Chrift? And it is every Man's Duty to do what he can to fave another's Soul: But can he do it in a Sacerdotal Ministerial manner, as an Officer to whom God hath committed the Charge of Souls, as a Shepherd of the Flock over which Chrift hath made him an Overfeer, as a Watchman for Souls, as a Minister of the New Teftament, and as an Embassadour from God to Men? So he faith, It is every Chriftian Man's Duty to reprove, rebuke, admonish, exhort: But how? to rebuke fharply with all Authority, to reprove, and rebuke as a Superiour, to admonish as one that hath the Rule over others in the Lord, and after due Admonition to cenfure; to give things in charge, as a Governour; to receive Accufations before Witneffes, as one who was to be anfwerable to Him in the midst of the Golden Candlesticks, who hath the fharp Sword with two Edges, for Mal-adminiftration; as an Angel of a Church, as his Servant, and Trustee, for fuffering the Woman Jezabel, and tolerating the Doctrines of Balaam, and the Nicolaitans, and not turning the Teachers of them out of the Church. But ftill every Man can do what a Clergyman doth, and it is every Man's Duty to do what he can to fave another's Soul; and may not every Woman do what a Clergy-man doth? And do not the Texts he cites to no purpose against the Sacerdotal Orders, relate to Women as well as to Men, to the Sifters as well as the Brethren of the Church. This he cannot but acknowledge, unless he will contradict his Ulpian, upon whofe Authority the Civil Law faith, Verbum hoc SIQUIS tam Mafculos, quam Fœminas complectitur. I would alfo fain know of our Author what things a Jewish Priest was to do, which every Man or Woman could not do as well as he? and if it was not every Jews Duty, Man or Woman, to fave another Jews Soul? And I pray

* P. 132, 133.

my

my Reader to comer, if this way of arguing a gainst the Clergy is not the very fime, or very like to that of * Čeran and Dabar againit 3 is and Aaren, to whom they said, Te rake too much upo you, seeing all the Congregation are bely every one of them, and the Lord is among them; wherefore then litt you up your felves above the Congregation of the Lord. You lift up your felves, jäid thy, above the Feople of the Lord, and so faith our Author of the Clergy, that they afume to themselves a Power, an arbitrary Power over the People, and put themselves in God's place; just indeed as Mofes and Aaron did, who did not put themselves in God's place, because God put them in his. Indeed this Anabaptiftical and Quaker way of arguing is of as much force against Mofes as against Aaron, against all Orders of Men in the State, as well as in the Church, that is, it is of no force at all: For what cannot other Men to as well as the King, or his Judges, or Juftices of Peace? But can they do it legally? can they do it validly, or cum juris effectu, with effect in Law? What cannot other Citizens do as well as my Lord Mayor ? But can they do it with the fame Authority? And is it not every Man and Woman's Duty to keep the Peace of the Kingdom, and of the City where he dwells? But is it their Duty to keep it as publick Officers, and legal Guardians of the Peace? Thus Men of our Author's implacable Hatred to Priefthood matter not how they argue, or what they fay, fo it be against the Order, or Succeffion, or Revenues of the Clergy, or what Confufion they bring upon the World, if they can but confound Pricfts.

The Doctrine of the Churches being a Society of God's Inftitution, or the external visible Kingdom of Christ upon Earth, being, for want of due Inftruction, not fo well understood by all Chriftians in

See Dr. Featly's Dipper dipt, fixth Edit. 1651. Article iv.

thefe, as in antient Times, gives her Enemies great Advantages of deceiving the People by fuch like falfe Reafonings as thefe, which in former Ages would have made no Impreffion upon Christian People; and whether the Church is not fuch a Society, which hath its publick Officers and Ministers appropriated to teach and govern their Flocks, and who have Power from God to cenfure and turn out, is, as I have had occafion to fay often, a Question of Fact, of which I hope I have given fufficient evidence in the following Book. But before I finish my Answer to this Argument, I cannot but obferve, that in one place he limits his general Expreffions, faying, that Moft things, which the Clergy are obliged to perform, are every Man's Duty. If every Man therefore can do but most things the Clergy can do, then there are some things fo appropriated to their Office, that other Men may not do; and I would fain know of him what they are; for in other places he excepts none, no not adminiftring the Holy Eucharift, as in p. 104, and 108. where, without any reverence for God, or the Practice of the Church, he calls the Confecration of the Elements CONJURATION, which is a Derogation, and Depraving of the Holy Office in the most profane manner, and in the highest degree: But bold and blafphemous Speeches of this nature are very common with him; they are the Ornaments, as well as the Arguments of his Book.

