A20187:164
The opening of heaven gatesThe opening of heauen gates
The opening of heaven gates, or The ready way to everlasting life Delivered in a most familiar dialogue, between reason and religion, touching predestination, Gods word, and mans free-will, to the understanding of the weakest capacity, and the confirming of the more strong. By Arthur Dent, preacher of the word of God, at South-Shoobery in Essex.The opening of heauen gates, or The ready way to euerlasting life Deliuered in a most familier dialogue, betweene reason and religion, touching predestination, Gods word, and mans free-will, to the vnderstanding of the weakest capacitie, and the confirming of the more strong. By Arthur Dent, preacher of the word of God, at South-Shoobery in Essex.
London: printed by G. Eld for John Wright, 1610London: printed by G. Eld for Iohn Wright, 1610
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Alas is their any marvel, the world being once covered with the spirit of slumber, that it should be over-taken, with the witchcraft of sleepy diseases: is it any thing, strange, that men do spew at religion, being made drunken with heresy? or is it any wonder (the word of GOD being once brought into […]rall contempt) that the infection […]ry hath been so common? gl•• once the gorge of man with any foul •inion, and he will hardly be purged thereof: make him to believe the mortality of the soul, and he will consent with Protagoras that there is no GOD.
Alasse is their any maruill, the world being once couered with the spirit of slumber, that it should be ouer-taken, with the witchcraft of sléepy deseases: is it any thing, strange, that men doe spew at religion, being made drunken with heresie? or is it any wonder (the word of GOD being once brought into 〈…〉rall contempt) that the infection 〈…〉ry hath béene so common? gl•• once the gorge of man with any foule •inion, and he will hardly be purged thereof: make him to beléeue the mortality of the soule, and hee will consent with Protagoras that there is no GOD.
They will say that all this wind maketh •• corn, and […] are that we do belie their Pope and them; truly ⟨p. 103⟩I cannot blame them, if they would unfather him of such hateful blasphemies: but let our selves be charged with the wrong we have done them herein, and our lives stand, upon the slander, let his own cannons be convinced of all the evil that have written them, and more then ten thousand such in exalting of his name, and the Pope him-self be condemned of madness and frenzy, having as like a beast, as a bedlam, and as near the quality of a bedlam, as the quantity of man, consented unto them, with all pride and presumption.