The practical divinity of the papists discovered to be destructive of Christianity and mens…

Sect. 3. They reckon but Three Theological or Divine virtues; all the other they call moral, of which the Divine are the ^(e)foundation; and so all the rest must stand or fall with them. Now two of these three they make needless (as is before declared) and without these two, Hope, which is the third, is so far from being needful, that it is not possible to have it, as themselves ^(f)acknowledge. A lively hope, with them, is needless, till they ^(g)be dying; and then it can ⟨p. 156⟩but be like the giving up of the Ghost. For to all that follow their Doctrine, and look after no more than that makes necessary: their hopes at last can be no better, no other, than the expectation of such a pardon of sin; as a Priest can give to an impenitent person, one to whom the Lord, did never give hopes of pardon. And this is a hope, than which despair it self is more hopeful: for this leaves no sense of danger, (which despair retains;) and so leaves no desire, nor endeavour to avoid it, even when they are sinking into bottomless misery. Hope is no more needful with them, than a House is to him, who thinks himself concerned, to dig up the foundation of it; and counts it enough that he hath a Castle in the Air. And when they have left nothing that can be a real ground of hope; they found it upon that, which is worse than nothing, their own ^(h)merits: that which is inconsistent with the free grace of God, and the merits of Christ, without which Sinners are hopeless. It is a conjecture, founded upon a delusion, upon merit, which no man can have, and themselves say, none of them know they have, and so upon they know not what. Oh! wretched hopes, that have not so much for their foundation as the Sand, that have nothing to bear them up, but a proud and groundless fancy; that we might count ridiculous, if it were not too horrid to be the matter of sport. Can they blame those, who doubt, whether they will be saved; when they themselves have no better hopes of their own salvation?

Sect. 3. They reckon but Three Theological or Divine vertues; all the other they call moral, of which the Divine are the