A Defense of the Antidote Against Baxters Cure of Church Divisions, Letter 3
Some Paſſages out of Mr. Brown's Letter.
Dear Brother,
I Have ſome time ſince peruſed Mr. Baxters two laſt Treatiſes, which (to ſpeak modeſtly) give great Occaſion to the adverſaries of Truth and Purity, to reproach and blaſpheme God and his People, and have cauſed great grief of heart to many that truly fear him; and this is no more (for the ſubſtance of it) than ſome of Mr. Baxters own Diſciples have ſuggeſted to me. In his laſt (Entituled, A defence of the Principles of Love) He ſeverely chargeth you, but you need not be over ſolicitous, for thoſe that know the complexion and temper of the man, who writes thus, will wait to ſee your defence, before they believe you guilty of ſo many groſs Ʋntruths; eſpecially ſince I can prove Mr. Baxter (even while he thus condemns you) to be guilty himſelf of uttering many Falſities both of my ſelf and of others.
I will not conceive my ſelf concern'd with what he ſpeaks Part. 2. p. 31. touching his Diſpute with Mr. Brown, An Army Chaplain (which I never was) about the Godhead of Chriſt [which I ever owned.] That Perſon was another of the ſame name, whom I never knew, and his Principles, ſo far as I have underſtood them, oppoſing the Doctrine of the Goſpel, I utterly deteſt; ſo that all wherein I may by any be ſuppoſed to be concerned, is, what he mentions, pag. 58, 59. Part. 2d.
Firſt, That I am the Author of that Treatiſe [mentioned by him, as written againſt Mr. Tombe] againſt the lawfulneſſe of Communion with Pariſh Churches: this is more than Mr. Baxter or any of his Informers can prove: and were he able, yet I think his mentioning of it, when in that place, there is not the leaſt occa Wſion for it, is ſcarce becoming thoſe Principles of Love and Charity he is ſo great a pretender to. Whether I writ the Book or not, I conceive it not requiſite to give him an account; for I ſhould be unwilling to truſt one with a ſecret, who will, it ſeems, when the humor takes him, publiſh to the World, what he cannot, dares not, ſwear is true, although occaſion be thereby given, to ſuch as are no backward to lay hold upon every ſuch opportunity, utterly to ruine the Perſon of whom he reports it. I ſhall only add, that, whoever the Author was, I ſee no cauſe to diſown any thing conſiderable in that Book: and when Mr. Baxter ſhall undertake a through diſcuſſion of the Arguments contained in it, not like a Dictator, but as an humble modeſt Chriſtian, I will either publickly Recant what I have now affirmed, or in meekneſſe debate it with him, provided he doth more candidly repreſent Arguments, than he hath done many of yours, & particularly, that about Idolatry, in which you give the general ſenſe of all the Proteſtants, almoſt, that have writ upon the ſecond Command, who do univerſally reduce to it, as Forbidden there, whatever is added, or deviſed by men in the worſhip of God. So that how the preſent Conformiſes can be excuſed from ſome degree of Idolatry, remains to be better proved, than to call all thoſe, that fear this of them Ignorant, Raſh, and ſelf-conceited. This in another would be Railing; perhaps Mr. Baxter thinks it Rethorick, Religion I am ſure it is not; nor will it be accounted ſo by thoſe that conceive of God, as Holy and Jealous, and therefore dare not join in any thing which he hath not commanded, leſt he ſhould charge folly and ſin upon them for doing ignorantly they know not what. More may be ſaid, but in this Point, I ſhall leave Mr. Baxter to you, and if you do not take notice of his perverting his Adverſaries arguments, and impoſing upon them a ſtrange new ſenſe of his own, if you do not reprove him for his vanity, in making men of ſtraw, and then unmercifully fighting againſt them, as if he took a pleaſure in demoliſhing the work of his own hands; if you do not obſerve and call him to an account for this, you will much wrong your Cauſe, and deceive my expectation of you.
