An answere vnto a wicked & infamous libel made by Christopher Vitel, one of the chiefe English elders of the pretended Family of Loue maintaining their doctrine, & carpingly answeringe to certaine pointes of a boke called the displaing of the Fam. Aunswered by I. Rogers.

Aunswere.

TO Follow a little of your Retho∣rick, you forget both Christianitye and humanitye: so intemperate you are in your blasphemous tearmes, be∣cause Master Bateman calleth your Familye of Loue, a cormorant ••owle, doth it follow that he is a blasphemer of the holy ghost? this is such a conse∣quence as best becomes your schoole, and your franticke humors are there∣by made knowen to the World. Men would not thinke, that such speach should proceede from the ••lders of the Family: this were two much, ••f your yoūg nouices should in their brau••es, and con••i••ions vse: but you to wright such vngodly, and vncomely speach aduisedly, it cannot be colored by any shaddow of wordes: touching Maister Bateman, he is a learned, reu••rent, and godly preacher, neither can your

vngodly tearmes once blemish, nei∣ther his person, nor his calling. I would you did follow that vocation, and calling, wherein you were once placed, no worse then Maister Bate∣mā doth his calling, in discharge wher∣of, you, nor none of your Familye can iustly reprehend him, neither in lyfe, nor doctrine, which is sufficient testimony of his demeanour: For i•• you had any thing to accuse him of, you would not conceale it▪ so bitter are your stomakes, as appeareth by your vngodly tearmes.

Whereas you say, that there is no catholicke Church, b••t the Familye of Loue: this is as stra••nge as your other wordes are horrible, and mon∣strous. For where was your Familye before Dauid George, or HN. were borne & some of your here••ies in dé••de, were maintayned before, by Pellagi∣ans, by ••nabaptistes, by Papistes, and such lyke: but your generall doctrine, was neuer patcht together, but of late by HN. in Flaunders: a place as apt

to brede errors, as you are to broch•• them: in condemning HN. you woul•• haue the world beleue, that Maister Bateman condemneth the lawe, the Prophetes, Christ, and his Apostles. With what impudent face can you a••o••ch this? must 〈◊〉〈◊〉 credit your owne wo••des, and testimonyes onely, because you say your doctrine com∣meth from Sion? Christ hath instruc∣ted his Church sufficiently, to credit no such Fables.

An other reason you produce, that Maister Bateman doth accuse HN. to be of the seede of certaine sectaris, and to cleare him thereof, you ••ay that his doctrine is altog••her agaynst all sectaryes. It is the mann••r of im∣pious perso••••, to flee the ••anies of the facult••e they vse, as the theese, the murtherer, th•• harlot, the dronkerd, or such lyke, they would not be called by those names, which vi••es they im∣b••ace: for it is odious vnto thē: so you to cl••are HN. of partaking w^t sondry sectes doe affirme that he is agayn••t

all sectaryes: that he as a master o•• sectaryes might be alone. But this aunswere is not sufficient to cleare HN. to be voyd of heresis, and sectes, ••t were expediē•• sor his purga••ion, that he should publish vnto the world, if he dealt playnely, a boke to approue his calling, and shew vs in plaine speach, that his doctrine is sound, and agree∣ing vnto the scriptures: otherwise he may deceaue irroneous heads, such as you are: but God his children I hope will take heede of your ••ollyes.