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ted; and the order of these being an invention of a Pope of Rome, and the fixing them to mattins and even-fongs fmelling fo rank of popery, no ways serve to recommend them to us: not to take notice of the great impropriety of calling paffages out of Ifaiah, Jeremiah, Joel, Malachi, and the Acts of the apoftles, by the name of Epiftles: but especially it gives us much uneasiness to see leffons taken out of the Apocrypha, and appointed to be read as if of equal authority with the facred fcriptures; nay not only out of the books of Baruch, Wisdom, and Ecclefiafticus, but out of the hiftories of Tobit, Judith, Sufanna, Bel and the dragon, and such lessons out of them as contain the most idle and fabulous ftories.

3. The book of Common Prayer, enjoins the reading of the book of Pfalms in the corrupt translation of the Vulgate Latin, used by the papifts; in which there are great omiffions and fubtractions in fome places; as every where, the titles of the Pfalms are left out, and in all places thefe words Higgaion and Selah, and the last verse of Pfalm lxxii. and in others, there are manifeft additions, as in Pfalm ii. 12. and iv. 8. and xiii. 6. and xxii. 1, 31. and xxxix. 12. and cxxxii. 4. and cxxxvi. 27. and cxlvii. 8. and three whole verfes in Pfalm xiv. whereas nothing should be taken from, nor added to the word of God; fome fentences are abfurd and void of fenfe, as Pfalm lviii. 8. and lxviii. 30, 31. and in others the sense is perverted, or a contrary one given, as in Psalm xvii. 4. and xviii. 26. and xxx. 13. and cv. 28. and cvi. 30. and cvii. 40. and cxxv. 3. This tranflation of the Pfalms ftands in the English Liturgy, and is used and read in the churches in England.

4. It directs to the obfervation of feveral fafts and feftivals, which are no where enjoined in the word of God, and for which it provides collects, gospels and epiftles to be read: the fafts are, Quadragefima or Lent, in imitation of Chrift's forty days faft in the wilderness, Ember weeks, Rogation days, and all the Fridays in the year; in which men are commanded to abstain from meats, which God has created to be received with thanksgiving. The festivals, besides, the principal ones, Christmas, Eafter and Whitfuntide, are the feveral faints days throughout the year; which are all of popish invention, and are either moveable or fixed, as the popish festivals be; and being the relics of popery makes us ftill more uneafy and diffatisfied with them.

5. Besides the corruptions before obferved in the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's fupper, in the order for the Vifitation of the Sick ftands a form of Abfolution, which runs thus; "And by his (Chrift's) authority committed to "me, I abfolve thee from all thy fins, in the name of the Father, and of the

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"Son, and of the holy Ghoft;" which is a mere popish device; Chrift having left no fuch power to his church, nor committed any such authority to any fet of men in it; all that the minifters of Chrift have power or authority to do, is only ministerially to declare and pronounce, that fuch who believe in Christ shall receive the remiffion of fins, and that their fins are forgiven them; and that fuch who believe not fhall be damned.

6. It appoints fome things merely civil, as ecclefiaftical and appertaining to the ministry, and to be performed by ecclefiaftical perfons and minifters, and provides offices for them as,

1. Matrimony; which feems to favour the popish notion of making a facrament of it; whereas it is a mere civil contract between a man and a woman, and in which a minifter has nothing to do; nor do we ever read of any priest or Levite, that was ever concerned in the folemnization of it between other perfons, under the Old Teftament, or of any apoftle or minifter of the word, under the New; not to fay any thing of the form of it, or of the ceremonies attending it.

2. The Burial of the Dead; which is a mere civil action, and belongs not to a gospel-minister, but to the relations of the deceased or other neighbours, friends or acquaintance: nor is there any neceffity for a place to be confecrated for fuch a purpose. Abraham and Sarah were buried in a cave, Deborah under an oak, Joshua in a field, Samuel in his house, and Chrift in a garden. Nor do the fcriptures ever make mention of any service being read, or of any divine worship being performed at the interment of the dead; and was any thing of this kind neceffary, yet we must be obliged to object unto, nor could we comply with, the service ufed by the church of England on this occafion; we cannot in confcience call every man and woman, our dear brother, or our dear fifter, as fome who have lived vicious lives, and have not appeared to have had true repentance towards God or faith in Chrift, have been called; or "com"mit their bodies to the ground in fure and certain hope of the refurrection to "eternal life;" fince we know there will be a refurrection to damnation as well as to eternal life; nor can we give thanks to God on account of many, “that "it has pleased him to deliver them out of the miferies of this finful world;" nor join in the following petition, which feems to favour the popifh notion of praying for the dead; " befeeching-that we, with all thofe that are departed in the true faith of thy holy name, may have our perfect confummation and blifs, both in body and foul," &c..

• Matt. viii. 21, 22. A& viii. 2.

XI. We

Gen. xxiii. 9. and xxxv. 8. Josh. xxiv. 30. 1 Sam. xxv. 1. John xix. 41.

