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Show Franckenthal. 2~· 6. 7· Manheim. 'Ihe Au T :a o R's L 1 F E. Vox.. I. c that in your felves or others, that CJlleth Him Fatbe~, ::t~d He hath ne• verb otren it in them; that Latitude and Conformtty IS not of God, c but f~retly grieveth His Spirit, and obftru~eth ~he Growth of the S?ut 'in its Ac uaintance, and intim:ate Comm~nton With the LORD. WtJb .. ' out me {aith JESUS, you can do notbzng; and all that came before Me ' are Thfeve.r and Robben. If fo, 0 what are t~ey that Pray, .and Preach, ' and Sin without JESUS, and follow not .Htm m thofe- Dunes, but even ' in themg Crucify Him? 0 that I may find 1~ you an Ear to hear, and an ' Heart to perceive, and embrace thefe Trutbs of J E S I! S. . . - ' And 1 can fay, I have great Caufe to hope, and pattently to wal[. till ' the Salvation of God be farrher revealed to you, and the whole Family; ' with whom (I mull acknowledge) I was abundantly .refrelhed a~d com-. ' forted, in that God in Meafure made known the J3.tch~s of Hts Grace, ' and Operation of His Celeftial Power to you; and J:its Wt~nefs fhall dwell ' with you (if we never fee you more) that God magmfied Ht_s own Strength ' in our W~aknefs. With Him we leave our Travels, affe£honately recom' mending you to HU Holy Spirit of Gr~ce, that you mJy be conformed to ' the ]mage of His own Dear Son, who ts .able and rea_dy to ·preferve you. ' 0 (by your Minds upon Him, and He wtll keep you tn perfe.a Pe~~e, and ' abide with you for ever. The A L M I G H T Y take you Into llu Holy ~ Prot eO ion now :1nd for ever. I am )'our True FrienJ, ready to ftrve yo11, with Fervent Love mrhe Will of GOD, William Penn. My de3I Companions do, with me, give you the Dear Salutation of unfeigned Love, and thofe in the Fam~ly that love the Lord JESUS in Sincerity and Truth without wavenng. P. S. We are this Evening bound towards ltianl)~im, !he Court of the Prince Palatine, and have travell'd about twelve Engli}b Mtles ~m Foo:. That Night we lodged at Francluntball, and got nez:t ~orm~g. betng the Seventh Day of the Week, to Manheim; but were dtfappotnted of our Defign, which was to fpeak with the Prince, for he wa.s gon~ the Day before to lleyddbergh, his Chief City, about fifteen Englijh Mtles from t~at Place. And confidering that by Reafon of the Me_enng next 'Day wtth Friends at Crijheim already appointed, we could netther go for~ard, nor ftay till he returned; and y:t be.ing not clear to com~ aw:ay, :1~ tf we ~ad never endeavoured to vifit htm, It was upon me to.wnte htm tht~ follo~tng Letter, to let him know we had been there1 and bnefly our End In commg. To the Prince EleCtor Palatine of Heydelbergb. Great PRINCE! I T would Jeem flrmtge that I, hotb a Stranger, and a SuhjeO, jh01~ld uft this Freedom of .Addrefs to a Prince, were he not one, whofe AOiont jbcw bim to be of a Free Dij}ojition, and enjie .Accef.r to all: Would to God All Princes were of that Mind ! But I have not cbofen tbi5 Way of .Application, I am driven to it hy tbe Difappointment tby .Ahfence from this Court gave me, and the Neceffity I am under to expedite my Return . .And tbougb I cannot fo fully, and confequently not fo clearly, exprtf.r by 1.-erur tbe Gro11nd.r ind11cing me to attempt this Vijit, }'et tbis being aU the Way that i.r left me, I /hall declare them tU well tU I can. In tbe firfl Place, I do wirb aU Shttere and Cbrifiian ReJPtO, acknowled,te nnd commend thor I N D ULGEN C E Tbou givejlto nll People Profej]ing Religion, Diffenting from tbe National Communion: For it is in irfelf a Molt Natural, Prudent and Chrillian Thing. - Natur~l, Vo-L. I. The AttTHo~·s LILE. · Natural, bcc,l/lfe. it preftrv!t Na!".re [;om bein.f made a Stltri./ice to.t1Je t6·77· Sav11geFury_of l'allthle, )'Ct ProuJ OJlli:JO!t.t, OutltJWtlfg Jlt~n of Parts, .Arts, ~ ]nJujlry and HoHejly, the Grand Re!luifites of Humane SoCiety; and cxpofing - tfJem and their Families to utter Rum for Meer Nonconformity, not toReligion, burro Jr1oJe.r and Rifhion.r