THE HEART OF New-England HARDNED THROUGH WICKEDNES In Answer to a Book Entituled the Heart of New-England Rent Published by John Norton appointed thereunto by the General Court The Doctrine of the Quakers Uindicated his Arguments made void his Ignorance manifested and his lying doctrines brought to light and Judged with the Word of Truth and Truth cleared from his Aspersions and slanders By him that waits to see the Throne of Righteousness Exalted above all Deceit FRANCIS HOWGILL And the rest of the men which were not kil'd by the plagues repented not of the works of their hands neither repented they of their Murders nor sorceries nor worshippings of Devils Revel. 9. 20 21. LONDON Printed for Thomas Simmons at the Bull and Mouth near Aldersgate 1659. NOw when the Lord of life and glory is appearing in his Power as in the days of old and his goodness mercy and truth as in the years past and the riches of his Grace Salvation which he maketh to flow forth and spring forth from the great deep now when he is manifesting his light from his holy habitation his saving health from his dwelling place that the sons of men might be partakers thereof and praise him who liveth for ever and ever who is the Author of Eternal Salvation unto them that believe the pit of darkness hath also opened its mouth and out of it many unclean spirits doth arise and foggs and mists of darkness Ignorance and Error is also arisen out of it to hinder the light from shining and to darken the Air that the Son of Righteousness might not be beheld and would dam up the way that the springs of life might not refresh the City of God and his tender plants that so the Prince of darkness and the King of the bottomless pit might not lose his Dominion for this end hath he mustred up and is mustring up all his men of War with their several weapons and all the Engines of wickedness to resist the Lamb of God who is risen to make War in Righteousness that so the Kingdom of darkness might still be established and the Subjects thereof live at ease and peace in Egypt and Sodom where Christ and the witnesses are flain I say for this end hath he sent out his men of War to resist the work of the Lord which is to destroy the Devils work one of his Champions more stout then his fellows is come out with his weapons of War which are most of them borrowed and not his own and the City in which he hath encompassed himself is a refuge of lies but however he appears with the face of Authority and subscribes himself John Norton Teacher of the Church of Christ at Boston in New England who was appointed thereunto by the order of the General Court his Book he calls The heart of New England Rent at the blasphemies of the present Generation or a brief tract concerning the Doctrine of the Quakers shewing the destructive nature thereof to Religion Churches and State Now whether John Norton was appointed of the General Court to be Minister of Boston or he was appointed by the General Court to tell lies how the heart of New England is Rent whether he intends should be believed the Reader may judge for his words may be understood of both however John Norton hath manifested his Master that it was not Christ who appointed him to be Minister at Boston but the General Court that appointed him neither was it Christ nor his Spirit that set him to work to publish lies to the World that the heart of New England was Rent but the General Court neither was it Christ nor the General Assembly that ordered him to write this Book which he calls a Tract concerning the Doctrine of the Quakers but the General Court they have ordered thee to tell lies and thou hast received thy Commission and acts it and shewes it to the World and the sign thereof is by the appointment of the General Court before we go any further men of understanding will Judge whose Minister whose Souldier whose Warrier John Norton is and at whose appointment and Commandment he Ministers and Wars and hath cleared himself to be no Souldier of Christ no Minister of Christ but appointed to Minister and to War at the appointment of the General Court and so what will be brought forth by him in his Tract as he calls it afterwards as to Minister Grace to the hearers and Readers the Reader may Judge seeing that he is a Minister by the will of Man and his work is appointed by the General Court and doth John Norton believe that People will receive his Testimony as that the heart of New England is broken and Rent when as the blood-thirsty cruelty and Barbarous actions and inhumane acts of cruelty and the noisome smell and a bad example have you given to the World and the Laws and appointments and orders of that General Court of Boston and New England stinkes in the Nostrils of all sober People which is sounded through the World and your State is as it was with Israel when blindness hapened unto them through their unbelief the effect of it manifested their Apostacy the Judges then judged for rewards the Priests Preached for hire and Prophets devived for mony and the People loved to have it so in their unbelief and then â—id the Rulers grind the faces of the Poor and chop them in pieces as flesh for the Caldron even as you have done banished some from their Habitations some from their Wives and Children and some you have seized upon their Lands taken away their goods by the Appointment and Order of your Courts by which thou art made a Minister and appointed to tell