them. But we may well know that 'tis his Reveal'd, not his hidden Will we are to fteer our Courfe by. And then, as I have already hinted, a neceffity Willfully and Undutifully made by ones felf can never be honestly pleaded to be a fuft Neceffity. No Law, no Equity can admit of fuch a Plea. And, as I have likewife faid, I am afraid this is too much your Cafe. You have undutifully kick'd out of Doors, thofe who by the Apoftolical Structure, and by all the Rules and Principles of the Catholick Church, had the power of Ordination: And then you plead Neceffity and that you must Ordain without them. 27. X. You have another Argument, p.29. 1. 14. &e. You fay, Tou hope it will not be judged Enthufiaftical, but a Scriptural Argument by Sober, and Serious, and Confidering perfons, that there are many Serious Chriftians, who have a Witness in themselves, that Prefbyterian Minifters are Minifters of Chrift, and may Jay, as St. Paul, II Cor. 3. 1, 2. Need we Epiftles of Commendations? Te are our Epiftle, &c. What fhall be faid to this? You'll turn angry if I fhall call it indeed Enthufiaftical, after you have hoped otherwife. What then fhall I call it? Fanciful or Fanatical? But what needs more? How ready may Papifts, Socinians, Arminians, Anabaptifts, Quakers, Burignionifts, I cannot tell how many Sectaries, be to Argue after the fame manner? This is certain, the Donatifts of old feem'dto have been keen at this way of Argu ing, I have fet down St. Auguftine's Account and Opinion (n) Non dicant ideo verum effe quia illa & illa Mirabilia fecit Domatus vel Pontius vel quilibet alius aut quia ille Frater Nofter, &illa Soror Noftra, tale vifum vigilans vidit, vel tale vifum dormiensfomniavit Removeantur ifta vel Figmenta Opinion of it on the Margent: (n) Pray, Sir, confider it, 'tis worth your while, and if you are at Leifure, confider too what our Lord has faid, Mat. 7. 21, 22, 23. and remember, 'tis not Difputable Pretext, but Clear and Solid Principle and juft Mendacium bominem, Deductions from it, that vel portenta Fallacium Rematis Spirituum ought to be regarded in fuch Debates as this between Tou and Me; and fo, Sir, I think I have got through the moft confiderable things you have Objected againft my Opinion, as you call it, only One Thing excepted, which I have Referved to the laft place. 'Tis hoc eft in omnibus San&orum Librorum Auctoritatibus Augu#in. De Unit. Ecclef Capp. 18,19. Edit. Lovan. An.1616. 28. XI. That 'tis pernicious in its fruits and confequences: And here you fall a Rhetoricating. I and thofe of my Opinion do great Service to the Papifts. How? We proclaim that their Romish Church is a True Church, their priefts True priests, &c. (p. 22. 1. 16.) As if in this we were fingular. But of this more by and by. You go on (ibid. 1. 22.) To Affert the neceflity of Epifcopal Ordination is the way way to harden the Wicked and make them cast off the publick Worship; Tea, to turn Seekers and Infidels, &c. Further yet (p. 22. 1. 26.) Tis to prefer a Formality, a Circumftance, a Mode, to the Being of Churches or Miniftry, and the Subftance of Worlhip, and the Salvation of Souls: As if it were better for Churches to be no Churches than not to be Prelatical! And is not this to plead the very Caufe of Satan, &c Sir, I am forry you fhould have fallen into fuch Canting, and talking things which can never be highly Valued, but where common Senfe is at a very low Ebb. Briefly Sir, make it but apparent that a Principle fo apparently founded on Apoftolical Inftitution, and fo Univerfally received and honoured as fuch, by all Chriftian Churches all the World over for fo many of the Earlieft and Pureft Ages of Chriftianity; a Principle fo naturally tending to fecure the Order, the Peace, the Unity, all the deareft Interefts of Churches, and Establish the Authority of their Governours, and make their Difcipline firm, and prevent all Sacrilegious Ufurpations of, and Intrufions into the Holy Offices; make it apparent, I fay, that fuch a Principle is fo pernicious and Heretical as you would reprefent it to be: And withal, fhew that your Principle, That the Election of the People with the Magiftrate's Confent is fufficient to Evidence Pafloral Miffions, is Antient, Orthodox and Innocent, a True Church principle: And when fo done, I fhall forthwith yield the Caufe. But on thefe Terms I am afraid I fhall not 1 yield it in hafte, perhaps never: This is certain, not till fuch a ftrange Revolution happens, as that what in the Flourishing Days of Chriftianity was Unqueftioned Truth, muft in its old and decaying Hours become abominable Falfhood. 29. But doth not my Principle overthrow the Truth and Being of the moft Reform'd Churches, &c? This is the Burden of the Song, which you not only repeat over and over, but Form into a Syllogifm ab Abfurdo, as your call it, p. 21. Thus, If this Opinion were True and allowed, it will neceffarily infer the Deftruction of the Truth, and Being of moft of the Reformed Churches: But that were Abfurd. Ergo. Sir, of twenty Things that might be return'd to this Shadow of an Argument, I think Two may be fufficient. 30. First, then (waving all meddling with particular Tranfmarine Churches, as not pretending accurately to know their Conftitutions) I affirm, I have now made it Evident that my Principle was Univerfally received by the Catholick Church in her First and Beft Ages, in confequence of the Apoftolical Inftitution of the Form of Church Government: By neceffary Confequence, no Modern Conftitution of Churches can with any fhew of Reafon be brought in Bar a gainst it. To reafon fo, as I told you, laft year, is no better than making practice the Standard of principle, and not principle the Standard of practice: Or bringing the Rule to the Example, not the Example to the Rule: Rule: An odd way of Reasoning (I fay it again) in Cafes where principles are at all to be regarded: So that you may clearly fee your proper Talk: You must fhew that I have not Eftablished my principle. Till you have done this, Millions of Syllogifins will not prove worth a Mite. But this is not all. 31. Secondly, your Syllogifm, or Argument is not truly ab Abfurdo. To Argue ab abfurdo, as I take it, is to Reafon fo as to make it appear, that the Pofition you Argue against either overthrows it felf, or fome other re ceived and acknowledged Principle of Verity. Your Argument performs neither of thefe. Not the firft, as is obvious; As little the Second: For how can it be a Principle that this or to'ther Church called Reformed is rightly Conftituted? The Reformation of Churches is but of yesterday, and therefore to be Try'd by Antient Principles: Princi ples which obtain'd from the Beginning. Your Argument, therefore, at beft, is but ab Incommodo: And as 'tis commonly faid, Incommodum non folvit Argumentum; fo I fay, an Argument ab Incommodo, from an Inconvenience, can never be of Force against a well Establish'd principle. Now Sir, 'twas on this Foot, I faid, you might with as good Reafon, fay, We ought to Return to Rome; Because he who Condemns the Romish Communion Condemns fo great a Part of Christendom. Here there is at leaft, an Equal Inconvenience. To this return (p. 22. 1. 7.) that you leave it to the Unbyafs'd Reader, whether by this way of Reasoning you 'tis |