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Show An .Addrefs to Prlteftants. VoL. I. 774 679 have been contended for. I would befeech every Party, in Chrifi's Name. ~ to look into it felf; for I don't, becJufe fuch are heft able (if they will Part 11. be Impartial and p!Jt no Cheat upon rhemfelves) to m<~ke the Application Set"t..._s. of what 1 fay. However, I will name rhofe Points, ~hour which the Au .. thority of Man, as it feems ro me, has bee~ (o pofiuv~. Of GoJ, as ro his Prefcicnce and Predetermin_atirm: Of Chrifl, as to hts N1t'f,ru an_d Pcrfon. rlity, and the Extent of his Death and Interceffion : _Of hee·Wt!l and Grace: Of Faith and Works: or Perftverance and Ftdlmg Rway: Of the Nature and Power of the Church: And Laitly, of the Dignir; and Tower of the Clergy. . . And if Men pleafe but to lay tbetr Hands upon rhetfHearrs, and cJft their Eyes upon the Scriptures; if they will but ufe the Lighr that God has afforded them, and bring fuch Debates and Refults to the Teft ot thH Light and rhe Sound Form of Words, rhe Holy Ghoft hath ufed and preU: rv'd amongft us, I need. not take the Employment upon me of pointing to Humane Authority among the feveral Parties of Prouflonrs, as to thcle · Points, fince nothing will be clearer. .For it is about the Meaning of this, ::tnd the Intention of that Place of Scnpture, the Conteft hath been and . fti11 is; and bow to maint:~.in and propagate thofe Conceits: So that the falling out is in the Wood of our own Opinions, and there the Conrention is kindled, that confumes aU about our Ears. A nloft unwarunrable Cu~ riofity and Nicety, for the moft Part, that hath more Influence upoR our Paffions, than our Praaice, which is ufually the worfe in Point of c;::ha1ity, and not tbe better for them in any Thing. 0 that we would but be impartial, .1.nd fee our own Over-plus to the Scriptures, and retrench that redun&. ncy, or keep it modeftly I for 'tis an horrid Thing that we Protrflonts fhould aitume a Power of ranging our human Apprehentions with the SJa. ed Text, and injoining our Imaginations for lndifr>"enfible Articles of Fditb and Chri{lian Communion. But the next Proof of the Prevalency of Humane .lt.11tbority among{t us Proteflanrs, is The great Power and Stoay of t1Je Clergy, and t he People's Reliance 11pon them for the Knowledge of Religion, and the Way of Life and Salqarion. This is fuch plain Fa8:, that every Parifh more or lefs proves it. Is not Prophecy, once the <!:burch's, now engraft by them and wholly in their Hands? Who dare publickly Preoch or Pray, that is not of rh:tt Clt~fs or Order? Have not they only the Keys in keeping~ May any body ellC pretend to the Power of .Ahfol11tion or ExcommuniCation ? MUch lefs to conftitute Minifters? Are not all Church Rites and Privileges in their Cull.ody? Don't they make it their proper inheritance) Nay,. fo much larger is their Empire than Gcfar's, that only they begin with BirthS and end with Burials: Men mufi: pay them for Coming in 'and Going out of rhe World. To pay for dying is hard! Thus their Profits run from the Womb to the Grave, and that which is the Lofs of others, is their Gain, and a Part of their Revenue. Both Li~es and Deaths do bring Grift to their Mill, and Toll to their F.xchequer, for they have an Eftate in us for our Lives, and an Heriot at our Deaths. 'Tis of this grear Order and Sept of Men only, thlt lll Synods and Dm· vocotions are, of modern Ages, compounded; ana what they determin, is c:alled the Canons or Decrees of the Church; though, Alas! She is only to Obey, what they of the GoWn Ordain; giving us thereby to underftand, that they want the Authority of her Name, where they deny her to have a Part, or to be prefent. But they have not only been the ufual Starters of new Opinions, and the great CreeJ.J,Iakers among Cbriftians, but the Sway they have long. had with the People, makes them fo confiderable an lntereft in the Eyes of the Civil Magiflrore, that he often find1 it not for his Safety to difoblige th~m. Upon this it is, we fee them fo Succefsful in their Solicitations of Publ1ck Authority to give its Sanction to their Opinions and Forms; and not only recommend them (which goes certainly a great Way with the People) but imQofe their Reception, and that on fevere Penalties: ln fomucb, that either ~ OL. I. An .Addref~ to 'Proteflants erther Men mufi offer h . U ' 775 ble Convithon to be f.