these lyes and to utter forth deceit to cover your wickedness and to strengthen the Devils Kingdom and the subjects thereof against Christ and his Kingdom who came not to destroy mens lives but to save them who came not to lay burdens but to take off burdens who came not to destroy the Poor and Needy but to relieve the Oppressed And have not your General Courts done all this and much more which they may see and behold with confusion of face And when they have whipt them and scourged them fined them and imprisoned them ceized upon their Lands taken away their goods wasted their Estates banished them upon pain of death and when nothing hath remained of all their Estates have ordered their Children to be sold for Bond-slaves and this by the appointment of your General Court and for no other cause but because they would not put off their Hats to their Equals or come to your publick Assemblies Oh! un-heard-of and unparallel'd wickedness the name of your General Court and the Appointments and Ordinances thereof will be crowned with infamy and reproach from Generation to Generation but this is com'd to pass that your hypocrisie might be made manifest and your skirts uncovered that your shame might appear
calls a Political Church which must all be scattered with the breath of his mouth and with the brightness of his coming whom thou yet Judges to be gross darkness In thy 18th page in the 44th page thou speaks That visible Political Church Church-Officers and Church-Ordinances are Gospel Institutions appointed by Christ to continue to the end of the world and that Command which Paul gave to Timothy is to be kept and that visible Political Church Estate is to continue to the end of the world Answ. I see thou art ignorant of God Christ Heaven Church Church-Officers Ordinances and Institutions the Churches of Christ were established by and in the Power of God and the Ministers thereof ministred walked and ruled in the Power of God and the Ordinances and Institutions of the true Church of God are pure and spiritual but the Church that thou art pleading for the continuation thereof is a Political Church Political Ordinances Political Officers Political Institutions Political Pastors and Teachers the Lords Supper a Political Ordinance Baptism a Political Ordinance the spiritual Councel which Paul gave to Timothy about the Elders of the Church and about the Holy Practise which they were to walk in and the godly conversation this thou calls Political nay furthermore thou saist Heaven stands in Policy and in thy fourth Chap. saith To Christ belongs the prerogative of being the onely Politician these and the like damnable doctrines and heresies thou hast uttered forth and these must be proved from the first of Tim. 3. 1â— and Chap. 3. did Paul when he wrote to Timothy when he gave him direction about Elders and such as took care of the Church of God did he say a Bishop is a Political Officer and must be blameless or did he say a Deacon is a Polical Officer and must be grave And therefore Reader thou may read these Scriptures 1 Tim. 6. 14. 1 Cor. 14. 33. and thou maist see this Sophister and this man that is void of understanding who cryeth up the Scripture for a Rule of life and yet holds such a Church such Pastors such Officers such Ordinances such Institutions which the Scripture makes no mention of and therefore this man having made a Monstrous body a Politick Church he imagines a head like it and therefore blasphemously saith Christ is the greatest Politician much I need not say unto this black dark stuff which is to be confounded which is imaginary and deceit which the wrath of God must scatter but this I say to thee there was no Officers in the Church of Christ but they were Ministers made so by the Spirit and were made so by the Holy Ghost and were Ministers of the Spirit and not of the Letter and some were Elders and Ruled in the Church and Churches which was sanctified by God the Father and preserved in Christ Jesus and these were spiritual and not Political but thou hast cleared and quitted your selves from being any such Church and that which you call the Sacrament which thou calls visible and Political and brings 1 Cor. 12. for thy proof did Paul say as often as ye eat this Political bread and drink this visible Political Cup you shew forth the Lords death till he come and did Christ when he sent forth his Disciples to preach and to Baptize in the 28th of Matth. 19. which thou pleads must continue until the end of the world did he send them and say go and Teach and Preach the visible Politick Word of the kingdom and Baptize them with visible Political water and that this should continue to the end of the world And little marvel if the Throne of Sathan be exalted among you and such Ministers as thou who Ministers deceit and unrighteousness and ungodliness art set to be a Teacher and appointed so by the General Court who cannot speak a form of sound words but like a Phylosopher a Star-gaâ—er an Astrologian or a Stage-player which them that reads thy book will see thy tract frothed with such black dark sentences which are like Enchantments As for Beckold and Knipperdolling and Quintinius and Poquius thou might have taken up thy Pen ere now and not have brought all this rambling stuff out of the History of the Germans which thou wouldst cast upon our backs the Bishops used to cast it upon your backs and you upon the Baptists backs but