few of the higher … sort, who pleaded as the Papists, for somewhat p. 140more, which yet they could not themselves tell what to make of: But the generality of each Party indeed owned this Doctrine; and I could speak with no sober Judicious Prelatist, Presbyterian, or Independant, but confessed that no Secular, or Forcing Power, belonged to any Pastors of the Church as such; and unless the Magistrates authorized them as his Officers, they could not touch mens Bodies or Estates, but the Conscience alone**Archbishop Bil…on frequently and fully professeth. (which can be of none but of Assenters).

§ 3. 2. The Episcopal Party seemed to have reason on their side in …, that in the Primitive Church there were some Apostles, Evangelists, and others; who were general unfixed Officers of the Church, not tyed to any particular Cha…ge; and had some Superiority (some of them …over-fixed Bishops or Pastors! And though the extraordinary Parts of the Apostles Office ceased, with them, I saw no proof of the Cessation of any ordinary part of their Office, such as Church Government is confessed to be. All the doubt that I saw in this was, Whether the Apostles themselves were constituted Governours of other Pastors, or only over-ruled them by the Eminency of their Gifts and Priviledge of Infallibility. For it seemed to me unmeet to affirm without proof, that Christ setled a Form of Government in his Church, to endure only for one Age, and changed it for a New one when that Age was ended.

And as to fixed Bishops of particular Churches that were Superiours in degree to Presbyters, though I saw nothing at all in Scripture for them, which was any whit cogent, yet I saw that the Reception of them in all the Churches was so timely (even in the days of one of the Apostles in some Churches), and so general, that I thought it a most improbable thing, that if it had been contrary to the Apostles mind, we should never read that they themselves, or any one of their Disciples that conversed with them, no nor any Christian or Heretick in the World, should once speak or write a word against it, till long after it was generally setled in the Curches. This therefore I resolved never to oppose.

§ 4. 3. And as for the Presbyterians, I found that the Office of Preaching Presbyters was allowed by all that deserve the Name of Christians; and that this Office did participate (subserviently to Christ) of the Prophetical (or Teaching) the Priestly (or worshipping) and the Governing Power; and that both Scripture, Antiquity, and the perswasive Nature of Church Government, clearly shew that all Presbyters were Church Governours, as well as Church Teachers! and that to deny this was to destroy the Office, and to endeavour to destroy the Churches. And I saw in Scripture, Antiquity and Reason, that the Association of Pastors and Churches for Agreement, and their Synods in Cases of Necessity, are a plain duty: and that their ordinary stated Synods are usually very convenient.

And I saw that in England the Persons which were called Presbyterians were emiment for Learning, Sobriety and Piety: and the Pastors so called were they that went through the Work of the Ministry, in diligent serious preaching to the People, and edifying Mens Souls, and keeping up Religion in the Land.

§ 5. 4. And for the Independants, I saw that most of them were Zealous, and very many Learned, discreet and godly Men; and fit to be very serviceable in the Church. And I found in the search of Scripture and Antiquity, that in the beginning a Governed Church, and a stated worshipping Church, were all one; and not two several things: And that though there might be other by…Meetings in places like our Chappels or private Houses, for such as Age or Persecution hindered to come to the more solemn Meetings, yet Churches then were no bigger (in number of Persons) than our Parishes now (to grant the most): And that they were Societies of Christians united for Personal Communion; and not only for Communion by Meetings of Officers and Delegates in Synods, as many Churches in Association be. And I saw if once we go beyond the bounds of [Personal Communion] as the end of particular Churches, in the Definition, we may make a Church of a Nation, or of ten Nations, or what we please, which shall have none of the Nature and Ends of the Primitive particular Churches. Also I saw a commendable care of serious Holiness and Discipline in most of the Independant Churches: And I found that some Episcopal Men (as Bishop Usher himself did voluntarily profess his Judgment to me) did hold that every Bishop was independant, as to Synods, and that Synods were not proper Governours of the particular Bishops, but only for their Concord.

