DR. POTTER,

TO

MR. VICARS.

GI shall anfwer your late loving and vehement

OOD Mr. V and my honest Friend,

Letter, which I received but yesterday, with no lefs love, but with lefs vehemency; Only, before I begin, let me entreat, that though we be two in Opinion, yet we may be ftill one in Amity; wherein for my part, I am refolved to perfift with an invincible conftancy: and if you become mine Enemy, because I tell you the truth; yet I will be ftill to you the fame, your most affectionate entire Friend.

I like and love the heat of your Zeal, only I defire in it a little more mixture of cooling Charity; I verily believe your Zeal to be true, but you fhall give me leave to tell you, that in very many, that which is fo called, is indeed but an angry, unmerciful paffion; and that I may speak plainly and name things as they are, Scapham, Scapham; a pure pang mixt of Pride and Ignorance. It appears by the whole Tenor of your Letter, that you are affected with a ftrong fufpicion, that I am turned Arminian; and you further guess at the motive, that fome sprinkling of Court-holy-water, like an Exorcifm, hath enchanted and conjured me into this new fhape. How loth am I to understand your meaning? And how fain would I put a fair interpretation upon these foul Paffages, if they were capable! What Man! Not an Arminian only, but

hired into that Faith by carnal Hopes? One that can value his Soul at fo poor a rate, as to fell it to the times, or weigh or fway his Conscience with money? My good Friend, how did you thus forget me and your felf; and the ftrict charge of our Mafter, Fudge not? Well; you have my Pardon, and God Almighty confirm it unto you with his. But to prevent your Error and Sin in this kind hereafter, I defire you to believe that I neither am, nor ever will be Arminian; I am refolved to ftand faft in that liberty, which my Lord hath fo dearly bought for me. In divine Truths, my Confcience cannot ferve Men, or any other Mafter befides him who hath his chair in Heaven: I love Calvin very well, and I must tell you I cannot hate Arminius; And for my part, I am verily perfuaded that thefe two are now where they agree well, in the Kingdom of Heaven; whilft fome of their Paffionate Difciples are fo eagerly brawling here on Earth. I fhould honour Truth, if I heard it out of the Pope's Mouth, or the Devil's; nor can I believe a falfity, though published by an Angel. I prize my Soul fo dearly, that I dare not venture it upon any Man's credit, or take upon truft any Opinion which may endanger it; nor can the worth of all this World perfuade me in matters of Faith, to maintain or believe any conclufion, which I find not to iffue from Premises of Scripture or Reafon; but moft efpecially I tremble to think or fpeak any thing of God Almighty, which hath not exprefs warrant in his own word; and so much the more, if it seem injurious or difhonourable to that moft Glorious and Gracious Deity. For my Life, I cannot obtain of my Confcience to declaim, and revile, and cry down an Opinion, when I cannot fee any folid fatisfying answer to many contrary Scriptures and Reafons. It is a very eafy way which many walk, and if it

were

were as fafe, I would be content to walk it with them; blind-folded they follow their Leaders, and fparing their own Eyes, they presume their Guides, fo Learned, fo Holy, fee clearly enough. Therefore they believe all their dictates, as if they. were divinely infpired, and fpake Oracles, without examining, which cafes them of much trouble and difficulty in Sifting and Judging. For my part, I ever thought it a thing unworthy of a Chriftian, and yet more of a Minifter, and full of danger, to invaffal his Understanding to any Man, or any Men; or to embrace and elpoufe Opinions in Religion, without judgment, out of phantafy and prejudice, because they are recommended by fome great. names, which we have in admiration. But becaufe you are my Friend, I will yet farther reveal my felf unto you; I have laboured long and diligently in thefe controverfies, and I will tell you with what Mind and Method, and with what Success.