now we must bear all and â—â—ou in envy unto us that thereby thou might represent us odious to the world hath made them all Quakers and saith they are our Predecessours take them to thy self and joyn them to your Political Church and your Political Ordinances and your Politick Doctrines which is of the same nature with theirs which you maintain and uphold with carnal weapons as they did theirs And last of all thou art coming to the Magistrates power in matters of Religion under the Gospel and thou saith Notwithstanding manifold evils prevails and the wiles of the Devil are great and malignant and heresie which is a horrid aspect yet thou saith There is Balm in Gilead and a Physician there and the Balm and the Physician is that thou saith God hath armed the Magistrate with Civil power for the defence of Religion through the Concurrences of Devine Benediction and the Magiâ—trate is to vindicate the truth of God and also exercise his Power for curing the Offenders and for his proof he brings 1 Tim. 1. 2â— of whom is Hymenius and Alexander whom I have delivered up unto Sathan Ans It seems your Gospel that you preach hath not power in it to prevail against Heresie neither your weapons are able to prevail which are but carnal and so the Power to suppress Heresie and Convince Gain-sayers is wholly without you and though you Censure and Excommunicate and deliver up to Sathan as you say yet you being in Sathans power that which is against you hath Power over you and therefore you are fain to cry up the Beasts power which alwayes made War with the Saints under the name of Hereticks and you say that in exercising of his Power is but defensive I say yes it is offensive and distructive to the Government of Christ and his Prerogative unto whom all Power belongs both in Heaven and Earth and the Government lies upon his shoulders who is a wonderful Councellor of whose Government there is no end and he is able to defend his Church and further more to take away thy objection is willing and furthermore hath promised to keep his Church that the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it and therefore thou who would have the civil Magistrate to intrude into those things which belongs not to him would have them Usurpers and Traytors unto Christ the Prince of Peace and the King of his People and head of the Church his body unto whom absolute Power and Soveraignity belongeth and Glory which he will not give to another And as for all the proofs which thou brings of
the Magistrates under the first Covenant they are all invalid as to the second Covenant for all the Kings and Magistrates in the first Covenant what as they did in and about Religion as to the punishment of the false prophets and them that had familiar spirits and wizards they were but Typical as in reference unto Christ the second Covenant who hath another way to kill the false Prophets and to make War against Heresie and blasphemy and against all Sorcerers Deceivers and Antichrists by the two-edged sword which proceeds out of his mouth with which his enemies shall be slain who will not that he should Rule and exercise his spiritual Power against his spiritual enemies Is not Heresie an Errour an inbred thing And is an outward sword like to reach to that Therefore though thou may press the Magistrates or them whom thou calls so by their Coersive power as thou calls it and promise to them devine Benediction like the Pope for making of Laws against that which thou and others may Judge Blasphemy and Heresie and execute them with Whips and Ropes and cutting off Ears and destroying the Creature yet this doth not reach to Heresie and Blasphemy and all the Balm and Physick that you have in New England wherein your hope standeth as hath yet appeared are your knotted Whips and pitched Ropes banishment and death here is Balm and Physick indeed which destroys the Creation And what was Paul a Magistrate who Censured Hymâ—nius and Alexander or else what dost thou bring this for Thou frames an Objection and also an Answer That the int 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of Aâ—thority in matters of Religion is violation of Liberty of Conscience thy Answer is Church Authority is Authority were this Objection good the Church may not then thou saith Authoritatively deal with any of her Members for holding forth or teaching of false doctrine contrary to Gal. 5. 12. and Rev. 2. 2â— Answ. The Objection is good enough the interposing of Civil Authority in matters of Religion is a leading them beyond their line for that which is ordained for the ordering of Civil things is not to intrude into that which is beyond its Sphere And why may not the true Church Authoritatively deal with any of her Members for holding forth false doctrine What dost thou think that Paul in the fifth of the Galatians when he wished that they were even cut off that troubled them that he would have had them killed or beat with pitched Robes or would he have had the Galatians to have denied them and have them exercised their Authority in the Power of the Lord Jesus Christ And dost thou bring Rev. 2. 