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Show what meant hy Common Confent Chap.s. ---~ Word, even in the Synagoguu, yet feeing that wa~ of partition be-. tween Jews and Heathms is now broken down,asm other refpefu, fo in this, that it is not now unlawfull for an Injidell or Heathen to come into the affembly of the Church (I Go:· 14. 23• 24, 2).) As therefore we do not deny the like liberty, either to I~zaru or N•gars; fo not to excommunicate pcrfom: Moreovcr;thls further compaffion and fi1ccour wee afford to an e;cco1~1mumcat: ~erfon, that though we have call: him out of our hberues and.prmlcdges peculiar to Church-fellowfhip, yet wee havenotcafl: him out alfo of our hearts nor 011t of our prayers, nor out of our care to re· cover {i1ch a J~ft fhecpinto Chri!l:s fold a~ain ~ an~ therefore fiill, though we forbear all familiar fellowfhip With hun, and coun~e· nancc towards him, that he may be a!hamed; yet we account him not as an crmt!J, but !\:ill take opportunity wadmonifh him as a Brother, z1bef3· 14, 15. And if we find by thcbleffing ?~God and Chrifl: upon the cenfure, or by the rebuke~ of many m1mftred un· to him that the foul of the excommumcate pcrfon be humbled (as it ~vas the cafe of the ince]!uom·Gorinthian, 2 Cor. 2. 6.) the Elders diCcovcring the fame, do c;tll him forth before the Church, where he giving ~lory to God~and con felling hi~ fin, and the_i~~i~e of God againft lum, and holdmg forth a repcnung frame 19f lpmr, to the fatisfaCI:ion of the Church, they do with common confent forgive him and comfort him, and confirme their love to him, by receiving him again into communion with the Church, and iniO 01ll the liberties of Gods Houfe,as before. 1 • • s E c T· I [ L IN all thefe tranf'laions of Church proceedings, when wee fay we do this or that with common confent, our me~ming is, wee do not carry on matters, either by the 071er-ruling power·of the Presbytery, or by the confent of the major part of the ChHrch, but by the generall and joynt confent of: all the !J)embers of the Church ; !or we read in the A as of the Apofl:les, the Primitive Church (which is a pattern for fucceeding ages) carried all their admini firations, i.uclllfl"'~'' that is, with one accord, A as 2. 46. as becometh the Church of God ; which ought to be of one be art, and 011< foul, of 011e mind,and one judgement ,at\d all to Jtta~ tbe fame thing,Ml-4·3 2. 1 Cor. ____in _t_ranfaBi on'S':j Church.p;oceedings. 1Cor. 1.10. Pbil 2 2 B if. r. r ll I d ·r · · > 3· Ut It 10 ra om, t 1at any diffe-dre ncke {!o( anf te' (as forn eu·m e t he re d oth , t h rough t he remaining ar ne e 0 . our mindes, feeing wee all know but in part) then fuch as do ddlcnt f~·on~ their Brethren, are required to propound the grounds of t.hm diffent; which if they be weighty, and held forth from the hght of the Word, all the ref\: do fubmit, and yeeld thereunto, n~t as tO thevoyceof their Brethren only, but as to the voyce ofChnft; w~ofe .voycc alone mull: mle in the Church, and a~ the lheep;of ChnO: will heare it; and all the upright in heart w!ll follow It; thus. ~ ap~nutim is faidto turn about the whole generall Councell ofNzce, 111 the point of Miuijlers marriage. But if the grounds ~f fuch as do dilfent, do upon due confideration appear to have lmle or no weight in them,the officers of the Church or fdme ocher of the B:ethren, do declare unto them me invalidit; t~ereof: If, they be fausfied,the matter in hand doth then proceed '!lth the common confent of\ all ; if they be not fatisfied yet. it is either through want of light ,(and fo through weakneffe of j:.dgement) or through jlrength of pride, and·fo through Jliffm.ffe of wUI. If the former b~ the let, they ~ake further pains, lovingly to inform them, and p.mently beare wtth them, till matters be further clea~ c? ; fo ~hat :lt length, they come either to con Cent, to go along Wit~ theu Brethren,or at leafl: t<J be content to refer the matter tQ the Judgements of their Brethren; al'ld for their part to fit fiill and ~make no furt.he~· dealing~ with the Churches proceedings;' bm If through paruah.ty or preJudice~ ~heir diffent do appear to fpring from flijfneffi of wzO, ur.fi·om a fpmt of contradiction, (which yet falleth ~ut very rarely) m ~o much, that they wUI not be brought fby loVIng and b:·othcrly mformation) to give way to the better Judgementsofthctr Brcthren,theChurch doth proceed with common confent to adrnoni!h them of their pride, and felf-willedne!fc3 and fo leav~ them ~nder the ce1Zfure of admonition; whereby the liberty of therr voyce 1s taken frvm them,tiU they have removed this offen~e from thefpirits of their Brethren ; but if it do appear that thedllfent, whether of one or more Brethren, do arife from fnch darknelreandincricacie of the matter in hand,. as that the officers and members of the Church do find themfelves either unable to dflre t~e matter fully, or at leafi unfit, in regard of fome prejudil; c: whichmay be coocc_ived againft them, (whi(;h fometimes doth· fall |