N02341:464
Ratio disciplinae fratrum Nov-Anglorum. A faithful account of the discipline professed and practised; in…
Ratio disciplinae fratrum Nov-Anglorum. A faithful account of the discipline professed and practised; in the churches of New-England. : With interspersed and instructive reflections on the discipline of the primitive churches. : [Seven lines from Ezekiel]
Boston: printed for S. Gerrish, 1726
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
Nevertheless, it is Believed, and sometimes has been practised, That when any one Particular Church, commits a notorious Error in its Proceedings, the Churches in the Neighbourhood, upon the Noise and Proof of it may write Letters of Admonition unto the Erring Church; not unlike those of old written from the Church of Rome unto the Church of Corinth.
And tho' it has never yet been among the Practises, yet it is one of the Principles in these Churches, That the Neighbouring Churches, upon the Motion of their Pastors, may without any Call from the Church, (or from any in the Church) where gross Mischiefs do notoriously happen, upon the justly believed Report of those Mischiefs, meet in a Council to take a Course about them.
They never had yet any General SYNODS of all the Churches in a Colony, but such as were convened upon a Motion from the Civil Magistrate, upon Matters wherein all the Churches were concerned; and this has been four Times done in the Massachusett-Colony. Nevertheless, they suppose a Liberty to meet in Synods, without the Direction of the Civil Magistrate. Why not, they say, as well as the Primitive Churches before the Days of Constantine?