in another fenfe, a man of fincerity and candour is called a true man. Truth in the one fense imports the effential conftitution, and in the other it imports only a quality that is accidental to it. So when we acknowledge that any fociety is a true Church, we ought to be fuppofed to mean no other, than that the covenant of Grace in its effential constituent parts is preferved entire in that body; and not that it is true in all its doctrines and decifions.

The fecond thing to be confidered in a Church is, their affociation together in the ufe of the facraments. For thefe are given by Chrift to the fociety, as the rites and badges of that body. That which makes particular men believers, is their receiving the fundamentals of Chriftianity; fo that which conftitutes the body of the Church, is the profeffion of that faith, and the use of those facraments, which are the rites and diftinctions of those who profess it.

In this likewise a diftinction is to be made between what is effential to a facrament, and what is the exact obfervance of it according to the inftitution. Additions to the facraments do not annul them, though they corrupt them with that adulterate mixture. Therefore where the fponfions are made, and a washing with water is used with the words of Chrift, there we own that there is a true baptifm: though there may be a large addition of other rites, which we reject as fuperftitious, though we do not pretend that they null the baptifm. But if any part of the inftitution is cut off, there we do not own the facrament to be true: because it being an institution of Christ's, it can no more be esteemed a true facrament, than as it retains all that, which by the inftitution appears to be the main and effential parts of the action.

Upon this account it is, that fince Chrift appointed bread and wine for his other facrament, and that he not only bleffed both, but diftributed both, with words appropriated to each kind, we do not esteem that to be a true facrament, in which either the one or the other of thefe kinds is withdrawn.

But in the next place, there may be many things neceffary in the way of precept and order, both with relation to the facraments, and to the other public acts of worship, in which though additions or defects are erroneous and faulty, yet they do not aunul the facraments.

We think none ought to baptize but men dedicated to the fervice of God, and ordained according to that conftitution that was fettled in the Church by the Apostles; and yet baptifm by laics, or by women, fuch as is moft commonly practifed in the Roman Church, is not efteemed

null

ART.

XIX.

ART.

XIX.

null by us, nor is it repeated: becaufe we make a difference between what is effential to a facrament, and what is requifite in the regular way of ufing it.

None can deny this among us, but thofe who will queftion the whole Chriftianity of the Roman Church, where the midwives do generally baptize: but if this invalidates the baptifm, then we muft queftion all that is done among them: perfons fo baptized, if their baptifm is void, are neither truly ordained, nor capable of any other act of Church-communion. Therefore men's being in orders, or their being duly ordained, is not neceffary to the effence of the facrament of baptifm, but only to the regularity of adminiftering it: and fo the want of it does not void it, but does only prove fuch men to be under fome defects and diforder in their conftitution.

Thus I have laid down those distinctions that will guide us in the right underftanding of this Article. If we believe that any fociety retains the fundamentals of Christianity, we do from that conclude it to be a true Church, to have a true baptifm, and the members of it to be capable of falvation. But we are not upon that bound to affociate ourselves to their communion: for if they have the addition of false doctrines, or any unlawful parts of worship among them, we are not bound to join in that which we are perfuaded is error, idolatry, or fuperftition.

If the facraments that Chrift has appointed are obferved and miniftered by any Church as to the main of them, according to his inftitution, we are to own thofe for valid actions: but we are not for that bound to join in communion with them, if they have adulterated these with many mixtures and additions.

Thus a plain difference is made between our owning that a Church may retain the fundamentals of Chriftianity, a true baptism, and true orders, which are a confequent upon the former, and our joining with that Church in fuch acts as we think are fo far vitiated, that they become unlawful to us to do them. Purfuant to this, we do neither repeat the baptifm, nor the ordinations of the Church of Rome: we acknowledge that our forefathers were both baptized and ordained in that communion: and we derive our prefent Chriftianity or baptifm, and our orders from thence: yet we think that there were fo many unlawful actions, even in thofe rituals, befides the other corruptions of their worship, that we cannot join in fuch any more.

The being baptized in a Church does not tie a man to

XIX.

every thing in that Church; it only ties him to the ART. covenant of Grace. The ftipulations which are made in baptifm, as well as in ordination, do only bind a man to the Chriftian faith, or to the faithful difpenfing of that Gofpel, and of thofe facraments, of which he is made a minifter: fo he who, being convinced of the errors and corruptions of a Church, departs from them, and goes on in the purity of the Chriftian religion, does purfue the true effect both of his baptifm, and of his ordination vows. For thefe are to be confidered as ties upon him only to God and Chrift, and not to adhere to the other dictates of that body, in which he had his birth, baptifm, and ordination.

The great objection against all this is, that it fets up a private judgment, it gives particular perfons a right of judging Churches: whereas the natural order is, that private perfons ought to be fubject and obedient to the Church.

This muft needs feed pride and curiofity, it must break all order, and caft all things loofe, if every fingle man, according to his reading and prefumption, will judge of Churches and Communions.

On this head it is very eafy to employ a great deal of popular eloquence, to decry private men's examining of Scriptures, and forming their judgments of things out of them, and not fubmitting all to the judgment of the Church. But how abfurd foever this may feem, all parties do acknowledge that it must be done.

