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<HEAD>MEMORIAL FOR The Members to be Cho&s;en TO Repre&s;ent this CHURCH, at the en&s;uing General A&s;&s;embly, HUMBLY OFFERED, BY <HI>An Elder of the Church of SCOTLAND.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Reverend and Honourable Fathers, and Brethren,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I Crave Leave to be your Remembrancer with all dutiful Re&s;pect, as to &s;ome Things of great Weight in the pre&s;ent Juncture. 1&s;t. It was the Glory of this Church, that for about Fifty Years together, after our Re|formation from <HI>Popery,</HI> we continued free, both of Error and Schi&s;m. And afterwards, when <HI>Antichri&s;tian Prelacy,</HI> with other <HI>Romi&s;h</HI> Trumpery, was thru&s;t in upon us, and &s;upported by the mo&s;t cruel Per&s;ecutions, and horrible Barbarities; yet &s;ome hone&s;t Te&s;timony was born to our received Doctrine, Wor&s;hip, Di&s;cipline and Government. No Party among&s;t us maintained Doctri|nal Errors. Once indeed we had the &s;harp Trial, that a Deluge of Errors and Here&s;ies broke in among&s;t us, at the Advantage of a conquering Enemy, when the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> Sectaries got Footing here, and kept us under their Feet, for a con|&s;iderable
<PB N="2" REF="2">Number of Years; neverthele&s;s all that Time they could Pro&s;elyte no Party among&s;t us, to e&s;pou&s;e their Errors. A few, I confe&s;s, were charmed to &s;ome Liking of the Congregational Way. But as the&s;e were very incon&s;iderable, &s;o neither did they continue. In the mean Time, the Church and Nation ad|hered to our Covenanted Doctrine and Di&s;cipline; and did al&s;o &s;ignalize them|&s;elves for inviolable Loyalty amid&s;t many &s;trong Temptations from a victo|rious U&s;urper, at the Head of a powerful Army, flu&s;hed with unexpected Suc|ce&s;&s;es. But now while we enjoy Quietne&s;s and Liberty, it's Matter of heavy Re|grate, that the poi&s;onous Leaven of Error &s;hould ferment and &s;pread &s;o &s;trongly. 2dly. It's humbly tendered to your &s;erious Con&s;ideration, That judicious and godly Per&s;ons in forreign Places, think &s;trange, and lament, That this Church hath not taken the Affair of Profe&s;&s;or <HI>Sim&s;on</HI> into their own Hands, and have de|clined to appoint an Enquiry to be made in Name of the Church of <HI>Scotland,</HI> into the Errors, he is alledged to have owned, and taught; In&s;tead of which, they have obliged the Reverend Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter</HI> to a laborious and difficult Pur&s;uit, as if it had been a per&s;onal Affair of his, and did not equally, yea, and much more concern the whole Church. To &s;et this Matter in &s;ome Evidence of Light, I tender the following Particulars to your &s;erious Con&s;ideration. 1&s;t. This Me|thod of proceeding was propo&s;ed in full A&s;&s;embly, when the Bu&s;ine&s;s of the Pro|fe&s;&s;or was tabled before them. The Reverend Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter</HI> laid it at their Feet, as an important Concern of the whole Church, and declared his utter Aver&s;ion to intermedle in a per&s;onal Way; yet withal did &s;ignifie his hearty Willingne&s;s to give all the A&s;&s;i&s;tance, that might be within his Reach, providing the A&s;&s;embly would proceed in the Way de&s;ired. 2dly. Neither was this the Sentiment of Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter</HI> alone: Several Honourable and Grave Members of that Venerable A&s;&s;embly were of the &s;ame Judgment. 