As for the Confecration of Bifhops, and Ordination of Priests, for want of Arguments, he ridicules and *blafphemes them with all his might. I would fain know of thefe Gentlemen (faith he) what they mean by giving the Holy Ghost; his Perfon I prefume they will not pretend to difpofe of. This is a lewd Sarcafm, and a moft profane and infolent Mocking of the

* P. 1፥

P. 131.

*P. 74, 75, 76, 77.

Bishops,

*

Bishops, and their Holy Order, and needs no other Obfervation. And then (faith he) they can only mean his Gifts. Moft certainly the Gifts, which by a Metonymy in Scripture are often called the Spirit, and which in Confecration and Ordination they give to the Perfons confecrated and ordained: But how? Not in their own Name, but as Peter gave Soundness to the Lame Man, when he faid, Silver and Gold have I none, but fuch as I have give I thee, in the Name of Jefus Chrift of Nazareth, rife up and walk. They give them by Prayer, and Impofition of Hands, in his Name, as the Apostles did, particularly St. Paul to Timothy, to whom he faid, Neglect not the Gift that is in thee, which was given thee by Prophecy, with the Laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery; and I put thee in remembrance, that thou stir up the Gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. This Ceremony of laying Hands upon Perfons, to confer Power upon them as Succeffors, or Affiftants, was continued from the literal to the myftical Judaifm, which is the univerfal Church of God. There are many Instances of it joined with folemn Prayer, in the Texts cited in the Margin: And as then in Baptifm God together with the Ordinary gave very often the extraordinary, and miraculous Gifts of the Spirit, but after Miracles ceafed only the ordinary Gifts: So in the Ordination of Perfous unto Ecclefiaftical Offices, he commonly gave them both Gifts, while he continued Miracles in the Church; but afterwards only the ordinary Gifts, particularly those which were requifite for their Order, with Sanctity of Life, and Gravity of Conversation, according to the Prayers of the Congregation; and if at any time the Perfon confecrated or ordained received not thofe Gifts,

*Acts vi. 6. viii. 15, 17. xiii. 2, 3, 1 Tim. iv. 14. 2 Tim. i. 6. Į Tim, v, 22.

or after he receiv'd them, loft them, it was, as in Baptifm, through fome hindrance, or default in himself; and therefore it was a trifling Argument againft conferring the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, to fay, if the Bishops can beflow the ordinary Gifts, as Meeknefs, Patience, &c. no Clergy-man could be without them. This way of arguing makes Baptifin a folemn Mockery, as he faith Ordination is, destroys all Baptifmal Grace, and Gifts, as well as thofe of Ordination, and utterly evacuates all the Promifes of Divine Grace, and Affiftances of the Divine Spirit; and putting Baptifm inftead of Ordination, I delire any fober Reader to tell me, if the following Pallage of the fame tenor with the precedent, is not a Profanation of the one as well as the other: What fharę foever the Clergy might have of the Holy Spirit before Ordination, they then are poffefs'd of no other Spirit than that of Pride, Ambition, Covetoufnefs, Uncharitableness, Impofition, Malice, Revenge, Perfecution,. &c. Indeed he here names the Popish Clergy; but any man may fee he means the Clergy in general, and particularly thofe of the Church of England, of whom he fpake in the former Paffage, and whom

in another place he accufes without diftinction of Pride and Haughtiness; and now might not a Jew fay after his example, what fhare foever the ChriLians have of the Holy Spirit before Baptifm, they then are poffefs'd of no other Spirit than that of Pride, &c. and would it be any Excufe for his Malice to fay Popish Chriftians, to wound all Chriftians through the Popish Chriftians Sides. It is alfo plain he means all Ordainers, and ordained in the following words: This is no wonder, when in fo ferious a Concern, as making of Bishops and Priests, both the Ordained and Ordainers in that Church alt with a for Lemn Mockery, one in pretending a Call from, and the

† P. 76.

P. 77.

* P. 131.

other