.PartTf.' jhi!lings in colle_dions to relieve godly people in . diihefs when thofeo~ yo~ thata~e richer g.ivebuttwt? penee-or a gro,,t'r.oy~>ur comp.ttnzo,;s, m _the l1ke Collect1ons ? And what makes them be fo much together, if there be_not Love_among them? I profefs to you, I never yet faw a!':y thmg that ts wonhy the name of .Love .and Peace amonganyother fort of men . . But perhaps you will fay, that there are contmtions and diffe– .re nees among them ttbout Religirm, whicluheworld WM never trM· MerA withbefort. To which I anfwer, r. What differences or contentions do you fee among them in this Town or Parifo ·? Among :five hundred people that you count Preci(e, what one i4 theream()ng us th'il t is either Anabaptift, or Sep~ratijl:, or Antino- , ,mian, or Arminian, or of any r;ther feE£ ? Wsat one that feparat– ·eth from any OrdtnatJce of publ:ck Worfhip? What difference§ do you know among us ? Is there here any more.Churches then one I Do you hear any contendings ? Do you fee a!'ly thing like a difference among us all ?For my part, I know of none: Nor but of one in the Parz]b ·(that is turned from ,m ) which is a tlm– ple, ignorant, harmtefs man, that turned Anavaptift. For as for the Apoft~ue Infidels tnat joyn withyou that areungodly, we ha.ve nothing to do with them, but lament their mifery. r4· Another thing that hindreth our Belief of you, is; that we fee that it is only ignorant or wick.§d mm tiJat are of this opi· nion, and fay that the world is the worfe for Godlinefs, or the Preaching; of the Gofpel. Not aman faith fo that k._noweth what he fa£th, and that ever felt the power and fweetnefs of the Gofpel upon his foul : But only rhofe that are blinded by the world, and ferve the fl.dh, andare drow-ned in !uft, anq know not what they fp :-ak againfi. And lhall we regard the judgement of fuch men ? I). And moreover, when you fay that the world was better when there was lefs Godlinefs and Teaching, you coNtradia all hiftorj, and therefr;re are not to~e believed•. You know not w~Il what is /:Jefore you : much Jefs do you know what hath"bcen m your fore·fatl:lers dayes. Be it known to you, we have as full ad– vantage to k_no'W th~t, as you have. Many and many a large Vo– lume have I read,-concerning the itate of the world before ~ , which-tell us of far greater wickednef~ in our fore-[athen d~tes, then are in rhefe. If you will not belteve me, I wtll fhew tt to any of \JOU that can read and undc:rftand, at any time when you J , ' '11 Wl
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