A vindication of the Animadversions on Fiat lux

Your next procedure is to your Discourse of Figures or Images, and my Animadversions upon it. And here you say, you will come up close unto me; you mean in replying unto what I delivered about it; But Sir, I thought this had been contrary to your design; You professed at the beginning of your Epistle that it was so, and have made good use of that declaration of your self, by avoiding every thing in my discourse that you found your self pressed with, and too difficult a task for you to deal withal. Why do you now begin to forget your self and to cast off the pretence you have hitherto shadowed your self under, and excused your self by from tergiversation? Surely you think you are upon this head able to say somewhat to the purpose, which you despaired of doing upon others of as great importance, and therefore now you may argue and dispute, which before the design of your Fiat would not permit you to do. As far as I can observe, you speak nothing at any time but what you think is at present for your turn. But whether it have any consistency with that which elsewhere you have delivered, you make it not much your concernment to enquire. But we shall quickly see whether you had ⟨p. 478⟩any just ground of encouragement to harness your self, and to come up, as you speak, close to me in this business or no. It may be before the close of our Discourse you will begin to think it had been as well for you to have persisted in your former avoidance, as to make this profession of a close dispute; and whatever you pretend to the contrary, really you have done so. You hide the opinion and practice of your Church about the Worship of Images which you seem to be ashamed of, instead of defending them; and except against some passages in my Animadversions instead of answering the whole, which you seem to pretend unto. I shall therefore declare what is the true judgement of your Church in this matter, and then vindicate the passages of my Discourse which you take notice of in your exceptions, and under both heads declare the abomination of your faith and practice in your Doctrine about Images and Worship of them.

YOur next procedure is to your Discourse of Figures or Images, and my Animadversions upon it. And here you say, you will come up close unto me; you mean in replying unto what I delivered about it; But Sir, I thought this had been contrary to your design; You professed at the beginning of your Epistle that it was so, and have made good use of that declaration of your self, by avoiding every thing in my discourse that you found your self pressed with, and too difficult a task for you to deal withal. Why do you now begin to forget your self and to cast off the pretence you have hitherto shaddowed your self under, and excused your self by from tergiversation? Surely you think you are upon this head able to say somewhat to the purpose, which you despaired of doing upon others of as great importance, and therefore now you may argue and dispute, which before the design of your Fiat would not permit you to do. As far as I can observe, you speak nothing at any time but what you think is at present for your turn. But whether it have any consistency with that which elsewhere you have delivered, you make it not much your concernment to enquire. But we shall quickly see whether you had