A DEFENCE OF A BOOK INTITULED The Snake in the Grass IN REPLY To Several ANSWERS put out to it by George Whithead Ioseph Wyeth c. London Printed by M. Bonnet for C. Brome at the Gun W. Keblewhite at the Swan in St. Paul's Church-Yard And Geo. Strahan at the Golden-Ball over against the Royal-Exchange in Cornhil 1700. CONTENTS OF THE First Part. The Preface Vindicated in an Advertisement SECT I. GEorge Whitehead's Pleasantry upon the Author of The Snake Page 1. II. His Meek and Lamb-like Treatment of him Page 2. III. His Cry of Persecution against him Page 3. IV. His Address to his Work Page 8. V. His Shuffle about their Answer to the Seven Quaeres given to their Yearly-Meeting An. 1695. Wherein a short Scheme of the QVAKERS Principles and the MONSTROVS Foundation of their Faith Page 9. VI. His Sober Caution consider'd as to those Quakers who were Possest with the Devil Wherein the Wonderful Story of John Gilpin Page 25. The Excuses which G. W. makes for this 1. That this ought not to Reflect upon the Generality of the Quakers or their Principles ibid. 2. That Satan in a Mad or Possest-Man is not Transform'd into an Angel of Light ibid. 3. That such Persons are fitter Objects of Pity than Raillery Wherein of the Quaker-Euthusiasm Page 26. 4. That not more Quakers than others have run Mad. Wherein their Excuse for Gilpin c. is Considered Page 30. Proofs of the Quakers being Mad. 1. In those who went Naked Page 42. 2. In their strange Singularities Page 48. 3. In thinking Themselves to be Free from Sin and Equal to God Page 50. 4. In Assuming to be Prophets ibid. 5. In their Prater-Natural Quaking c. Page 54. 6. In their Silent-Meetings Page 68. 7. In the New-Quakers of America Page 69. 8. In their Vindicating of Mad-Men Page 70. The Abuses and Mistakes which G. W. Alleges in The Snake As to I. The Necessity of Preaching Page 72. II. The Comparison of Fox and Muggleton With G. W's Malicious Innuendo as to the Act of Toleration Page 73. III. Their Order against Carrying Guns in their Ships Page 74. IV. Their Principles Dangerous to Government Page 75. V. Their Opposition of Tythes Page 77. VI. Their Treasons and Rebellion in Abetting Oliver and the Rump Page 83. VII George Fox his Assuming to be Equal with God Page 87. VIII Their Asserting the Sufficiency of their Light within to Salvation without Christ And Assuming the Name of Christ to Themselves Page 90. IX Their turning the Death and Sufferings of Christ into an Allegorie and a Type Page 105. X. 1. Their Spiritual Body of Christ which they suppose He had from Eternity And their Denial of His Now Human Body in Heaven Page 116. 2. Their Denyal that Christ had any Human or Created either Soul or Body while He was upon Earth Page 120. 3. Their BLASPHEMOVS Contempt of Christ Page 131. XI Their Contempt of the H. Scriptures Page 144. XII Their Conforming and Transforming to every Turn Page 146. XIII Their making no Confession of Sin or Praying for Pardon Page 149. XIV Three Matters of Fact relating to the QVAKERS Contempt of the H. Scriptures Which G. W. Denies after his Fashion Page 160. XV. G. W's Defence of Ed. Burrough for his Contempt of H. Scripture Page 166. XVI G. W's Defence of himself for the same Wherein is shewn That the Quakers are Direct Deists and the Worst sort of them Page 169. XVII G. W's Sincerity and Ingenuity in some Objections with which he Concludes the First Part of his Book Wherein the Summ of the Quaker-Doctrine is laid open viz. That they Deny the Humanity of Christ and the Divinity of Jesus Page 179. CONTENTS OF THE Second Part. SECT I. COncerning the Author Page 1. II. The QVAKERS Method in Answering of Books 1. Railing Personal Reflections and Nastiness Page 4. 2. Insolence and Threatnings against any who Oppose them Page 32. 3. Bringing of Contrary-Testimonies Page 51. 4. Double Meanings and Cross Purposes Page 78. 5. Not to take an Answer Page 82. 6. Pretending that the Quotations brought out of their Books are not True because more than is Pertinent is not Quoted Page 85. 7. Appealing from their own Printed Books to the Original Copies Page 94. 8. Falsifying the Meaning of Others For which by Will. Penn 's Rule they are Excluded from being Christians Page 100. III. The Quakers Clear'd from Contradiction in those Seeming Contrary Testimonies which are Produc'd in this Appendix to Defend them from the Heresies Charg'd upon them 1. As to Christ come in the Flesh Page 112. 2. As to the Reality of His Death and Sufferings Page 123. 3. As to the Resurrection and Future Judgment Page 124. 4. Their Testimonies Allow'd to be Contrary upon the Point of Government and Fighting And why Wherein a Deep Secret of their Government is laid open Page 127. IV. Their Wity Answer and Repartees upon the Point of their Denying Marriage and Preaching up of Fornication Page 134. V. Their Re-Asserting of their own Infallibility and Sinless Perfection Wherein of their Idolatry Page 148. VI. Their Defence of not taking off their Hats or giving Civil Titles consider'd Page 162. And of the Pure Language as they call it of Thee and Thou Page 185. Both of which are shewn not to be mere Clownishness or want of Manners But that it Proceeds from a Design they have Form'd to Subvert all Government that is not in their Own Hands For that they think none but Themselves have any Right to Govern VII The Absurdity and Blasphemy of the Quaker Notion of The Light within shewn from Will. Penn 's Defence of it and others viz. 1. That ther is no Natural Light or Reason in Man But that all in him is Divine Page 194. 2. That by this they are not only Equal to God in some sense but that they are very God Himself And that every Creature is God Even the Devil Page 206. 3. Some Texts of H. Scripture Rescu'd from the False Glosses which the Quakers put upon them to favour the Universality of what they call The Light within Page 224. THE COLLECTION Numb I. THE Quaeres given to the Yearly-Meetings of the Quakers at London the 17th of May. 1695. With an Answer given to the same Quaeres by the General Meeting of the Reformed Quakers at Philadelphia in Pensilvania the 18th of Sept. 1695. Page 1. II. George Keith 's Relation of Two Remarkable Meetings of the Quaker Preachers at London An. 1678. Concerning Three Great Fundamental Doctrins of the Christian Faith Page 16. III. Some Passages taken out of a Ms of Humphry Norton 's which is Mention'd in The Second Part. p. 99. 100. Page 39. IV. Some of the Omissions and Alterations that the Quakers have made in the Re-Printing of the Works of their Deceased Prophets Page 52. V. A Letter of John Feild and Will Bingley to Sir Thom. Lane Lord Mayor of London An. 1695. Page 78. VI. A
