Irenicum, to the lovers of truth and peace heart-divisions opened in the causes and…

Rom. 14. is a very useful place for this, Him that is weak in the faith receive, but not to doubtful disputations; Receive him, though he understands not all you do; do not trouble him, neither with nor for doubtful things: One believeth he may eat all things, another who is weak eateth herbs; let not him that eateth, despise him that eateth not; neither let him that eateth not, judge him that eateth, vers. 5. One man esteemeth one day above another, another esteemeth every day alike; let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. Upon this he gives general rules, to do all to the glory of God; all these people were not in the right, for a man not to eat flesh out of conscience, when the thing was not forbidden, certainly was a sin; or to make conscience of a holy day, which God required not, was a sin: Now the Apostle did not come with his authority, and say, I will make you leave off keeping such days, or you shall eat, or to abstain thus as you do, is evil, and it must not be suffered in you. No, the Apostle lays no Apostolical authority upon them, but tells them, That every man must be fully persuaded in his own mind, in what he doth; and who art thou that judgest another mans servant? the Lord hath received him. And yet the Governors of the Churches in the Primitive times might upon much stronger grounds have stood upon such a principle, then any Governors of the Church now can; there was less reason why they should suffer any difference in opinion or practice amongst them, then why we should suffer differences amongst us; for they had men amongst ⟨p. 61⟩them immediately inspired, who could dictate the mind of Christ infallibly, they could tell them the certain meaning of any Scripture. The burden of being under the determinations of such men in points of differences, had not been so great as subjection to any Governors now in such cases would be; our differences are usually about the meaning of such or such Scriptures, in wch both sides think they have the right, & profess one to another, as in the presence of God the searcher of all hearts, that if they could but see the meaning of such a Scripture to be so as their brethren believe it is, they would soon agree: and yet though there were in those Primitive times such means of reconciling differences more then we have, yet there was much mutual toleration amongst them;