What, I pray, will warrant him, then, to proceed? Will the laws against idolati;y and blasphemy, with their sanctions towards the per- sons of blasphemers and idolaters ? (For I must ingenuously confess, all that which, in my poor judgment, looks with any appearance of pressing towards Hasreticidium is the everlasting equity of those judicial laws, and the arbitrariness of magistrates from a divine rule in things of the gi'eatest concernment to the glory of God, if free from them ; and that [as] these laws, I doubt, will scarcely be accom- modated vmto any thing under contest now in this age of the world among Christians.) — But shall I say a wan-ant [may be] taken from hence for the compelling of men sound in so many fundamentals as, were it not for the contest with them, we would acknowledge suffi- cient for the entertainment of the Lord Jesus in theu- bosoms, to sub- ject [themselves] to, and close with, the things contrary to their pre- sent light and apprehension (though under a promise of being taught of God), or to inflict penalties upon a refusal so to do? — " Credat Apella ! "
Shall the examples of extraordinary judgments iipon idolaters, false prophets, by sword and fire from heaven, on magicians, apostates, and tlie like, l)e here produced? Though such arguments as these have made thousands weep tears of blood, yet the consequence, in reason, cannot but provoke laughter to all men not wholly forsaken of direct- ing principles.
Wliat, tlien, shall be done? they will say. They have been admo- nished, rebuked, convinced, — must they now be let alone?
Something as to this I shall add in the close of this discourse; — for the present, let learned Whitaker answer for me. And first, to
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the first, — of their being confuted : " Possunt quidem controversise ad externum forum deferri, et ibi definiri; sed eonscientia in eo foro non acquiescit, non enim potest eonscientia sedari sine Spiritu sancto/' Let controversies (saith he) be determined how you please, — until the conscience be quieted by the Holy Spirit, there will be little peace. Unto which I shall not add any thmg, considering what I said be- fore of conviction. And to the latter, — of letting them alone to their own ways, " Ecclesiag quidem optatius est levibus quibusdam dissen- sionibus ad tempus agitari, quam in perfida pace acquiescere; non ergo sufficit aUquo modo pacem consei'vari, nisi illam esse sanctam pacem constiterit," Whit., Con. 4 de Rom. Pont. qu. 1, cap. 1, sect. 2. Better some trouble, than a perfidious, compelled peace. See him handle this more at large, with some excellent conclusions to this purpose. Con. 4 de Rom. Pont. qu. 1, cap. 1, sect. 19, pp. 48 et 50.
For these, then (and under this head I compare all such persons as, keeping in practice within the bounds before laid foi-th, do so far hold the foundation, as that, neither by believing what is not, nor disbelieving what indeed is, they do take in or keep off any such thing as wherewithal being embraced, or without which being rejected, the life of Christ cannot in any case possibly consist, nor salvation by him be obtained), as the magistrate is not bound by any rule or pre- cept to assist and maintain them in the practice of those things wherein they dissent from the truth ; so he is bound to protect them in peace and quietness in the enjoyment of all civil rights and liberties; — nor hath he either waiTant or allowance to proceed against them, as to the least penalty, for their dissent in those things they cannot receive. Attemjits for uniformity among saints, or such as, for aught we can conclude either from their opinions or practices, may be so, by external force, are purely antichristian.
2dlt/. Nov/, for those that stand at a greater distance from the pub- licly owned and declared truths, — such as before we spake of, — the orderly way of dealing with such is, in the first place, to bring them off from the error of the way which they have embraced ; and until that be done, all thoughts of drawing in their assent to that from which at such a distance they stand is vain and bootless. Now, what course is to be taken for the effecting of this? Spiritual ways of heal- ing are known to all, — let them be used; and in case they prove fruitless, for aught that yet I can perceive, the persons of men so err- ing must be left in the state and condition we described under the second head.
And now, to drive on this business any farther by way of contest, I will not. My intention at the beginning was only positively to assert, and to give in briefly, the scriptural and rational bottoms and proofs of those assertions ; wherein I have gone aside, to pull or thrust
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a line of debate, I have transgressed against my own purpose, — I liope it will be pardoned; tliougli 1 am heartily desirous any thing which passeth my pen may be brought to the test, and myself reduced where I have gone amiss. Yet my spirit faints \vithin me to think of that way of handling things in controversy which some men, by recipro- cation of answers and replies, have wound themselves into. Bolsec,' and Staphylus, and Stapleton, seem to live again, and much gall from beneath to be poured into men's ink. 0 the deep wounds the gospel hath received by the mutual keen invectives of learned men 1 I hope the Lord will preserve me from being engaged Avith any man of such a frame of spirit. What hath been asserted may easily be cast up in a few positions; — the intelligent reader will quickly discern what is aimed at, and what I have stood to avow.