§ 6. 5. And for the Anabaptists themselves (though I have written and said so much against them,) as I found that most of them were Persons of Zeal in Religion, so many of them were sober godly People, and differed from others but in the Point of Infant Baptism, or at most in the Points of Predestination and Freewill p. 141and Perseverance, (as the Iesuits differ from the Dominicans, the Lutherans from the Calvinists, and the Arminians from the Contra-Remonstrants): And I found in all Antiquity, that though Infant Baptism was held lawful by the Church… yet some with Tertullian and Nazienzen, thought it most convenient to make no haste, and the rest left the time of Baptism to every ones liberty, and forced none to be baptized: Insomuch as not only Constantint, Theud…sius, and such other as were converted at Years of Discretion, but Augustine and many such as were the Children of Christian Parents (one or both) did defer their Baptism much longer than I think they should have done. So that in the Primitive Churchi some were Baptized in Infancy, and some at ripe Age, and some a little before their Death; and none were forced, but all left free; and the only Penalty (among men) of their delay was, that so long they were without the Priviledges of the Church, and were numbred but with the Catechumens, or Expectants.

§ 7. 6. As to Doctrinal Differences also (between Arminians and Anti-Arminians) I soon perceived that it was hard to find a Man that discerned the true State of the several Controversies; and that when unrevealed points (uncertain to all), were laid aside, and the Controversies about Words were justly separated from the Controversies about things; the Differences about things which remained were fewer and smaller than most of the Contenders perceived or would believe.

§ 8. 7. Yea, I found that our Doctrinal Controversies with the Papists themselves, were very much darkned, and seldom well stated; and that in the Points of Merit,See this matter fully cleared in Le Blancis Thesis. Justification, Assurance of Salvation, Perseverance, Grace, Freewill, and such others, it was common to misunderstand one another, and rare to meet with any that by just Distinction and Explication, did well state the Controversies, and bring them out of the Dark.

§ 9. What I begin to write about any of these Doctrinal Differences, in my Aphorisms, Confession, Apologie, &c. I will now pass by, and the manifold Censures and Encounters which I had thereupon, and the many Manuscripts of worthy Brethren animadverting upon my Aphorisms, which I was (privately) put to answer: Because it is not such Differences that now I am to speak of.

§ 10. I perceived then that every Party beforementioned, having some Truth or Good, in which it was more eminent than the rest, it was no impossible thing to separate all that from the Error and the Evil, and that among all the Truths which they held either in Common or in Controversy, there was no Contradiction: And therefore, that he that would procure the Welfare of the Church must do his best to promote all the Truth and Good which was held by every part, and to leave out all their Errors and their Evil; and not take up all that any Party had espoused as their own.

§ 11. The things which I disliked as erroneous or evil in each Party were these:

1. In the Erastians I disliked, 1. That they made too light of the Power of the Ministry and Church, and of Excommunication; and did not distinguish sufficiently of a persuasive Power which is but private, and is founded only in the Reason of the Speaker, and a persuasive Power which is publick in an Officer of Christ (which Camero well calleth Doctoral), and is founded conjunctly in his Authority (by God's Commission) and his Arguments. 2. That they made the Articles of [the Holy Catholick Church, and the Communion of Saints] too insignificant, by making Church Communion more common to the impenitent than Christ would have it; and so dishonoured Christ by dishonouring his Church, and making it too like to the Heathen World, and breaking down the Hedge of Spiritual Discipline, and laying it almost in common with the Wilderness. 3. That they misunderstood and injured their Brethren, supposing and affirming them to claim as from God a coercive Power over the Bodies or Purses of Men, and so setting up Imperium in Imperio; whereas all temperate Christians (at least except Papists) confess that the Church hath no Power of Force, but only to manage God's Word unto Mens Conscience…

§ 12. In the Diocesane Party I utterly distiked

1. Their Extirpation of the true Discipline of Christ, as we conceive, by consequence, though not intentionally; not only as they omitted it, and corrupted it; but as their Principles and Church State had made it unpracticable and impossible, while one Bishop with his Consitory, had the sole Government of a thousand or many hundred Churches, even over many thousands whose Faces they were never like to see; not setting up any Par…chia Government under them: But just as if the Archbishops… (or rather the Patriarchs.) in C…nstanti… 's days, should have p. 142deposed all the Bishops in the Empire, and have taken all their Charges upon themselves.