3dly. With all due Re&s;pect to our very Reverend A&s;&s;emblies, I repre&s;ent, That per&s;onal Pro&s;ecutions in the Affair of Er|ror, are manife&s;tly, and in the Nature of the Thing, obnoxious to &s;uch Incon|veniencies as are mo&s;t hurtful to the Cau&s;e, and favourable on the Side of Error. I &s;hall give but a few Hints, which I pre&s;ume ye will find very plain. This Method tends clearly towards the Prevention of any Pur&s;uits in &s;uch a Cau&s;e, con&s;idering how Matters are &s;tated with poor &s;inful Men. For in Regard of the Softne&s;s and Selfi&s;hne&s;s, with the Timidity of Nature in many; it is pre&s;umable, That not one of an Hundred will adventure upon a Pur&s;uit in this Ca&s;e, when he knows before Hand, that the Church will not a&s;&s;i&s;t him as they refu&s;ed to the Reverend Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter.</HI> The Patrons of Error have ordinarly a &s;trong Party, who more openly, or &s;ecretly favour them, and they are a&s;&s;ured of their utmo&s;t A&s;&s;i&s;tance, ere they broach their own dangerous Opinions. The poi&s;onous Leaven hath u&s;ually &s;pread its Contagion very far, and gone deep ere it appear more openly; and they who may have Thoughts of a Pur&s;uit, in &s;uch Events,
<PB N="3" REF="2">are not readily ignorant of this, nor will fail to <HI>&s;it down and count the Cost,</HI> ere they adventure on &s;uch a difficult Project. Plea&s;e take a little Glance. 1&s;t. They mu&s;t lay their Account to travel the Length of the Radical Judicatory, of which the Per&s;on accu&s;ed is a Member; there they mu&s;t attend, and in Ca&s;e the Pres|bytery favour the Party lybelled, the Pur&s;uit is at the greate&s;t Di&s;advantage, and the Pur&s;uer may readily be di&s;couraged, and &s;uccumb, having no A&s;&s;i&s;tance from the Church. But, to take the Matter by the very be&s;t Handle; what tho' he &s;hould per&s;i&s;t, and finding him&s;elf leas'd, &s;hould appeal to a higher Court; be|&s;ide that he thereby &s;tateth the Court appealed from, a Party again&s;t him, and is lyable to all the Exceptions they can make again&s;t his Management, which may perhaps defeat the Pur&s;uit, becau&s;e of &s;ome Informalities, and bring him&s;elf into the Lurch. I &s;ay, be&s;ides what's plainly &s;uppo&s;able on this Head, though the Af|fair &s;hould be fairly brought to a higher Judicatory, and failing of Redre&s;s there, &s;hould be carried to the highe&s;t in due Form; the Pur&s;uer mu&s;t &s;till follow it out, and attend all this while. And when the Proce&s;s is brought the Length of an A&s;&s;embly, that great Court cannot find Lei&s;ure to examine and cogno&s;ce upon it: it mu&s;t by them be referred to &s;ome Committee; and much depends upon the Choice of &s;uch a Committee, which, if &s;waying, in a great Part towards the Side of the pur&s;ued, will embara&s;s and intangle the Pur&s;uer &s;o much the more. Thus the Matter is to&s;&s;ed from Committee to Committee: He is wi&s;e indeed, who can tell how long. The&s;e are no fooli&s;h and remote Suppo&s;itions; whoever act|eth wi&s;ely, mu&s;t lay his Account with them. 2dly. In regard &s;uch Pur&s;uits are reckoned very provocking, the Pur&s;uer cannot readily e&s;cape all po&s;&s;ible Recri|minations by the pur&s;ued, and the&s;e who take his Part. He mu&s;t lay his Ac|count, to have his Conduct canva&s;&s;ed and &s;ifted to the Outmo&s;t, and every Shadow gra&s;ped at, with the greate&s;t Eagerne&s;s, for bringing him under Di&s;|credit. And if any thing can be found in his Management, that's ju&s;tly exeptio|nable (which may readily befal) he mu&s;t make his Reckoning, that &s;uch Things will be aggravated to the highe&s;t Pinacle. And who knows what Lies and Ca|lumnies may be invented, and to&s;&s;ed upon that Occa&s;ion, and all to blacken the Pur&s;uit, while in the mean Time, the Favourers