Casuistical morning-exercises the fourth volume /

III. Who Enquires as a Christian in order to manage Prayer and Praise, should I think Enquire of those who can, and will inform him the best, most truly and sincerely of any News he knoweth. There ever have been, and now are persons who abuse the world with false Reports: to amuse the more simple-hearted, they dare coin Lies, and cry out Woe! Woe! or Peace! Peace! very unagreeably to the nature and aspect of Affairs. If you have a Friend who dares not wittingly spread a Lye, nor deny a Truth, and knows much of public Occurrences; thou mayest rely somewhat on his word, thou mayest with greater confidence pray for the Church in ⟨image 192⟩deep Distress, and Praise God for bringing it out of its Distress. When we know the Church needs our Prayers, it is most agreeable to God that we do pray. If when we praise God for the Church, in any particular, if afterwards it appear we were deceived by false Reports the Enemy scoffs at us, we should to the best of our knowledge pray and praise suitably to the real state of the Church. It was a common practice in our late Civil Wars upon a fight that both Parties kept Thanksgiving Days, when 'twas not possible both should have the Victory; this was highly Scandalous, and each upbraided others with Hypocrisy Let us as much as in us lieth prevent such a reproof; what we cannot be Eye-witness of but must take on Hear-say, let us endeavour to be truly informed, that both prayer and praises may be grounded on the Truth of things as they proceed from Truth of Heart. Tragical Stories of Catholics prosecuted in England when Garnet and some few others were executed for their unparalleled Hellish Powder-Plot and Treason, set many a deceived Papist into Tears and Prayers, who had they known the Truth of things would have praised God for preserving their King and Country, condemned the Traitors and owned the Hand of God in the Discovery of the Plot and punishment of Plotters. On the other side, when bloody Men imbrued their Hands in blood of many Thousand Innocents in the Parisian Massacre, and the Irish Rebellion, destroyed Innocent Protestants, by Hundreds of Thousands, it is palliated with false Rumours to lessen the Horror of the Fact, the Barbarous Cruelty of the Actors; as if a few turbulent persons had been prevented, and fallen by the hands of Self-Defenders.

III. Who Enquires as a Christian in order to manage Prayer and Praise, should I think Enquire of those who can, and will inform him the best, most truly and sincerely of any News he knoweth. There ever have been, and now are persons who abuse the world with false Reports: to amuse the more simple-hearted, they dare coin Lies, and cry out Wo! Wo! or Peace! Peace! very unagreeably to the nature and aspect of Affairs. If you have a Friend who dares not wittingly spread a Lye, nor deny a Truth, and knows much of publick Occurrences; thou mayest rely somewhat on his word, thou mayest with greater confidence pray for the Church in