The Mifcbief sof Si,iful.;Jddltlo!l! in IR._elt::,w11. 891 ~------ Qle!l:. 1 34· What are the mifc/,iefs of unlmvful Additioizs in ([(eligioil ~ ./.Jif.'~>· ALas; many and great. r. They teod to dethrone Chrillfrom his Soveraignrf, and Legiflativc prerogative. 2· And to advance M1n, blind and finful man into his place. 3· And tht:rcby to fitbafe ReJigiM, making it but a humane or a mixed dung : ( And it can be no more noble than its Amhor is. ) 'r· And thereby thty d,bafe alfo the Ch11cch of God, •nd the Oo– vtrnment of it, while they make ic to be but a Httmant policy, and not Divme. 5· They u:nd 10 dc:pofc: God from his Authority in tnens Confcicnces, and to level or joyn him there but with man. 6. Th_cy ten~ to. mens do~tbtfidntji and unccr~ainty of their Rcli~i~n; [c:eing man is t~lliblr, and fo may h1S confiuuoons be. 7· They tend to dnvc out all true Rclrg10n rrorn the Worlo~ while Man that is fo B1d is the maker of it; and it may be fufpeel:cd to be bad, that is made by to bad an Author. 8. And ittakcth off the fear of God, and his judgement: For it is man that mufl be feared fo far as man is the maker of the Law. And it defiroyerh the confolation of believers whk'1 confifl.eth in the hopes of a reward from God : f'or he that ferveth man, mufi be rewarded by man: And though they do not exclude God, but joyn him with themfelv:s, yet this mixture debaf<~h and ddlroyeth Religion, as the mixture of God and Mammon in men! Love, and as rnixt and deba[ed metals do the Soveraign's coin. 9· It hardcneth Infidels and hindcrerh theirConvelfion : For they will rever~ce no more of our RcHgion than we can prove to &e Divint: Andwhen they find om part cf it to be humane, they fufpc~ the rcfi to be fo too, and contc~n it all ' Even as ProteHants do Popery for the abundance of humane trinkets and toyes with which we fee them cxercife, and delude their filly followers. IO· It is the great engine of dividing all the Churches, and breeding and feeding con– tentions in the Chrifiian \Vorld. xx. And becau~e men that wiU cBmm"nd, wiU bt obeyed, and they that are ab{olurtlyfubieQed 10 God, wiUobey none ag•inft him, whatever it cofl them ( as Dan. 3· & 6. Hrb. 11. Lult, 14. 26, 33• Mauh. 5• to, IJ, 12. ) therefore it bath proved the occafion of bloody perfecutions in the Churche~, by which proftlTed Chritlians draw the guilt of Chri!Han blood upon themfdveo. 12· And hereby it bath dolefully hindmd the Gofpel, while the p<:rfecutors have ti– ltnced many worthy Confcion>ble Preachers of ir. I3· And by this it bath quenched Cha~ity in the hearrs of both fides, and taught the fufferers and the afRia:ers to be equally bitter in cenfuring if not Rom.T~ aor. dettfling one another. r +· And the Infidels feting thefe ditTenfions and bit!er paffions among Chri- · fiians, deride and fcorn and hare them all. 1 S• Yea) fuch caufes as thefe in the Latine and Greek 'Churches have eng.1gcd not only Emperours and Princes again{\ their own fubje~s, fo that Chronicles and Booksof Mutyrs perpetuate their di{honour, 11 Pil•u's name is in the Creed, but alfo have fet them in bloody Wars among them{elves. Thefe Jiave been the fruits, and this is the tendency, of ufurping Chrilts prerogative over his Religion, and Worlbip in his Church. · And the greatnefs ot the fin appeareth in thefe aggravations. r. lt is a mark of pitiful Ignqrifnct and Pride when dufi ihall thus ( like Ncbucbadntzz.r) exalt it felf againfi God, to itl cettain in– famy and abafement. • 2. 1t fil<weth that mrn little /Qrow thcmfclveJ, that think themfclves fit to be the makers of a Religion for fo many others : And that they have bafe thoughts of all other men, while they think them unfit to W011hip God any other way, than that of their maki.ifl'; And think that they will all fo far deny God as to rake up a Religion tha.t~s made by man. 3· lt !hews that they are much void of Love to others, that can thus ufe them on fo fmall oe– cation. 4· And it !heweth how little true fenfe or reverence of Chriflian Religion they have themfelves who can thus debafe it, and c:qua\ their own invenrions with ir. 5· And it leaveth men 01tterly uncxcufable, that will not take warningby fo many hundted years experiences of moflof theChurchcsthroughtheWorld? Even when we fecthe yet continued divi– fions of the Elf\crn and Wdlern Churches, and all about a humane Religion (in the parts mofi con– tended about ) : When they 1ead of the Rivers of Blood that h..ebeen ihed in Piedmont, Franct, Gtr– many, Btlgia, Poland, Irtland, and the Aa.mes in Eng/~:~Hd, and many othc:t Nations, and all for the humane parts of mens Religion? He that will yet go on and take no warning, may go read the 18th. and 19th. of the Revtirion, and fee what Joy will be inHeaven and Earth, when God ihdl do Jufiico upon tuch. · Bur remember that! fp:ak all this of no other, than t}lofe exprdly here deforibed• • Xxxxx Quell.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=