of the pur&s;ued are bu&s;ied in venting their Legends, concerning his Piety, Learning and eminent Vertues. The&s;e, with other &s;uch Difficuties, will readily fall under the View of any, who deliberatly con&s;iders &s;uch a Pur&s;uit; which being maturely pondered, together with the great Fatigue and Expences he mu&s;t needs undergo (and de&s;erve Con|&s;ideration in their own Place) will go far to deter one, or other, from intenting &s;uch Proce&s;&s;es, in Matters which are no per&s;onal Concerns, but do equally, and yet more affect the whole Church, than any particular Member. Thus the poi|&s;onous Leaven &s;preads, while no Man is like to make it his Bu&s;ine&s;s to &s;top the Diffu&s;ion. And if the Church will not intere&s;t her &s;elf, without &s;ome Pur&s;uer, or
<PB N="4" REF="3">refu&s;eth to take the Load off from his Shoulders, who may adventure to &s;tate a Proce&s;s. Behold, here a more effectual Toleration is granted to Error, than any that a State can inact, e&s;pecially if the&s;e deluding Interprizes be managed with Art, as they fail not to be. Error is a chief Project of lying, and murthering Spirits, for de&s;troying the Churches of CHRIST; and they will take Care to choo&s;e the fitte&s;t Tools. I confe&s;s, That the Re&s;earches of Error ly open to Difficulties, in what|&s;oever Method they be Managed; e&s;pecially after the&s;e Tares are multiplied, and have taken &s;trong and deep Roots, through Neglect of the Watchmen: And the Cure of Eating Cankers is &s;till unea&s;ie. But &s;o much the le&s;s Cau&s;e is there for rolling o|ver &s;uch a Bu&s;ine&s;s upon the Shoulders of any one Per&s;on. The harder the Work be, the more skilful Hands, and the greater Number are nece&s;&s;arly required; And the forementioned, or the like Difficulties are more ea&s;ily prevented or redre&s;&s;ed, under the Churches Management, than when &s;uch Pur&s;uits ly open to the Mi&s;takes of weaker Hands: So much for the Third Particular, <HI>viz.</HI> The Inconveniencies of Per&s;onal Pro&s;ecutions in this Affair. I &s;hall <HI>Fourthly,</HI> Adventure a little higher, and make &s;ome Enquiry into the Divine In&s;titution about the&s;e Matters. I acknowledge, an Undertaking of &s;o much Weight may readily &s;uffer in &s;o weak an Hand: Yet my poor E&s;&s;ay may give Occa&s;ion to others for &s;etting that Bu&s;ine&s;s in &s;ome full Evidence of Light. Were there any Divine Appointment or Per&s;onal Pro&s;ecutions in the pre&s;ent Matter. I &s;hould &s;oon yield the Cau&s;e, and plead no longer on the Score of Inconveniencies: But to me the Scriptures of Truth &s;eem to look a quite contrary Way. 1&s;t. The Body of Sound Interpreters do (&s;o far as I have hitherto under&s;tood) carry the Lord's Commands, both with re&s;pect to Error, and other Di&s;orders. <HI>First,</HI> to the Church. <HI>A Man that is an</HI>
<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="foot"><HI>Tit.</HI> 3.10.</NOTE> <HI>Heretick after the fir&s;t or &s;econd Admoni|tion reject,</HI> or ca&s;t out. The&s;e a&s;&s;uredly are Church Acts, and &s;o under&s;tood by the Cloud of Faithful Interpeters. <HI>They</HI> ought to take Care of the LORD's Vineyard, and to <HI>take the little</HI>
