The cure of church-divisions, or, Directions for weak Christians to keep them from being…

And their cure is the harder because they know not how to have a humble suspicion of themselves without running into the contrary, extreme of scepticism, and being cold and unfaithful to the truth; They know not how to hold fast that which is good, and to be constant in religion, without holding fast all which they have once conceited to be good, and being constant in their error: ⟨p. 359⟩Especially when good or evil is voted to them by that party whose piety they most esteem and reverence.

And their cure is the harder because they know not how to have a humble suspicion of themselves without running into the contrary, extream of scepticism, and being cold and unfaithful to the truth; They know not how to hold fast that which is good, and to be constant in religion, without holding fast all which they have once conceited to be good, and being constant in their errour: ⟨p. 359⟩Especially when good or evil is voted to them by that party whose piety they most esteem and reverence.

Nor is this a Religious distemper only, but it is so natural to mankind, that even in common matters neighbours and neighbours, masters and servants, husband and wife, and almost all, have a strange diversity of apprehensions: One thinks that this is the best way, and another that the other is best; and let them reason and wrangle it out never so long, usually each party still holdeth his own, and hardly yieldeth to another's reasons.

Nor is this a Religious distemper only, but it is so natural to mankind, that even in common matters neighbours and neighbours, masters and servants, husband and wife, and almost all, have a strange diversity of apprehensions: One thinks that this is the best way, and another that the other is best; and let them reason and wrangle it out never so long, usually each party still holdeth his own, and hardly yieldeth to anothers reasons.