Church-history of the government of bishops and their councils abbreviated including the chief part…

§. 1. The Apostle James saith, ch. 5. 19, 20. Brethren, if any one of you do err from the truth, and one convert him, Let him know that he that converteth a sinner from the error of his way, doth save a soul from death, and hide a multitude of sins. By which it is implied, that Error tendeth unto Death: But what Error is it?Is it all? Who then can be saved? It is of great use to know, what Errors are mortal, and what not.

§. 1. THe Apostle Iames saith, ch. 5. 19, 20. Brethren, if any one of you do erre from the truth, and one convert him, Let him know that he that converteth a sinner from the errour of his way, doth savea soul from death, and hide a multitude of sins. By which it is implyed, that Errour tendeth unto Death: But what Errour is it?Is it all? Who then can be saved? It is of great use to know, what Errours are mortal, and what not.

§. 2. There are errors that are no sins, and errors that are sins. Those which are not voluntary either in themselves, or in their antecedent causes, are no sins: Those which are not voluntary either by the act or by the omission of the will, are no sins. Those which are unavoidable through a necessity which is not moral but natural, are no sin: As if Infants, Idiots, Mad-men, err in matters of which they are uncapable: Or if any err for want of any revelation of the truth. As if the Papists did rightly charge those with errors whom they burnt for denying Transubstantiation, yet it could be no sinful error, because it is necessary and unavoidable. For the first discerning principle is sense: And if we are deceived while we judge that to be Bread and Wine, which all the sound senses of all men in the World perceive as such, we have no remedy. For whether sense be fallible or infallible, it is certain that we have no other faculties and organs to perceive immediately sensible things by. I can see by nothing but my eyes, nor hear any other way than by my ears. If they say, that we must believe that all mens senses are deceived when God telleth us so? I answer, If we do not presuppose that by sense we must perceive things sensible, it is in vain to talk of Gods telling us any thing, or of any of his Revelations, or faith therein: For I know not but by sense, that there is a Bible, or a Man, or a Voice or Word, to be believed. And as humanity is presupposed to Christianity, so is sense and reason to faith and the objects accordingly. And to say, that all mens sound senses about their due placed objects are fallible, is but to say, that no certainty can be had.