4 Obj But the issue sheweth how little good your Teaching doth! where are any more against Bishops and Conformity than your hearers? You make men hypocrites, and teach them to prate phra∣ses, and cut faces, and rail at carnal reason, and this goeth for Godliness, when they are worse than you found them. And how have you cured all that ignorance of the people which you lament? If it be cured, that argument for the necessity of your Preaching is gone? If they are not cured, how can you yet think to cure them? therefore their necessity is no plea for your Preaching.

Page  65Ans. 1. Thus indeed the Quakers were wont to revile us in the open streets, and tell us our Preaching did no good; and they would point at a gaudy Coat, or any thing that they accounted pride or vanity, and cry out, See, this is the fruit of your Mini∣stry. But through the great mercy of God, our success hath been such, that constraineth us thankfully to acknowledg his unspeak∣able mercy that ever called us to so blessed a work, though we had been sooner fed with the bread and water of affliction; And that under Usurpation it self, even while we wrote and preacht against it, we had so many years liberty before we were silenced.

2. A Town and Church is not a being of the same materials from time to time, but like a river which consists of transient mat∣ter. Abundance are dead and got safe to Heaven, that we at first instructed, who are yet our comforts, being saved from this unto∣ward generation, and from this present evil world. And those that were children when I was last with that people, and taught them, are now men. And what need all these may have of teaching as well as their Parents had, I know not. But I am sure where I come, that ignorance doth prevail.

3. Knowledg is gotten by slow degrees, especially by the poor and vulgar. The School that hath been taught many years success∣fully, may have need of teaching still. The best are too ignorant, and the want of knowledg will appear in the wants of virtue, and obedience and good life.

4. You force us to answer this also Historically: But the best is we have witnesses enough upon the place. I will first speak of that success which you your selves desire, and then of that which we desired, and which some contemn.

1. This week I spake with a very learned, worthy, silenced Mi∣nister, who dwelleth in a great Market-Town in the West, who telleth me, of a multitude there that have been formerly otherwise minded, there is scarce two or three that now go not with him to the publick Parish-Worship.

When I was in Kiderminster I could have been more confident of the ruling of that people in equal ways; but since I came away, my silencing hath so disaffected them to the Bishops, more than I then left them, that multitudes will not communicate in the Sacra∣ment in publick: I cannot come at them, nor I do not write to them, lest I offend those that think I do but seduce them. But those Page  66 that call on me, say, VVe cannot embody our selves in Church-commu∣nion with such persecutors. Especially since several of them have lain in the Goal; but before, they had no such argument to plead. Yet do I usually satisfie those that speak to me here in their travels. But that is but a few. But yet I hear not of four men and women in the Town that do not come to the publick Assembly.

I have told you, at Acton where I lived last, I knew not of three persons of all my hearers of that Parish that did not come to the publick Assembly, and join in the use of the Liturgy. So much for that part of our success.

2. But I will not deny to you that we define not Godliness by Conformity to Diocesans, or Ceremonies, and therefore have an∣other kind of success which we first and more endeavour, which is to teach them the meaning of their Baptismal Covenant, and the Creed, Lords-prayer, and Ten Commandments; and to teach them to believe aright in Christ▪ and to love God above all, and their neighbour as themselves, and to live soberly, righteously and godly in the world, and to have their hearts and conversations in Heaven, and by the spirit to mortifie the lusts and deeds of the flesh. And if we can get them well to digest and practise thus much, we think we have not lost our labour; though they are not yet acute enough, to cut by so small a thred as some more subtle wits, nor to cleave a hair, nor to decide all Controversies about Dio∣cesans and ceremonies. And seeing neither of these are in our Creed, we hold them no articles of our Faith, and therefore not necessary to our hearers Salvation.