Body of Christ is within them as well as His Spirit Indeed they are here in a monstrous Confusion for by this Body they mean the Spirit and by a Spiritual Body they mean nothing but Spirit However this serves them to Dodge and Decieve others It was to meet with them in this that the First and the Sixth Quaeres of those given to their Yearly Meeting 1695. were fram'd viz. Do you believe in a Christ without you Now in Heaven And Quaer 6. Is Christ now at this Day and for Ever to come Truly and Really a Man in true and Proper Human Nature without all other Men But in their Pretended Answer to these Quaeres they wave Answering Directly and leave out the words without us and without all other Men and the word Human upon which the Chief stress was laid because they do believe that this Notional Body of Christ is within them as well as His Spirit Therefore they wou'd not Answer to this And tho' this was again Prest upon them in the Conclusion of the Sn. and they were told of all this Dodging and this was put upon them as a Criterion to Clear themselves and therefore they were Desir'd to begin their Answer to the Sn. with a Plain and Direct Ans Yea or Nay to these Two short Queres Yet no Provocation can bring them to it They will not yet Answer to it for it Discovers the Heart of their Cause It wou'd totally overthrow their Ancient Testimonies wherein they Deny That Christ hath now a Body of Flesh and Bones Circumscript or Limited in that Heaven which is Above and out of Every Man on Earth These are the words of John Whitehead in his Quakers Refuge Printed 1673. p. 40. And p. 41. he says that they are in the Error who wou'd Limit it to a Particular Place and out of every Man on Earth for says he The Spirit and Body of Christ is not Divided but wheresoever the Spirit and Life of Christ is it is in the Body of Christ. This shews plainly what they mean That the Body of Christ is not Now a Body Circumscript or Limited to any Place and consequently it is no Body at all for that is Inseperable from a Body but that it is wheresoever His Spirit is and that it is within them and not without all other Men. Thus Edward Burough being Demanded in these Positive Terms Is that very man with that very Body within you Yea or Nay And this he do's not at all Deny but Answers in the Affirmative p. 149. of his works The very Christ of God is within us You must take the meaning of these men by Considering that to which they Answer and which they oppose for in a Limited sense Christ by His Holy Spirit and Influences is within us and Christ is The very Christ so that ther is a sense in which that Expression tho' offensive in the wording of it may be admitted But then when we consider that which they Oppose or to which they Answer the meaning appears Plain for why wou'd they Oppose what they thought Orthodox And this is the method by which we must understand G. Fox's Great Mystery which is a Pretended Answer to 108 Books and Disputes against the Quakers For G. Fox's own words are â—eldom either Sense or English and he Miserably Mis-Quotes and Mistakes their words whom he writes against sometimes it appears to be on Purpose and sometimes out of Pure want of Vnderstanding Half Knave and Half Fool But by Reading those Books which he opposes you may Discover what he wou'd be at Instances of this out of Number can be given Which if any think it worth the while are Ready to be Produc'd But to the Subject we are upon The first Book he Answers in his Great Mystery is of one of the then Ministers Mr. Sam. Eaton call'd The Quakers Confuted Printed A. D. 1654. where p. 12. Mr. Eaton makes as full a Confession as can be to the Inward Presense and Operation of Christ by His Spirit in the Hearts of Believers And therein says he they have Him But they have not Christ in Flesh or the Flesh of Christ dwelling in them for that was taken up into Heaven and will there be Contain'd till the Restitution of All things This G. Fox opposes in his Great Mystery p. 3. And Quotes thus much of his words with the Page But the Saints have not Christ in the Flesh p. 12. And opposes this as Contrary to Christ and the Apostles Doctrin who said they were of His Flesh and of his Bone and they that have His Flesh have it in them This shews in what sense he Understood these Scriptures and what his Notion was of the Flesh of Christ viz. That it was now at this time in all Believers and so not any Literal Flesh but some Imagination or other that they have of Spiritual Flesh which they think that God Himself has and Christ or the Light had from all Eternity so nothing of outward Human Flesh or Nature Tho' if you take the word Human as it may be Deriv'd from Homo a Man thus they will allow that Christ has a True Human Body and Ever had from Eternity that is a True and Real Manhood In this sense it is said before p. 11. l. 8. that they allow the Body which they say Christ had from Eternity to be an Human Body For ther is no other word in Latin whereby to Express the Nature of Man but Humanitas whence we use the word Humanity to mean the same as Manhood But if you Derive the word Human from Humus the Ground or Earth of which Man was Made in this sense the Quakers Deny that Christ had an Human Body from Eternity or indeed while He was upon the Earth For which I Refer you back to p. 19 20. where you will find this Artfully Distinguish'd by the Quakers But we will now go on to see the further Salvos that the Present Antidote affords in this Case Their Denyal that Christ had any Human or Created richer Soul or Body while upon Earth 2. G. W. Skips to p. 38. And takes up this Argument again where he Pretends to Answer the objection of the Quakers making the Body of Jesus only a Vaile or Garment wherein Christ or the word Dwelt but that He took not that Body into His own Person so as to be Hypostatycally United to it And to this he says p. 38. We are to seek herein as not knowing where the Quakers say these things Yet Answers not or Names one of the many Proofs which are brought for this See Sn. Sect. x. This wou'd be very Provoking but that I am us'd to it for it is his Constant Method Yet in the Excuse he makes for it he Confesses enough to shew that the Quakers are Guilty herein For says he Tho' His Flesh is call'd the Vail yet it was that he own'd as His own Body being also call'd the Body of
Jesus which was not a Fantastical but a Real Body Here is putting in things they are not Accused of that they may seem to vindicate themselves in something They are not Accused for saying that the Body of Jesus was a Fantastical or not a Real Body but that it was not Truly that is Hypostatically the Body of Christ only a Vail or Garment wherein He Dwelt And in that sense it was His Body as a Man's Cloak or Garment is his Garment and so it was that as G. W. says which Christ owned as his own Body being also adds he called the Body of Jesus i. e. in some other sense than it was the Body of Christ That is It was the True Proper and Natural Body of the Man Jesus But it was the Body of Christ only as He Dwelt in it in the Body of that man Jesus as G. W. thinks He do's in the Body of George Whitehead Otherwise it cou'd not be call'd the Body of Christ and also as G. W. here the Body of Jesus This must make Jesus and Christ to be Two Persons For Example if I shou'd say the Body of George which is also the Body of Whitehead this wou'd either be Non-sense or else it must Divide George from Whitehead and make the Body to belong to George in one sense and to Whitehead in another It is told before p. 17 18. How nicely G. W. do's Distinguish between Consisting and Having and tho' he Allow'd that Christ once Had a Body that is in His Possession as a man Hath an House or a Cloak yet G. W. positively Denies That Christ did Consist of Human Flesh and Blood And if so Then He was never Truly and Really a Man only such in Appearance and False-shew Which overthrows the whole Foundation of the Christian Faith And is an Abominable Heresie long since Condemn'd by the Catholick Church as I have elsewhere shewn And that the Quakers have Lick'd it up as they wou'd Pretend by Inspiration which if so was most Certainly from the Devil the Father of Lies But let us see more of them Richard Hubberthorn in his works Printed 1663. among several Queres which he puts against Christ's being a Creature or having any Created Nature in Him do's Demand p. 49. and 50. When was that Christ Created which you say must as a Creature Judge the World And if in Mary 's time who was Judge of the World till then Was not the Person of Christ Jesus before the World was And when had the Man Christ Jesus his Beginning if you can Declare it How is Christ the only begotten Son of God if He be a Creature or how can God beget a Creature And if the whole Person of Christ was not before the Earthly Adam how was the Creation made by Him Or how can He be of the Nature of fallen Adam and not Earthly and Defiled And is