Truth Triumphing Over Falsehood, To the reader – Errata
To the Reader.
CHriſtian Reader, I here preſent thee with Truth Triumphing over Falſhood, Antiquity over Novelty; to ſettle both thy Judgement and Practice, in theſe unſetled times, wherein the very Foundations of Parliaments, States, Churches, Government, are ſhaken and ſubverted, by ſome of our owne dear Friends, from whom wee leaſt expected it.
For my part, I take no pleaſure in detecting my Brethrens nakedneſſe, Errors, Over-ſights; nor in diſparaging their Worth or Writings; yet I muſt needs acquaint thee, for thine owne good, to preſerve thee from ſeducement, with ſome materiall Obſervations touching their Independent Treatiſes; for which thou maiſt chance to give me thanks.
Firſt, That they all generally take that for granted, which they ſhould prove and demonſtrate to us: viz. That there is an exact and moſt abſolute forme of Church-Government preſcribed to all Churches in the Scripture; from which no man muſt vary in the leaſt title: And that the Independent Way it is, and no other. But when wee demand of them how they prove it? or what that Way, Government, and Diſcipline is they contend for? or in what plaine Scripture Texts they find it inſtituted and univerſally preſcribed to all Nations, Churches? or how they make good all their tranſcendent Encomiums of their New Way? wee find them altogether ſilent or unſatisfactory: telling us onelyonly a large ſtory of the Patterne of the Tabernacle ſhewed to Moſes in the Mount; of the exact forme of the Temple ſhewed to David by the Spirit; and of Ezekiels viſion, and his and the Angels meaſuring of the Temple: Which are nothing to the point; and meere impertinencies, fit to delude the ignorant injudicious vulgar; who take their weake inferences thence for divine Oracles.
Secondly, That they are extraordinary bold, confident, peremptory, copious in their affirmations and poſitions concerning their Way; but very poore, lame, impotent, deficient in their proofes thereof: You muſt take their bare Aſſertions for undeniable Arguments, Proofes.
Thirdly, That their whole Independent Fabricke is built either upon falſe Principles; As, that every Church is a complete, abſolute, independent body of it ſelfe; ſubject onelyonly unto Chriſt: That no humane Power upon earth hath any Right or Authority to preſcribe any Rules or Orders to any particular Congregation: That juſt humane Lawes binde not the Conſcience, in point of obedience: and the like. Or elſe upon falſe, or abſurd Inferences from true Principles: As, that Chriſt is the King, Lord, Head, and Law-giver of his Church: Ergo, No man or humane Power may make Lawes or Canons, to regulate and order it, or any thing in it, but Chriſt alone.
Fourthly, That to maintaine their New Way of Government, they are enforced to deny the undoubted Power and Juriſdiction of Parliaments, Councells, Synods, Kings, and Civill Magiſtrates, in Eccleſiaſticall affaires; and to maintaine ſuch Paradoxes, Paſſages againſt their lawfull Authority, as, if duly pondered, may juſtly induce all Wel-affected perſons to miſtruſt and abhorre their Way, as Anarchicall, and deſtructive to all Chriſtian and humane Society.
Fifthly, That they are conſtrained publikely to deny, that there is any *Vindication. p. 30, 31.Nationall Church under the New Teſtament; though they acknowledge one in the Old: Upon which ground they muſt of neceſsity likewiſe deny one Article of the Creed; That there is a Catholike Church; and themſelves members of it, or of the Nationall Church of England. They pluck up the bounds and orderly diſtribution of all Pariſh Churches; abſolutely neceſſary to avoyd confuſion; to provide competent maintenance for Miniſters; to bring all to frequent the publike Ordinances: Warranted by Scripture; wherein wee read not onelyonly of diſtinct Synagogues, and Tribes under the Law, but Churches under the Goſpel. Approved by the practice of all Chriſtian Churches, ever ſince there were Chriſtian Emperors, Princes; and as neceſſary as diſtinct Families, Villages, Cities, Societies of men in civill reſpects; yea obſerved in New-England it ſelfe, though now diſliked in Old: and thereby bring in meere Ataxy and Confuſion among us.
Sixthly, They are conſtrained to wreſt Scriptures againſt their meaning; to invent many ſtrange Apocryphall new ſhifts, Interpretations, Diſtinctions, to evade direct Scriptures and fundamentall Truths, never formerly queſtioned: They nullifie and ſlight Examples of the Old Teſtament, in all things that make againſt them; and yet cry them up againe, when they make for them; eſpecially in the point of their *Vindication. pag. 28.Church Covenant; which they confeſſe, hath no ground at all in the New Teſtament, but onelyonly in the Jewiſh Church under the Old. Which yet they will not admit a ſufficient Proofe of a Nationall Church.
Seventhly, They intricate, gain-ſay things which are cleare; take things for granted, that are either falſe, or doubtfull; confound things in generalities, which they ſhould diſtinguiſh; deny things that are apparently true; yea, which is worſt of any, not only affirming, but beleeving moſt things*See Mr. Rutherford p. 369, 370. with a reſerve; according to their preſent light; to the poſture of their preſent Judgement; as they are yet informed; with a liberty of altering or varying to morrow, from what they affirme or beleeve to day, upon new light diſcovered; Which is in truth to bring a meere Skepticiſme into Religion; to play faſt and looſe with God and our owne Conſciences; to doubt all things; firmely beleeve nothing; to ſet up Opinion in the Throne and Place of Faith; and in concluſion to introduce flat Atheiſme.
