A26932:431
Gildas Salvianus: The Reformed Pastor
Gildas Salvianus, the reformed pastor showing the nature of the pastoral work, especially in private instruction and catechizing : with an open confession of our too open sins : prepared for a day of humiliation kept at Worcester, Decemb. 4, 1655 by the ministers of that county, who subscribed the agreement for catechizing and personal instruction at their entrance upon that work / by their unworthy fellow-servant, Richard Baxter ...Gildas Salvianus, the reformed pastor shewing the nature of the pastoral work, especially in private instruction and catechizing : with an open confession of our too open sins : prepared for a day of humiliation kept at Worcester, Decemb. 4, 1655 by the ministers of that county, who subscribed the agreement for catechizing and personal instruction at their entrance upon that work / by their unworthy fellow-servant, Richard Baxter ...
London: printed by Robert White for Nevil Simmons, 1656
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
O doleful case to think of; that a while ago we were afraid of nothing, but least Papists and Deboist persons should have swallowed up the Gospel and our liberty, and destroyed us together; And now when the work hath been put into the hands of those men, that were joined in these fears, and are joined in the strictest profession of Piety, and are of one judgement in all the Articles of the faith; they cannot or will not unanimously join in carrying on the work; but they either fall upon one another, or live at a distance, and cast their work upon a hundred disadvantages by the bitter disagreements that are among themselves. O what a Nation might England have been ere now, if it had not been for the proud and obstinate contentions of godly Ministers? ⟨p. 193⟩What abundance of good might we have done! Nay, what might we not have done, if our perverseness had not marred our work? Did we but agree among our selves, our words would have some Authority with the people; But when they see us some of one mind, and some of another, and snarling and reviling at each other, they think they may well enough do so too: Why may not we call them Sectaries or Deceivers, say they, when they call one another so? Nay, if we were not all of a mind in some smaller matters, yet if we did but hold Communion and Correspondency, and join together in the main, and do as much of Gods work as we can in concurrent unanimity, the people would far more regard us, and we might be in a greater capacity to do them good: But when we are single, they sleight us; and when we disagree and divide, they despise us: and who can marvel at it, when we despise one another? What, say they, (when a Minister doth his duty alone) Must we he ruled by every singular man? Are you wiser then all the Ministers in the Country? Are not such and such as learned as you? But when we go hand in hand, it stops their mouths. They think either themselves may be wiser then one or two Ministers, or at least, other Ministers may be wiser then they; but common modesty will not suffer them to think that they are wiser then all the Ministers in the Country, or in the world. I know that matters of faith are not to be received upon our credit alone: but yet our credit may do much to remove prejudice, and to unblock the entrance into mens minds, and procure the truth a more equal hearing, and therefore is necessary to our peoples good.
O doleful case to think of; that a while ago we were afraid of nothing, but least Papists and Deboist persons should have swallowed up the Gospel and our liberty, and destroyed us together; And now when the work hath been put into the hands of those men, that were joyned in these fears, and are joyned in the strictest profession of Piety, and are of one judgement in all the Articles of the faith; they cannot or will not unanimously joyn in carrying on the work; but they either fall upon one another, or live at a distance, and cast their work upon a hundred disadvantages by the bitter disagreements that are among themselves. O what a Nation might England have been ere now, if it had not been for the proud and obstinate contentions of godly Ministers?