the Flesh of Christ Heavenly or Earthly Or is He Christ without His Flesh i. e. He had always an Heavenly Flesh and that He has still But never took Flesh of Adam's Nature for then they think He must have been Defil'd As if He cou'd not take the Nature without the Defilement which was but Accidental to it George Fox in his Great Mystery p. 99. sets down this Principle of the Professors as he calls them That Christ hath a Humane Reasonable Soul And he Disputes against it and Battels it as a Gross Error For says he Is not a Human Soul Earthly for you say that Christ had a Human Soul and is not Human Earthly And hath a Human Body and is not a Human Body an Earthly Body was not the first man of the Earth Earthly and had an Human Body the Second man the Lord from Heaven This is the Heavenly Body and Flesh which they suppose Christ had from Eternity But here and in many other Places they Deny Christ to have either Human Body or Soul or to be a Man otherwise than as they say He was Man before the Creation This being Urg'd against them by John Bunyan Minister of Bedford who in his Gospel-Truths Opened Sect. 18. takes pains to prove that the Christ who was Born of the Virgin was the true Saviour and then Infers p. 652 of his works in these words How are they then Deceived who own Christ no otherwise than as He was before the world began For in their owning of Him thus and no otherwise they do directly Deny Him to be come in the Flesh and are of that Anti-Christian Party which John Speaks of 1. Joh. iv 3. Edw. Burrough Answers this Book of Bunyan's and coming to this Passage p. 142. of his works he Repeats Bunyan's words thus How are they Deceived who own Christ no otherwise than as He was before the world began c. And instead of Clearing the Quakers from this Objection or Disowning it to be a Principle of the Quakers he stands by it and pretends to give Reasons for it as Christ the same Yesterday to Day and for Ever And that Christ was before Abraham c. And falls upon Bunyan for his Grievous Ignorance in not Apprehending this Quaker-Mystery as he words it thus To own Him Christ as He was before the world was for Salvation But that was not the Question Bunyan's words even as Repeated by Burrough are not against owning Christ as He was before the World was for that Bunyan and all Christians own but against owning Him so And No otherwise i. e. Not as having taken Flesh in time of the B. Virgin having Suffer'd and Dy'd for us for in that Respect and not only as He was before the World was Bunyan Contends that He was our Saviour And Burrough opposing him in this shews plainly what they mean viz. That Christ has now no other Flesh or Manhood than what He had before the World was and that He is not our Saviour upon account of that Flesh of Jesus which He Borrow'd as a Vail to shrowd Himself in for a time or for what that Body suffer'd but that He is our Saviour only as He was before the World was and as they say that He is Inwardly now in their Hearts in His Heavenly Flesh and Blood which he had from Eternity And the whole Merit and Atonement for Sin they place in the Inward Shedding of this Spiritual Blood in their Hearts which they call the Sufferings of Christ yes and of His Manhood too of His Body and His Flesh thus Bantering Mankind while they Mean nothing of this of that Visible Body in which He Appear'd in the Days of Pontius Pilat and which was Nail'd to the Cross but of the Invisible Body Flesh Blood and Bones of the Godhead The Arch-Enemy having Taught them this Damnable Heresie and thereby put the Grossest of Darkness for Light and Defrauded them of whole Christianity the Faith in the outward Jesus and what He did and suffer'd outwardly for Us tho' it be Inwardly Apprehended and Apply'd by Faith which is
last Authority I shall Produce is of the Great Fox Himself in his Book call'd Several Papers given forth for the Spreading of Truth c. Printed 1671. There p. 54. is a Chapter which bears this Title Concerning Christ's Flesh which was Offered c. And this Flesh he makes not to be That which He took of the B. Virgin but That which he had from the Beginning and which he supposes was Crucify'd when Adam Fell And in That Crucifixion to Consist the Atonement and Satisfaction made for Sin And he takes that Text The Lamb slain from the Foundation of the world not as then Decreed and Purposed by God but Literally as then Actually Fulfill'd Thus he Begins that Chapter Christ the Lamb slain from the Foundation of the world when it began its Foundation then the Lamb was slain And Christ according to the Flesh Crucified the Lamb slain that Flesh of His which is a Mysterie when the first Adam's and Eve's Flesh was Defiled This he calls a Mystery And it is the true Mystery of Quakerism It is upon this account That the Quakers think all the Christian world to Lie in Darkness but Themselves That other Christians know of no other Flesh and Blood of Christ but that outward Flesh which He took in Time of the B. Virgin Hence it is common in their Discourse and in their Books to tell others That the Flesh of Christ is a Mysterie That they understand nothing of it As Solomon Eccles wrote That the Pope Sn. Sect. x. p. 138. the Episcopal the Presbyterian Independants and Baptists understand the Blood of Jesus Christ no more than a Brute Beast Therefore the Quaker's Confessing to the Blood of Christ in General Terms can be no Justification of them while they mean another Manhood Flesh Blood and Bones of Christ than any Christian ever Dreamt of But it Argues their Deep Deceit and Hypocricy to seem to Justifie themselves to the world by their General Confessions But Conceal their secret Meaning whereby they know that they Differ most Widely from those with whom they make this False Appearance of Agreeing Exactly Therefore their Answer to the Queres is no Answer while they Refuse to Renounce this Distinction that they have of Different Manhoods in Christ or otherwise to Explain themselves and tell us which of the Manhoods they mean The words of their Answer to the Queres upon this Head are these We sincerely believe in Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of the Living God both as he is true God and Perfect Man But what they mean by Man here they do not Declare Whether that Eternal or Heavenly Manhood before spoke of or the Outward and Terrestrial Manhood which he took of our Earth But Tho. Ellwood we thank him has told us and Discover'd the secret in his Answer to G. Keiths first Narrative p. 205. where he Recites a Quotation G. K. had brought out of G. Whiteheads Book The Malice of the Independent Agent p. 17. That Christ's Body now in Heaven is the same in substance He had on Earth which wou'd seem a Fair Confession to the Humanity of Christ But hold a little crys T. E. Did G. Whitehead ever call or own Christ's Body now in Heaven or while it was on Earth to be Terrestrial or of the Earth Here we see how to Understand their words and how to Interpret this their Answer to the Quaeres not of the outward or Terrestrial Manhood which Christ took of our Nature but of their Secret and Heavenly Manhood which they Madly Fancie He had from Eternity And thus G. Whitehead Explains himself in his Part of The Christian Quaker Printed An. 1674. p. 140. where he says That he was not at all against Jesus Christ being God and Man take Man says he as Christ is the Heavenly Spiritual and Glorify'd Man But he Confesses that he was against this viz. That Jesus Christ consisteth of Human Flesh and Bone Here he Distinguishes betwixt the Heavenly and the Human Manhood The first he Ascribes to Christ but Denies the Latter that Christ has any Human Manhood And the Reason he gives for it is Seeing Christ says he was from Everlasting which is the same we have heard before from Thom. Ellwood where he takes upon him to Explain Will. Penn's sense in this Matter viz. That Christ as Christ always had a Manhood And seeing He had it from Everlasting therefore it cou'd not be the Human but the Heavenly Manhood Flesh Blood and Bone What then was that Flesh and Blood which he took of the B. Virgin wherein He suffer'd and Rose again And of which he said Behold my Hands and my Feet Luk. xxiv 39. Handle me and see for a Spirit hath not Flesh and Bones as ye see Me have To this says G. W. ibid. p. 139. 