20. to prove that Thyatira had not Power in the Authority of God to have thrown out and Judged Jezebel This was their fault because they suffered her who called her self a Prophetess to teach and seduce and to eat things sacrificed to Idols or thou Judges they wanted some Magistrate to kill her Authoritatively And if the Church may not deal with the Members Authoritatively who makes defection from the Faith why have you Excommunicated and thrown out so many for Hereticks in New England Thou saith Liberty of Conscience and liberty for Errour and Heresie are two things and the Error of Conscience is a Liberty to Bondage and thou brings They shall put you out of the Synagogues John 16. and to think to murther the Saints was service unto God was not from Conscience but Errour of Conscience but the Obâ—ect thou saith Subjected to the Coersive Power must be some Act of the outward man and further thou saith There is a difference between quiet Heresie and turbulent Heresie Schism and Sedition Answ. It is true Liberty of Conscience and liberty of Errour and Heresie are two things but these lyes both without the Power and the Line of any Civil Power as Civil Power to reach unto the one he should encourage that is to say them who exercise a pure Conscience towards God and towards man and as for the other Errour in Judgement it s beyond the Power of the Civil Magistrate to rectifie but as it puts forth it self in outward Acts of wickedness as to kill steal murther adultery defrauding cozening and cheating in outward things then the sword reaches to the Act outward but can reach no further And as for Heresie Schism Sedition turbulent and quiet as thou makes distinctions they are all one in the ground and you have had too many such thoughts in your hearts as that you did God service with all your Whipping cutting off Ears bearing with Ropes casting out of your Assemblies and not onely so but out of your Countrey and banishing them from their Wives and Children and all this you have done and thinks you have done God good service and have cast them out and said as the Prophet spoke of your Generation whose hearts were hardned Let the Lord be glorified these things you have to repent of before you know or will feel remission of sins from the Lord though thou say you know it belongs not to the Magistrate to compel any man to be a Believer nor to punish any for not Believing but Hereticks turbulent Hereticks we believe belongs unto him to punish and who must be Judge of turbulent Hereticks Is not a Heretick an Unbeliever And if the Magistrate ought not to punish an Unbeliever then not a Heretick for a Heretick is an Unbeliever and they which are in the Power and Authority of God can deny such a one and Judge him out by the Power of God there is his punishment according to that which thou calls Gospel Institution and beyond that or any further Act upon such a one we do not read of in all that which is called the New Testament neither that Christ his Apostles or any of the true Churches or Officers or Believers ever Commanded or Commended or Exhorted any to stretch forth their hand against the person of any who were Hereticks really so and Blasphemers really so and therefore see there is neither Command Precept nor Example Doth not thou wretchedly err in pressing on them which thou calls Believers to Act such wretched Acts of cruelty as you have done and thou vindicates them in it as their Duty It 's true we read of the Beast and of the Dragon who made War against the Saints and killed them and of mystery Babylon and of Sodom and Egypt where Christ was slain and the witnesses slain Now if thou wilt take these for proofs and for a ground thou may and so all thy twisting and twining and vain Arguments falls to the ground And doth not the Church of Rome account all you as Hereticks and is not their Judgement that they ought to punish you with corporal punishment and is not this your Judgement also page 78 that the Magistrate ought to proceed gradually That is to inflict punishment by degrees with lingring tortures like their Inquisitions And wherein doth thy doctrine differ from theirs in
Word of his patience and the word of his Testimony committed to them unto the end London the 12th day of the 11th Month 1659. OH New England whose heart is unbroken and is as hard as a stone thy fruits declares it and thy Iuhabitants are Rebellious against God thy Teachers and People are filled with enmity against the Lord and his People and they have not known sorrow nor are they acquainted with the Lord in his Judgements but the Rebellious and stiff-necked lives in them and they are covered with a Profession of Gospel but are as the Wolves in sheeps clothing who is covered with the Saints words and Practices but are destroying the Lambs of Christ oh New England what hast thou done how thou hast greedily run in the way that is not good how hast thou opposed the way of thine own peace and rejected the loving kindness of the Lord we have heard and we have seen and we have been sencible of thy wickedness of thy mercilesness and thy cruelty which abounds in thee and art without respect to God and his Eternal Power which is over you though you oppose it yet you are comprehended with it and it shall Eternally Judge you your Church hath brought forth bad fruits even of Sodom and spiritual Egypt and in the streets is the Lamb slain and the just crucified and ye are the People that have done it doth not your dealing towards the People of God called Quakers evidence this unto all the World and Nations do hisse at you what ye a gathered People what ye a seperated People and brings forth persecution in such a manner exceeding the very cruelty of the Scribes and Pharisees and the chief Priests