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

Secondly, And especially when those that are most reverenced and valued by the zealousest Christians, are envied, or afflicted by the rest, it ever tendeth to divisions in the Church. For the sufferings of such will never abate their esteem, with those who honour them. And if fear should stop their mouths for a time, the fire will still burn within, and be too ready to break out into more open schisms when opportunity serveth them. Yea the Churches of old have found great cause to be very tender how they used such reverenced valued Pastors, though they should fall into any error; and sometimes to connive or bear with much, lest they should occasion a far worse disease, by the imprudent curing of a lesser.

Secondly, And especially when those that are most reverenced and valued by the zealousest Christians, are envied, or afflicted by the rest, it ever tendeth to divisions in the Church. For the sufferings of such will never abate their esteem, with those who honour them. And if fear should stop their mouths for a time, the fire will still burn within, and be too ready to break out into more open schisms when opportunity serveth them. Yea the Churches of old have found great cause to be very tender how they used such reverenced valued Pastors, though they should fall into any errour; and sometimes to connive or bear with much, lest they should occasion a far worse disease, by the imprudent curing of a lesser.

And I dare be bold to proclaim to the contentious Pastors, of all the Churches wheresoever, that True Piety, Love, Humility and Prudence, can happily heal a great many of dissentions, which to the carnal, uncharitable, proud and imprudent, seem uncurable, and by their malignant-medicines are still exasperated a•d made worse.

But alas this quarrelsome distemper in Ministers, hath had such pernicious effects upon the Church, and is still going on to more confusion, that it deserveth and calleth for our common lamentation. And if we must lament it with despair, as an uncurable disease, I fear we must with equal despair lament the Churches ruins, and the consumption of Religion. For how can we expect that the people should hear, if the Pastors be obdurate and remediless? And who shall cure them, if their Physicians themselves be they that do infect them?