140. yes Christ Had such Flesh and Bones but he did not Consist of them I distinguish between Consisting and Having Says he i. e. A man Hath anything that he Possesses or wears I Have a Cloak but I do not Consist of that Cloak that is It is no Part of my Nature and I may Put it on or Throw it off without any Change of my Nature And no otherwise do the Quakers reckon of the Body and Blood which Jesus our B. Lord took in Time in the Womb of the Virgin Not that He took it into His Person so as to Consist of it as a Man do's Consist of Both Natures of his Body and Soul But only that He Had it that is Made Vse of it and wore it for a Time as a Vail or Garment which He has now laid aside and subsists in Heaven only in that Heavenly and Eternal Manhood Flesh Blood and Bones which He had as Christ from Eternity And they make it a Contradiction to say That Christ do's Consist of any other Flesh and Bone that is of Human Flesh and Bone they think this to be a Contradiction to Christ's being the Eternal Word because they hold that He cou'd not be the Word or Christ without Consisting of Flesh Blood and Bone And therefore That if He had None but the Flesh c. of the Human Nature which was Created in Time it must follow That He was not the Word or Christ from Everlasting Thus says G. W. ibid. p. 139. Is there not a Plain Contradiction between Jesus Christ Consisting of Flesh and Bone Human Nature And that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Eternal word from Everlasting c. Therefore you see it is Necessary for us in order to Oblige these Quakers to Discover their Meaning that we Insist upon the word Human And that they will Answer whether they Allow Christ to have Now in Heaven any Human Body Or whether He do's Consist Now of that Body or did Consist of it while He was upon Earth But will the Word Human hold them Have they no Dodge nor Shift whereby to use even that word Plainly in a sense in which they know that
in Pennsilvania An. 1695. And by this the Reader may Judge whether it proceeded from Want of Capacity or Sincerity in George Whitehead and the Rest of the London Quakers That in their Printed Answer to these Queries they say They are Not Plain and Direct Queries therefore cannot Positively be Answer'd by our Single Yea or Nay to Each Query as Desir'd We therefore at present send this General Answer to the Queries Of which Sufficient has been said in the First Part Sect. v. p. 9. c. But here I wou'd observe That the Pennist Quakers in Pennsilvania durst not trust their own Light within to Answer these Queries And bound themselves to stand by the Answer of their London Friends Whereas those who with G. Keith had Return'd to the Truth of Christianity took no time to Consider nor Ty'd themselves Implicitly to the Determination of Any Whatsoever They said not that the Truth was farr off beyond the Seas in Old England And they must stay till some Good Body shou'd Fetch it to them with Safe Wind and Tyde and Deut. xxx 13. See before Second Part. p. 225. From all this we may take Notice of the Different Assurances which Proceed from a Rational Faith Founded upon the Rock of the H. Scriptures And that which is Built upon the Sand of our own Imagination which the Quakers call their Light Within A FAITHFUL RELATION Of the great Opposition made by some Preachers among the Quakers to three great fundamental Doctrins of the Christian Faith at Two several Meetings at London in the year 1678 appointed to hear the Charges made by them against me George Keith for my asserting the said Three Fundamental Doctrins in my Book call'd The way cast up Printed 1677. AND The Reasons of my Publishing the said Relation IN the Year 1678 at London there being great Whisperings and Complaints privately spread among the People called Quakers against Me on the Account of Certain Principles laid down by Me in a Book of Mine Printed in the Year 1677 called The way Cast up And I happening to be then at London and hearing of the said Complaints against me and my said Book I spoke to diverse of the Ministry of the People called Quakers that they would appoint a Meeting to hear the Complaints of those Persons that Objected against some things Contain'd in my Book charging them to be False and Erronious and also to hear my Defence and Vindication touching the things to be charged against me A Meeting was procured at a Friends house call'd John Osgood a Merchant in White-Hart Court in Grace-Church-street London in the winter Season which began about the Sixth hour at Night where a Considerable number of those called Friends of the Ministry were met together with divers other Persons of account among the Quakers among whom were William Penn George Whitehead Thomas Green William Mead William Gibson George Watt Francis More Thomas Hart James Claypowl John Bull And many other besides The persons that appeared against me at the said Meeting were chiefly Samuel Newtown a great Preacher then among them who not long after Broke and went to Virginia and still Preacheth there among the Quakers as I have been certainly inform'd by some that heard him and are ready to bear witness to it and William Shewen a Preacher and a great Writer among them who hath Printed divers Books highly approved by many of the People called Quakers Containing some abominable Principles whereof I have given some account in my Second and Third Narratives of the Proceedings at Turners-Hall This man was never Censured by Friends of the Ministry for his Antichristian Doctrin Contained in some of his Books but lived and dyed in Unity with them and had Solemn Commendations and Testimonies given him by some of the Ministry at his Funeral The first Meeting not having time sufficient to hear all that was to be said for and against appointed another Meeting at the house of James Claypool Merchant in Scotch Yard in London when some others were present and mostly all the foremention'd the Meeting began about the Sixth hour at night as did the former The particulars were Three especially wherewith these two above named Persons severally charged me and blamed my Doctrine and opposed against it to be Contradictory to the Ancient Friends Books whereof they brought a Considerable number which were laid on the Table but it happened that none of them were used but instead of them the Bible was called for and some places in it read and Discours'd upon The First Particular they blam'd in my said Book and charg'd to be false was that I had affirmed that Christ's Body that was Crucified on the Tree of the Cross and was Buried pag. 131. Rose again and Ascended into Heaven and was in Heaven Diverse spoke their mind to it one after another some against it and some for it and some very doubtfully which I was greatly astonished to find I Quoted that place of Scripture in defence of the Resurrection of Christ's Body Psal 16.10 compared with Act. 2.30 31 32. Thou wilt not leave my Soul in Hell nor suffer thy holy one to see Corruption Will. Mead said to me dost thou understand this of an outward Body that which was not to see Corruption was the Seed within I answered let the places be read and compared and it will be found that they are to be understood of Christ's Body that was laid in the outward Grave so these two places of Scripture were read and several