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="foot"><HI>Song</HI> 2.15.</NOTE> <HI>Foxes, which &s;poil the tender Vines,</HI> What|ever Deficiencies may be in the Point of Delating, And touching Scandals in the Conver&s;ation of Profe&s;&s;ing People, the Charge is given primarly to the Church, as our Eminent Divines have &s;till under&s;tood it. <HI>If any Man</HI> (&s;aith th Apo&s;tle) <HI>obey not our Word by this Epi&s;tle</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="foot">&para; 2. <HI>The&s;.</HI> 3.14.</NOTE> <HI>Note that Man, &amp;c.</HI> Let the Church e&s;pe|cially put a Mark upon him. And what if none &s;hould Complain? (&s;uch may be the Degeneracy in particular Churches) mu&s;t Scandals be Tolerated on that Pretext? Our A&s;&s;emblies have intere&s;ted them&s;elves in Points of Di&s;order as to Church Communion, and have made the&s;e the Church's Bu&s;ine&s;s, and Pro&s;ecu|ted them in their own Name with Vigour enough. And mu&s;t the Poy&s;onous Gangrene of Error be no Concern of the Church, and be &s;uffered to &s;pread, unle&s;s &s;ome Per&s;on (and under the heavie&s;t Di&s;couragements) undertake the Pro&s;ecution. We our &s;elves acknowledge, that a <HI>Fama Clamo&s;a</HI> my &s;ufficiently
<PB N="5" REF="3">found the Churches Pur&s;uit in the Matter of Scandal: And is Error of no le&s;s moment? Sure it is more infectious. And (allow me to &s;ay it) there was more than a <HI>Fama Clamo&s;a</HI> in Mr. <HI>Sim&s;on</HI>'s Ca&s;e; for two Presbyteries Delated him to the A&s;&s;embly, and in&s;tructed their Commi&s;&s;ioners to move that the Church &s;hould enquire into the Matter, and yet this may not be made the Churches Bu&s;ine&s;s! What can Impartial Beholders think! 2dly, The De&s;ignation of <HI>Watchmen</HI>
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="foot"><HI>Ezek.</HI> 3.17. <HI>and</HI> 33.7. <HI>Heb.</HI> 13, 17.</NOTE> which the Spirit of GOD giveth to the O|ver&s;eers of the Church, beareth clearly the Obligation that lyeth upon them to make the Affair of Error their Bu&s;ine&s;s. It were a &s;orry In&s;pection of <HI>Watch|men,</HI> &s;hould they &s;uffer a whole City to be Murthered, unle&s;s a Potent Poy&s;oner were Pro&s;ecuted before them by &s;ome particular Citizen? I need not enlarge a Remark &s;o very obvious. 3dly, I Appeal to the fir&s;t Chri&s;tian and New Te&s;ta|ment A&s;&s;embly at <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI>
<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="foot"><HI>Acts</HI> 15.1.</NOTE> Here we have a leading In&s;tance, and a clear Rule laid before us by an A&s;&s;embly under the Conduct of Men Divinely In&s;pir|ed, and who might truly &s;ay, <HI>It &s;eemed good unto the</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="foot">&para; <HI>Ver&s;.</HI> 5.28.</NOTE> <HI>Holy Gho&s;t, and to us.</HI> An Error had &s;prung up in the Primitive Virgin Church; Namely <HI>Certain Men which came from</HI> Judea <HI>had taught the Brethren: Except ye be</HI>
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="foot"><HI>Gal.</HI> 5.1.2.</NOTE> <HI>Circumci&s;ed after the Manner of</HI> Mo&s;es <HI>ye cannot be &s;aved.</HI> What was the Management of the Apo&s;tles and Elders in this Ca&s;e? Did they Si&s;t, until &s;ome one or other had the Courage to commence a Proce&s;s? Nay, the Church made the Affair it's own Bu|&s;ine&s;s, and met about the Matter in a Judicative Capacity, as may be &s;een at more length in the Hi&s;tory. Suffer me a little to run the Parallel; <HI>Certain Men have ari&s;en among&s;t us, who teach &s;trange, but no le&s;s, yea, and more Dangerous Doctrines: For In&s;tance, they call in que&s;tion</HI> Adam's <HI>Federal Head|&s;hip, and A&s;&s;ert a &s;ure Connection between Moral Seriou&s;ne&s;s and Saving Grace. They Aver, That the Number of the Saved is equal to, Yea, and greater than that of the Damned; And that all Infants Chri&s;tian and Heathen, dying in their Non-Age are Saved, heing Born in an E&s;tate of Favour, from which no|thing can ca&s;t them out; But a Rejection of the offered Salvation; And that this Salvation is explicitely or implicitely offered unto all, both within, and with|out the Church, with a great deal more Rotten and Poy&s;onous</HI> Pelagian <HI>Stuff, all tending to exalt corrupt Nature.