~ t eu nderftandings to the" F thing of this lies near ~s ~· ~~31~1 p~nfh : There is n~ M!~~~ and differn· r6 79. Truth and Mtfchref of this Th mrghry open our Eyes t flm. b Some. ~ Bur whar fhall 1 fay of t mg. . 0 ee otlt the Parr 11. Clergy, and Dependenc hat tmphclt Reverence the p Seft, ). were the only Trufiee: u~oT them about ReligiOn and S eypte have for the ledge to the Laity . And ~e d~~[yhfi and hhigh Treafurersnofa~~fnas ~they the1r Office (as that h h . ee, t at the bJmd 0 . e now~ Chnthans, he their G7£ IC ts pecul.iar tQ that Order ~~man they have of thetc PcrfOlmances T~~ aM.th7ft Will) d!fpofes them to r~I~ot '?~mon to for them: They l;em lm er IS Choofer and Tafter a enure y upon ~~d~h0a~0fc~~~eJl:~~~~ i!:~~o~~l:~;t~fd'l~~ ~7;~er~~d% :¥(~,;..~~~ or could be their G ' . nauon o Truth too . A d elr al'or; }~~i~! p~~~~~t~? ]e'a~njlc~ehe~~. t'o~;r tb':~rf~' ~~~o~~~me 3:e:: 1~r:r~~~: it ts come to that fadott fi ant as well as Popijh Countries ~:amme thereTradinon of their Priefia s,T~hathvery few have any othe: Rel~~ll fihd, and ~::~~e~~yW.atkthea Ea.fe. r;It :~':ygh~~~ uf}c~~~: Jddgheot t~nh~m~n;~~ they mrght holdrraft~h~1~1 :£;~'{ 11°;;oJSal~ar;'! and p;:vm; ~~f~h~~~;f1~he ~ucar~d the Charge of thofe AJfa'irs :!, In fihe R.oom of that ca;e ~~ urpo e. a and1og Penfioner for that Thus the Clergy are becom.e a 1( • that as we mufi: go to God by Chriltt ~f Medtators betwixt Ch.rift and u ~~'dy i~t~ftt~!•IJ!£'!J'tol)::, th,:~i: f;%~~~~,c~h~eL~w~~tto blni~'~:! them we muft underftand the D. . 0 P preforved !Vzowledge. d b vation we~e not to be intrufted ~{:~ thrack As if the Myfteri;s ~f sat P~ophanauon to expofe them to tl1eir \f.ulgar; or t-hat it were a kind o£ t fe~ cheap hand contemptible to fu£fer eve~~w(;h aw. the only way to make ~h t .kemb; t oGugh they belong to evuy Ch 'fl~r ~an BtQ have the keepjng an s e to od is that of H n ton. ut this L:Jng M~~eries of Sat virion by the Jg~~:~~e Afrh~rifiy that would magnif;~~~ Mas.I t.he Gojpel-Difpenj(aion were nor t~att of eli tlhl ar fbould know them !n~nty. 0 u .Age, but Infimcy 0 ; TI~ rrue, the State of People under . . bood lS c~lled a Stare of Ronda e chi!. the Law and. the. Levitical Priejl~ therefore ts term'd a Schoot-,11jle/t~ b _'d. hood and ~mortry, aJJd the Law Gat. 3• that the State ?f Chrifiianicy is reputed~~~ ux to Chn{t; but ic is as true. hood and l~henta11ce by the fame Apofi:le. e.& ge 0f Groce, Freedom, Man .. nal Guard1ans of our F~ith and R 1. . · a.nd that we fhould have exter Years of pif~retion, that might bee ~~~on lJpon us after we are come t~ of our Mtnomy:, is not to obtain rear y a ow:Jble unde( the feeble State ;orfe. For it is more toler:Jble togbe ufelreeC::rid but to m:Jke our Cafe reo, and know nothing above that ... a~. t ren when we are Cbil ... have brought us to the Underftandin C~n~uon, than 'when riper Years alm.oft as unpardonable as it is unfuffig an efentment of Men. But it is fe~lon of r.he Chrijlian·ReligiOII, as if e:~ble, to make .that Infancy the Per• ~~k.a:d .hcmgfed, carried and govern'd ere ,Ne:~nothmg beyond wearing 4 rtep anll. It is :1 Knowing and Reafi tU IIYJU pleofe; that is, as tht tha~ commends :1 Man: Children fhoulda~le. aiHI not a blind Obedience, fo npe an Underftanding or CIJPiu b b e rule~t becaufe they have not fon ought to conduG them in thefr )g ecaufe us not fo with Men, Reato God, may be fuch as the Apoftle uuy, t~at the Service they perform no longer Will if nor Free .nor C rfi. ca 5 a eafon:tble one; The Wi!J is it !s compelled. The Gofpel is n~~ :h~nc~ to be reputed r;onftie,ce, where F~tth, therefore cot coercive beca fi Ttme off Ceremomal Works, but of G1ft of God. . ' u e out o our own Power J it is the llut |