2. That hereby they altered the Species of Churches, and either would de… all particular Churches, and have none but associated Diocesane Churches, (who hold the Communion by Delegates and not personally); or else they would turn all the particular Parochial Churches into Christian Oratories and Schools, while they gave their Pastors but a Teaching and Worshiping Power; but not a Governing.

3. That hereby they altered the ancient Species of Presbyters, to whose Office the Spiritual Government of their proper Folks as truly belonged, as the Power of preaching and worshipping God did.

4. That they extinguished the ancient Species of Bishops, which was in the times of Ignatius, when every Church had one Altar and one Bishop; and there were none but Itinerants or Archbishops that had many Churches.

5. That they set up Courts that were more Secular than Spiritual, in the manner of other Secular Courts; and that the Government of the Church by Excommunication, Suspensions, Absolutions, &c. was exercised by a Chancellor, who was a civil Lawyer and a Lay-man even against Ministers themselves, unless for a blind, some Priest did formally pronounce the Sentence.

6. That the great Church Business of these Bishops and Courts, was to vex honest Christians that durst not worship God by such Ceremonies as their Consciences thought unlawful, and to silence able godly Preachers that durst not subscribe and swear Obedience to them, and use every one of their Formes and Ceremonies, and profess the Lawfulness of all this; and that by gratifying the multitude of the ungodly, and espousing a Cause so perniceous to the Church, which multitudes of sober Christians would dislike, they had engaged themselves into a way of Enmity and Violence against a very considerable Number of as able Ministers, and holy Christians as any were in the Land or in the known World.

7. And hereby it came to pass that the Multitude of the Ignorant and ungodly People were become the zealous Pleaders for the Prelacie, and made it the Brestwork to exercise their Enmity against the serious Practice of Religion.

8. And that ignorant drunken Readers (unfit to live in Christian Communion) were the only Pastors (under the Prelates) of abundance of the Churches in the Land.

9. And that their zeal for Formality and Ceremonies, and their Enmity to the most serious way of Preaching, Praying, yea, and Living, did greatly tend to the suppressing of Godliness, and the increase of Ignorance and Prophaneness in the People.

10. And lastly, That they were set upon a way of uncharitable Censuring, Reproaching, Cruelty and Force, for the carrying on of so ill a Cause; wherein their carnal Interest did evidently manage a War against the Interest of Christ and Godliness and the Souls of Men.

§ 13. 3. In the Presbyterian way I disliked

1. Their Order of Lay-Elders who had no Ordination, nor Power to Preach, nor to administer Sacraments: For though I grant that Lay-Elders, or the Chief of the People, were oft imployed to express the Peoples Consent, and preserve their Liberties, yet these were no Church-Officers at all, nor had any Charge of private Oversight of the Flocks: And though I grant that one Church had oft more Elders, than did use to preach, and that many were most employed in private Oversight, yet that was but a prudent dividing of their Work, according to the Gifts and parts of each, and not that any Elders wanted Power of Office to preach or Administer Sacraments when there was Cause.