Eightly, They refuſe Church-Communion with thoſe who are not of their Way and Churches, excluding them from the Lords Table, and their very Children from Baptiſme in their Churches, if they ſubmit not to their Covenant and Way; judging them all profeſſed Enemies to the Kingdome and Government of Chriſt; and ſo viſibly without the Covenant of Grace: though never ſo Pious or Religious.
Ninthly, Their very Principles teach diſobedience to Parliaments, Synods, Princes, Magiſtrates, and all other Superiors, in all their juſt Lawes and Commands which concerne the Church or Religion; diſſolve all Relations, all Subordinations, and humane Society it ſelfe, as I have here fully manifeſted.
Tenthly, They exceedingly magnifie their owne Way, Miniſters, Writers, Opinions, Conceits; deſpiſing and under-valuing all others, in a kind of Phariſaicall manner, not deeming them worthy their Church-Communion.
Eleventhly, They have high conceits of their owne tranſcendent holineſſe; and under pretext of being more pious, pure, living more holily, and ſerving God more exactly than others, they doe (without ſufficient Grounds) quite ſever from all other Churches; juſt like Popiſh Monkes, Hermites, Anchorites, Nunnes, Jeſuites, and other Religious Orders, who ſeparate themſelves from others, under this very pretence of being more holy, and living more devout than others.
Twelfthly, They pretend themſelves the greateſt Enemies of all others to Papiſts, Arminians, Anabaptiſts, Socinians, Sectaries, and yet concurre with them in their Opinions, Practices, Policies; fighting againſt us with their very weapons.
Of all which I thought good to advertiſe thee (kind Reader) leſt thy good opinion of the Piety, and dignity of their Perſons, (worthy all due honour and reſpect) ſhould make thee ſwallow downe their dangerous Principles and Opinions without ſtrict examination: Whereas, good mens Errors are moſt infectious, pernicious; and ſo more carefully to be obſerved, avoyded.
How farre they have ſwerved from Verity and Antiquity in ſundry Particulars; how fallacious and weake their principle Proofes and Arguments are, I have *… Sect. 4.here in part diſcovered; and ſhall in due time (if God ſay Amen) put a Period to the other Part which is yet behinde. In the mean time, beſeeching God to proſper theſe my impotent Endeavours to thine and the publike good, (which I have principally publiſhed for the ſatisfaction of the Learned, and ſuch who moſt ſeduce the Ignorant) I ſhall diſmiſſe thee with this wholeſome Councell of God himſelfe, Epheſ. 4. 14, 15, 16. Henceforth be no more Children, toſſed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of Doctrine, by the ſleight of men, and cunning craftineſſe, whereby they lye in wait to deceive: But ſpeaking the truth in love, grow up into him in all things which is the Head, even Chriſt. From whom the whole Body fitly joyned together, and compacted by that which every joynt ſupplieth, according to the effectuall working in the meaſure of every part, maketh increaſe of the Body, unto the edifying of it ſelfe in love.
Farewell.
Errata.
Faults eſcaped in ſome Copies: pag. 5. lin. 14. read Regis. p. 22. l. 24. Conſtitutions, r. Conſiſtories. p. 25. l. 21. premiſſis. p. 61. l. 12. actaque. p. 65. l. 32. neceſſe. l. 34. receptat r. refrixerat. l. 46. dele to. p. 69. l. 5. Turlſtan. p. 75. l. 31. inhibit. l. 34. reſiſt. deſiſt. p. 85. l. 22. the. p. 26. l. 31. ch. 1. p. 101. l. 1. ſervus. l. 12. univerſa. p. 108. l. 9. iſſue. p. 169. informe. p. 116. l. 36. Miniſters. maſters. p. 120. l. 9. 35. l. 24. with his. his owne. p. 135. l. 45. clear. p. 131. l. 22. Fourthly. Fifthly. l. 31. Foure. Five.
Margin. p. 66. l. 21. 22. r. Incarnationis, Anno. p. 119. l. 1. Rom. 13. 1. p. 124. l. 3. 11. r. 18.
Truth triumphing over Falſhood, Antiquity over Novelty, &c.
AS it is an unspeakable griefe and corroſive to my very ſoule, to enter into publike conteſtations with any of my Chriſtian brethren, who profeſſe the ſelfe-ſame faith together with me; ſo it would be a far greater heart-breaking, and much ſorer affliction to my ſpirit, to behold upſtart groundleſſe Errours triumphantly inſulting over ancient orthodox Verities, and dragging them captives after their domineering chariots. This makes me once more take up the Sword and Buckler, not of Polemicall School-divinity, but Hiſtoricall Antiquity, to encounter thoſe Adverſe forces, which have taken up offenſive armes, and waged open warre in many new-printed Pamphlets, againſt the lawfull Juriſdiction and ſoveraign authority of Chriſtian Princes, Magiſtrates, Parliaments, aſſiſted with the advice of Reverend Synods and Councels, in matters of Religion, church-government, Eccleſiasticall Lawes, Canons, Diſcipline: all which (through Gods aſſiſtance) I hope totally to rout and diſſipate, in ſuch ſort that they ſhall never be able to make head againe, by this ſhort ſuddain onſet, which I have yet neither vacancy, nor time ſufficient (through the multitude of other publike avocations) to proſecute to the full.
I ſhall marſhall my ſubitane collections of this nature under diſtinct Poſitive propoſitions, which I ſhall propound and proſecute in order.