182 / 846
4g
The
LIÉE
of
the
L
rs.
I.
§
27. Something
alfo
I
wrote to Reverend
and
Learned Mr.
7d. Gataker, whore
Judgment
I
had teen before
in
his
own Writings
:
And.having the
encouragement
of
finch
Content,
I
motioned the
Bufinets
to
fome
London
Minters
to have it
fet
on
foot among
themfelves, becaufe
if
it came
from
them,
it
would be much more ta-
king than from
us
:
But they thought it unfit to be managed there, for
feveral
Rea
-
fons, and fo
we muff try it, or only
fit
!till and with
well
as
we
had done.
§
28.
Next
this,
the
fiate
of
my own
Congregation,and the neceflty of
my
Duty,
conftrained
me
to
make
Come
Attempt.
For I mutt adminifter the
Sacra-
ments
tothe
Church, and the ordinary
way of
Examining
every
Man
before
they
come, I
was
not
able
to prove neceffary, and the People were
avert
to
it:
So
that
I
was
forced to think
Of
the matter more
ferioufly
;
and having determined
of
that
way
which
was,
I
thought, molt
agreeable
totl,}e
Word
of
God,
I
thought,
if
all
the
Minifers
did accord together in
one
way, the Peoplewould much more
ea-
lily fubmir,
than to the way
of
any Minifter that
was
fingulat.
To
attempt their
Content
t
had
two
very great Encouragements
:
The
one
was
anhonett
,
humble,
tractable People
at
home,
engaged in
no Party, Prelatical, Presbyterian,
or
Inde-
pendant
;
but loving
Godlinefs and
Peace, and hating
Schifm
as
that
which they
perceived to tend
to
the ruine
of
Religion.
The
other
was a
Company
of hone-,
godly,
ferious, humble
Minters
in the Country where
I
lived,
who were not
one
of
them
(
that
Affociated
)
Presbyterian or Independan
,
and
not pall
four
or
five
of' them
Epifcopal; but ditengaged
faithfulMen.
At
a
Lecture at
Warcefer
I
firft
procured
a
Meeting,
and told
them
of
the Defign, which they
all
approved
:
They
impofed it upon me,
to
draw up
a
Form of Agreement.
The Matter of
it
was
to
confift
[So much
of
the Church
Order
and
Difcipline
,
a,
the Epifcopal,
Presbyterian,
and
Independant are agreed
in, as
belonging
to
the Pa/foro
of
each
particular Church].
The
Reafons
of
this
were,
r.
Becaufe we all believed
that the practice
of
fo
much
as all
are
agreed
in,
would do very much to
the Order
and Reformation
of
the Chur-
ches; and that the controverted Parts are
thofe
of
lean neeellìty
or
weight. a.Be-
caufe we would
not
neceffitate
any Party
to refuteour
Affociation
,
by
putting in
a
word which
he dif 'wneth
:
for
we intended not to difpute one another into near-
er Agreement in
Opinions,
but
firft
to;agree in the practice of
all
that which was
owned by
us
all.
According to their
delire
I drew up
fome Articles
for our
Content which might
engage
us
to the molt
effe&ual
pradlice
of
fo
much Difcipline
as
might reduce
the
Churches to order,
and
fatisfie
Ministers in
adminiftring the
Sacraments,
and flop
the more
religious People
from Separation,
to
which the
unreformednefs
of the
Churches through want
of
Difcipline inclined them, and yet might
not at
all con-
tradict the Judgments ofany
of
the three Parties
:
And I brought
in the
Reafons
of
the
feveral
Points: which
after
futficient
Deliberation and Examination (with
the alteration
of
fome few
words)
were contented to by
all
the
Minters
that
were prelènt
; and after feveral Meetings we fubfcribed
them,
and foaffociated
for
our
mutual
help and concord in our Work.
The
Minigers that
thus
affociated
were for
Number, Partsand Piety, the molt
confiderable
part
of
all
that County,
and fome out
of
Iòme neighbouring Counties
that were
near
us.
There
was
not,
that
I
know of, one through Presbyterian amongthem,
becaufe
there
was
but one
fuck
that
I
knew
of
in
all
the County, and he
lived fomewhat
remote
:
Nor
did
any Independant
fubfcribe,
fave
one;
for there were,
(that
I
knew
of)
but
five
or
fix
in the County,
and
two
of
the weightielt
cf
them approved
it
in
words,
and
the left withdrew
from
our
Debates,
and
gave
us
no
reafon againff any
thing pro
-
pofed.
Thofe that did not
comenear
us,
nor concur with.us,
were
all
the
weaker
(bet
of
.
Minigers,
whofe Sufficiency
or Converfation
was queffioned
by others,
and
knew they were
of
little
ehteem
among them, and were neither able
or
willing
to
exercife any Difcipline
on their
Flocks
:
As
allo fome few
of better
parts
of the
Epifèopal way, who never came near
us,
and knew not
of
our
Propofals,
or
refol-
ved
to do nothing, tillthey had Epifcopacy rellored
;
or
finch
whofe
Judgments
elteemed fuch Difcipline
of
no
great neceffity
:
And one or
two
very
worthy Mi-
nifters, who approved
of
our Agreement, fubfcribed
it not,
becaufe
they
had
a
People
fo
very
Refraetory, that they knew they
were
not
able
to
bring them
to
tub
-
mittoit.
Having
all
agreed
in
this
Affóciation, we propofed publickly to our People
fo
much
as
required
their Content and Pra
&ice,
and gave
every Family
a
Copy
in
'Print,
and
a fufficient
time to
Confider
and underhand
ir,
and then put
it in Execu-
tion
.;
and
I
publifhed
it
with the
Reafons
of
it,
and an Explication
of
what
Teem-
ed
doubtfúlin it, in
a Book
which
I
called [Cbriflian
Concord]
which
pleated me,
and
difpleafed others.
4
29.