2. And I disliked the Course of some of the more rigid of them, that drew too near the way of Prelacie, by grasping at a kind of secular Power; not using it themselves, but binding the Magistrates to confiscate or imprison Men, meerly because they were excommunicate; and so corrupting the true Discipline of the Church, and turning the Communion of Saints, into the Communion of the Multitude that must keep in the Church against their Wills, for fear of being undone in the World. When as a Man whose Conscience cannot feel a just Excommunication, unless it be back'd with Confiscation or Imprisonment, is no fitter to be a Member of a Christian Church in the Communion of Saints, than a Corps is to be a Member of a Corporation. It's true they claim not this Power as Iure Divino (though some say that the Magistrate is bound to execute these Penalties on Men meerly as excommunicate;) nor no more do the Prelates, when yet the Writ de Excommunicato p. 143Capiendo, is the Life of all their Censures): But both Parties too much debase the Magistrate, by making him their meer Executioner; when as he is the Iudge whereever he is the Executioner, and is to try each Cause at his own Barr before he be obliged to punish any; and they corrupt the Discipline of Christ by mixing it with secular Force; and they reproach the Keys or Ministerial Power, as if it were a Leaden Sword, and not worth a Straw unless the Magistrates Sword enforce it. (And what then did the Primitive Church for Three hundred Years?) And, worst of all, they corrupt the Church by forcing in the Rabble of the unfit and unwiling; and thereby tempt many Godly Christians to Schisms and dangerous Separations. In all this I deny not, but that the Magistrate must restrain all sorts of Vice: But not as a Hangman only, that executeth the Judgment of another; nor eo Nomine to punish a Man because he is Excommunicate (that is most heavily punished already by others): Till Magistrates keep the Sword themselves, and learn to deny it to every angry Clergyman that would do his own Work by it, and leave them to their own Weapons, the Word and Spiritual Keys; & valeant quantum valere possunt, the Church shall never have Unity and Peace; hucusque probatum est.

3. And I disliked some of the Presbyterians, that they were not tender enough to dissenting Brethren; but too much against Liberty as others were too much for it; and thought by Votes and Number to do that which Love and Reason should have done.

4. And when the Independents said [A Worshiping Church and a Governed Church is and must be all one:] And the Presbyterians said [They may be all one though it be not necessary]; yet in their Practice they would have so setled it, that they should no where be all one, but ten or twelve worshipping Churches should have made one Governed Church; which prepared the way to the Diocesane Frame; though I confess it is incomparably better (because ten or Twelve Churches is not so many as a thousand or many hundred; and because the Pastor of every Church had the Government of his own Flock, in Conjunction with the Presbytery or Synod, though not alone).

§ 14. 4 And in the Independent way I disliked many things: As

1. That they made too light of Ordination.

2. That they also had their Office of Lay-Eldership.

3. That they were commonly Stricter about the Qualification of Church Members, than Scripture, Reason, or the Practice of the Universal Church would allow; not taking a Man's bare Profession as Credible, as a sufficient Evidence of his Title to Church Communion, unless either by a holy Life, or the Particular Narration of the Passages of the Work of Grace, he satisfied the Pastors (yea, and all the Church) that he was truly Holy; whereas every Man's Profession is the valid Evidence of the thing professed in his Heart, unless it be disproved by him that questioneth it, by proving him guilty of Heresies or Impiety, or Sins inconsistent with it. And if once you go beyond the Evidence of [a serious sober Confession] as a credible and sufficient sign of Title, you will never know where to rest; but the Churches Opinion will be both Rule and Judge, and Men will be let in or kept out, according to the various Latitude of Opinions or Charity in the several Officers or Churches: and he will be passable in one Church who in another is intollerable; and so the Churches will be heterogeneous and confused. And there is in all this a little (if not more than a little) spiritual Pride of the Weaker sort of Professors, affecting to be visibly set at a greater Distance from the colder Professors of Chistianity, than God would have them, that so they may be more observable, and conspicuous for their Holyness in the World: And there is too much uncharitableness in it, when God hath given sincere Professors the Kernel of his Mercies, even Grace and Glory, and yet they will grudge to cold Hypocritical Professors, so small a thing as the outward Shell, and visible Communion and external Ordinances; Yea, though such are kept in the Church for the Sakes and Service of the Sincere.

4. And I disliked also the lamentable tendency of this their way to Divisions and Sub-divisions, and the nourishing of Heresies and Sects.

5. But above all I disliked, that most of them made the People by majority of Votes to be Church-Governors, in Excommunications, Absolutions, &c. which Christ hath made an Act of Office, and so they governed their Governors and themselves.

p. 1446. Also that they too much exploded Synods, refusing them as stated, and admitting them but upon some extraordinary Occasions.

7. Also their over-rigidness against the Admission of Christians of other Churches to their Communion.

8. And their making a Minister to be as no Minister to any but his own Flock, and to act to others but as a private Man; with divers others such Irregularities, and dividing Opinions: Many of which the moderation of the New England Synod hath of late corrected and disowned; and so done very much to heal these Breaches.

