A27045:641
The successive visibility of the church of which the Protestants are the soundest members…
The successive visibility of the church of which the Protestants are the soundest members I. defended against the opposition of Mr. William Johnson, II. proved by many arguments / by Richard Baxter ; whereunto is added 1. an account of my judgement to Mr. J. how far heretics are or are not in the church, 2. Mr. Js. explication of the most used terms, with my queries thereupon, and his answer and my reply, 3. an appendix about successive ordination, 4. letters between me and T.S., a papist, with a narrative of the success.The successive visibility of the church of which the Protestants are the soundest members I. defended against the opposition of Mr. William Johnson, II. proved by many arguments / by Richard Baxter ; whereunto is added 1. an account of my judgement to Mr. J. how far hereticks are or are not in the church, 2. Mr. Js. explication of the most used terms, with my queries thereupon, and his answer and my reply, 3. an appendix about successive ordination, 4. letters between me and T.S., a papist, with a narrative of the success.
London: printed by R.W. for Nevil Simmons, 1660
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.
R. B. Reply. Reply, Ad 2m. Your second answer further proves that your definitions signify just nothing. They must live in unity of the faith: that is, either with faith or without it: with a belief of what Go• hath revealed to be believed, or without it. For to believe any point implicitly, in your ordinary sense, is not to believe it, but only to believe one of the Premises, whence the conclusion must be inferred. But why do you not tell me what you mean by [an Implicit faith]? Faith is called Implicit in several senses. 1. When several truths are actually understood and believed in confuso, or in gross, in some one proposition which containeth the substance of them all; but not with accurate distinct conceptions, nor such as are ripe for any fit expression: This indistinct, immature, imperfect ⟨p. 315⟩kind of apprehension may be called Implicit; and the distinct and more digested conceptions Explicit. 2. When a general proposition is believed as the matter of our faith, but the particulars are not understood or not believed: As to believe that omne animal vivit, not knowing whether you are Animal or Cadaver. Or to believe that [all that is in the Scripture is the Word of God and true,] but not to know [what is in the Scripture]. 3. When it is only the formal object of faith that is believed, without understanding the material object. The first sort of these, I confess, is Actual Belief, though indistinct: But I suppose you mean not this. 1. Because it is not the ordinary sense of your party. 2. Because else you damn either all the world, or most of your own professed-party at least as no members of the Church: for few or none have an Actual understanding and belief of all that ever God revealed to them; because all men (or most at least) have been sinfully negligent in searching after, and receiving truth; and so are sinfully ignorant: No man knoweth all that God hath revealed, or that he ought to know. 3. Because by this rule it is impossible for you or any ⟨p. 316⟩man to know who is indeed a member of your Church; for you cannot know mens confused knowledge, or know that it extendeth to all revealed: For if you speak of all revealed in general, or in Scripture, you still damn all, (or most in your own sense) for none, as I said, understand it all to a word:
R. B. Reply. Reply, Ad 2m. Your second answer further proves that your definitions signifie just nothing. They must live in unity of the faith: that is, either with faith or without it: with a belief of what Go hath revealed to be believed, or without it. For to believe any point implicitly, in your ordinary sense, is not to believe it, but only to believe one of the Premises, whence the conclusion must be inferred. But why do you not tell me what you mean by [an Implicite faith]? Faith is called Implicite in several senses. 1. When several truths are actually understood and believed in confuso, or in gross, in some one proposition which containeth the substance of them all; but not with accurate distinct conceptions, nor such as are ripe for any fit expression: This indistinct, immature, imperfect