OCR Text |
Show t..Mafter John Cottons .Anfwer not receive an H.Jrlot, infamou1 for cflrporall whoredome, without found repe~tance,not onely for h" a8~all wh~redomu, bu~ al{o for her whurifh JPmhu,gefium, appearanm, prO'IJocauont; And !f!h) jhould there be a greater ftri8neffi for the s~rtJ of iommm whoredome, tbm for JPirituall ~d foule-wboredome, againft the chajl>tie of Gods worjhip? Reply. 1. There may be the greater firill:neffe about th'e skirts of bodily whoredome, not becaufe it is a greater finne, but be~ aufe it is more eafily difcer.nable, and conviaceable by ordinary light· 2· • . Where any fpeeches, gefiures, appearances, provocations of f~rituall whoredome !lull dlfcover themfclves, we beleeve there ought to be as great firi&neffe about them, as abe>ut the like whorilli app~arances ofb.odily whoredome. But when·will the Examiner difcover to us, what thofe fpirituall whorifh ge!tures or fpee· d1es be, wherein we !hew le!fe firi8:ne!fe,then the cha!litie of Gods hqly worfhip requireth? . Tbuching the Polygamy of the Fathers, fhe Examiner anfwe.· reth, ~hree wayes. 1. Bj obfervirig what-great Jitines Godly' Perfont may be fubjeB to, •otwithftanding Godlineffi in the Roote. W·ce confent to that, efpecially in.cafe of ignorance. 2. H~ demandeth, If an; godly Perfons fhpuld now b!leeve i a'nd m~intaine, that be oughJ to have m>ny n·iveJ, and tJCCordlngly did fo Pra8ifo, whither M•. Cotton would re:eive fuch a· god!J Perfon t• Gburch·fenm,fhip? Tea .wlmher the Church of theJewes(iftheyh>d foeue the evill of it) wpu/d ever have received fuch a Profelyte into fellowfhip with them? TQe fome Anfwers m'ay ferve tO both lhe o~mands. . i: Neither would !receive them, nor doe I thinke the Church '•f~he Jeroes would, in cafe the finne had app~ared fo plaine and palpable, as by the light of the Gofpel it hath been difcovered. z. Jhids not the ca!dn hand, what myfelfe or a Church ought to. doc,jlbout receiving a member living in kuowne finne:but when he that liveth in no knowne finne, ( none knownc either to him• felfe, 9r the Church) whether the Church if they receive him, cloth thereby evacuate their Church-efiate l Or whether the Church, and every member thereof,be fo farre bound to a difiinll: kawwlcdg.e of ~11 appe. araQce! offpirituaU whorcdome,that if they ~ bt ignorant of any one or two of them, they are utterly uncapable of <!:hurch-ellate l Fo\: a third Anfwe~ to the cafe ofP,>lygamy, the Ex•miner demancli\ h what WaJ thu perfon•ll finne ofPo!Jg•my ;, the godly Pairiarclu? WJJ tl any mtlttr of Gods wor{hip, any j")nin~ 'tJ'ith a fal[e Church, Minijlery, Worjhip,Governmmt,from whence they were to come before I bry could co,.Jiituu bi1true Cbwch,and enjoy. hi1 Worjhip,Mini~ fiery, G uvernment, &c, Rep~. I· Polygamy if it had been knowne to be as great a finne amongfi the lfi'aelites, as it is now knowne tO be by the Doll:rinc ofthe Lord Jefus, it is offo hJinouu nature now,that every godly ·perfon guilty ofir,mufi come out ofir, before he could lawfully bt received into a pure Church of.Chdfl. 2. If a Church were now ignorant of fuch a knowne cafe, and lhould in their ignorance admit fundry members living in that linne,into fellowfhipwith them,though it would much defile them: yet I doe not c:>nceive it would evactute their Church-eflate. 3· The Examiner will never.prr.ove, that the cfiate of the Churches in England is falfe, their Miniflery falfe, nor their worfhip falfe. And as for their Epifcopall Government, he is not ignorant we havecpme OlJt of it both in place and heart. Neid1er wtll he eve~be· able, fO prove, thlt any of our Churches partak: in the communion of any. (i1ch knowne finne, d rl1er. in Church· ell ate Worfhip, MinifternOovernmenr, as Polygarny ·i~. ' BtJt touching that phce in 2 Cor. 6. 1 4> 1) , 16. urged by the Ex~ .. aminer, that I mig;ht gi've a f,trt her Anfwer then before, I ad de fur· thee in ";Y Lert_er;Tb•t the plm ~·" rorefted befidu tbe Apojlles [GOpe, whw M. W1ll1ams arguedfnm •t,Tb,f fucb Perfons are nnt Jit nutter for Church-fe/Jowjhip,"' are defiled with arry ""'""""of A'llichrifiia;J P~~!lution: nor focb ChurcbeJ any mare to be counted Chunbf?.J., oJr dJ£ rcrewe fi•;h 3mmgff them : For were thert nr.Jt at tb.zt time in tbr: Cbte.tcfJ. •[Corinth, fitch a< p:rt•ked with Idul.mrs in their fd,y, Tempi" ? A~d Waf nottbu the "'"bmg of all u •cleanet/,in~? Awl did thitfrrme "l'[l member f from Churcb-fdlowftJip before Cu,wi<'1 ion ? Or did it ev•· CUJfe their Chmch-ef/>te for not cafting out fo ,b members? To this Argument the Examiner giveth( Js hecalleth it) an An-.· fwer in foure P•ragraphs:whcreofthe three former hold not fonh fo much as the face, or !hape, or colour ofim Anfwer. For |