An answer to Mr. Dodwell and Dr. Sherlocke, confuting an universal humane church-supremacy aristocratical and monarchical, as church-tyranny and popery : and defending Dr. Isaac Barrow's treatise against it by Richard Baxter ; preparatory to a fuller treatise against such an universal soveraignty as contrary to reason, Christianity, the Protestant profession, and the Church of England, though the corrupters usurp that title.

Mr. DODWEL's LEVIATHAN, or Absolute Destructive Prelacy, the Son of ABADDON APOLLYON, and not of IESVS CHRIST, &c. (Book 1)

CHAP. I. Of Mr. Dodwel's displeasure against me, as if I accused him to be a Papist; and accused unjustly the Councils of Bishops. (Book 1)

§. 1. WHEN Mr. Dodwell, in a tedious Vo∣lume, did null the Reformed Churches, their Ministry, Sacraments, and Co∣venant-title to salvation, meerly for want of uninterrupted succession down from the Apostles, of Ordination, by such as he appropriateth the name of Bishops to, I aggravated his fault, as being one that professeth himself a Protestant. He took this to be an accusation of Popery: I Published, to satisfie him, that I meant no such thing; but de nomine will call him what he calls himself, and de re will be no judg of any thing but his books and words, to which I leave the Reader to know him: This satisfieth him not, but he continueth so much concerned, that I doubt he will make men think there is some tender place that is so impatient of a mis-supposed touch. I have nothing to do with him, or his Religion, as his, further than he assaulteth us by his Writings: And he is the Accuser, and the Accusation

is of no less moment than aforesaid, and sinning against the Ho∣ly Ghost, and of Schism, and subverting all Government, if we do but practice differently from the Prelates will, and alledg Scripture and Gods Authority for it, and appeal to Christ. I am but on the Defence against all this.

§. 2. I profess it is not meer education, prejudices, custom, or worldly interest which keep me from Popery, or his way of ab∣solute obedience to Prelates. I have studied what may be said for it as well as against it; and I never met but with Two Objecti∣ons, which seemed to me worthy of much further search: One was, that seeing de facto Popery and high Prelacy have so far and long ruled in the Church, whether it be credible that Christ would so permit it, if he hated it, and give his Church, de facto, no bet∣ter government? 2. Whether mens great proneness to discord, make not Popery (Italian, or French) a prudent course.

And to these, 1. I am sure that Christ came to destroy the works of the Devil, and save his people from their sins, and make them holy, a peculiar people, zealous of good works, and gather a Church of such out of the world, and rule them in a Commu∣nion of Saints, till he bring them to perfection. Therefore I have great reason to suspect those men, and that order and course of government, which cherisheth ignorance and sin in Ministers and People, and hunteth, and silenceth faithful Mi∣nisters, and suppresseth, persecuteth, tormenteth, burneth the most conscionable Christians, that for fear of offending God, disobey them, that turn serious Religion and spiriritual Worship of God, into bodily exercises, and meer Conformity to their wills, and outward taking Sacraments, and using commanded Ceremo∣nies and words; under the shadow whereof, for 1000. years, piety hath withered, and impiety prospered.

Christ promised to be with his servants to the end of the world, Mat 28.30. And I cannot but think that he is most with those that are most acquainted with his Gospel, and most love him and obey him, and are most holy and heavenly, and walk not after the flesh, but the spirit, rather than with the ig∣norant, fleshly, worldly malignant Persecutors, that set them a∣gainst serious godliness and godly men.

§. 3. And I take not any notices of the time present from a∣ny thing but certain experience; nor of the Ages past, from e∣nemies, or suspected, but of the eldest times from all our com∣mon Church-history, and of the last 1000, or 1200▪ years, as to the worst part of their actions, from their own greatest friends and flatterers, such as Baronius, Binnius, Platina, Peta∣vius, and others.