</HI> This is ob&s;erved, Judicatories find Fault with it, &s;ome of them Attempt to lay it before the whole Repre&s;entative Church, yet they are born down and Di&s;couraged. A great Party Con&s;pires to cru&s;h the very fir&s;t Motions, tho' but humbly craving an Inquiry. Neverthele&s;s it comes before our A&s;&s;emblies at length; And their Conduct is &s;uch, as I love not to Repeat. They will not make it their Bu&s;ine&s;s, nor do they attempt to Meet <HI>ex profe&s;&s;o</HI> upon that Head. Nay the Reverend Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter</HI> who had but an equal Intere&s;t with others, tho' Honoured to &s;tir more in that Matter: Mr. <HI>Web&s;ter,</HI> I &s;ay, mu&s;t be obliged to an unea&s;ie Pur&s;uit, and the A&s;&s;embly refu&s;|eth
<PB N="6" REF="4">to grant his humble-Petition, earne&s;tly craving the Appointment of &s;ome little A&s;&s;i&s;tance, tho' upon Solemn Promi&s;e to intere&s;t none in the Cau&s;e but him&s;elf. Now after all, dare we hold up our Faces, and think, or &s;ay, that, we have &s;incerely followed the Scriptural Pattern in Profe&s;&s;or <HI>Sim&s;on</HI>'s Affair. So much for this Head. I Repre&s;ent 5ly. That the Churches of CHRIT from their fir&s;t and Pure&s;t Times have endeavoured to follow the Apo&s;tolical Pat|tern, and are not accu&s;tomed to make the Bu&s;ine&s;s of Error a Per&s;onal Bu&s;ine&s;s. Here I might give large and Circum&s;tanced Accounts from the fir&s;t Records of Church Hi&s;tory to following Ages, and to Times, within the Compa&s;s of our own Memory. But, &s;uch a Labour would carry me too far, and is not nece&s;&s;ary, while I Write to Per&s;ons much better Ver&s;ed in the&s;e Matters. Only allow me to give a &s;lender Touch. This was not the Method of the fir&s;t four Gene|ral Councils, &s;o far as I could find, in the Matter of Error. Neither did the Renowned Synod which met at <HI>Dordreght,</HI> near the beginning of the la&s;t Age, oblige any to a Per&s;onal Pro&s;ecution of the <HI>Arminians,</HI> nor any Leader of them. That Church made it their own Bu&s;ine&s;s. And in our Times <HI>Roel</HI>'s and <HI>Leen|hof</HI>'s Errors were Condemned in the <HI>Netherlands,</HI> and Intrants into the Mini|&s;try obliged by the Cla&s;&s;es there to Renounce them. There was no Per&s;onal Pro|&s;ecution in that Matter. And I remember that &s;everal Years ago, when I was occa&s;ionally at <HI>Rotterdam,</HI> the <HI>Cla&s;&s;is</HI> (or Presbytery) there, took Notice of &s;ome Erroneous Po&s;itions peeping out among the <HI>French</HI> Refugees, and obliged the Su&s;pected Per&s;ons to Renounce them; As of Old, the <HI>Cla&s;&s;is</HI> at <HI>Am&s;terdam,</HI> had obliged <HI>Jacobus Arminius</HI> while he was one of the Mini&s;ters of that City, to Re|nounce the Errors he had begun to vent. In all the&s;e Tran&s;actions no Load was laid upon any Per&s;on to &s;tate and follow out a Proce&s;s, Yea, even our Congrega|tional Brethren in <HI>New England</HI> (who are not the greate&s;t Friends to the Ju&s;t Power of Church Judicatories) Yet in the Affair of Error, did meet in a General Synod, Condemned &s;ome dangerous Errors &s;prung up among&s;t them, and ordered a vigorous Pro&s;ecution by the &s;everal Churches of every one who pre&s;umed to vent the Condemned Errors. I know it will be Objected, That our A&s;&s;em|blies have proceeded in this Matter, according to their own Acts, which were made upon mature Deliberation; and as it is pre&s;umable, they knew be&s;t the Circum&s;tanced &s;tate of this Church, to which they adju&s;ted them, &s;o it may be ju&s;tly accounted intollerable Pre&s;umption in any Member of this Church at one da&s;h, to condemn the whole Church. I An&s;wer, that I owe, and do &s;incerely pay dutiful Re&s;pect to this Church and her A&s;&s;emblies, tho' I Lament much want of the Zeal and Integrity which &s;ignalized us in former and purer Times. I am al&s;o well &s;atisfied with the Act, which obligeth to Commence Proce&s;&s;es again&s;t Mini&s;ters at the Radical Judicatories of which they are Members, and that the &s;teps &s;hould be taken, and Methods u&s;ed, to which