§ 15. 5 And for the Anabaptists I knew that they injuriously excluded the Infants of the Faithful from solemn entrance into the Covenant and Church of God, and as sinfully made their Opinion a Ground of their Separations from the Churches and Communion of their Brethren; and that among them grew up the Weeds of many Errors and Divisions, Sub-divisions, Reproach of Ministers, Faction and Pride, and scandalous Practices were fomented in their way.

§ 16. The case standing thus with all these Parties, I thought it my Duty, 1. To labour to bring them all to a concordant Practice of so much as they all agreed in. 2. To set all that together which was True and Good among them all, and to promote that so far as I was able, and to reject the rest. 3. And especially in order to these, to labour the reviving of Christian Charity, which Faction and Disputes had lamentably extinguish'd. But how to accomplish this, was beyond the Prospect of my Hope.

§ 17. Besides the Hinderances which are contained in Mens Principles, I found three others which were exceeding Powerful: One is in Mens Company and another in their seeming Interests, and the chiefest of all in the Disposition and Quality of their Minds.

§ 18. 1. Some that were most conversant with sober, peaceable, experienced Men, and were under the Care of peaceable Ministers, I found very much inclined to Charity and Peace. But multitudes of them conversed most with ignorant, proud, unexperienced, Passionate, Uncharitable Persons; who made it a part of their Zeal and Ingenuity to break a Jest in Reproach and Scorn of them that differed from them; and who were ordinarily Backbiters, and bold unrighteous Censurers of others, before they well understood them, or ever heard them give a Reason of their Judgments or Practices, or speak for themselves. And the hearing and conversing with such Persons as these doth powerfully dispose Men to the same Disease, and to sin impenitently after their Example. Especially when Men are incorporated into a Sect or uncharitable Party, and have captivated themselves to a human Servitude in Religion, and given up themselves to the Will of Men, the Stream will bear down the plainest Evidence, and carry them to the foulest Errors.

§ 19. 2. And as it is carnal Interest that ruleth the carnal World, so I found that 1. Among Selfish Men, there were as many Interests and Ends, as Persons; and every one had an Interest of his own which governed him, and set him at a very great Enmity to the most necessary means of Peace. 2. And that ever Man that had once given up himself to a Party, and drowned himself in a Faction, did make the Interest of that Faction or Party to be his own: And the Interest of Christianity, Catholicism and Charity, is contrary to the Interest of Sects, as such. And it is the Nature of a Sectary, that he preferreth the Interest of his Opinion, Sect or Party, before the Interest of Christianity, Catholicism and Charity, and will sacrifice the latter to the Service of the former.

§ 20. 3. But the Grand Impediment I found in the temper of Mens Minds; and there I perceived a manifold difference. Among all these Parties I found that some were naturally of mild and calm and gentle Dispositions, and some of sower, froward, passionate, peevish, or furious Natures: Some were young and raw and unexperienced, and those were like a young Fruit, four and harsh; addicted to pride of their own Opinions, to Self-conceitedness, Turbulency, Censoriousness and Temerity, and to engage themselves for a Cause and Party before they understood the matter: and were led about by those Teachers and Books that had once won their highest Esteem; judging of Sermons and Persons by their Fervency, more than by the soundness of the Matter and the Cause. And some I found on the other side, to be ancient and experienced Christians that had tried the Spirits, and seen what was of God, and what of Man, and noted the Events of both in the World; and these were like ripe Fruit, Mellow and sweet, first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be intreated, full of Mercy and good Fruits, without Partiality, without Hypocrisy, who being Makers of Peace, did sow the Fruits of Righteousness p. 145in peace, Iames 3. 17, 18. I began by experience to understand the meaning of those words of St. Paul, 1 Tim 3. 6 [Not a Novice, lest being lifted up with pride, be fall into the condemnation of the Devil.] Novices, that is, young, raw, unexperienced Christians, are much apter to be proud, and censorious, and factious, than old experienced, judicious Christians.

