r." 456 LIVES OR THE PURITANS. antinomian Sentiments ; and certainly his saying, " that God is the author of sin, even of the pravity and sinfulness of it," was extremely erroncons: Besides writing upon the personal reign of Christ, he published a work, entitled, "A Treatise of the Comfort of Believers against their. Sins and Sorrows ;" which, for containing the above sentiment, was censured by the assembly of divines, and ordered by the house of lords to be burnt by the hands of the common hang- man. He was, nevertheless, esteemed a man of the most ex- emplary piety.. There was one Mr. Archer, an independent minister at Halstead in Essex, who, according to Edwards, preached much againstthe presbyterians, and against paying tithes ; but it appears very doubtful whether this was the same person.+ SAMUEL HOWE was pastor of the separate congregation meeting in Deadman's-place, London, and successor to the famous Mr. John. Canne. This church appears to have held mixt communion, and Mr. Howewas a baptist, though some ofhis predecessors were not. Mr. Neal says that he was a man of learning, and published a small treatise, entitled, " The Sufficiency of the Spirit's teaching."$ His learning, however, does not appear from this work, which is designed to chew the insufficiency of human learning to the important purposes ofreligion ; and not only so, but that it is dangerous and hurtful. It is certainly writtenwith great ,. strength of genius, though the author was a " cobbler," as appears from the following recommendatory lines prefixed to the discourse it "What How ? how now ? Hath How such learning found, To throw Art's curious image to the ground ? Cambridge and Oxford may their glory now Veil to a cobbler, if they know but How." Mr. Howe and his people were persecuted beyond mea- Sure by the ruling prelates. He continued pastor of the church about seven years ;-but not being sufficiently on his guard in conversation, subjected himself to the malice of hungry informers, by whose means he was cited into the ecclesiastical courts, and excommunicated. Upon this Bailie's Dissuasive, p. 79, 80. + Edwards's Gangreena, part ii. p. 18. Third edit. Neal's Puritans, vol. ii. p. 375. i) Crosby's Baptists, vol. iii. p. 39, 40.
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