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error in Religion corrupts it, in Faith poifons it; how happy and glad fhall I be to be purged of all fuch Ruft and Poifon! But I am a Chriftian, and Rational, and still I must repeat it, I cannot be convicted but with Scripture or Reafon; either of thefe, the former being grounded on the latter, will command my affent, but I cannot be chidden, or frighted, or forced into an Opinion; One good Argument fways me more than twenty Decla

mations.

Falfhood is fearful, and loves to go disguised, to walk in a mift, and because it fmells ill, to be trimm'd with all the flowers of Rhetoric; Truth hates nothing more than Mafquing, the loves and longs to appear in her naked, native Beauty and after the most rigorous, fcrupulous Examination, remains ftill the fame. Let me entreat you to look over again that Paffage of my Sermon, which offends you; mark well what I fay, and upon what grounds. See whether my Margin do not make good every particularity in the Text, where it is doubtful, by particular and pertinent Authorities. After tryal, if you pleafe to inform me where I have faulted, I do feriously promise you to caft the first stone at my felf, and to publish my own Retractation, after the most imitable Pattern, but never yet imitated, of the moft Learned and Modeft Bishop of Hippo. But that you will without reafon, without fault reject and reprobate my Opinion, ex mero beneplacito, ex abfolutâ voluntate, as you know who fays that God Almighty did with the moft part of innocent Mankind, this I cannot think of you my Learned, Wife, Juft and Merciful Friend.

You fay the Arminians are Heretics, we may not be at peace with them; the matters controverted are fundamental, effential: To this I need fay no more, for I have faid enough in this Letter, and

in my Sermon to prove the contrary; and I doubt not, your fecond thoughts will perfuade you to unfay it. If you perfift, then let me tell you, all the Learned in Chriftendom of your own Party, even the late Doctors of the Synod, are your Adversaries; and very lately, as I have heard, in the Low-Countries, a Learned Synod of Contra-Remonftrants did purpofely difpute this point, and conclude with my Affertion; giving other reafons why the Remonftrants remain banished: And inftead of many Arguments, I will leave you one, whereon to meditate, which likewife makes very much for my main intention. The Arminians dif fent from us only in thefe four Questions: the Lutheran Churches maintain against us, all these four Questions, and moreover a number of notable dreams and dotages, both in matters of Ceremony and Do&trin; amongst others, you remember their abfurd Ubiquity and Confubftantiation. Now notwithstanding all their foul corruptions, yet I prefume you know, for its apparent out of public Records, that our better-Reformed Churches in England, France, Germany, &c. by the advice of their worthieft Doators, Calvin, Bucer, Beza, Martyr, Zanchius, Urfing Pareus, have ftill offered to the Lutherans all Christian Amity, Peace and Communion; and defi red them, conjured them to join all together the right hands of fellowship; tho' those virulent fiery Adders of Saxony, would never give ear to the voice of those wife Charmers, but profefs to this day a perpetual foe hood, and immortal hoftility a gainst us. Altho' in Polonia, the Lutherans and Calvinifts being of a better temper, have long lived

heavenly and brotherly concord and communion, both of them retaining their old Opinions. Now fay, good Mr. Vicars what think you? Do the Lutherans err fundamentally, or not? If fo, then Concerning Predeftination, Redemption, Grace and Perseverance.

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they

they have no union with God, nor connexion with Chrift the Head; with what Confcience then could our Churches and Worthies offer them their Communion, and defire it? If not, how then doth the Arminian err fundamentally, fince the Lutheran maintains the fame Opinion, with many more and worfe? And again, with what Confcience can the Arminian, properly qua talis, be rejected out of our Communion; when the Lutheran, who is as bad and far worse, is invited to it, and would very joyfully be admitted? Solve me this Riddle, but folve it fubftantially and folidly, & eris mihi magnus Apollo. You tell me Beza calls Origen's error turpiffimum errorem; but by the way, that's not Latin for a damnable Herefie; and that Sixtus Se. nenfis when he had mufter'd his Fathers, rejects their Opinion: And you ask me what I think of Trew and Careles in the Book of Martyrs; All this very impertinently. I enquire not in that place, what Beza, or Calvin, or Sixtus Senenfis thought, nor whether the old Fathers were deceived; thefe enquiries were not to my purpofe: but can you deny that these writers teftify, that many Learned, Pious, Catholic Bishops of the old Church taught Predeftination for forefeen Faith or Works? And fuppofe them herein to have erred, as for my part I doubt not but they did, tho' upon other grounds than the bare affertion of Calvin, Beza, or Senenfis; yet can you deny, that notwithstanding this error and others, they were then, and ftill fince accounted holy Catholic Bishops? Do you not believe them to be with God? And think you not, as I do, that whofoever fhould involve them in a Capital cenfure (as none of your Authors do, but fpeak reverently of them all) fhould be grofly and wickedly uncharitable? Grant me but these things, which none can deny, and I defire no more, I have enough to make good my words.