§ 4. And the matter of fact, I confess, hath had much pow∣er on my judgment: Had the Popes, and Lording sort of Dio∣cesans been promoters of love and holiness in the Church, and not the woful scandal of it, and the enemies of good men, and serious piety, I should have been stronglier tempted to own their form of government to be of God; though I am assured that Nature maketh one man, or one Council uncapable of proper government over all the earth; I should never have opposed that which doth good. But destruction, silencing, persecuting, cruel∣ties, rebellions, worldliness, ignorance, malignity, and cherishing sin, and suppressing piety, and the very word of God, I am sure are all the work of the Devil, what name or titles soever are pretended for them.

§. 5. And the fact being to me past dispute, I quietly sub∣mit to the dreadful providence of God that permitteth it, con∣sidering,

1. The Church on Earth is no better than the Angels; of Heaven were; and if so many of the Angels kept not their first estate, but fell by Pride, what wonder if many Bishops do so?

2. If Adam and Eve both fell from Innocency, and that so soon, it is not incredible that the Serpent should beguile some Bishops to depart from the simplicity that is in Christ.

3. And if the first born man, Cain, murdered his righteous bro∣ther by malignant envy for his true Religion, it's no wonder if some Clergy-men are such.

4. And if the whole world so soon was drowned in wickedness, that only Noah and his house were meet to be saved from the flood, what wonder if the Church had too great a deluge of iniquity?

5. And to be short, if Noah himself fall after such deliverance, and a Cham be cursed that had been saved, and their posterity proved so bad, that all the Canaanites, &c. must be destroyed; if Sodom's flames too, better warned Lot, or his Wife and Chil∣dren; if Abraham have an Ismael, and Isaac an Esau, and Ia∣cob envious Sons, and two Murderers, and two Adulterers; If Israel sin, and die in the Wilderness; if Aaron after that he had seen, make them an Idol; if Nadab and Abihu die, as they did; if Eli's and Samuel's Sons proved all so bad; and in the days of the Judges there were so many revolts and ruins; if the first King, Saul, so soon revolted; if David so fell, and Absolom so sinned, and Solomon himself: If Ten Tribes so quickly broke off from David's house, and left him but Two; if those Two proved as bad as the Prophets tell us, and went into Cap∣tivity: And if the Nation rebelled against Christ, and be cursed and scattered over the Earth, what wonder if the Pope and proudest Prelate did corrupt the Church of God? If Christs chosen Twelve had a Iudas among them; if the rest strove who should be greatest; if Peter denied him, and they all forsook him and fled; if Heresies swarmed in the Apostles days, and Iewish Teachers would have subjected the Gentiles to Moses's Law; if all forsook Paul in his Tryal, and many accused him before, and such as Diotrephes cast out the Brethren, and pra∣ted maliciously against Iohn; if Christ tell us of a little flock, and not many Noble and great are called; if it be as hard for the Rich to be saved as Christ saith; if for Three hundred years the Church was a persecuted people; and if the Patri∣archs and Bishops themselves, for many hundred years after ac∣cused one another in Councils, and accused such Councils them∣selves of Heresies, and other crimes, as much as is yet visible they did, why should I be scandalized at the badness of Bishops and Councils, and the woful corruptions of the Church?

Especially considering, 1. That it was chiefly but the world∣ly proud domineering sort that thus miscarried, as the very Angels did.

2. That God kept up still a great number of humble and ho∣ly Bishops and Presbyters, that joined not in usurpations and pride with the rest.

3. And that God blest their labours to the saving of so ma∣ny Millions of souls, and propagating true serious Religion to

this day. Yea, some of the great Patriarchs themselves have been holy humble men.

4. And when God preserved, by an humble Ministry, so many Christians, as the Albigenses, Waldenses, and many among the Papists themselves, from the liking and guilt of the Roman cor∣ruptions.

5. And when God hath raised so learned, humble, and holy a Ministry to reform the Churches, and blest their labours in Europe, and specially in England, as he hath done; even those that Mr. Dodwell degradeth; yea, many pious Diocesans here and elsewhere, who yet cannot prove their title by his preten∣ded way of successive Canonical Ordinations; nor durst have sworn that they had such a call.