For fome years in my Youth, when I was most Ignorant, I was moft confident; before I knew the true State, or any grounds of thofe Questions, I could peremptorily refolve them all. And upon. every occafion, in the very Pulpit, I was girding and railing upon thefe new Heretics, the Arminians; and I could not find words enough to decipher the folly and abfurdity of their Doctrine; efpecially I abhorred them as venemous enemies of the precious Grace of God, whereof I ever was, and ever will be most jealous and tender, as I am most obliged, holding all I am, or have, or hope for, by that glorious Grace. Yet all this while, I took all this that I talk'd, upon truft, and knew not what they faid or thought, but by relation from others, and from their enemies. And because my confcience in Secret would often tell me that railing would not carry it in matters of Religion, without reafon and divine Authority; that I might now. fo

lidly maintain God's Truth, as it becomes a Minifter, out of God's word, and clearly vindicate it from wicked exceptions; and that I might not only revile and fcratch the adverfary, but beat and wound him, and fight it out, fortibus armis, non folùm fulgentibus, I betook my felf seriously and earneftly to perufe the writings of both Parties, and to obferve and ballance the Scriptures produced for both Opinions. But my aim in this enquiry, was not to inform my felf whether held the Truth, (for therein I was extremely confident, prefuming it was with us, and reading the Oppofers with Prejudice and deteftation) but the better, to fortify our Tenets against their Cavils and Subtilties.

"

In the mean while knowing that all Light and Illumination in divine Myfteries, defcends from above, from the Father and Fountain of all Light, without whofe influence and inftruction, all our. Studies are most vain and frivolous; I refolved conftantly and daily to follicit my Gracious God, with moft ardent fupplications, as I shall ftill continue, that he would be pleafed to keep his poor Servant in his true Faith and Fear; that he would preserve me from all falfe and dangerous errors, how fpecious or plaufible foever; that he would fill my heart with true holiness and humility, empty it of all Pride, Vain-Glory, Curiofity, Ambition, and all other Carnal conceits and Affections, which ufually blind and pervert the Judgment; that he would give me the Grace to renounce and deny my foolish reafon in thofe holy Studies, and teach me abfolutely to captivate my thoughts to the obedience of his heavenly Word, finally, that he would not permit me to speak or think any thing, but what were confonant to his Scriptures, Honourable and Glorious to his Majefty.

I dare never look upon my Books, till I have

G g

Yet

first looked up to Heaven with thefe Prayers; Thus I begin, thus I continue, and thus conclude my Studies. In my fearch, my firft and laft refolution was, and is, to believe only what the Lord tells me in his Book; and becaufe all Men are liars, and the moft of Men factious, to mark not what they fay, but what they prove. Tho' I muft confefs I much favored my own fide, and read what was written against it, with exceding indignation, efpecially when I was pinched, and found many Objections to which I could find no answers. in fpite of my Judgment, my Confcience ftood as it could; and ftill multiplying my Prayers, and recurring to my Oracle, I repelled fuch thoughts, as Temptations. Well, in this perplexity I went on, and firft obferved the judgments of this Age, fince the Reformation; and here I found in the very harmony of our Confeffions, fome little difcord in part thefe Opinions, but generally and the most our Reformed Churches favouring the Remonftrants: and among particular Writers, many here differing in judgments, tho' nearly linked in affection, and all of them eminent for Learning and Piety; and being all bufied against the common Adverfary, the Church of Rome, thefe little differences amongst themselves were wifely neglected and concealed. At length, fome of our own gave occafion, I fear, to thefe inteftin and woful wars, letting fall fome Speeches very fcandalous, and which cannot be maintained. This firft put the Lutheran Churches in a fresh Alarm against us, and imbitter'd their ha tred; and now, that which was but a Question, is made a Quarrel; that which before was fairly and fweetly debated between private Doctors, is now become an appeal to contention between whole Reformed Churches, they in one Army, we in the other. But ftill the most Wife and Holy in both parties with tears, defired a Peace, and ceased not to cry

Sirs

of

ye