For

For Trew and Careles, it feems you think Trew was Careless, and Careles was True; and to tell you my mind, I think fo too. But remember this

that both of them were Martyrs, or Confeffors; and fo neither erred fundamentally; By confequence, my discourse is true, your's again impertinent. But the Arminians confpire with the Romanifts; Ergo, no peace, no truce with either: I will plead for neither of them, but for my felf. First, the ground of your inference is weak; excufe me, if I cannot reject an Opinion, eo ipfo, without farther conviction than only because they of Rome approve of it. For what? Do not they, and do not we with them Anathematize the Anti-Trinitarians, Arians, Neftorians, Eutychians? &c.

Secondly, if you look again into your Books, and confider well, you will confefs that the Church of Rome makes more against the Arminians, than for them. The prime Controverfy, on which all the reft are but appendances, is that touching the abfolute irrespective Decree; in which point, if you collect and number the Suffrages, ten for one against the Arminians. T. Aquinas, you know, was a great School-mafter, and had many Scholars; obferve and fee whether they all and many more, do not ftrongly fwim in the Stream after Austin. And the truth is, our firft Reformers did herein fay over again thofe Leffons, which they had Learned in the Roman Schools; and the hardest Paffages that have fall'n from Calvin, or Pifcator, may eafily be parallel'd with others as rigorous, in many Romish Doctors: efpecially of late years, the whole Dominican family have been zealous and Voluminous in thefe Questions, which they call, de Auxiliis; wherein, tho' they fweat to fever their Opinion from the Calvinifts, as they call us, yet fome Jefuits tell them, and very truly, that their labour is very vain and ridiculous. Among the Jefuits themselves, Hh 2

the

the more ancient, as Tollet, Bellarmin, Valentia, Suarez, do not in effect diffent from the Dominicans; only fome few new ones, as Molina, Leffius, &c. take up the bucklers against them, and bid them battle, but in very fair and friendly manner: for they try it in a manly conflict, not as we do with paffionate and mutual revilings, but with Reafons and Arguments, & falva femper charitate; for fo they are commanded by their great Dictator at Rome, who indeed dares not otherwife decide the doubts, left the grieved Party raise another more dangerous Queftion, viz. whether his Judgment be infallible? In like manner the Counfel of Trent, if you mark it, cunningly here declines the decifion, and lurks in fuch general terms, like him that was call'd Aoias in the old Oracle, that both fides confidently avow the Sentence to be given for them, when indeed it is given for neither.

It is high time to eafe both you and my self, for furely we are both weary of this tedious Let tor; I will draw to a conclufion. I hold all neceffary Verities to be clearly revealed in God's divine Book, and therein abhor all Pyrrhonian Sufpenfion: for he is an Atheist that will not believe God Almighty when he speaks. I conftantly believe all Scripture to be an heavenly Truth, tho' I cannot comprehend it with my reafon; I believe likewise we fhall know much more in Heaven, than we can do on Earth; I refolve never to be an Arminian, and ever to be Moderate. How foever fome thoughts or perplexities may trouble my own Confcience, yet I refolve never to trouble the Church with them, they fhall die in filence with me; Errare poffum, Hæreticus effe nolo: Reafon fhall drive me from any Opinion (for I will efpouse none out of obftinacy) and Truth ever command me. I fhall labour effectually as I can in the Service of my Master Chrift, and Preach him Crucified; I shall

deplore