§. 6. I am sure that the work of Christ is the restoring of Gods Image, holy life, and light, and love; and that the destroy∣ing of these, by hiding the Scriptures, unintelligible worships, Imagery, dead hypocrisie, silencing, and persecuting, and kil∣ling Gods servants, making dividing engines to tear, and Ca∣nons to batter the peace of the Church, and this by an igno∣rant, ungodly, worldly Ministry, seeking not the things of God, but of men; all this is the Devils work; and to do the Devils work against Christ, is not a sign of Christs servants; he bids us judg of our selves and others by the fruits; His servants we are whom we obey: If a Peter once give Christ such world∣ly fleshly counsel, he shall hear worse than I said of Church-Tyrants, get thee behind me Satan, thou art an offence unto me; for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men, Mat. 16.22 hating the good, silencing thousands of faithful Ministers, excommunicating, and sinning against God, in obedience to Prelates, and for using the needful means of their own salvation, and serving God but as Peter and Paul did; this is the Devils work, if he have any in the world. And Mr. Dodwell must trust more to swords than words to keep it up; for there is a spirit in true Christians that will never suffer them to believe that it is pleasing to God, what name soever is preten∣ded for it.

§. 7. I will reverence the Iews visible Church, to whom were committed the Oracles of God, but will not say, that they

sinned not in persecuting Christ and his Apostles; nor say, that they are not now under their own curse, and cut off from the Church, who once cast out Christians from their Synagogues. I will give due honour to Primogeniture, and yet not equal Cain and Abel, Ismael and Isaac, Esau and Iacob, &c. but expect, that as he that was born after the flesh did persecute him that was born after the spirit; even so it will be now: And the world was the world still, when it was taken into the Church. The Heathen Romans were less Persecutors than the Iews, and so are the Turks than the Papists.

§ 8. I shall, in due place, take notice of Mr. D's confining the Essence of the Ministry to transacting between God and man, in covenanting, requiring essentially no more skill than any man is capable of, who is but capable of understanding the common deal∣ings of the world, p. 73, 74. And that Immoralities of such mens Lives excuse us not from Schism, for turning from such to better Teachers, p. 72. contrary to the Epistle of the Carthage Coun∣cil, in the case of Martial and Basilides, and even of Popes and Councils, that forbid hearing Mass from a Fornicator. And his denying the ••cripture to be intended or designed to be a Charter to appeal to for all future generations, and for the extent of Offi∣ces, and preventing litigious dispute about government and subjecti∣on, p. 80, 81. But that recourse ought now to be had to the in∣tention of the Ordainers for these. And what he saith, p. 81. against appealing to Writings (as he calls them), against the sense of all the visible authority of this life, as unreconcilable to the pra∣ctice of any visible government on earth, p. 81. And that sub∣jects cannot preserve their subordination to their superiors, if they practice differently, and defend their practices, and pretend Divine Authority for them, where he speaketh indefinitely, and except∣eth no practices. And if we may not appeal from man to God and Scripture, we may appeal from Scripture to man. And if mans Law be above Gods, it is not from him; for the inferior ma∣keth not his superior.

And the root of all this i••, p 82▪ That God hath made his Church (and not only particular Churches that are parts of his Church) a visible Society, and constituted a visible Government in it. Did I know what Mr. D. taketh this one visible Government to be, whether Ge∣neral Council, or Pope, or all the Bishops of the world by a major

vote, or all the people of the Christian world, or what, I should know what to say to him. But for this I must not hope.

§. 9. But I shall after speak to his securing subterfuge, p. 90. That there is but one sense of all terms, which causes oblige men to mean; and that every one ought to know who pretends to skill in cau∣ses. Which I am so defective in, that I know not at all what his cause is till he tell me: Nor know I among many senses of most of his chief terms, which it is that he meaneth. I know not what he meaneth by a Papist; and whether he take those for Papists that are, as the Councils of Constance, and Basil, and the French, for the supremacy of a Council, the Pope being President, or Principium Vnitatis, and Patriarch of us in the West. I know not who he meaneth by the Supreme Church-power in the visible Universal Church. I know not by what he essentiateth the very Episcopacy which he so much pleads for; no, nor their Ordination. I know not what he taketh to be the Supreme Church-power over the Church of England. And how can I know by the bare general name, when Dr. Stillingfleet denieth any such thing?