Thofe of the Church of Rome do teach, that a man born in the Greek Church, or among us, is bound to lay down his error, and his communion too, and to come over to them; and yet they allow our baptifm, as well as they do the ordinations of the Greek Church.

Thus they allow private men to judge, and that in fo great a point, as what Church and what Communion ought to be chofen or forfaken. And it is certain, that to judge of Churches and Communions is a thing of that intricacy, that if private judgment is allowed here, there is no reason to deny it its full fcope as to all other matters.

God has given us rational faculties to guide and direct us; and we must make the most of these that we can: we muft judge with our own reafons, as well as fee with our own eyes neither can we, or ought we to resign up our understandings to any others, unless we are convinced that God has impofed this upon us, by his making them infallible, fo that we are fecured from error if we follow them.

All

ART.
XIX.

All this we muft examine, and be well affured of it, otherwise it will be a very rath, unmanly, and bafe thing in us, to muffle up our own understandings, and to deliver our reafon and faith over to others blindfold. Reafon is God's image in us; and as the use and application of our reafon, as well as of the freedom of our wills, are the highest excellencies of the rational nature; fo they muft be always claimed, and ought never to be parted with by us, but upon clear and certain authorities in the name of God, putting us implicitly under the dictates of others.

We may abuse the ufe of our reafon, as well as the liberty of our will; and may be damned for the one as well as the other. But when we fet ourselves to make the best use we can of the freedom of our wills, we may and do upon that expect fecret affiftances. We have both the like promifes, direction to the like prayers, and reason to expect the fame illumination, to make us fee, know, and comprehend the truths of religion, that we have to expect that our powers fhall be inwardly ftrengthened to love and obey them. David prays that God may open bis eyes, as well as that he may make him to go in his ways. The promises in the Prophets concerning the Gofpeldifpenfation carry in then the being taught of God, as well as the being made to walk in his ways; and the 18. iii. 17. enlightening the mind, and the eyes of the mind to know, is prayed for by St. Paul, as well as that Chrift may

Pr. cxix.

18, 35.

Ephef. i.

in their hearts.

davell

Since then there is an affiftance of the Divine grace given to fortify the understanding, as well as to enable the will, it follows that our understanding is to be employed by us in order to the finding out of the truth, as well as our will in order to the obeying of it. And though this may have very ill confequences, it does not follow from thence, that it is not true. No confequences can be worse than the corruption that is in the world, and the damnation that follows upon fin; and yet God permits it, because he has made us free creatures. Nor can any reafon be given why we fhould be lefs free in the use of our understanding, than we are in the use of our will; or why God fhould make it to be lefs poffible for us to fall into errors, than it is to commit fins. The wrath of God Rom. i. 18, is as much denounced againft men that bold the truth in 2 Theff. ii, unrighteousness, as against other fins; and it is reckoned among the heaviest of curfes, to be given up to strong delufions, to believe a lie. Upon all these reafons therefore it feems clear, that our understandings are left free to us as well as our wills; and if we obferve the style and method

24, 26.

11.

of

of the Scriptures, we fhall find in them all over a conftant ART. appeal to a man's reafon, and to his intellectual faculties.

If the mere dictates of the Church, or of infallible men, had been the refolution or foundation of faith, there had been no need of fuch a long thread of reafoning and difcourfe, as both our Saviour ufed while on earth, and as the Apoftles ufed in their writings. We fee the way of authority is not taken, but explanations are offered, proofs and illuftrations are brought to convince the mind; which fhews that God, in the cleareft manifeftation of his will, would deal with us as with reasonable creatures, who are not to believe but upon perfuafion; and are to use our reafons in order to the attaining that perfuafion. And therefore upon the whole matter we ought not to believe doctrines to be true, because the Church teaches them; but we ought to fearch the Scriptures, and then, according as we find the doctrine of any Church to be true in the fundamentals, we ought to believe her to be a true Church; and if, befides this, the whole extent of the doctrine and worship, together not only with the effential parts of the facraments, but the whole adminiftration of them and the other rituals of any Church, are pure and true; then we ought to account fuch a Church true in the largest extent of the word true; and by confequence we ought to hold communion with it.

:

XIX.

Matth. xvi.

18.

Another queftion may arife out of the firft words of this Article, concerning the vifibility of this Church; Whether it must be always vifible? According to the diftinction hitherto made ufe of, the refolution of this will be foon made. There feem to be promises in the Scriptures, of a perpetual duration of the Chriftian Church: I will be Matth. with you always, even to the end of the world: and, The xxviii. 20. gates of bell fhall not prevail against the Church. The Jewith religion had a period prefixed, in which it was to come to an end but the prophecies that are among the prophets, concerning the new difpenfation, seem to import not only its continuance, but its being continued ftill vifible in the world. But as the Jewith difpenfation was long continued, after they had fallen generally into fome very grofs errors; fo the Chriftian Church may be visible ftill, though not infallible. God may preferve the fucceffion of a true Church, as to the effentials and fundamentals of faith, in the world, even though this fociety fhould fall into error. So a vifible fociety of Christians in a true Church, as to the effentials of our faith, is not controverted by us. We do only deny the infallibility of this true Church and therefore we are not afraid of that queftion,

:

S