Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…

P. Neighbour, I understand that you are one of those that divulge your defamatory Lamentations of me as inclining to Popery, for some passages which I lately Preached in the City: I pray you speak that to my face which you so freely speak behind my back.

P. NEighbour, I understand that you are one of those that divulge your desamatory Lamentations of me as inclining to Popery, for some passages which I lately Preached in the City: I pray you speak that to my face which you so freely speak behind my back.

S. Sir, the City ringeth of you as one that greatly wrongeth the cause of God, And my own ears heard you say that the difference between us and the Papists is little more than in ambiguous words, and points unsearchable.

P. And this I hear you are one that have divulged, and so it is by such as you that the City is made to ring of it. But if this be an untruth of great aggravation, do you then deserve the title you assume, or are you a fit defender of the truth? or can your Conscience tolerate you herein? That which I said was this: I distinguished the Controversies between us and the Papists into such as depend on a Carnal Interest and Mind, and such as do not, but arise from the mere difficulty of the subject: In the former sort I said our difference is very great, and like to be so; and such are the differences about their Papal power and Church state, their Government, and worship as fitted hereunto; and many doctrines, as that of Purgatory, Indulgences, Auricular Confession abused by them, Transubstantiation, &c. But the other sort of doctrinals are made by many the matter of greater difference than there is cause; such as I named, Predestination, Providence, the cause of sin, mans power, and free-will, Grace, certainty of salvation, and I might have added, Justification and Merit as held by their Church and most of the Schoolmen: not that here is no difference indeed; but that long study hath made me certain that it is more in words than is commonly conceived: And this Truth is fit to be spoken though the mistaken be offended by it. Yea in these matters the Papists differ among themselves as much as with us. Dare you deny that these were my words? If you do you are a falsifier.