The Sufferings of Christ, Letter
The Copy of a Letter written from New England, in Anſwer to a Letter which they had received from ſome Brethren in Old England, in the behalf of Mr Pinchin.
Reverend and Beloved Brethren in our Lord Jeſus,
VVE ſee by your Letters you have thought it meet to addreſs your ſelves to us (the Elders of theſe Churches) in behalf of Mr Pinchin and his Book, to incline us to a favourable conſtruction of the Tenets held forth in it as Diſputable, and (and to ſome of note) probable; and for himſelf to move us to intercede with our Magiſtrates to deal favourably with him as a Gentleman pious and well deſerving. In both which we ſhall give you a juſt account of our Proceedings.
When Mr Pinchin's Book came over to us, it was the time of the …itting of our Generall Court, wherein both the Magiſtrates and Deputies of every Town in the Country, do aſſemble together to conſider and determine of the chiefeſt affairs which concern this Colony: At the ſame time a Ship in the Harbour was ready to ſet ſayl for England. Now the Court (both parts of them, the Magiſtrates and Deputies) perceiving by the Title Page that the Contents of the Book were unſound, and Derogatory, both to the Juſtice of God and the Grace of Chriſt, which being publiſhed in England might adde to the heap of many Errours and Hereſies already too much abounding, and this Book being publiſhed under the name of a New Engliſh Gentleman, might occaſion many to think, that New England alſo concurred in the allowance of ſuch Exorbitant Aberrations: They therefore judged it meet, not to ſtay till the Elders could be gathered together; but whilſt the Ship yet ſtayed, to declare their own Judgement againſt the Book, and to ſend a Copy of their Declaration to England by the Ship, then ready to depart: Had the Tenets therein ſeemed to them to be matters, either of doubtfull diſputation, or of ſmall moment, we doubt not, they would either not at all have declared themſelves againſt the Book, or if they had; they would have ſtayed for ſome opportunity of previous conſultation with the Elders; but ſome of the Tenets ſeemed to them ſo directly to ſhake the Fundamentals of Religion, and to wound the vitals of Chriſtianity, that they being many of them well verſed both in the Dogmaticall and Controverſall points of Divinity, thought it their duty to profeſs their Orthodox faith againſt all deſtructive Paradoxes, and dangerous Innovations vented from amongſt our ſelves; for according as they beleeve, they do alſo profeſs (as our ſelves likewiſe do) That the Obedience of Chriſt to the whole Law (which is the Law of Righteouſneſs) is the matter of our Juſtification; and the Imputation of our ſins to Chriſt (and thereupon his ſuffering the ſenſe of the wrath of God upon him for our ſin) and the Imputation of his obedience and ſufferings are the formall cauſe of our Juſtification, and that they that do deny this, do now take away both theſe, both the matter and the form of our Juſtification (as this Book doth) and take away alſo our Juſtification, which is the Life of our ſouls and of our Religion, and therefore called the Juſtification of life, Rom, 5.18. As for the Notion which you conceive he declineth, of Infinite wrath, we readily conceive with you, that though Gods wrath be (as himſelf is infinite, yet no creature can hear infinite wrath) but he ſwallowed up of it; and therefore the wicked are put to ſuffer finite wrath in an infinite time; yet this ſuffering in an infinite time is accidentall, in regard of the finiteneſſe of the creature, but Chriſt being infinite God, as well as finite man, his manhood ſuffering, though in a finite meaſure, the ſenſe of Gods wrath both in ſoul and body, the infiniteneſſe of his Godhead (whereto his manhood was united in one perſon) made his finite ſuffering, in a finite time, to become of infinite value and efficacy, for the ſatisfaction of Gods Juſtice, and tranſaction of our Redemption. (Thus much for the Book.)
Now for the Author of the Book; before your Letter came to our hands the Court dealt favourably with him, according to your deſire: Before they knew your deſire, they appointed three of our fellow Elders and Brethren, all of them his friends and acquaintance (ſuch as himſelf choſe) to conferre with him, and finding him yielding in ſome main point (which he expreſſed willingly under his own hand) the Court readily accepted the ſame, as a fruit of his ingenuity, and a pledge of more full ſatisfaction; withall they gave him a Book, penned (at their appointment by our Reverend Brother Mr Norton) in way of Anſwer to all his grounds, which he thankfully accepted, and promiſed upon a due peruſal & conſideration thereof, to return further Anſwer. All which, though it pleaſed God to have done, before your Letter came to our hands; yet we acquainted our Magiſtrates with the contents of your Letter, whereto they returned this Anſwer; They doubted, either you had not read the Book throughout, or that having ſeriouſly weighed it (as the matter required) you would find ſome Fundamentall Errours in it, meet to be duly witneſſed againſt: For our ſelves we thankfully accept of this your labour of love in advertiſing us of what you think behooffull; wherein though we differ, and (as we beleeve) juſtly differ from you, yet if we did not lovingly accept advertiſements from our Reverend Brethren ſometimes when there is leſs need, we might diſcourage our ſelves and other Brethren from ſending us due advertiſements when there is more need. Now the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, the God of Truth and Peace, lead you by his Spirit of Truth into all Truth; and ſupport you with a Spirit of faithfulneſs and holy zeal, to ſtand in the gap againſt the Inundation of all the Errors and Hereſies of this preſent Age; and by his Spirit of Peace, guide and bleſſe your Studies and holy Labours, to the advancement and eſtabliſhment of Peace with Truth throughout the Nation; So deſiring the Fellowſhip of your Prayers, we take leave and reſt,
Your loving Brethren in the Lord Jeſus and in the Fellowſhip of his Goſpel,
John Cotton,
Rich. Mather,
Zech. Symmes,
John Wilſon,
Will. Thompſon,
End of the text · John Norton, The Sufferings of Christ (1653)