gave their assent to it that by the Holy one that was not to see Corruption was to be understood Christ's Body that was laid in the Grave whereupon Thomas Green an ancient Preacher said Friends one of two things we must needs say either that Christ's Body remains in some hole or cave of the Earth or that it Rose and Ascended for it did not see Corruption and for my part I rather think it Rose and Ascended into Heaven as George Keith affirms than that it remains in any hole or cave of the Earth Diverse other places of Scripture I had to bring forth to prove the truth of the Resurrection of Christ's Body as his own words to the Jews Destroy this Temple meaning his Body and after three days I will raise it up and his appearing to his Disciples after his Resurrection having said as it is Luk. 24.39 Handle me and Feel me for a Spirit hath no Flesh and Bones as ye see me have After Thomas Green had spoke as is above related George Whitehead said that whereas many both Priests and Professors had questioned Friends much concerning Christ's Body what was become of it and where it was by occasion of Friends Preaching Christ within so frequently he confesses that Friends were at some stand to give a possitive answer but rather evaded the Question And though in former times Friends were shy to answer the Priests and Professors Questions about Christ's Body fearing they sought
no body Understands it in this Case What if we spell it Humane for Human and take Humanity in the Moral and not Natural sense of the word as when we say that such an One is a Man of Great Humanity i. e. of Good Nature Gentleness Goodness c. And Christ or The Word having Great Goodness in His Nature consequently we will allow Him a Humane tho not a Human Nature I am Confident the Reader do's now think that I am Fooling with these Quakers and Mean this only as a Banter For that he must Conclude it Impossible for any Men to shew themselves such Knaves as well as Fools to Dodge at such a silly and Impudent rate with Mankind while they Pretend to the Greatest Plainess and Sincerity of any Men upon the Earth Therefore let him Read a Quaker Book Intitul'd A Testimony for the true Christ and His Light in the Conscience in Confutation of Robert Cobbit 's Testimony against the Truth c. Printed An. 1668. And said on the Title Page to be From some of them called Quakers But suppos'd to be Penn'd by G. Whitehead There p. 4. and 5. they say As he Rob. Cobbit speaks of Humane with Relation to Nature or Body it hath Relation to the Earth or Humus the Ground of which Man was made which the First Man is of not the second though He was Really Man too but Humane or Humanity in the other sence with Relation to Gentleness Mercifulness and the like this we know was and is in the Image of God in which Man was Made and His Gentleness Kindness Mercifulness c. is Manifested in Christ And the true and Real Humanity as Oppos'd to that Cruelty Envy and In-Humanity which is got up in Man since the Fall so that Humanity und the Unreasonableness of Beasts are two things Thus the Quakers Here they Deny Christ the Second Man to have been Made of Humus the Earth as the First Man was And yet say they He the second Man was Really Man too How was this It cou'd not be in the same sense as the First Man who was Made of Humus the Earth if Christ did not take our Nature or Humus upon Him No The Quakers do not mean it in that sense as if Christ had ever taken our Human Nature so as to Consist of it or let it be any Part of His Person And yet they say That He is Really Man too By which they Mean only That Eternal and Heavenly Manhood before Mentioned And so Banter the World with their Plain Confessions in Double Meanings Yet have they the Confidence to Cry Whore first And Boldly Challenge others with what Themselves are the most Notoriously Guilty of any that Live upon the face of the Earth Sam. Fisher one of the Chief Rabbies of the Quakers Sam. Fishers Works p. 177. Charges the Priests against whom he Disputes with Shameful shiftings from sense to sense miserable marchings from Meaning to Meaning so that we can hardly know where or How to find them nor what they mean But we says he mostly or ever keep to the True Honest Ordinary and Plain purport of the words as they lie open and Clear to every Ordinary and Common Capacity And G. Whitehead Intitul's one of his Books The Quaker's Plainess detecting Fallacie Whereas their Books are such Un-intelligible Jargon that one must serve a Prentiship before he can understand one word almost of what they wou'd be at Nay they Glory and often Boast that their Words as well as Names are Hidden from the World And this not only in their Books but I Appeal to all that Converse with them whether the same Mysteriousness be not in all their Conversation concerning Religion When you ask them the meaning of their Light within their Christ within their Life Read c. They Answer Commonly with a Grunt of Disdain or Pity as they wou'd have you take it And when they Vouchsafe to Speak it is to this Purpose These things are Hid from thee and from the World Read within there thou wilt find them But we know them and have Sweetness and Life in them c. Their Language is as much a Cant as the Gipsies And this has Preserv'd them so long Vn-discover'd in the World Yet they make up a Mouth and Pretend to Plainess beyond all others But you shall never get them to Answer Directly or to the Purpose To give a Plain Yea or Nay to any Question concerning their Heresies If they say I wrong them let this be the Test That they will either Own or Disown this their Notion of an Heavenly and Eternal Manhood of Christ And tell us in Plain Terms which of the Manhoods that which is Created or that which they say is Vn-created they mean when they Confess to the Manhood of Christ now in Heaven And till they do this which I Guess will not be in Hast let my Charge stand good against them Which I may Reasonably presume from all Judicious Readers But ther is no stop in the Art of Heresie This their Mad Notion of an Heavenly Body in God or Christ has brought them to Fancy that they themselves have the same Heavenly Body And thus they Understand our being Members of Christ not as being Members of His Church of which He is the Mystical Head But as Members of this His Heavenly Flesh Blood and Bones And therefore say that Their own Bodies shall never Dye G. Fox when one minded him that he wou'd Dye Will. Rogers his Christian Quaker IV. Part. p. 49. and turn to Dust and therefore that he ought to be Humble Answers in his Letter which is Printed Thou sayest when I am turned to Dust and Dead Is this thy Doctrin Are the Members of the Heavenly Body turned to Dust and Dead This Doctrin proceeds from Darkness and not from the Light of Christ. This is very Intelligible And Easie to the Meanest Capacity This is the Quakers Plainess It was not said that his Soul shou'd turn to Dust this was spoke of his Body And here he denies it of the Body Why Because it was a Member of the Heavenly Body of God And yet they do not doubt but their Bodies must Dye in the True Honest Ordinary and Plain purport of the Words to which they Mostly or Ever keep But this Mystery is Vn-Riddl'd in the Second Part. Sect. vii n. 2. where it is shewn That they hold their Bodies as well as Souls to be God It is told in the Preface how the Quaker Heresies were Borrow'd from the Ancienter Sectaries amongst us And this their Answer to the Seven Queres shews that they have Inherited their Plainess and Sincerity in Representing their own Principles to the World The Family of Love who Prevaricated in every Article of the Creed Printed a Confession of their Faith in the very words of the Creed An. 1656. But how they meant it Mr. Knewstub has shewn us which is Inserted in Heresiography p. 97.