And as to our success in this, the men themselves, and those that know them, and see their lives, are the fittest Judges. I meddle not with other men: I must say of my own hearers with humble thank∣fulness to God, that when I came to Kiderminster it was noted publickly for one of the rudest Towns in the County; and when I left them it was much otherwise. And to those that may say, It is but in prating phrases, and cutting faces, and thinking themselves better than others: I answer, 1. They were not Academicks, much less Doctors; they spake not artificially according to the rules of Rhetorick or Logick. They could not dispute well of the fixed Stars or Planets, the Vortices or Spheres, the Elements or Atoms, &c. And they are in their garb and speech as poor men are, both plain, and some of them rustical. And when they talk of Religion, some of them are not free from some such unaccurate Page  67 expressions, and uncogent arguings as in the Schools would make them ridiculous. And they pray not all in words so accurate (espe∣cially the youngest) as I could wish I could do my self. But some of them understand the Body of Divinity, and the Doctrinal Con∣troversies too, which I have written on, and pray in so good or∣der and expression, as I meet not now with one Parish-Minister of ten or twenty that excelleth them. Indeed those of them that fear God, do take themselves to be better and happier now than they were when they feared him not, or than drunkards, worldlings, and malicious enemies of Godliness are. And though they abhor the Pharisees hypocritical thanks, they think that unthankfulness to God for his grace is no virtue, nor thankfulness a vice or thing in∣different. They are eminent for humility; so far from a proud and preaching vein, (when it was the temptation and disorder of the time) that I could never get one man of them to try his parts by one private Exercise that way; some from Oxford that admired them would have drawn some of them towards the Ministry; which made me wish them to a trial, but never could procure it. I never knew of one man that preacht or expounded Scripture to others (unless in conference about the sense of a Text) in all the time that I was there. Though I am not one that condemn all that in their families do otherwise. They were not then noted for censo∣rious to dissenters (unless two or three particular persons.) They addicted themselves to no parties, sidings, or factions in Religion. They that you call Puritans, and our followers, were neither Epis∣copal, Presbyterians, or Independents; but for plain Christianity and Godliness as such, and for the unity of all sober Christians, and to do their own duty, in that especially which all these parties did consent in. When I was removed from them, and they heard a stranger in the Pulpit crying out against them as Presbyterians, and a generation of vipers, &c. I hear they looked somewhat strangely at such strange kind of Preaching; what! the man meant to pretend to know their judgments better than they knew their own! When I never knew two whose judgments were for the Presbyterian Go∣vernment in all the Town and Parish. They were in all this so una∣nimous and concordant, that when division shattered some other Parishes, there was not that I heard of one Anabaptist, one Quaker, nor of any different party at all among them, save that two ot three in the War fell off from Christianity and all Religion, and became as a pillar of Salt unto all the rest. When I called them Page  68 to my house to be Catechised and instructed, there were very few families refused. And there were not, that I could hear of in the heart of the Town, above one or two families in a street▪side that did not call on God, and daily worship him. The Lords-day they spent in publick Worship, and in repeating for memory what they heard, and in Praying and singing Psalms of praise. They lived in quietness, and had no Law-suits nor known contentions. None of them lived in wealth or worldly honours, none in idleness, few or none in begging, but in daily painful labour in their Callings, by which they lived from hand to mouth. Those few that were com∣mon drunkards in the Town (three or four that custom had made as beasts) were yet convinced that their neighbours were better and happier than they.

As to their cutting faces, I can say nothing to you, but that their tone was as decent as most Preachers I now hear, and their countenance as sober and well composed. But God most regardeth the composure of the heart. But all that seemeth serious is to some men matter of scorn; and one lately telleth you, That if you stop the Nonconformists mouths, no wonder if they speak through the nose. And men will have more care to wash their faces, and compose their countenances in publick, than if you drive them into corners.

And for their prating-phrases, they are ambitious but of two excellencies of speech, the one is to speak their minds in that matter which may have the fullest signification, both of the matter spoken, and of the speakers affections about the matter; (for the use of speech is to express them both), the other is for ornament, and that is to speak in Scripture-phrase, not abused (any further than weak∣ness causeth all the weak to do, even publick Preachers as well as others), but as well understood as they are able. And they that scorn at Scripture-phrase, should not conform to the Book of Ordination or Articles, where the Scripture sufficiency and perfe∣ction is confest. If the phrase of the Scripture it self is not odious, neither is the sober use of it, where it is not perverted. But to such general charges, we can give no answer, but nexa caput se∣quitur; name the particular persons and words, and prove your accusation, and caluminate not the rest against whom no such proof is brought.