A37042:155
The dying man's testament to the Church of Scotland, or, A treatise concerning scandal…
The dying man's testament to the Church of Scotland, or, A treatise concerning scandal divided into four parts ... : in each of which there are not a few choice and useful questions, very shortly and satisfyingly discussed and cleared / by ... Mr. James Durham ... who being dead (by this) yet speaketh ; and published by John Carstares ... ; to which is prefixed an excellent preface of famous Mr. Blair ... ; together with a table of the contents of the several chapters of each part.
Edinburgh: printed by Christopher Higgins, 1659
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.
For, charity requireth that he should be admonished, and also if he hear, that it should sist; Otherwayes, such being satisfied as were offended, it were to waken a scandal, and not to remove one. But now especially we consider what is a public scandal in respect of its nature, and afterward we shall enquire when it is so to be accounted public in respect of its notority; and so when immediately it is to be brought in public: for, it is certain▪ that these two may be divided, and so are to be distinguished, as was formerly hinted. For, a scandal may be public, to say so, for its notority, but yet not for its nature.
For, charity requireth that he should be admonished, and also if he hear, that it should sist; Otherwayes, such being satisfied as were offended, it were to waken a scandal, and not to remove one. But now especially we consider what is a publick scandal in respect of its nature, and afterward we shall enquire when it is so to be accounted publick in respect of its notority; and so when immediatly it is to be brought in publick: for, it is certain▪ that these two may be divided, and so are to be distinguished, as was formerly hinted. For, a scandal may be publick, to say so, for its notority, but yet not for its nature.
2. Scandals may be of that nature, that it is fit1 to take public notice of them, and to follow them with Church-censures till they be removed. This is clear in the Lord's reproving the neglect of public Censure in these Churches; for, His finding fault that they had such, and suffered such (as in the next Epistle) can be constructed no otherwayes, but that they did not by Church-censure cut them off from their fellowship, which is elsewhere abundantly clear. And it is true in these cases, 1. When a scandal is of its own nature gross and infectious, like a little leaven ready to leaven the whole lump. 2. When it is clear and in the matter of fact cannot be denied: the first is requisite to a public scandal for convincing of the conscience of the evil it self; the second for making application of the consequents of such an evil to such a person. 3. An offence becometh public, though it be not of its own nature so at first, if it be afterward aggreged by such circumstances as obstinacy and contempt of private admonition, frequent relapsing therein, and such like, as Christ's rule,