§ 21. But the Difference between the Godly and the Ungodly, the Spiritual and the Carnal worshippers of God, was here the most considerable of all. An humble, holy, upright Soul is sensible of the interest of Christ and Souls; and a gracious Person is ever a charitable Person, and loveth his Neighbour as himself; and therefore judgeth of him, as he would be judged of himself, and speaketh of him as he would be spoken of himself, and useth him as he would be used himself: And it is as much against his charitable inclination to disagree or separate from his Brethren, much more to prosecute them or cast them out, as it is against the nature of the body to dismember it self, by cutting off any of the parts. And it is easie to bring such Persons to Agreement, at least to live in Charitable Communion. But on the other side the Carnal, Selfish and Unsanctified, (of what Party or Opinion soever) have a Nature that is quite against holy Concord and Peace. They want that love which is the natural Balsom for the Churches wounds: They are every one Selfish, and ruled by Self-Interest, and have as many Ends and Centres of their Desires and Actions, as they are individual Men. They are easily deceived and led into Errour, especially in Practicals, and against Spiritual Truths, for want of Divine Illumination, and Experience of the Things of God, and a Nature suitable thereto. Their Designs are Carnal, Ambitious, Covetous, as Worldly Felicity is their Idol and their End: God is not taken for their highest Governour, his Laws must give place to the Desires of their Flesh: Their very Religion is but Pride and Worldliness, or subject to it. They have a secret Enmity against a holy, spiritual Life, and therefore against the People that are holy: They love not them that are serious in their own Religion, and that go beyond their dead Formality: This Enmity, provoked by Self-interest or Reproof, doth easily make them Persecutors of the Godly, if they have but power. And their carnal worldly hearts incline them to the carnal worldly side in any Controversies about Religion, and to corrupt it, and make it a carnal thing. These Hypocrites in the Church do betray its Purity and Peace, and …ell Christ's Interest and the Gospel for as small a price as Iudas sold his Lord for. And though in a time, when God's Providence setteth his own Cause on the higher ground, and giveth it the advantage of holy Governours, these Men may possibly be serviceable to its welfare, as finding it to serve their carnal Ends; yet ordinarily they will …ell the Peace of the Church for Preferment; and are either imposing persecuting Dividers, or discontented humourous Dividers; and hardly brought to the necessary terms of a just and holy and durable Peace, (of whom I have more largely written in my Book called Catholick Unity). These, and many more Impediments do rise up against all conciliatory endeavours.

§ 22. But I found not all these alike in all the disagreeing Parties, though some of both Sorts in every Party. The Erastian Party is most composed of Lawyers and other Secular Persons, who better understand the Nature of Civil Covernment, than the Nature, Form and Ends of the Church, and of those Offices appointed by Christ for Men's Spiritual Edification and Salvation. The Diocesan Party (with us) consisted of some grave, learned, godly Bishops, and some sober godly People of their mind; and withal of almost all the carnal Politicians, Temporizers, Prophane, and Haters of Godliness in the Land; and all the Rabble of the ignorant, ungodly Vulgar: Whether this came to pafs from any thing in the Nature of their Diocesan Government, or from their accommodating the ungodly Sort by the formal way of their Publick Worship; or from their heading and pleasing them by running down the stricter sort of People whom they hated; or all these together; and also because the worst and most do always fall in with the Party that is uppermost, I leave to the Judgment of the considerate Reader. The Presbyterian Party consisted of grave, orthodox, godly Ministers, together with the hopefullest of the Students and young Ministers, and the soberest, godly, ancient Christians, who were equally averse to Persecution and to Schism; and of those young ones who were educated and ruled by these: As also in those places where they most prevailed, of the soberest sort of the well-meaning Vulgar, who liked a godly Life, though they had no great knowledge of it: And this Party was most desirous of Peace. The Independant Party had many very godly Ministers and People, but with them many young injudicious Persons, inclined much to Novelties and Separations, and abounding more in Zeal than Knowledge; usually doing more p. 146for Subdivisions, than the few sober Persons among them could do for unity and Peace; too much mistaking the Terms of Church Communion, and the difference between the Regenerate (invisible) and the Congregate (or visible) Church. The Anabaptists Party consisted of some (but fewer) sober, peaceable Persons, and orthodox in other Points; but withal, of abundance of young transported Zealots, and a medley of Opinionists, who all hasted directly to Enthusiasm and Subdivisions, and by the Temptation of Prosperity and Success in Arms, and the Policy of some Commanders, were led into Rebellions, and hot Endeavours against the Ministry, and other Ioandalous Crimes; and brought forth the horrid Sects of Ranters, Seekers, and Quakers in the Land.