To come more cloſely to my ſelf, He informs us, that I am the Author or Publiſher of a Book, concerning the Experiences and ſtrange work of God, upon a Gentlewoman in Worceſter, and that I am uncontrouledly affirmed ſo to be. Give me leave to tell you Sir, that I cannot but wonder at the unparallel'd confidence of the man; ſhould he be any longer ſuffered to take this liberty without controul, I might be ſuppoſed, for ought I ſee, to cumber the World with as many Books, (& perhaps to as little purpoſe) as ſome body elſe: For indeed Sir, in two lines, there are no leſſe than two untruths. (I may I hope uſe Mr. Baxters word) publiſhed to the VVorld concerning me. The Firſt, That I am the Author and Publiſher of that Book, which is affirmed by him againſt the moſt notorious evidence in the VVorld to the contrary. The Author Mr. Timothy Jordain, a precious ſervant of the Lord, and now at reſt with him, ſubſcribed his Name to the Book, and in the Epiſtle prefixed, owns, and avows himſelf to be the Author and Publiſher of it; and all that I did, was (being deſired) to write an Epiſtle, wherein I acquaint the Reader that I am not the Author of it, but only did joyn in Teſtimony to ſignifie what was Recorded in the enſuing Treatiſe was true. The ſecond Ʋntruth is, That I am uncontrouledly affirmed ſo to be, when I believe Mr. Baxter hath never a ſecond in the VVorld, that either will or can affirm it.
As for the Book it ſelf, and the matter of fact contained in it, I never yet met with any judicious, ſober Chriſtian, (that hath ſeriouſly peruſed it) who durſt adventure to pronounce either of the whole, or any conſiderable part of it, that it was an effect of Melancholy. Sir, one of the great deſigns of the Devil at this day, ſeems to be to drive men into direct Atheiſm,; and there are many too juſt complaints of its prodigious encreaſe in the Nation. Whether this decrying of experiences, this ſlighting the work of Gods Spirit in the ſoul, the crying out that theſe things are but the effects of Melancholy, be not the ready way to make all ſupernatural converſion derided, and the whole Myſtery of Godlineſs contemned, I leave it with you to conſider.
That I was this Gentlewomans Inſtructer in the Fifth Monarchy Principle, and that I was very zealous for it, are two more untruths; For I was neither zealous for that Principle, nor her Inſtructer; but I did at that time (ignorantly) oppoſe her in it; though indeed now it is my opinion, that there is a Glorious State of the Church yet to come (before the laſt end of all things) when all Oppreſsion and Oppreſſors ſhall ceaſe, and every thing of man ſhall be laid down in a ſubſerviency io the intereſt of Chriſt, and the Kingdoms of the World ſhall become his; which point I am ready to diſcourſe with Mr. Baxter, when ever he ſhall think fit to doe it.
He is alſo lamentably miſtaken in the account he gives of the Lords dealing with the Gentlewoman, of which I ſhall give you a few remarks, He tells us — First, that ſhe was ſuddainly moved to come to hear him Preach, whereas ſhe went (having been long ſick after Child bearing) in the accuſtomed formall manner that others were wont to do.
Secondly, That ſhe had ſuch convictions from his Sermon (for ſo he ſeems to intimate) that ſhe went home reſolved for an holy Life; whereas ſhe heard little or nothing of his Sermon, it was the Reading of the Text, Rom. 6.21. that ſtruck her heart; yet ſhe wreſtled againſt her convictions, and would gladly have got from under them, and for that end went into the Company of ſome friends, thinking to forget them.
Thirdly, that ſhe deſired to ſpeak with him is another untruth (a Miſtake is too ſoft a word) For ſhe was hardly prevailed with to go to a Neighbours houſe to diſcourſe with him.
Fourthly, that ſhe did impoſe upon her ſelf an Abstinence from Meat; She would gladly have eaten, and attempted it ſeveral times, but being under the ſence of her own vileneſs and unworthineſs, ſuppoſing ſhe had no intereſt in the Lord, and ſo no right to the Creature (through the cunning of him that lyes in wait to deſtroy) ſhe durſt not eat.
Laſtly, ſhe never fell in ſo among the Quakers as to be one of them; though it is true, through the Power of Temptation, ſhe was ſomewhat enclined to them. But from them was marvellouſly recovered, as is intimated in the fore-mentioned Treatiſe; and now ſhe remains at as great a diſtance from them and their principles, as Maſter Baxter himſelf; nay (if I underſtand his principles) at a far greater: being fixed in following after the Lord and his Teachings in and by the Scriptures: And I hope, and am perſwaded, that, after all her ſhakings, tryals and temptations, God will for ever eſtabliſh her here.
Dear Brother, I am ſorry that I have given you this trouble, but Love to the Truth, to the intereſt of the Lord, and to Mr. Baxters ſoul (whom I pray the Lord to forgive and humble) hath compelled me; I leave it to your wiſdom to make uſe of it, as you judge may be moſt conducing to thoſe forementioned ends, &c.