X1. We cannot commune with the church of England, because it is of a perfecuting fpirit; and we cannot think fuch a church is a true church of Chrift: that the Puritans were perfecuted by it in Queen Elizabeth's time, and the Dif fenters in the reign of King Charles the fecond, is not to be denied; and though this fpirit does not now prevail, this is owing to the mild and gentle government of our gracious fovereign King GEORGE, the head of this Church, for which we have reafon to be thankful; and yet it is not even now quite clear of perfecution, witnefs the Teft and Corporation-acts, by which many free-born Englishmen are deprived of their native rights, because they cannot conform to the church of England; befides, the reproaches and revilings which are daily caft upon us, from the pulpit and the prefs, as well as in conversation, fhew the fame and to remove all fuch calumnies and reproaches, has been the inducement to draw up the above Reasons for our diffent; and which have been chiefly occafioned by a late Letter on the duty of Catechizing Children, in which the author, is not content highly to commend the church of England, as the pureft church under heaven, but reflects greatly on Diffenters, and particularly on fuch whom he calls rebaptizers; and repeats the old ftale ftory of the German Anabaptifts, and their errors, madneffefs and distractions; and moft maliciously infinuates, that the people who now go by this name are tinctured with erroneous principles; for he fays, they fpread their errors in adjacent countries, which are not fully extinguished to this day: whereas they are a people that fcarce agree with us in any thing; neither in their civil nor in their religious principles, nor even in baptifm itself; for they were for the repetition of adult-baptifm in fome cafes, which we are not: and used sprinkling in baptism, which we do not: the difference between them and us is much greater than between the papifts and the church of England; and yet this letter - writer would think it very hard and unkind in us, fhould we rake up all the murders and maffacres committed by Pædobaptifts, and that upon principle, believing that in fo doing they did God good fervice; I mean the Papifts, who are all Pædobaptifts; and yet this might be done with as much truth and ingenuity, as the former ftory is told: and befides, the disturbances in Germany were begun by Pædobaptists; first by the Papifts before the reformation, and then by Lutherans after it, whom Luther endeavoured to diffuade from fuch pracrices; and even the disturbances in Munfter were begun by Pædobaptift minifters, with whom fome called Anabaptifts joined, and on whom the whole fcandal is laid. But what is all this to us, who as much difavow their principles and practices, as any people under the heavens? nor does our different way of thinking about baptifm any ways tend to the fame.

ANTIPEDOBAPTISM;

OR,

INFANT - BAPTISM AN INNOVATION:

BEING A

REPLY to a late Pamphlet, intitled, PÆ DOBAPTISM; or, A Defence of Infant-Baptism, in point of Antiquity, &c.

A Pamphlet being published fome time ago by a nameless author, intitled,

The baptifm of Infants a reasonable Service, &c. I wrote an answer to it, chiefly relating to the antiquity of infant-baptifm, called, The argument from Apoftolic tradition, in favour of Infant-baptifm, &c. confidered; and of late another anonymous writer has started up in defence of the antiquity of it, from the exceptions made by me to it; for it seems it is not the fame author, but another who has engaged in this controverfy; but be he who he will, it does not greatly concern me to know; though methinks, if they judge they are embarked in a good cause, they should not be ashamed of it, or of their names, and of letting the world know who they are, and what share they have in the defence of it but just as they please, it gives me no uneasiness; they are welcome to take what method they judge most agreeable, provided truth and righteousness are attended to.

In my answer, I obferve that apoftolic tradition at most and best is a very uncertain and precarious thing, not to be depended upon; of which I give an instance so early as the fecond century, which yet even then could not be settled; and that it is doubtful whether there is any fuch thing as apoftolic tradition, not delivered in the facred writings; and demand of the Gentleman, whose performance was before me, to give me one fingle inftance of it; and if infantbaptifm is of this kind, to name the apostle or apoftles by whom it was delivered, and to whom, when, and where; to all which no answer is returned; only

only I observe a deep filence as to undoubted apoftolic tradition, so much boasted of before..

The state of the controverfy between us and the Pædobaptifts, with refpect. to the antiquity of infant-baptifm, lies here; and the question is, whether there. is any evidence of its being practifed before the third century; or before the times of Tertullian. We allow it began in the third century, and was then practifed in the African churches, where we apprehend it was first moved; but deny there was any mention or practice of it before that age; and affirm that Tertullian is the first person known that spoke of it, and who speaks against it: I have therefore required of any of our learned Pædobaptifts to produce a single paffage out of any authentic writer before Tertullian, in which infant-baptifm is expressly mentioned, or clearly hinted at, or plainly fuppofed, or manifestly referred to if this is not done, the controverfy must remain just in the fame ftate where it was, and infant-baptifm carried not a moment higher that it was before; and whatever elfe is done below this date, is all to no purpose. How far this Gentleman, who has engaged in this controverfy, has fucceeded, is: our next business to inquire.

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The only chriftian writers of the first century, any of whofe writings are extant, are Barnabas, Clemens Romanus, Hermas, Polycarp, and Ignatius; nothing out of Barnabas, Polycarp, and Ignatius, in favour of infant-baptifm, is pretended to. The most ancient writer that we have (fays this Gentleman, in the words of Mr Bingham) is Clemens Romanus, who lived in the time of the apottles; and he, though he doth not directly mention infant-baptifm, yet fays a thing that by confequence proves it; for he makes infants liable "to original fin, which is in effect to fay that they have need of baptifm to purge it away, &c." The paffage or paffages in Clemens, in which he fays. this thing, are not produced; ! fuppofe they are the fame that are quoted by Dr Wall, in neither of which does he fay any fuch thing; it is true, in the first of them he makes mention of a paffage in Job xiv. 4. according to the Greek. verfion, no man is free from pollution, no not though his life is but of one day; which might be brought indeed to prove original fin, but is not brought by Clemens for any fuch purpose, but as a felf-accufation of Job; fhewing, that though he had the character of a good man, yet he was not free from fin: and the other only fpeaks of men coming into the world as out of a grave and darkness, meaning out of their mother's womb; and feems not to refer to any moral death and darkness men are under, or to the finful state of men as they come into the world :: but be it fo, that in these paffages Clemens does fpeak of original fin, what is this to infant-baptifm, or the neceffity of it? is there no other way to purge away original fin, but baptifm? nay, is there any fuch virtue in baptifin as to.

purge:

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