§ 23. But the greatest Advantage which I found for Concord and Pacification, was among a great number of Ministers and People who had addicted themselves to no Sect or Party at all; though the Vulgar called them by the Name of Presbyterians: And the truth is, as far as I could discover, this was the Case of the greatest number of the godly Ministers and People throughout England. For though Presbytery generally took in Scotland, yet it was but a stranger here: And it found some Ministers that lived in conformity to the Bishops, Liturgies and Ceremonies (however they wisht for Reformation); and the most (that quickly after were ordained) were but young Students in the Universities, at the time of the change of Church Government, and had never well studied the Point on either side: And though most of the Ministers (then) in England saw nothing in the Presbyterian way of practice, which they could not cheerfully concur in, yet it was but few that had resolved on their Principles: And when I came to try it, I found that most (that ever I could meet with) were against the Ius Divinum of Lay Elders, and for the moderate Primitive Episcopacy, and for a narrow Congregational or Parochial Extent of ordinary Churches, and for an accommodation of all Parties, in order to Concord, as well as my self. I am sure as soon as I proposed it to them, I found most inclined to this way, and therefore I suppose it was their Judgment before: Yea, multitudes whom I had no converse with, I understood to be of this mind; so that this moderate Number, (I am loth to call them a Party, because they were for Catholicism against Parties), being no way pre-engaged, made the Work of Concord much more hopeful than else it would have been, or than I thought it to be when I first attempted it.

§ 24. Things being in this Case, I stood still some years, as a looker on, and contented my self to wish and pray for Peace, and only drop now and then a word for it in my practical Writings; which hath since been none of my smallest troubles. The Reasons were, 1. Because I was taken up in Practicals, and in such Controversies as tended to Doctrinal Agreement. 2. Because I looked when some abler and more eminent Divines attempted it. 3. But the chief Reason was, Despair: I was so cons…lous of my meanness and in considerableness in the Church, that I verily thought, but very few will regard what I said. But when I once attempted it, God convinced me of this Errour, and shewed me how little Instruments signifie, when he will work: and that his Ministers and People were more humble to hear the meanest of their Brethren, than I before believed. At last the workings of my earnest Desire, and the apprehension of my Duty, to do my best, and leave the Success to God, engaged me as followeth.

§ 25. I first began in Conference and Writing to Reverend Mr. Anthony Burgess, and some others, to put the main Question, Whether all Church Government be not, as Camero holdeth, only Perswasive, not by private, but publick or authorized Doctoral Perswasion, and so can work on none but the Conscientious or Assenters? And whether the usurpation of a strictly Legislative and Judicial Power (save only to judge what we are to execute), or a power of binding Dissenters, even Clave errante, especially binding Magistrates to execute by Corporal Penalties and Mulcts, and other Punishments, Eo nomine, because by Excommunication the Church hath punished them, I say, whether this be not a robbing the Magistrate of his Power, and making the Exercise of the Keys, to be too like a Coercive Secular Judgment, and so the Ground of all the Quarrels in the Church? For I saw plainly that the Papists, and those Prelates and Presbyterians who are for such an unexamined Judicial Power, do but strive for that which belongeth to none of them all. Upon the raising of these doubts I was suspected to be an Erastian, and had no other Answer, or Satisfaction: But the study of the Point somewhat cleared my own Judgment.

p. 147§ 26. Next this I wrote to Reverend and Judicious Mr. Richard Vines, about an attempt for Concord with all, but especially the Episcopal Party: And also about Lay-Elders; and his Judgment fully concurred with me, and (besides others) he wrote to me the following Letter.