<PB N="7" REF="4">our Form of Proce&s;s directs. All this I Acknowledge, is wi&s;ely Ordered and well Inacted by the very Reverend and Honourable Compilers, and ought to hold in ordinary Ca&s;es, but as the choice&s;t Rules of humane Framing, admit of &s;ome Exception; &s;o there are Specialities in the Affair of Error, which render other Methods nece&s;&s;ary. Scandals of Practice, are held in general Dete&s;tation, no Per&s;on pleads for them, and they are not &s;o Infectious, but that the u&s;ual Steps may be taken in the Proce&s;s, and competent time for that Effect may be be&s;towed without Hurt. Pur&s;uers may be al&s;o nece&s;&s;ary in the&s;e Events, and yet the Church may proceed without them upon a <HI>fama clamo&s;a.</HI> Neverthele&s;s, there are &s;pecialities in the Matter of Error, which require that the Church &s;hould make it her own Bu&s;ine&s;s. Errors are not ordinarly broached, until the Favourers of them be &s;o Strengthened, that &s;carce any Accu&s;er &s;hall dare to appear again&s;t them, e&s;pecially when at the forementioned or the like Di&s;advantages; and thus the Poi&s;on de&s;troys without Controul, unle&s;s the Church Interpo&s;e. Be&s;ides, that a per&s;onal Pro&s;ecution in &s;uch Ca&s;es is &s;o difficult, invidious, and lyable to &s;uch manifold Checks, that few will be found, both able and willing for &s;uch an Enterpri&s;e: And Per&s;ons of Eminency, may readily be doubtful, whether the LORD call them to &s;et their Faces again&s;t Streams &s;o very &s;trong, or may be tempted to de&s;i&s;t from &s;uch Pur|&s;uits in Ca&s;e they enter upon them, becau&s;e of the Difficulties and Di&s;couragements that attend the&s;e Proce&s;&s;es. Moreover, Errors in a Church are like a &s;preading Gangrene or a Hou&s;e &s;et on Fire. No delay may take place in &s;uch Events, but all Hands ought to be at Work immediately, in the fir&s;t place, to put a &s;top to the Progre&s;s, and afterwards to u&s;e the &s;peedie&s;t, and mo&s;t effectul Methods for removing the Cau&s;es. This hard and important Work, the Churches of CHRIST have from the Beginning u&s;ually accounted their own Bu&s;ine&s;s. 6ly. It may be con&s;idered, that &s;ome Errors vented by a late Probationer, and Publi&s;hed in a Print by him, and which were much of a bind with the&s;e alledged again&s;t Mr. <HI>Sim&s;on:</HI> The&s;e Errors, I &s;ay, were brought to a quicker I&s;&s;ue. The Reverend Pre&s;|bytery of <HI>Edinburgh</HI> Cogno&s;ced upon them, and took that Probationer's Licen&s;e from him; That Bu&s;ine&s;s was managed without any Per&s;onal Pur&s;uit. 7ly. It is earne&s;tly de&s;ired by many Judicious and Godly in the Land, that be&s;ides others, two Re&s;olutions and Deeds of the Reverend Committee in Mr. <HI>Sim&s;on</HI>'s Affair, may be &s;pecially con&s;idered, which &s;eem to put a &s;ad and effectual Check upon any Proce&s;s in the Point of Error. 1st. The Erronious Po&s;itions charged on Mr. <HI>Sim&s;on,</HI> were &s;o Sen&s;ed by that Committee, and allowed to be Relevant only in the&s;e Sen&s;es, That neither could the Probation by Witne&s;&s;es be Po&s;&s;ible in the&s;e Events, for Witne&s;&s;es cannot prove a Sen&s;e: And Moreover, &s;everal of the&s;e Sen&s;es are &s;o Con&s;trained, That almo&s;t any Hetrodox Po&s;ition, may be dragged into Orthodoxy by &s;uch Strainings. 2dly. They re&s;olved, That no Probation by Witne&s;&s;es &s;hould be admitted, unle&s;s the Witne&s;&s;es could Depone upon the <HI>Ip&s;i&s;&s;i|ma