by a Solemn Declaration asserted their Right to Possess the whole Earth and to Fight for it with the Carnal Sword And the words of their said Declaration are there set down which was Penn'd by that Renown'd Quaker Edward Burrough and Subscrib'd by Fifteen of the Principal Leaders among the Quakers in the Name of All the Rest Now G W. do's not deny one word of all this What then How do's he Answer it what is the Mistake Abuse or Calumny which he charges upon this Passage He says These are very Bitter Invidious and Calumnious Suggestions and Cruel Jealousies of a High Nature as if this poor Libeller eagerly thirsted after our Blood That Libeller as you call him I dare say had no Design upon your Blood or the Blood of any body But if you Preach up Bloody and Treasonable Doctrin must no Man Detect this without a Design upon your Blood You Proclame Blood to the Ends of the Earth especially against the Priests of all Professions Oh! Give the Priests Blood to Drink for they are worthy Slay Balaam vex the Midianites Blot out the Remembrance of Amaleck from under Heaven that is the Clergy and the Lawyers c. as the Quakers themselves Explain it See Sn. p. 230. c. yet this must not be told you but you Cry out Here is a Design upon our Blood But you Answer not a word of the Charge Are any of your Authors falsly Quoted Have they not said all these things Will you then Disown these Authors at least as to these Bloody and Desperate Tenets No. This cannot be done For then their Infallibility will Crack And your whole Foundation Sink Then will it appear that the Spirit by which they have been Led was not the Spirit of Truth but of Murder Treason and the Vilest Errors The Best Excuse that can be made for them in this Case is that which I have before Instanc'd viz. Madness For if they are in Good Earnest in all these Bloody Designs which they have Express'd Considering their Power and Number now amongst Us they are Dangerous indeed And Every Government will be oblig'd to take a Care of them And that in some other Manner than as John Parret Charles Baly and Jane Stoaks were Serv'd who were so kindly dealt with at Rome to be sent to a Mad-House and Phisick prescrib'd for them The Matters thus Suggested Says G. W. p. 17. are so Gross that we need say little to them How Say but Little to them If they are so Gross you need say the More to them But what if they are True as well as Gross And you offer not to Disprove one Tittle of the Truth of them And the more Gross one wou'd think you shou'd be the more Concern'd to Disprove them And if the least of the Proofs which are brought against you had been False or any way Exceptionable no doubt we shou'd have heard of it as from Rich. Scoryer about a small Mistake alledg'd as to his School George you shou'd either have said nothing of this Matter or have said more to it But the Nation is oblig'd to you for this Discovery You Repeat this Charge again p. 18. where you Quote the Sn. p. 133. saying Their Principles Destructive to all Government c. And you answer This is a General very Gross c. How a General was ther only a General Charge given against you and no Proof no Particulars at all Mention'd Yes George ther are abundance of Quotations and Particulars which are Insisted upon and Prov'd at large And Thou do'st not Answer to any one of them Thou Dar'st not Deny one of them yet here Thou woud'st Impose it upon the Reader as if nothing but a General Charge had been Exhibited against you This is Thy Sincerity and Quakers Plainness Their Opposition of Tythes V. From this place to p. 24. he spends against what is said in behalf of Tythes And p. 19. Quotes the Sn. saying that the Pope was the first Author of the Sacrilegious Impropriations which is more largely Insisted upon in the Sn. yet he Charges the Author as a Popish Agent and in his Contents calls this a Popish Plea for Tythes But all the Reason he gives is that some Papists were for the Divine Right of Tythes Then he names some of the Protestants which were not of this opinion And this is all Poor Man that he knows of the Matter He Answers none of the Arguments which are there brought for Tythes nor do's he bring any Arguments against them That is none of his Method But as to Fr. Bugg's Impeachment against them for opposing and Annulling the Laws of the Land which enjoyn Tythes he fairly Pleads Guilty in Express Terms while he thought he was Acquiting the Quakers of that Charge And he Re-Asserts their Seditious Principle p. 18. against The Secular Powers Imposing them Tythes being Abolisht says he by Christ's Law Which was all that Bugg Charg'd against them as making our Laws to be Anti-Christian Upon this Head I wou'd Recommend to their serious Consideration a Principle they set down in a Famous Martyrologie of theirs call'd The West Answering to the North. An. 1657. wrote by G. Fox and several others of their Chiefs suffering then some Chastisements for their Blasphemie c. Contrary as they thought to the then Laws by the Arbitrary Orders of some Inferior Magistrates There p. 80. they say That for Any Party of Men under a Government to Make Laws being not Lawfully Authorized so to do for the Binding of others and thereunto to require obedience is the setting up of Themselves above the Law and Treading it under their Feet And rendring of them whom they do so Bind their Slaves and Vassals And so is Treason Now in the Sn. Sect. xix Ther is mention'd a Declaration Sign'd by above Seven Thousand of the Quakers Abolishing all the Laws and Damning the Law-Makers who Enact Tythes the Payers of them the Receivers or any who but Countenance or Own them This was in the year 1659. At which time the Quakers were very Busie with their Proposals to oppose the Restoration of the Church and the King Rob. Rich Hiden things c. p. 29. a Quaker tells Us of two other Printed Papers of the Quakers that same year one subscrib'd by more than Ten Thousand and the other by More than Fifteen Thousand All presented to the then Parliament To whom I am Credibly Inform'd They offer'd to Raise Twenty Thousand Men against the Common Enemy so they Term'd the King and Loyal Party And they had then so much Favour That as the above Author Informs us And cannot Deceive Us in that by the Act of Parliament bearing Date the 28 June 1659 for Setling the Militia the Quakers were made Commissioners to Form Troops and Regiments to Nominate the Officers and to Assess Money for Buying Horse Arms c. He Names Five by Name whom he knew who were of the Committee for the Militia of
G. F. And the like is upon the Margin of several other Pages Now if this was not Intended for the Press it was to give the Friends Ground to say that they had seen this Exposition of his and to make use of it as they saw occasion But if it was meant as is most likely to be made Publick the Friends upon second thoughts found it cou'd not be done without Re-Printing of the Book which wou'd do them more Mischief than such a silly Excuse cou'd Heal. Therefore they took the safer Course which was by all the means they cou'd to stifle the said Book And I believe they thought they had Effected it For having by some Art Recover'd the Book aforesaid out of the hands of one of themselves whom they suspected into whose Possession it had fallen they have Condemn'd it to Perpetual Imprisonment unless Rescu'd by such Discoveries as these And if they put it not into the New Edition Design'd of G. Fox's Works they see they will be Detected nay more if they Leave out or Alter any of his Marginal Annotations they shall be told of it let them secure that Book where they are as well as they can Of which a New Edition cou'd be given if it were worth the while without their Help But now that I have mention'd G. Fox's Apologie wrote upon the Margin of this Book of his for the Treasons therein Contain'd it is fit that I shou'd shew the Falshood and Apparent Hypocrisie of this his Excuse viz. That what he wrote against Kings and Kingly Government was only meant against his Olefer when he Design'd to take upon him the Stile of King In Answer to which consider 1. That his words are against All Kings and Emperors among Christians since the Days of the Apostles and against All Kingly Government whether in Olefer or any body else 2. He speaks p. 15. against Fighting for the Kings of the Earth Now ther was no Fighting or any Appearance of it at that time when it was Under Consideration whether G. Fox's Olefer shou'd Assume the Name of a King And he was then None of the Kings of the Earth But â—â—wards the Restoration of King Charles â—â—â—â—er was Expectation of Fighting And G. Bishop and this G. Fox and others of