2 MEMOIRS OF " PERIOD Ix, for light from the Lord about that oath. And thereafter enter- ing on to read the prints, I had on it, in order to form a judg- ment about it, I immediately fell on the act, whereby it was first of all framed and impoled ; and finding thereby the declared in- tent of the oath tobe, to preferve the a&f inviolable on which the fecurity of the church of England depends, I was furprifed and aftonifhed ; and, upon that shocking difcovery, my heart wa turned to loath that oath which I had before fcrupled. From thence, what fpare time I had from vili Ling of the parish, I fpent in confidering the oath, until June 17. that our fynod met pro re nata ; I having, by advice of brethren- members of the af3embly for our fynod, called them together. And by the fore faid time of their meeting, I had written my thoughts on the oath, being reafons againft it, on about two Iheets of paper; the which are in retentis. There the oath was difputed throughout ; the, unclear im. pugning, and theclear brethren defending it. But as the declared intent of the oath above mentioned, did not at all call, up in the reafonings of the general affembly, which could not have miffed, if it had been then known to the fcruplers; fó, as far as I. could underftand, it was known to no brother of the fynod, clear or unclear, before I took the a& aforesaid along with me to that their meeting. They seemed to be (truck with it, when it was call up in the fynod ; but Mr James Ramfay aforesaid, made an anfwer to it, diftinguilhing between the church of England as a Proteftant church, and as a church having fuch a government and worship; and admitting the intent of the oath in the firft fenfe, but not in the fecond. This was truly Humbling tome, but ferved to confirm me againft the oath. The conduct of Pro- vidence determining me to procure the act as above laid, was wondrous in my eyes. The Lord was pleated to hear my pray- ers, in helping me, with fome meafure offreedom, to debate that bufinefs at the fynod, together with others. I was filenced, thoughnot fatisfied, by an anfwer to the firft argument, (namely, the (wearing of principles), taken from the national covenant; for on that ècafion it was much improved by thou: that ufed not before to meddle much with it. It feemed plain to me, that the clear brethren were at a lofs in the reff, and truly foundered in that of the declared intent of the oath, whicha certain perfon 'propofed, having before defired the act from me ; front whence he underfiood I had it. Though they feemed-to be firuck with it, yet they gave anfwers to it ? which much confirmed me, when I plainly taw that force were refolute to anfwer, when (it feerned to me). they hardly knew what to anfwer. I had from that time a particular regard for Mr John Gowdie minifter at Earlilon, a grave and learned man, upon the account of his candour and ingenuity, though joined with principles very contrary to mine: he owned, that the minifters, in the year 1648, would not have taken that oath, according to their principles. [And in this
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