in Religio,t. Chritlian, fince tbe contrtJry exprejly conrradia~th both the Precept anl Eumple of CHRIST, wbo taught u.r to Love Enemies, not to abufe our FriendS, and triumph in the Deftru8:ion of our Harmlefs Neighbours. H~ rebuked HU Difciplet, when tbeycaOed for Fire from Heaven 11pon Diffenters, it may be Oppofers ~ Certttinly then, H-e- never intended that they /hould llind!e Fire upon Earth to devour Men for Confcience . .And if CHRIST {to whom all Power wA.r given) and His Holy Apoftles nfufe.l to imp!oy Hu· mane Force and .Artifite fo much at toconferve tbemfelver, 'ti.r 11n ./J.rrogancy roery W11y indcfC'Jfjihle i11 tbr>fe that pretend to be their }'o!Jower.r, tb11t they nff/Jme nn Aut!Jonty tb ftJperfode, controt~l, and contradJ!l tbe Precepts and Examples of C H R 1ST and His Apo!lles; wbqfe Kingdom nor being of the ]\'ature of tbir rtmbitia11.r violent World, tMJ not erc[fed or maintained hy tbofe Wei}Pons tb,tt are Carnal, hut Spiritual mul lntellertual, adequate to th' Nature oj the Soul, and migl,ty through God to cnft down the Str011g-bold.r of Sin, and every Vir in lmagi,ration eXalted in Jlfan ahove the lo~ly meek Fear of <)ad, rbat oug!Jt to lhJVe the Pre-eminence in the Hearts of tbe Sont of JUen. Indulgence is Prudent, in tfJat it prcJervetb Concord: No Kingdom divided agllinjlafllf c.znfland. It encoimrgcth Arts, Pttrtsmullndujlry, tofoorvanJ improve tfumfc/ves, which indeed are rbe Ornaments, Strengtb and Wcalr!J of a Cduntry: lt eJtcoura&et1J Peop/11 to tr<~nfplatU into this Land of Liberty, rehere the Sweat of tiJe Broro is not f!1.11l~ tbe ~orfeir of the CmfcieRce. J\nd lafily, ir rcnderetb the Prmce peculiarly Safe tlnil Great. SJfe, be~ cmife a'u lntcrejh, for lmerefl Sake, are bound to love and co~trt him, Great, in that be is nor govern'd or clogg'd with the Power of bi.r Ckr.gy, wNcb in mofi Cormtrie.r i.r not only a Co-ordinate Pou·rr, a Kind of Duumviraujhip in Government, Imperium in Imperio, nt lenfl an Ec!ipfe to .Monarchy, but a Superior Power, and rideth the Prince to their Dejigns, holding the Helm of the Government, and fleering not hy the Laws of Civil Frredom, but certain F.c"clrjiaflical Maxhn.r of their own, to the Mni1ttennnce and Enlargement of their Worldly Empire in t1Jeir ~hurcb. .And nO this ViUany aBed undet·rbe Sa~ cred, Peaceable and Alluring Name of CHRIST, His Miniftry and Church; t hough ru remort from tbeir NatJtre, tU 1he Wolf from tbe Sheep, and tbe Pope franc Peter'. . . . . , The next Thing I jhould 1Mve taken the l..tbcrty to have diJcours d, W~JJI.l have been tbi.r : What Encouragement a ColonJ Of VirruoNJ. and lnduflrtotrs Families might bop; to receive [~0111. Thee! 1". C~Je tb~y jhould trnnfplant themfelve.r into tbls Country, tchtch certntnly m ajelf IS very excellent, re~ fpeOing Taxes, Oaths, Jirm.r, &c. Farther, to lMVf 1'tprejemed tbe Co.ndition of fome of our Friends, and thy own SubjeO.r; wbo tboz.b they are liable to the fame Tax tU Menifts, f.:! c. (no/ by P.1rtthe Cttfl o other D!ffenrcr.r) y~t tbe Vaught of the !ow_n w!)(re tbey live, came Tejler ay to forbtd aUPreacbtng amongfl tbemJ whtcb tmpltc.r a Sort ofConrradifiion to the IndNigencegivm. .And in the lafl PliiCI, for ttl much (1,1 an .A1en ou:e their Being to fomttbing Gret~ter than tbemfe!ves, to t~;hich 'tis reafonable to believe they (trt acco11nl· able, from wbe,1ce foOaw !~eroards or PJI7li!hment.r ; I b.tl m1 Errne(f Defi.re to bave fpoken of tbe 1\dture, Trmb, Ufe, B:n~!it and Rcaurd of Religion, and tberem 111 to 1Mve difcour.r'd wbr1t IS Chnfha!l Religion in it felf, (freed from thofc unreafo,tab!c Garbs fame .ltlcn mal\.e 11 ro wear, fo ju{1~v ojTenjivc to Wife and Thinl>.in~tt .Aien) fo to have prove~ the Princif..k an./ L1Je of tbe People in Scorn called Quakers, to.bave been_jiutable to the Tme Fo.qow:r.r of Holy JESUS. But as the Pnr/lculars wou!dfnell " Lefler to a Br)o,~, 1 foaU take tfJe Freedom to preftnt Thee upon my Return, witb fomeTruffs tretlting upon all thoJet'~je£1t, Prince, |