the Quakers did violently Persuade to Fighting against his Restoration and that In the Name of the Lord as abundantly shewn in the Sn. Sect. xviii It is true they were against Fighting For Kings but they were as much for Fighting Against them 3. This Book of G. Fox's was Printed in the beginning of the year 1660. And Olefer had been Dead two years before And I suppose G. Fox was not afraid that they wou'd take him out of his Grave to make a King of him But if it be said that tho' this Book was not Printed till the year 1660 yet it might have been wrote before in the year 1658 when Olefer Dy'd then it wou'd be ask'd To what Purpose it was Printed two years after the occasion for which it was wrote And which cou'd never come again if the Design had been only against Olefer 4. But to put the Matter out of Dispute in the Book it self p. 6. G. F. speaks of Olefer as then Dead these are his words So when the Kings that Deny'd the Pope took the Tenth of Tenths the Popes wages that was Head of the Church and when the Kings Dy'd the Protector took Tenth of Tenths and He was the Head c. He Was now He was Dead G. F. falls upon Him as upon all others when they were Gon. But let the world now Judge let all the Quakers who Pretend to one Drachm of sincerity Confess at last what an Egregious Lyar and Hypocrite this G. Fox was to give it under his hand that this Book of his was wrote against Oliver And we may hence see what stress is to be laid upon their Contrary Testimonies and how they are to be taken as Vindications of all the vile Heresies Madness Treasons c. which they have Acted wrote Preach'd and Printed And All of them both Parts of the Contradictions Dictated as spoken Immediately from the Mouth of the Lord Almighty II. Thus to give a few more Instances if one shou'd Object the Implacable Rage and Nastiness of the Quaker-Spirit and Produce what has been herein before Mention'd what is Quoted in the Sn. Sect. xvii and much more of the same Sort that can be Produc'd they cou'd Answer All by Contrary Testimonies of which they have many where the Quakers do Abhor and Detest such manner of Proceeding as Abominable and Anti-Christian and set up Themselves for all the Meekness and Christian Patience in the World Thus in this Appen p. 43. Sam. Fisher is Produc'd saying That the Quakers are not for Reviling nor Threatning nor Cursing but Committing our Cause saith he in Quietness to Him that Judgeth Righteously And G. Fox in his Gr. Mystery p. 237. says That the work of the Ministers of the Gospel is not to Reflect upon Persons And so thou says he to a Minister he Disputed against that art Reflecting upon Persons do'st shew a Mark of thy self to be a False-Prophet and Reflecting upon Persons was never the way to Beget to God And Will. Penn says in his Address to Protestants p. 246. Second Edit They that are Angrie for God Passionate for Christ that call names for Religion may tell us they are Christians if they will but no body wou'd know them to be such by their Fruits To be sure they are no Christians of Christ's making He gave this Title to another Book he wrote viz. Reason against Railing in Answer to Thom. Hicks Whom he Accuses for Railing against the Quakers And thence Proves him not to be a Christian For says he p. 169. He that Rails Reviles calls Names c. is no True Christian But such is Thom. Hicks Therefore no True Christian And now what wou'd you have more Do's it not Plainly follow from hence That neither Will. Penn nor any of the Quakers did ever Raile Revile or call Names For then by Will Penn's sentence here Twice Repeated they are no True Christians To be sure they are no Christians of Christ 's making But a little before this p. 163. W. Penn sets down an Objection of T. Hicks's That the Great Quaker Ed. Burrough had Bestow'd upon Philip Bennet a Priest who oppos'd him by way of Answer these Names following Thou art a wicked Creature Blackness of Darkness is Reserved for thee Thou art a Serpent And the Curse of God is Eternally upon thee Thou Beast to whom the Plagues of God are Due Now these look very like Ill Names and Railing to be sure they are Reviling What says Will. Penn to this He says That this was the Fittest Return cou'd be made to the Questions which P. Bennet put to Ed. Burrough Why were they Rude or Reflecting Questions No. for W. P. confesses p. 164. 165. that they were Civil no
because the Devil is said to Limit Him Then the Israelits were Stronger than God for David says that they did Limit Him But as C. W. said no such thing do's G. W. think that C. W. Believ'd the Devil to be Stronger than God No. he cou'd not think so for who ever thought so And then he said this against his own Conscience Without doubt he did And for this calls C. W. a Deceiver Now here are some small Mistakes First of G. Fox's in taking God for the Devil That was All Next of G. Whitehead's in saying that C. Wade did Affirm That the Devil was Stronger than God Now Recollect Will. Penn's Rule before Mentioned That he that gives that for a Man's Answer that is not his Answer is a Forger and so no true Christian The Application is Easie and Unavoidable That neither Fox nor Whitehead are Christians because they are Notorious Forgers and Give that for a Man's Answer which is not his Answer Nay more The very Objections which are put against them they Retort as being the Principles of the Objectors Thus five Ministers wrote a Book against the Quakers call'd The Perfect Pharisee An. 1654. And another in Defence of it the same year Intituled A further Discovery of that Generation of Men call'd Quakers in Reply to an Answer the Quakers had put out to the Former In both these they Charge the Quakers with Seventeen Gross Positions of which this is the Third That the Soul is a Part of the Divine Essence Thus plainly put down p. 5. of the Further Discovery Num. 3. of the Quaker Positions which are there first Rang'd in order And then particularly Disprov'd under their several Heads And coming to this Head p. 31. they call this Position as truly it is Blasphemy G. Fox Answers to this in his Gr. Myst p. 227. and sets down this as the first of the Ministers Principles That the Soul is a Part of the Divine Essence And thence Inferrs p. 229. That in calling this Blasphemy they had given Judgment against themselves And so you five says he have Judged your selves to be Blasphemers who said the Soul was Part of the Divine Essence and yet 't is Blasphemy to say so This is Giving that for a man's Answer which is not with a witness And if Will. Penn can any Longer Defend G. Fox even Dear George who Excelleth All the Quakers to be a Christian by his own Rule he will Exceed himself and Out-do all that he has Ever yet Done At least I hope he will Alter his Opinion if he spoke it sincerely That George Fox was as Good a Proas Asaiah which has been Mention'd before But not only Putting words upon a Man which he did not say nay Quite Contrary to what he says but Leaving out the Material part of a Man's Answer and giving that for his Answer is Belying of a Man and comes under Will Penn's Rule Let me give one Instance of this among many that I cou'd Produce Matthew Caffyn in his Damnable Heresies of the Quakers Discover'd p. 29. gives his Charge thus The Quaker saith that Christ is already Come the second time And George Fox Affirmed in Plain words before many Witnesses that he knew him come within him and he looked for Him to come NO OTHERWISE And James Parnal affirmeth That by Preaching of a Christ in Heaven the Devil gets his work done on Earth as appears in his Book call'd Satan's Design discover'd p. 19. 