M. I am sure St. Paul wrote to no Church but such as he called Saints; and I am sure Christ will save none but Saints: An unsanctified Christian, and a Church not holy, are contradictions in adjecto. Christ came not to set up a mere worldly Kingdom, and to devise a Religion to serve the Will, Ambition or Interest of worldly men, nor merely to promote Civility, Wealth and Peace. If this be all that you would have, go to Aristotle, Plato, Seneca, Plutarch, Cicero, &c. You need not be Christians for this. But yet we pretend not to know mens Hearts: It is visible Saints that the visible Church consisteth of; and with whom we must have visible Communion. And it is not left to the will of every Pastor whom he will take for a Saint; for then Churches would be of as many sorts or degrees, as Ministers strict or loose Opinions are. But Christ hath himself made the Articles Essential to Christian Faith and Practice, and the Baptismal Covenant, and required us to take those into the Church who seriously profess Belief, and Consent, till they null that Profession by a contrary Profession or Conversation; which must be proved against any man before he is rejected: For the Church is not a Society to be arbitrarily made or unmade, at every Ministers or Bishops will, but hath from Christ the fixed Laws of its Constitution and necessary Administration (better than our 141 Canons.)
But indeed you have touched our sore: For my part I am past doubt that we should all live in Peace, and Christian Piety, if all (yea all Bishops and Priests) were but agreed at the Heart what it is to be a Christian, and whether the Gospel be certainly true, and whether Christ be the Son of God, or a deceiver, and whether there be a Life after this, and a Judgment of all according to their works: Yea, were they but heartily agreed that there is a God, who is the Rewarder of them that diligently seek him, and a punisher of the wicked. The dispute seems to me to be, whether we shall be Christians indeed, or worldly Hypocrites called Christians; and whether we shall use the Name of God, Christ and Religion for Christ and Holiness, or for the Flesh against Christ.
M. I am sure St. Paul wrote to no Church but such as he called Saints; and I am sure Christ will save none but Saints: An unsanctified Christian, and a Church not holy, are contradictions in adjecto. Christ came not to set up a meer worldly Kingdom, and to devise a Religion to serve the Will, Ambition or Interest of worldly men, nor meerly to promote Civility, Wealth and Peace. If this be all that you would have, go to Aristotle, Plato, Seneca, Plutarch, Cicero, &c. You need not be Christians for this. But yet we pretend not to know mens Hearts: It is visible Saints that the visible Church consisteth of; and with whom we must have visible Communion. And it is not left to the will of every Pastor whom he will take for a Saint; for then Churches would be of as many sorts or degrees, as Ministers strict or loose Opinions are. But Christ hath himself made the Articles Essential to Christian Faith and Practice, and the Baptismal Covenant, and required us to take those into the Church who seriously profess Belief, and Consent, till they null that Profession by a contrary Profession or Conversation; which must be proved against any man before he is rejected: For the Church is not a Society to be arbitrarily made or unmade, at every Ministers or Bishops will, but hath from Christ the fixed Laws of its Constitution and necessary Administration (better than our 141 Canons.)
But indeed you have toucht our sore: For my part I am past doubt that we should all live in Peace, and Christian Piety, if all (yea all Bishops and Priests) were but agreed at the Heart what it is to be a Christian, and whether the Gospel be certainly true, and whether Christ be the Son of God, or a deceiver, and whether there be a Life after this, and a Judgment of all according to their works: Yea, were they but heartily agreed that there is a God, who is the Rewarder of them that diligently seek him, and a punisher of the wicked. The dispute seems to me to be, whether we shall be Christians indeed, or worldly Hypocrites called Christians; and whether we shall use the Name of God, Christ and Religion for Christ and Holiness, or for the Flesh against Christ.
