A letter written out of the country to a person of quality in the…A letter written out of the countrey to a person of quality in the…

And now, Sir, I beseech you consider, 1. When he confesses if we be willing to be satisfied, and our Error be involuntary, it shall not be imputed to us for a sin; Why are we to be so severely dealt with for what is not to be imputed to us for a sin? If it were any, methinks it should not deserve such rigour at the hands of Men, that are themselves also liable to Mistakes and Errors. Is it so very criminal, if every poor illiterate Dissenter in England (Man or Woman) cannot in all their days attain to a better and more settled Judgment in such dubious matters, than this Reverend Person had himself arrived to twenty years ago? Especially that never had, or were capable of having those peculiar helps and inducements, to temper and reform their judgments that he hath enjoyed. 'Tis a long time that his own judgment hath been ripening to that maturity, as, at length to think it fit and seasonable to say so much as he hath, for the reforming of ours, even in this Sermon. Methinks he should not be so very quick and hard towards us, upon so slender a cause, as our scrupling some particular Rites to adjudge us and ours to be ⟨p. 12⟩totally deprived of Baptism, which themselves count necessary to our salvation, and of the other Ordinances of Christ, which they do not think unnecessary.

And now, Sir, I beseech you consider, 1. When he confesses if we be willing to be satisfied, and our Errour be involuntary, it shall not be imputed to us for a sin; Why are we to be so severely dealt with for what is not to be imputed to us for a sin? If it were any, methinks it should not deserve such rigor at the hands of Men, that are themselves also liable to Mistakes and Errors. Is it so very criminal, if every poor illiterate Dissenter in England (Man or Woman) cannot in all their days attain to a better and more settled Judgment in such dubious matters, than this Reverend Person had himself arriv'd to twenty years ago? Especially that never had, or were capable of having those peculiar helps and inducements, to temper and reform their judgments that he hath enjoy'd. 'Tis a long time that his own judgment hath been ripening to that maturity, as, at length to think it fit and seasonable to say so much as he hath, for the reforming of ours, even in this Sermon. Methinks he should not be so very quick and hard towards us, upon so slender a cause, as our scrupling some particular Rites to adjudge us and ours to be ⟨p. 12⟩