CLIFTON. 199 his mother, made of her substance, the Holy Ghost over- shadowing her : also that Christ is one person in two distinct natures, the Godhead and manhood; and we detest the contrary errors.". His WORKS.-1.Parallels and Censures, 1609.-2. The Character of the Beast : or, the false Constitution of the Church, discovered in certain Passages betwixt Mr. R. Clifton and John Smyth, concerning true Christian Baptism of New Creatures, or new-born Babes in Christ, and false Baptism of Infants born after the Flesh,1610.- 3. Differences of the Churches of the Separation.-4. A Dialogue of Baptism.-5. AReply to Mr. Clifton's Christian Plea. RICHARD CLIFTON was a person of a grave deportment, and a successful preacher, but severely persecuted for non- conformity. t- Hewaspastor to oneof the Brownist churches in the north of England, and by his ministerial labours, many souls were converted to Christ. The celebrated Mr. John Robinsonwas a member of his church, and afterwards his successor in the pastoral office.t These worthy persons endured most cruel persecution, and for a long time were exceedingly harassed by the high commission, and were at length driven out of the kingdom. About the year 1606, Mr. Clifton removed toHolland, and settled at Amsterdam ;§ where he became teacher to the church of which Mr. Francis Johnsonwas pastor. He carriedhis views ofsepara- tion much farther than Mr. Robinson, and imbibed many of the opinions of Mr. John Smyth ; but it appears that he was afterwards reclaimed from so rigid a separationdi He is denominated the principal scribe among the separatists, and is said to have written most to the purpose in defence of separations As his writings were published during his exile in a foreign land, we have not been able to collect the title of more than one of his pieces ; which was, " A Plea for Infants and elder People concerning their Baptism ; or, a Process of the Passages between M. John Smyth andRichard Clifton," 1610. Having renounced the principles of rigid separation, he wrote, as in the work just mentioned, with great warmth against Mr. Smyth. He is said to have been one of Mr. Smyth's most violent adver- Smyth's Character of the Beast, Pref. + Cotton's Congregational Churches, p. 7. t Morse and Parish's New Eng. p. 6. § Life of Ainsworth, p.37. II Clark's Lives annexed to Martyr. p.56. Paget's Arrow against Separation, p. 8.
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