[ afes about Judging otiJers. CHAP. XXIV. Cafes and 1Jireuions againft [wforioufnefs mzd wuvarrantable Judging. Tit. 1. [afes of Cmifcience about Judging of others; Q.!_efl. I· ANI I 1JQI heu11d to ]ttdge truly of every DJtt at be u l An[tv. I· There arc many that you are not bound to ,wddle with, and to ~e~. tO pafs any Judgement at all upon. 2. There a.re many whofe faults arc fccrtt , anftheir vtrtues open : And of (uch you CJ.nnot Judge as they arr, becaufc you have no proof or evtdence to enable you : You cannot fee that whtch ts latent in the heart, or done in darknefs. 3· You neirhu ought on pretence of chariry, nor can believe an evidentl{,~town u;ztmtiJ of any man. Qucfi .. Vrth not charity bind me to judge menbelter than they are l Anf.v. Charity bindeth you, I· Rather to obftrve the bell iu them, than the worll: 2· And as I faid, to judge of no mans faults uncalled: 3• Nor to judge of that which is not evident, but out of fight: And thus coujiq"cntly it bindeth you to judge fome men to be better than they are : but not directly. ObjeCt Then a man ii bound to H'r and tobelieve an untrutb. AN[w. No : You are not bound to believe that it is ctTtaiJtly true, tha.t fuch a man is better than he is : Becaufe you have no evidence of its certain truth. But you are bound to believe it a thing probable or verifimilt, likely to be true, by an opinion or fallible humane faith: And this is not a fal010od : For that is li~e!J and prob.ble to you, which hath the more probable evidence, and more for it, than againfl it : So that the thing which you arc to believe immediately is this propofirion, 1here is more cvidm,ct to mi to proveit likJiy that thi1 m.Jn H(tncere t/J;JJ! contr.;ry: And confequently you believe this, and believe not the contrary, becaufe the contrary hath no evidence. But you are 110t to take it as a certain thing, that the contrary hath no latent reality. ~efi. 2· How far may I judge ill of one by outward appearancu, as by the coHutmanct, gefturtr) and ~eft. 2. orher UI:ICCrtaiit, bJtt {u[picioUI figus? A'it[w. There are fomc figns which are not fo much as probable, but :1 little fufpicious, ·and which men are very ordinarily miflakcn by : As thofe that will judge of a man at the firfi look by his face: And thofe that will judge a Hudious, fer·ious perfon (a Lawyer, a Jndge, or aDivine ) to be mOJofe or proud, bec:aufe they are not cornplerncmal ; but of few words ; or f?ccaufc· they have not p.atience to waf\c pretiOui hours in hearing an empty vdfd found ; an ignorant fetf.con– ceitcd pc~fontalk foolitbly. Suc:h c:cnfurcs arc but the tffcCh of in}udicioufncfs, unrighteou:fn~fsarid raih hafie. There are other figns which make it probable 1.0 a wife and charitable pcrfon, that the man is bad (e. g. proud, or covetous, or an hypocrite ). tf with thcfc, there are as great figns to make the contrary probable, we mufi rather incline to the better, than the worfr. But if nor, We may fear the worH of that perfon, bur llOt conclude it as a certainty; And therefore we may not in publick cenfures, proceed upon fuch uncerraintie-s, nor venrurc to divulge them; but only ufe rhern to help us for due caution, and pity, and praye.r, and endeav9ur for fuch a ones recovery and help. ) Q:efi. 3· How far may I cenfore upon the report of 01.hers? · f!i.:!ej1. 3• A1t['w. According to the degree of the credibility of the perfons, and evidence of the narrative ; . not limply in thernfelves, but as compared with all that is to be beard on the contrary parr : E\fe you are pucial and unjufi. ~ef\. 4· Doth not the fifih CommmJd obligtmt in honour to Parent! and Princn, to judge them to be ~eft. 4 • better than their lives declare them to be.? Anfw. You arc gradua\ly to honour them rriore than others, and therefore to be more afraid of cl if– honouring them, and mutt not fie in judgement on them, to believe any harm of them, which evideoce doth not compel\ you ro believe: But you are not to judge any fin the lefs, becaufe it is theirs ; nor to judge contnry to evidence) nor to C!ll evil good, nor to be wilfully blind, nor to fi.lt– tcr any in t~eir tin. XX¥.XXXX Quell.
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