The true and only way of concord of all the Christian churches the desirableness of it, and the detection of false dividing terms / opened by Richard Baxter.

CHAP. XII.

Excommunicating and Anathematizing in any of the foresaid Cases, is Schismatical, and not the way to Peace.

§ I. THere need not much more be said of this; it is already proved, That Christ himself hath in his Law, made the terms of the Union and Communion of his Members: As the same Nature that formeth all our members in the womb, is also the placer and uniter of them: Therefore that which is contrary to Christs terms, yea, which is none of them, cannot prove the true terms and means of Concord.

§ II. Indeed no man ought to be Excommunicated

otherwise than by Ministerial Declaration and Judg∣ment, how far he hath first departed from Union, and cut off or Excommunicated himself. An impenitent Fornicator, Drunkard, Persecutor, doth cut off him∣self from the favor of God, and his part in Christ, and the rights of his true Church: Therefore the Pastors may declare that he doth so. And if it become a Con∣troversie either de facto, whether he be such an one; or de jure, whether this be true; the Pastors are the proper Judges, so far as to resolve the Consciences of the Flock, whether they must avoid that man, or com∣municate with him. And this I think the Rational Mr. Hales would not have denied, though in his Trea∣tise of the Keyes, he asserteth only a Declarative, and de∣nieth a Judicial Power: For his Reasons shew that he only meant, that the Church hath no efficient Judg∣ment to cut off any man from Christ or his Body, fur∣ther than he first cuts off himself. And far be it from any Friend of the Church to say, That it is the Bishops Office to undo Souls, and to separate any from Christ, save only by declaring and judging that they wilfully separate themselves; and therefore requiring the People to avoid them, and binding them over to answer their sin at the Bar of God: The rest is the Devils work, and the impenitent Sinners, and not the Pastors of the Church.

§ III. And what is said against the Magistrates unseasonable force, will mostly hold against such undue Excommunication. 1. If the person believe that he is cast out for not forsaking his duty to God, he will re∣joyce that he is counted worthy to suffer for righteous∣ness sake, remembring that Christ said, They shall cast you out of their Synagogues: And this will bring no man to Repentance.

§ IV. And, 2. Then the Pastors will fall under the imputation of Tyranny and Persecution, and be taken

to be Haters and Hinderers of Conscionable men, and grievous Wolves that devour the Flock.

§ V. And, 3. The Parties Excommunicate, will think that this doth not excuse them from the duty of worshipping God; and therefore they will assemble by themselves for such worship; and there they will think, That they are a better Church than those that cast them out; and perhaps may Excommunicate their Excom∣municaters, as the Bishop of Alexandria and Constanti∣nople have done by the Bishop of Rome: Or, more likely, despise their Censure, and go on, unless the Sword be drawn to suppress them, (to which only such Excommunicaters use finally to trust:) And then what will follow, I have shewed before.

§ VI. And indeed we need no greater proof of the ineffectualness of Excommunication in such cases, than the open confession of the Users of it; who, if they have not an Act for Horning (as they call it in Scotland) or to imprison the Excommunicate, or punish him by the Sword, confess that their Sentence will be contemned: which is most true.

§ VII. Yet sad Experience further assureth us, That Papal Anathematizings, yea, and those of Gene∣ral Councils, have been no small cause of Schism, Con∣fusions and Rebellions: The History of this would fill a Volume. Alas! what did the Councils of Ephesus, Constantinople, Chalcedon, and many others, by their Anathemas? The state of Syria, Egypt, and Abassia, &c. of those called Jacobites and Nestorians, tells us to this day: And these Thunderbolts have been the Popes great Engines, to beat down Kings, and batter Kingdoms. It is the admiration of the world, next to the success of ignorant Mahomet, That a company of old Usurpers (many of them successively being noto∣riously wicked men, and so judged by Councils, and their most flattering Historians) should conquer Chri∣stian

Kingdoms and Empires, by sitting at home, and ••ursing men, and telling them, [St. Peter is angry with them, and will keep them out of Heaven, if they be not obedient to the Pope.] But men that will be the Slaves of Sin, deserve to have their Reason so forsaken, to make themselves the Slaves of Subjects.

§ VIII. Yet we are far from thinking, That just Excommunication is of no use; God would not have the Church of Christ to seem no better than the world; it is a Society gathered out of the world by the sanctifying Word and Spirit, and as holy devoted to the most holy God. And he would have the Church Visible, to be visibly the womb of the Triumphant Church, or the Sheepfold of Christ, containing such as have a seeming or visible right to salvation, however Hypocrites do intrude: And therefore the Keys of the Church should be much of Kin to the Keys of Hea∣ven, so that he that is taken in or shut out, may seem to the Christian judgment of probability to be taken in∣to, or shut out of a right to salvation. And therefore as impenitent wicked men should not be deluded in vain hopes, by being received to Church Communion; so neither should godly men, for pardoned or tole∣rable infirmities, be shut out of the Church, while God continueth their visible Title to salvation; much less a Lay-Chancellor, or a Bishop, Excommunicate Christs Members, for not paying their Fees, or for not kneel∣ing at the Sacraments, or for not submitting to unne∣cessary Impositions, or for holding such Things unlaw∣ful, or such like. This way will never heal our breaches, or unite the Churches.