Vindication of Baptizing Believers Infants, Chapter 21
CHAP. XXI.
MAſter Tombes his eleventh argument againſt Infant baptiſm is;Exercit. § 22. becauſe the aſſertors of Infant baptiſme little agree among themſelves, upon what foundation they may build Infant-baptiſme. Cyprian and others of the Ancients draw it from the univerſality of grace, and the neceſſity of baptiſme to ſalvation. Auguſtine, Bernard, &c. bring the faith of the Church as the reaſon of baptizing infants. The Catechiſme in the Engliſh Liturgie puts the promiſe of the ſureties. The Lutherans the faith of infants. Others, the holineſſe of a believing Nation. Others, the faith of the next parent, and others, the faith of the next parent in Covenant in a gathered Church.
We anſwer,
1 In generall, Multaloqueris, pauc a dicis, Animad.Here is much ſpoken, little proved. We have but one quotation, and that is out of the Engliſh Maſſe-book the Epiſcopall Liturgie.
2 More particularly.
1 By way of retort.
2 By way of reply.
1 We retort. The Anabaptiſts alſo much differ in their foundation of their Anabaptiſme, ſome build it on bare confeſſion of ſins, what ere the man be in point of manifeſtation of grace. So ſome of the Arians, &c. See Epiphan. afore quoted in the 15 Chap. And of late, the Author of the book called the Marke, or Character of the Beaſt. Some on profeſſion of farth. So many of them at this day. Some on ſignes of grace. So M.T. Some on making them Diſciples. So M.D. and others. Yet M.T. ſayth in the next argument, that a man is ſhewed to be a Diſciple by baptiſme, and we have proved before, believers children are reckoned Diſciples. Some build their Anabaptiſme upon I know not what. Maſter S.M. ſayth that by baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoſt, is not meant, baptiſme with water. And thoſe Anabaptiſts in Germanie now, mentioned in Cloppenburgius, and by Spanhemius at the end of Cl…ppenburgius (where you have the hiſtory of them) ſay John Baptiſt was a Miniſter of the Law, not of the Goſpel. See before in our 15 Chap.
2 By way of reply.
1 To Cyprian, &c. They hold not univerſality of grace, but the indefinit offer of grace. How they held in point of baptiſme, and upon howmany Scripture grounds, we have before ſhewed, cap. 13, 14.
2 To Auguſtine we reply, that M. T. before fiercely charged Auguſtine for holding Infant-baptiſme upon Cyprian grounds. Nor doe I remember in all M. T. his quotations out of Auguſtine, any ſuch thing as he here mentions of him.
3 To Bernard we reply, Thst M. T. tells us neither what nor where he ſayth it. It he did ſay ſo any where, we know he lived in late corrupted times, and far more worthy to be ſlighted in this, then Cyprian, Auguſtine. &c. whom M.T. hath ſo ſlighted.
4 To the Engliſh Liturgie, Tolerabiles ineptiae, Calvin.ſeeing M.T. aleadgeth that Engliſh-maſſe, thoſe tolerable fooleries, as Calvin calls them, Covenanted againſt by us all, put down by Parliament, and no more to be urged againſt us, then againſt M. Tombes himſelfe, and the Preachers of his judgement, We reply, give the Devill his due, the Engliſh Liturgie urgeth for infant baptiſme the 10 of Mar. And the Catechiſme therein ſayth, Faith is neceſſary to Baptiſme, what ever other unneceſſary expreſſions be added.
5 To the Lutherans opinion, ſeeing we muſt take it upon M. T. his bare word, we ſay onelyonly this, That M.T. confeſſed, that infants may, when infants, have regeneration, ſaving grace, &c.
6 To that of the faith of a holy Nation we have anſwered afore upon M.T. his reply to 1 Pet, 29. And add ſo far as a Nation is holy and believing, ſo far all parents are ſuch too, and ſo this ſixth particular is all one with the fifth of believing parents, which we have maintained all along as a ſufficient ground of giving their children the firſt ſeal.
8 To that of parensa in Covenant in a gathered Church, we have anſwered a little aforeaSee afore in Chap. 13. Infaults in Diſciplne. we add that thoſe that ſo practiſe, looke in baptiſme to the ſaith of parents, more then to that their Covenant.