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Show ObJertzt4ti~nJ upon a Libell,publi_fLed, in Anno, 1 ·59~. on frraitcntred, fundry ~eftionJ, and Controver(ies, about~no lefre Matters, then the Ejjentiall Parts, of the F aitE, and t~e:High Myfteriu of-the Trinity. ~~t l\.eafon teacheth us, that 1n Ign~rance~ and Implyed Belief, tt IS eafie~ to~gree, as_Colours 2gree 10 the Dark: Or if any countrey declme Into Atheifm, then Controverjiu, wax dainty, becau~c ~en do th.in~~eligion, fcarce worth, the Falling out for: So as, tt Is weak Lftvmi-ty, to account Gontro-verfiu, an ill sign, in th~ church. . . . It is true that certain Men, moved wtth an tnconfiderate De-teflation, of all Ceremonies, or Or1ers, which w~rt, in uf~, in the time of the Roman Religion; (As Jf,they were, wtthout dtffereace, fupe~fl:itious, or polluted;) And led, with an affe&ion~te Imit~tion of the GOtJernment 2 of fame Proteflant churches ,tn Forratn Stat;f; Have fought, by Bo1/zu, and Preaching, indi[cr~'etly, and fometimes undutifully, to bring in, an Alteration, tn rhe Extern R. ites, and J'I)Uicy, of the church; But neither~ h~ve the qrounds,of the eontroverjief, extended unto any Po~nt ofF ar,th; ~etther hath the Preffing, and Profecuti~n, exceeded, 10 the genera~ny, the Nttture offome Jnferiour Contemptf.; So as, they have b(ien~ farr from Herefie~ and sedition; And therefore, rather ojfenfive, then Dan-geroUJ', to the Church, or State. , And as for Thofe, which we ca,ll Brewnijls, being, when they were at the mofr, a very fmaliNumber, of very filly, and bafe, people, here anq there, in Corners, difperfed; They are now, (thanks be to God,) by the good Remedies, that have been ufed, fuppreffed, and worn out; So as, there is fcarce, any Newes of them. Neither, had they been, much known, at all j, had not Browv, their Lettder, Written a Pamphlet; Wherein, as it came in:to his Head, he jnveigbed more,againfi: Logic4_,and Rhetoric~tht:n again ll: the Stttte, of the c h1trch; (which Writi1tg was much read ; ) And had not, alfo, one Barrow, (') being a Gentleman, of a good Houfe but one that lived in London, at OrdinarieJ'; And there lear-· ned, ~o argue, in Table-Tal/z; And fo, was very much known, in the Citty, and abroad;) tnade a Leap, from a vain) and Libertine, youth, to a precifenefs, in the Highefi: Degree ; The frrangenefs, of which Alteration, made him very much fpoken off; T.he Matter, might long before, have breathed out.. And here I note, an Hone.fty, and Difcretion, in the LibeUer, whtch I note, no where elfe; In that, he did forbear, to lay:~ to our charge, the Sect, of the F ~mily of Love: For about 12. years fince, there was creeping, in fame fecret places, of the R.ealm,indeed, a very g.reat Herefie, derivedfron1 the Dutch, and named, as before wasfaid: which fince,by the goodBleffing of God,& by the good fircngth,of our Church, is banifhed, and ExtinCt. But fo much we fee, that the Difeafu, wherewith our church hath been vifited, whatfo .. ever thefe Men fay, have, either, not been, Maligne, and Dange· roHs; Or elfe, they have been as Bliflers, in fome fmall Ignoble part of the Body , which have foon after fallen, and gone a way· For I I I ObforvationJ upon~ Libeli,publifoed, In Anno, i 59l•-For fuch a_Ifo,_was the Phreneticalt, and Fanaticall,(For I mean not to determiDe tt,) AttemptofHack_ett; Who mull: needs have been thou~~~'. a very Dangerous He_reticl{, that could never get:> but tw~Dijcrp!eJ; And thofe, as tt fhould feem, perifhed in their Bra~n; ~nd a Dangerous _commotioner, that info great, and populous, a Cttty, as London 1s, could draw, but thofe fame two Fei. low.r) whom the People,rath~ laughe~ at, as a May- game, then took any heed, of what they dtd, or fatd: So as it was very trne rh~t an honefl: Poor u;omttn fa~d, w~en fhe faw Hacftett, out of; Wmdow, palfe to hts Execut10n: Sa1d lhe to her Self· It Waf fo told, tbat, in the latter dayu, therefhould come thofe that have dec · rej many; ?u~, in fa~tb, thou haft deceived, but a Few. ' ezve Bnt It ts mantfeH: V,ntntth, which the Libeller fetteth down that there hath been no P1tnif/J1nent, done upon thdfe which it/any of the forefaid kinds, have broken the Lawes an'd dtfiu;bed th~ Ch1~rch, and State; And that the Edge of the Law, hath been, ~ne· ly, turned, upon the pretended Catholic~: For the Example1 are very many, where,. according to the Nature, and Degree, of the Of-fence, the C orr eaton of fuch Offenders) hath not been neglected. Thefe b~ the great Confujwnf, whereof he hath accufed our church; wh~ch I. ref~r, to the Judgement, of an indifferent, and underftandmg,perjou, how true they be: My Meaning is not to blanch, ?r excufe, any F ault_of our Church; Nor,on the other fide to enter In~o_ Commem~ration, how flourilhing it is, in Great,and Learned D1Vmes; or pam full, and excellent Preacheu: Let M . hav_e tke Reproof, of that, which is amijje, and God, the Glory, ofth:~' whzch u good. And fo nmch, for the Firfl Branch. · ' ln the Se~ontl Branch, He maketh great Mllflen, and shewu, of Concerning ~he fl"ength, and Jtbdlitude,of the Enemiu,of this State; Declaring rh~ ~orrain Etn whatevill Termes, andCorrefipondence weftand wt"thF 'snemJesofrhis · A d h . ' ' or.. tate. rat:z,n States; n ow de folate, and deihtute we are of FriendJ and C onfeder~tes? D~ub_ting,_ belike, h?w h; fbould be able, t~ , prove, and JUfitfie hts AJ!e.rtTOn, touchmg the preftnt Miforiu: And therefore, endeavourtng, at the leafi to maintain· That the good EfiateJ which we enjoy, is yet) made fomewhat bitt~r by teafon, of many Terrours, and Fearef. Whereupon entringinto Conjideration, of the Security, wherein, not by our o~n Pol/icy but b~ the good Pro~idence, and Protellion, of God, we fiand at'this Tn~e; I do find It, to be a Security,of that N~Lture,and Kind, which Iph1crates, the A~henicm, did commend; who being, a CommijfiQ .. ner, totr:at, wtththeStateofsparta, uponConditiotuofPeace; And ?eanng, the other fide, make many Propofitions, touchimg S ccunty ; Inte~ru pted them , and told them; There 'Waf but one maner of_Sccurrty, whereupm~ the Athenians couldreft; which w~1 if the Dep1ttzu of the Lacedemoniam, could mak...e it plain 11nto them th~tt after thefe and thtfe thingr parted withall• the LaudemonjanJ' fotJNld not Le able, to hurt_ them, thQugh theywtneld. So it is with us; As we have |