A26982:443
Richard Baxter's penitent confession and his necessary vindication in answer to a book called…
Richard Baxter's penitent confession and his necessary vindication in answer to a book called The second part of the mischiefs of separation, written by an unnamed author with a preface to Mr. Cantianus D. Minimis, in answer to his letter which extorted this publication.
London: printed for Tho. Parkhurst, 1691
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.
[…] part, I was a young Novice, and knew not what War was; […] considerable interest in any, to have prevented it: But […] that I more repent of than that I feared it so little, and ⟨p. 63⟩that I did not speak more earnestly for the preventing of it by mutual pacificatory means, and that I said any thing towards unpeaceable irritations. Who could have forethought that all those doleful Events would follow, which make up Whitlock's impartial Memorials?
〈…〉 part, I was a young Novice, and knew not what War was; 〈…〉 considerable interest in any, to have prevented it: But 〈…〉 that I more repent of than that I feared it so little, and ⟨p. 63⟩that I did not speak more earnestly for the preventing of it by mutual pacificatory means, and that I said any thing towards unpeaceable irritations. Who could have forethought that all those doleful Events would follow, which make up Whitlock's impartial Memorials?
§ 67. Yet I must truly say (though it displease the guilty) that the effects were quite different on the Land, from what the Malignants commonly report: They would falsely persuade the World, that all ancient Piety was despised, the Creed, Lords Prayer and Decalogue, and all sober Ministers cast out, and Tub preachers set up to vent their Nonsense. The truth is, among 10000 of the Clergy about 300 or more were turned out as Ignorant and Scandalous, and with them unjustly some for being for the King against the Parliament: The number I know not, but conjecture that there might be an hundred such at least. In the places of these the most seriously Religious young Men that the Universities would afford, with some few old Nonconformists, and but few) such as the Parishioners chose were set up: Most of these young Men were such as had no hand in the Wars, but were Lads or young Students while the War continued. It pleased God, that very many of them, became such fervent, able Preachers, that a great change followed among their Hearers, and multitudes of the Ignorant, Debauched and Worldlings became Serious, Godly, Christians. And the younger sort grew up accordingly.