A vindication of the Animadversions on Fiat lux

Your Plea to this purpose is blended with a double pretence of Pope, and Church. Sometimes you tell us of the Pope and his succession to St Peter; And sometimes of the Church and its Authority. Sometimes you speak as if both these were one and the same; And sometimes you seem to distinguish them. Some of you, lay most weight upon the Papal succession and Infallibility; and some on the Churches Jurisdiction and Authority. I shall crave leave to take your pleas a-sunder: and first to consider what force they have in them as unto the End whereunto they are applied, severally and apart; and then see what in their joint concurrence they can contribute thereunto. And what ever you think of it, I suppose this course of proceeding will please ingenuous persons, and Lovers of Truth; because it enables them to take a distinct view of the things whereon they are to give judgment. Whereas in your handling of them, something you suppose, something you insinuate, something you openly aver, yet so confound them with other heterogeneous Discourses that it can hardly be discerned what grounds you build upon. A way of proceeding, which as it argues a secret guilt and fear of bringing forth your Principles to Light, so a gross kind of Sophistry, exploded by all Masters of Reason whatsoever. They would not have us fumum ex fulgore, sed ex fumo ⟨p. 162⟩dare lucem, darken things clear and perspicuous in themselves; but to make things dark and confused, perspicuous. And the Orator tells us, that Epicurus his discourse was ambiguous, because his Sententia was inhonesta, his Opinion shameful. And to what purpose should any one contend with you about such general ambiguous expressions; [Greek or Hebrew]; I shall then begin with the Pope and his Infallibility, because you seem to lay most weight thereon and tell us plainly, pag. 379 of your Fiat, Edit, 2d, That if the Pope be not an unerring guide in Affairs of Religion, all is lost; And that, A man once rid of his Authority, may as easily deride, and as solidly confute the Incarnation, as the Sprinkling of Holy water; so resolving our faith of the Incarnation of Christ into his Authority or Testimony: Yea and in the same page; That if it had not been for the Pope, Christ himself had not been taken in the world for any such Person, as he is believed this day: And p. 378. to the same purpose;

YOur Plea to this purpose is blended with a double pretence of Pope, and Church. Sometimes you tell us of the Pope and his succession to St Peter; And sometimes of the Church and its Authority. Sometimes you speak as if both these were one and the same; And sometimes you seem to distinguish them. Some of you, lay most weight upon the Papall suceession and Infallibility; and some on the Churches Jurisdiction and Authority. I shall crave leave to take your pleas a-sunder: and first to consider what force they have in them as unto the End whereunto they are applied, severally and apart; and then see what in their joint concurrence they can contribute thereunto. And what ever you think of it, I suppose this course of proceeding will please ingenuous persons, and Lovers of Truth; because it enables them to take a distinct view of the things whereon they are to give judgment. Whereas in your handling of them, something you suppose, something you insinuate, something you openly averr, yet so confound them with other heterogenious Discourses that it can hardly be discerned what grounds you build upon. A way of proceeding, which as it argues a secret guilt and fear of bringing forth your Principles to Light, so a gross kind of Sophistry, exploded by all Masters of Reason whatsoever. They would not have us fumum ex fulgore, sed ex fumo