25. This Fox Answers in his Gr. Myst p. 141. And first he leaves his Brother Parnel to shift for himself He Denies not the Quotation But says nothing to it Then as to what is Charg'd upon Himself he Quotes the Page in Caffyn but Repeats his words thus And George Fox said that he knew Christ come in him p. 29. Then he Crys that Christ is in you except ye be Reprobates As if Caffyn had Deny'd the Inward Presence of Christ by the Influence of His H. Spirit in the Hearts of Believers which no Christian ever did Deny But they Deny the Person of Christ His Flesh Blood and Bones in Men as the Quakers Blaspheme And Caffyn found no Fault with Fox's saying that He knew Christ come within him On the Contrary he Justifies the Indwelling of Christ by His Spirit But he laid the stress upon G. Fox's saying That he Looked upon Christ to come NO OTHERWISE whith was put in Capital Letters to shew that the stress lay upon that as being a Denyal of Christ's Second Coming to the Final Judgment Of all which G. Fox took no Notice at all but gives his words short as above Quoted Whereby it appears which I have often observ'd before That without looking into the Books which this Fox Answers ther is no knowing of their Meaning or what they object by his False and often Absurd Chopping and Changing of their Words Caffyn ibid. p. 35. Charges thus The Quaker saith that the offering of Christ's Body to be Broken and His Blood shed Avails not so as thro' Faith therein to set free from Sin But Blood in a Mystery and a Body in a Mystery which we know not what it is saith Lawson in his Book p. 18. which was Typified by the Fleshly Body of Christ and His Blood And says Caffyn p. 36. Wherefore he saith Boldly but Blasphemously That the Lord Jesus whom we Profess is Accursed professing a Spirit within him to be the only Christ To this G. Fox Answers Gr. Myst p. 142. And Repeats the Charge only thus They say they own Christ that suffered meaning the Spirit within Page 36. Here he Quotes the Page in Caffyn's Book whereby we cannot mistake to what it is that he Answers And instead of Denying he Justifies in his Squinting way this Hideous Blasphemy by laying the whole upon the Light within But Denies nothing of the other part of the same sentence of calling that Jesus whom we Profess Accursed c. Blessed God Defend Us The Pen is like to Drop out of my Hand while I am forc'd to set down this Greatest Outrage that Ever the Devil durst Presume to Belch out against our Blessed Lord and Saviour thro' these the most Wretched of all his Instruments the Quaker Tongues which are set on Fire of Hell I cannot stay longer upon this Subject Ther is Infection in the very Air. Let us Return to their Moderate Sins of Lying and Mis-representing the Answers of their Adversaries and Rid Christianity of them at the Back-Door which Will. Penn has Pointed But not open the Mouth of the Gulph at once of Blasphemies not fit to be Heard upon Earth lest the Stench shou'd carry Plagues with it thro' the World Christoph Wade in his Quakery Slain p. 7 8. tells of a Quaker Wizard one James Milner who Pretended that he must Suffer as Christ did to save the Souls of two Women Dorothy Barwick and the Wife of Brian Fell of Ulverston and in a Juggling Inchanting Manner with a Knife and a
hold the Same but they Meant only his Rashness or Ill-Luck to Meet with His and Their Due Deserts or such like Mental-Reservation G. Fox wrote several Papers in Justification of James Naylor his Calling himself Christ and his being Hosanna'd as Christ was c. which are Annex'd to the Tryal of James Naylor Printed by the Quakers An. 1657. With Marginal Notes in Defence of All his Blasphemies Tho' this Vulpone like Judas after he saw that Naylor was Condemn'd turn'd Tayle and yet but Seemingly Pretended to Disown him But he Disown'd None of his Books Principles or Doctrin On the Contrary he as well as the Rest of the Quakers did Justifie them against several Opposers who Quoted them as the true Quaker-Doctrin which they did not Dis-own And Will. Penn in his Serious Apology An. 1671. p. 156. Names James Naylor and Vindicates him as a Prophet and Servant of the Lord thro' whom the Holy Spirit did Vtter His Mind Haworth in the Place above Quoted says That John Bolton who was a Quaker told him That he stood by and saw three Women one after another Fall down and Worship James Naylor and one of them in her Bowings had these words viz. Thy Name is no more James but J AM. And James Naylor told John Bolton That if he worshipped his Body he shou'd Refuse it But if that within he wou'd Accept it This is the same Answer which G. Whitehead in his Innocency against Envy p. 18. Gives to Fran. Bugg his Charge of the Idolatries and Blasphemous Names and Titles given by the Quakers to G. Fox G. W. Replies How Proves he they Gave and Intended those Names and Titles to the Person of George Fox and not to the Life of Christ in him whereof he was a Partaker But how a Partaker Was it of the Influences only or Inspirations of Christ's Blessed Spirit that the Quakers Mean No. No. That is but a small Dispensation with them They Mean Partaking of Christ's very Nature and Essence so as Themselves to be God! See hereafter Sect. vii N. 2. And that the Light within Them is not only a Ray or Communication of Christ but is Christ Himself in Person And therefore Appen do's so often tell Us not only of Believing That ther is such a Light in Vs But to Believe In That Light viz. To make That the Object of our Faith Tho' take it as they will Adoration Paid to them upon Account of that Light in Them is Downright Idolatry The Body of Christ while upon Earth was no otherwise Adorable than upon Account of the Divinity Residing in it And ther is no way by which the Quakers do Allow Adoration to Christ but by the same they take it to Themselves I do not Doubt but ther is an Influence and Inspiration sent from the Holy Spirit of God into the Hearts of all True Believers This I Believe But I do not Believe In it That is To make That In me the Object of my Faith Tho' He is the Object of my Faith from whom It comes Therefore to talk as Appen of Believing In this Light within is no less than Idolatry and shews the Quakers to be Destitute of whole Christianity Hence they Reject the Holy Scriptures as the Rule of Faith which this Appen instead of Denying do's again own as shewn before And then Trusting only to what is within them they are Given up to follow their own Imaginations and take Every strong Impression which comes into their Brain tho' by the Illusion of the Devil of which ther are many Instances In-disputable for no less than the Immediate Dictates of the Holy Ghost And they are Equally sure of Every thing they Say or Do. And tho' it be but upon Hear-say yet they can Pawn their Infallibility for the Truth of it As in this Appen where before Quoted p. 6. speaking of the Boast which they wou'd fix upon the Author of the Sn. of his having Converted many Quakers for which they give no other Proof than I have heard yet within five Lines it says Therefore when this his Pretended service is urg'd as an Argument for his Attonement and Reconciliation I can Assure them the Argument is False May not the Quakers be here minded of what they say to this same Author p. 49. of this Appen where they Accuse him for saying That G. Fox 's Inspirations came from the Spirit of Pride But says Appen how Charles will Assure any man of that which he is not Infallibly Assur'd of himself an Inspiration so Foul a Vessel must not Pretend to cannot Readily be Guessed It may very Easily be Guess'd my sweet Appen for do's he say so of his own Knowlege or only by Hear-say or do's he give any sort of Proof for it If none at all He was a very Naughty Fellow But upon what occasion do you bring this in It is speaking of your Stiffness in not pulling off your Hats As you word it But you mis-Quote Prim. Heres This Charge is there Sect. vii p. 17. And it is not worded Pulling but only for not Taking off your Hats you have made Mountains of less Mis-Quotations than this this is beyond a Colon or a Semi-Colon for he wou'd not have you Pull or Lugg at your Hats that is not Mannerly but to Take them off Handsomly and with a Boon meen And did he call G. Fox Proud for not doing of this Why truly Appen the world do's call it a little Saucy not to Return a Civility especially to ones Betters But Cry you Mercy G. Fox thought no body Better no nor Half so Good as Himself He call'd Himself The Son of God said His Kingdom was not of this world He Trode upon Princes like Mortar Nay He made Himself Equal to God! all which is shewn in the Sn. why then shou'd He D'off His Bonnet to Mortal Man And did that Scurvy Author of the Sn. say That these Inspirations came from the Spirit of Pride However here was something like to Proof it was not meer Hear-say but from G. Fox's own words Printed in his Books Tho' we know all this Proceeded from Pure spunk Humility And you take no Pride at all in keeping your Hats on when men of Quality stand Bare before you As did not that Friend who coming to K. Charles II. in Windsor-Park and the King permitting him to walk by him with his Hat on said to him How like a Fool do'st thou look See how Every body Stares at thee for having thy Hat on The Ingenious Quaker Reply'd And Charles if my Hat were off no body wou'd look at me Well but notwithstanding of all these Proofs here is no Infallibility in the Case And How can Charles Assure any man of that which he is not Infallibly Assur'd of Himself There Appen has Clinch'd him But will not both words and Actions amount to an Infallible Proof No not in Charles Why Because so Foul a Vessel must not Pretend to it But from the