<PB N="8" REF="5">vert<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">,</HI> without Addition, Dimin<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">tion or the lea&s;t Alteration. Now by &s;uch dealing, tho' the gro&s;&s;e&s;t Here&s;ies were Preached in the Hearing of Thou&s;ands, it were a vain Attempt to intent a Proce&s;s again&s;t the Preacher; Seing it's fairly Pre&s;umable, That Two concurring Witne&s;&s;es would not be ea&s;ily found a|mong&s;t them all that could Depone upon the very Words, without the Alteration of any one Particle. It's earne&s;tly de&s;ired, that the Venerable A&s;&s;embly would Remove the&s;e Ob&s;tructions.</P>
<P>After all, for as much as the Tares of Error are Sown, and Springing up in this Church, where the Increa&s;e mu&s;t needs be Great, while the nece&s;&s;ary Pur&s;uits are at the Di&s;advantages which render them almo&s;t utterly Impracticable. It is the humble and earne&s;t De&s;ire of many Judicious and Godly Per&s;ons, both in this and other Churches, that not only the Affair of Profe&s;&s;or <HI>Sim&s;on</HI> may be brought to a ju&s;t I&s;&s;ue, but that al&s;o, the venerable en&s;uing A&s;&s;embly would con&s;ider and make &s;uch Acts, as they in their Wi&s;dom, and under the Divine Conduct, may find Nece&s;&s;ary and Proper, for Purging out that Poi&s;onous Leaven which hath Fer|mented many among&s;t us, and is &s;till &s;preading. I &s;hall be very far from Pre&s;crib|ing to that Great and Venerable Court. I only Repre&s;ent this plain Overture, with all dutiful Submi&s;&s;ion, Namely, That they would Condemn by a Solemn Act, the &s;preading Errors, which are like to prevail among&s;t us, and may be ea&s;i|ly &s;pecified upon no great Inquiry, and that they would appoint the Judicatories of this National Church, to take a clo&s;s and narrow In&s;pection of the Mini&s;ters and Members thereof, who may be Tainted with the &s;ame, after they have &s;trictly Prohibited the venting of &s;uch Errors; And that they would nor &s;uffer the&s;e Matters any longer, to depend upon Per&s;onal Pro&s;ecutions, which it is not to be thought, that any will Adventure upon, after the Di&s;couragements which the pre&s;ent depending Pur&s;uit hath Laboured under, and that they would oblige all Intrants into the Mini&s;try to renounce the&s;e Errors.</P>
<P>I &s;hall Conclude with this one Remark; That the A&s;&s;embly in the 15 of the <HI>Acts,</HI> the &s;ole Pattern in the Word of GOD we have for our General A&s;&s;emblies, did not bu&s;ie them&s;elves with any thing but the &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of Error, for they Reckoned <HI>that</HI> an Affair of the highe&s;t Importance. And &s;eing <HI>cuilibet licet &s;upplicare,</HI> I do mo&s;t humbly beg the Venerable A&s;&s;embly, as they Tender the Purity of our Doctrine, and the Peace of this Church, to con&s;ider the Affair Judicially, and by them&s;elves, without referring it to a Committee, and giving Implicite Faith to their Report; And tho' the bulk of the Committee's Procedure may frighten &s;ome Members, from granting this my humble de&s;ire, yet the Re|viewing the Di&s;&s;ents made by &s;everal Reverend and Worthy Members of the Committee formerly appointed, will not be a Work of &s;o long a Time, as the A&s;&s;embly in &s;ome Diets cannot con&s;ider.</P>
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