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Show ( 148 ) ' his policical Capacity, lee political Socierie!f' ' animadven upon him ; but when he Sins only ' in a religious Capaciry, Societies mo:e p:uely ~ Religious are the firreft then to deal wah htm.- ' I pray, when did Fines or Gao~s ever figmfie ' any thing for the Cure of Herencks ?-Thefe ' Violences may bring the Erroneous to be Hy. ' pocrires ; bur rhey will never make th~m .to ' be Believers: No, they naturally prejudtce • Mens Mind~ . .againft the Caufe which is rherei~ ' pretended f()\-, as being a weak, .a wrong, an ' evil Caufe; wherefore, that thmgs may _go • ' well, I would willingly pur in a B~r a~amft • the Perfecucion of any that may confctenc10uOy • Di!fent from our Way.-Nor would I defire • my felf ro fuffer Perfecurion upon a clearer • Caufe, than that of Teftifying againft our Per. ' fecurion of or her Chrifrians that are nor Qf my ' own Opinion : I am fure that things will nor ' go well, as long as we incur the fulfillmenr of ( that aweful word, If 1e bite· and devour one ano· ' ther, take heed that ye be 11ot con{umerl one of ano' ther.-Tbej'e things (fays he) which were then uttered, wirh many others, from 2 Chron. 12. 12. In Judah things went wet!. Having the Thanks of them that Reprefented the Province, then returned . for them, I chofe in tbef e terms, here t~ Reprefent the Temper in tbro matter, u;hich I Juppoje the conjiderate :=mot part of the Prov ince a7'e 1~oJv come unto ; and fo long k~pt to. aJ they conti1me of it, I durft almoft prophefie, that · SeE/aries u.Ji./l never be able to make any great Imprej] ions upon them. 11-'ell (fays ?e) the . Enem_y ~f 1be New-England-Churches i4 b:therto difappomted. obf. With what Face now can he pretend, thar ~he Enemy of New-England i4 hitherto dif~ppointed" If they count Perfect4tion the Enemr of n, as he would imply from the Sermon above (as to be ~ fu re •• • (ure it is, and of all Countries under Heaven ) I c.an nor imagine, when they have been fo no· torzoujly Guilty of it, rhat I know no Chriflian Kingdom or State in the World, that goes under f)abfrtg ~he Name of Proteftant, that have e'Jualt d them; llem ~f he ca~ tell of any rhar do compare wirh rhem in fucb tt, let him name them, they having been next gtrat !o t?e Papij!J, in this point, of all others ; and \B&t(ttf thmg.~ were ro go well witb them, only while cutot~. ther d~d not perfecute others, ir is a er llrong [,dtcatzon why things have gone {o with them; an~ that. they have been great Perfect,torl, by thmgs gomg fo ill with rhem, as ir hath ever fince, as the fequel hath proved ; neither were they fuch Rulers that were nm a Terror to Good Works, bur to the Evif; and if they are now ~ome to that Temper, as the Sermon expre!f<;s, 1t fc:ems. they have not been of ir all along, by their bemg bur now come to ir, rho' they uave ~banks f~r it fo lopp a- go, they did nor ke~p t' ~t ; bur It feems, ns bur the conjiderate part that u come to that Temper neither, fo that rherc~ may be an inconfiderate part that may be of rhe Ott! perfecuting Temper fiill ; and that fo long as they continue of it, he durfl atmoft prophe(ie (and vet de· ny the Spirit of Prophecy, the Teftimony of Jej1t6 in h1s Witne./Jes ; but it is but almoft that he pretends to prophefie) that SeClaries will mverbe able to make any great. Impreffions upon them ; but how doth this XI ~otr;. agree. ~tth t~e Lerrer in Vindication of their ttatli- · Seventies, pnnred ar rhe end of Nortor/s Book, ttfon ~66o: That ~eligion wil~ never ftand long, where • ;t (vtz. Coerc1ve Power m matters of Religion) is fo.rfaken;. and if Coercive Power, then Corporal PtlnijiJments m meet Cafes-and rhat the Sword o( Magijlracy i4 to be ufed againft [Ncb ?-Which of thefe ihall we credit? And: who i~ in Confufion now ? WeU~ |
