Works of Joseph Hall, Letter 7
To Mr. WILLIAM BEDELL at Venice. EP. VII. Lamenting the death of our late Diuines, and exciting to their imitation.
WE hauehave heard, how full of trouble, and danger, the Alpes were to you; and did at once both pity your difficulties, and reioyce in your ſafety. Since your departure from vsus, Reynolds is departed from the world. Alas, how many worthy Lights hauehave our eyes ſeene ſhining and extinguiſht? How many loſſes hauehave we liued to ſee the Church ſuſtaine, and lament; of her children; of her pillers; our owne; and forraine; I ſpeake not of thoſe, which (being excellent) would needs be obſcure: whom nothing but their owne ſecrecy depriued of the honour of our teares. There are, beſides, too many whom the world noted and admired; euen ſince the time that our common mother acknowledged vsus for her ſonnes. Our Fulke led the way; that profound, ready, and reſolute Doctor, the hammer of hereticks. The … of Truth: whom your younger times hauehave heard oft diſputing acutely and powerfully. Next him, followed that honour of our Schooles, and Angell of our Church, learned Whitakers; than whom our age ſaw nothing more memorable: what clearneſſe of iudgement, what ſweetneſſe of ſtyle, what grauity of perſon, what grace of cariage was in that man? Who euer ſaw him without reuerence? or heard him without wonder? Soone after, left the world that famous and illuminate Doctor, Francis Iunius, the glory of Leiden, the other hope of the Church, the Oracle of Textuall and Schoole-Diuinity, rich in languages, ſubtle in diſtinguiſhing, and in argument invincible: and his companion in labours, Lu. Trelcatius, would needs be his companion in ioyes; who had doubted our ſorrow and loſſe, but that he recompenced it with a ſonne like himſelfe. Soone after, ſelf old reuerend Beza; a long fixed ſtarre in this firmament of the Church: who, after many excellent monuments of learning and fidelity, liued to proue vponupon his aduerſaries, that hee was not dead at their day. Neyther may I, without iniury, omit that worthy payre of our late Diuines, Gre…nham and Perkins: whereof the one excelled in experimentall diuinitie, & knew well how to ſtay a weake conſcience, how to raiſe a fallen, how to ſtrike a remorſleſſe: The other, in a diſtinct iudgement, and a rare dexterity in clearing the obſcure ſubtleties of the Schoole, and eaſie explication of the moſt perplex diſcourſes. Doctor Reynolds is the laſt; not in worth, but in the time of his loſſe. Hee alone was a well furniſht library, full of all faculties, of all ſtudies, of all learning: the memory, the reading of that man were neer to a miracle. Theſe are gone, amongſt many more, whom the Church mournes for in ſecret: would God her loſſe could be as eaſily ſupplied, as lamented. Her ſorrow is for thoſe that are paſt; her remainder of ioy in thoſe that remaine; her hope in the next age. I pray God the cauſes of her hope, and ioy, may be equivalent to thoſe of her griefe.
What ſhould this worke in vsus, but an imitation, yea (that word is not too bigge for you) an emulation of their worthineſſe? It is no pride, for a man to wiſh himſelfe ſpiritually better then he dare hope to reach: nay, I am deceiued, if it be not true humility. For what doth this argue him, but low in his conceit, high in his deſires only? Or if ſo; happy is the ambition of grace, and power of ſincere ſeruiceableneſſe to God. Let vsus wiſh and affect this, while the world layes plots for greatneſſe: Let me not proſper, if I beſtow enuy on them. He is great, that is good: and no man, me-thinkes, is happy on earth, to him that hath grace for ſubſtance, and learning for ornament. If you know it not, the Church (our mother) lookes for much at your hands: ſhe knowes how rich our common father hath left you: ſhe notes your graces, your opportunities, your imployments: ſhe thinks you are gone ſo farre, like a good Merchant, for no ſmall gaine; and lookes you ſhall come home well laded. And for vent of your preſent commodities (tho our chiefe hope of ſucceſſe be cut off with that vnhoped peace) yet what can hinder your priuate trafficke for God? I hope (and who doth not?) that this blow will leaue in your noble Venetians a perpetuall ſcarre; and that their late irreſolution ſhall make them euer capable of all better counſell; and hauehave his worke (like ſome great Eclipſe many yeares after. How happy were it for Venice, if as ſhe is eueryevery yeare maried to the Sea, ſo ſhe were once throughly eſpouſed to Chriſt! In the meane time, let me perſwade you to gratifie vsus at home with the publication of that your exquiſit Polemicall diſcourſe; whereto our conference with M. Alablaſter gaue ſo happy an occaſion: You ſhall hereby cleare many truths, and ſatisfie all Readers: yea, I doubt not, but an aduerſary (not too peruerſe) ſhall acknowledge the Truths victory and yours. It was wholſome counſell of a Father, that in the time of an hereſie eueryevery man ſhould write. Perhaps, you complain of the inundations of Francford: How many hauehave been diſcouraged from benefiting the world, be this conceit of multitude! Indeed we all write; and while we write, cry out of number. How well might many be ſpared, euen of thoſe that complaine of too many? whoſe importunate babling cloyes the world, without vſe.