Reliquiæ Baxterianæ, or, Mr. Richard Baxters narrative of the most memorable passages of his…

§ 36. Hereupon many Counties began to Associate, as Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, Somersetshire, Hampshire, Essex, and others: And some of them printed the Articles of their Agreement. In a word, a great desire of Concord began to possess all good People in the Land, and our Breaches seemed ready to heal. And though some thought that so many Associations, and Forms of Agreement, did but tend to more Division, by showing our diversity of Apprehensions, the contrary proved true by Experience: For we all agreed on the same Course, even to unite in the practice of so much of Discipline as the Episcopal, Presbyterians, and Independents are agreed in, and as crosseth none of their Principles: And they that thought the Expression of the Churches desires in various words of Prayer in Public was better than a stinted Form for all Churches necessarily to use, should not think that the Expression of our Consent to the same things, is a dividing way, because it is done in various Expressions: for this Liberty greatly helped Unity: for many a one would have scrupled some particular words in such an imposed Form of Concord, who yet would accord in the Substance of the Work.

§ 36. Hereupon many Counties began to Associate, as Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, Somersetshire, Hampshire, Essex, and others: And some of them printed the Articles of their Agreement. In a word, a great desire of Concord began to possess all good People in the Land, and our Breaches seem'd ready to heal. And though some thought that so many Associations, and Forms of Agreement, did but tend to more Division, by shewing our diversity of Apprehensions, the contrary proved true by Experience: For we all agreed on the same Course, even to unite in the practice of so much of Discipline as the Episcopal, Presbyterians, and Independants are agreed in, and as crosseth none of their Principles: And they that thought the Expression of the Churches desires in various words of Prayer in Publick was better than a stinted Form for all Churches necessarily to use, should not think that the Expression of our Consent to the same things, is a dividing way, because it is done in various Expressions: for this Liberty greatly helped Unity: for many a one would have scrupled some particular words in such an imposed Form of Concord, who yet would accord in the Substance of the Work.