A Golden Chain

And therefore the hay and stubble of mens errors that are beside the foundation, on which they are laid, do not debar them from being Christians or members of the church. A man breaks down the windows of his house; the house stands: he breaks down the roof or the walls; the house yet stands, though deformed: he pulls up the foundation; the house it self falls and ceaseth to be an house. Now religion which we profess is like an house or building: and some points thereof are like windows, doors, walls, roofs, and some are the very foundation: and the former may be battered, the foundation standing. Again, if the error be directly or by necessary consequent, even in common sense against the foundation, consideration must be had whether the Church or party erreth of weakness or malice: if of weakness, the party is to be esteemed as a member of the Catholic church. And thus Paul writes unto the church of Galatia, as to a church of God, though by false teachers it had bin turned away to another Gospel, and embraced the fundamental error of justification by works. But when any man or church shall hold fundamental errors in obstinacy or affected ignorance, we are not ⟨p. 494⟩then bound to repute them any longer as churches or Christians, but as such to whom condemnation belongs, as Paul showeth by the example of Jannes and Jambres.¹ And as Jannes and Jambres, saith he, withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth, men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. Yet withal, this caveat must ever be remembered, that we rather condemn the error then the person that erreth, because Gods mercy is like a bottomless sea, whereby he worketh what he will and when he will in the hearts of miserable sinners.

And therefore the hay and stubble of mens errours that are beside the foundation, on which they are laid, doe not debarre them from beeing Christians or members of the church. A man breaks downe the windows of his house; the house stands: he breakes downe the roofe or the walls; the house yet stands, though deformed: he pulls vp the foundation; the house it selfe falls and ceaseth to be an house. Now religion which we professe is like an house or building: and some points thereof are like windowes, doores, walls, roofes, and some are the very foundation: and the former may be battered, the foundation standing. Againe, if the errour be directly or by necessary consequent, euen in common sense aginst the foundation, consideration must be had whether the Church or partie erreth of weaknes or malice: if of weaknes, the party is to be esteemed as a mēber of the Catholike church. And thus Paul writes vnto the church of Galatia, as to a church of God, though by false teachers it had bin turned away to another Gospell, and embraced the fundamentall errour of iustification by works. But when any man or church shal hold fundmental errours in obstinacie or affected ignorance, we are not