this Nation hath wondered at your hard heartedness sober People are grieved at their hearts for you that you should so far indanger your souls to everlasting loss as to go on in this way as you have done for years together every day as it were heighthening your malice and your fury against the Lamb and his followers Oh you Teachers and Professors which hath openly appeared under the Dragons Collours who hath Warred under his Banner even the Dragon which sought to devour the man-child and by him do you make War against the Lamb and his followers with the Dragons weapons Prisons houses of correction whippings banishments cutting off the ears and such like cruel dealing which is of the Dragon his weapons and not the weapons of the Lamb oh what have you done is there not a wise man among you are you all besotted and inchanted are you all blind is there none among you that considers these things hath not your own doings pierced your hearts hath not the innocent blood that you have shed yet struck terrour upon your consciences can nothing awaken you will not your own doings reprove you oh consider for you are not hid from the Eternal eye of God it beholds you and you are naked and bare before it and your filthiness and wretchedness is open before it oh what floods of wickedness do you cast out and what wicked practices do you bring forth we are wounded in our spirits for you because you have lost all feeling and sence and are void of understanding your ears dull your eyes blind and your hearts hardned and hath neither Religion nor pure humanity but do you think to prevail against the Lord by your doings do you think to weary him out from among you No he is stronger and his Kingdom and Government of more force and though he is long suffering yet he can dash you to pieces and take your breath from you and cause you to melt away and sink you into confusion and destruction and his truth will prevail over you for there is a seed which you cannot quench there is a root which will bring forth though you choak it never so much and in all your glory you shall wither and pine away and your flower shall be cut down and your strength shall become weak as water and your Authority shall sink into the bottomless pit and there is no vision unto you of peace and prosperity in your way but you shall fall with no small weight of dishonour and affliction which shall be your portion for God is just and all Power is with him to break you to pieces and he can make you know that he can do whatsoever he will and you are but as the pot-sheards of the Earth which he will break and his heritage shall be increased and he will not be wanting to it his People shall have peace when you shall have trouble his People shall have joy when you shall have mourning he shall appear to their joy but you shall be ashamed for your portion shall not be like unto theirs but the wrath of the Lamb shall torment you even the long suffering of God which hath been great towards you shall be turned into a devouring fire and into fury to consume you this shall doubtless come to passe for the Lord hath said it wherefore repent ye Rulers repent ye Teachers repent ye hypocrites and if there be any among you that will be saved let him deliver himself by turning to the Lord But besides all that you have done by way of persecution imprisonment lies and slanders cutting off ears banishment and whippings and such like yet after all this here is a Book come over Called the Heart of New England Rent filled with false reproaches with slanders with false Doctrines and misinterpretations oâ— Scripture and such like stuff which we have taken notice of and viewed over and returned Answer what is this your best Divinity in New England we have heard of your wicked practices towards the people of God but now we have seen the wickedness of your Profession and the emptiness of your Religion and Doctrines and we cannot but turn them back to you again that if possible the Lord may open your eyes that you may be converted and live and what do we fear your revilings and threatnings and your persecutions in the immortal Life is our victory which Life you cannot Reach for the Devil hath not power given over it though you may have power over the body and over the goods yet the immortal Life you cannot touch and that is Eternal victory and that Life is our God bringing forth more and more and he can deliver if he will but if he will not we cannot bow to your Image nor say we have done you wrong in what we write and speak to you for this is our Religion that our Conscience may be kept clear and our zeal for God is in this that we may keep void of offence towards God and towards you by warning of you from time to time and though we are far distant in the outward man yet we have a witness in your consciences and in that we know you and by that shall be answered in the dreadful day of the Lord and that day is coming upon you and the Judgements of the Lord the wicked shall not â—scape O have you forgotten since you were sufferers your selves and then it was well with you far better then now for you are at ease in the flesh and have forgotten God and lost that sincerity which once was in you and the very spirit of the old Bishops which once persecuted you it is entered into your hearts and now liâ—es in you and acts you and in the dayes of your prosperity you are exalted and have forgotten the Lord and you requite him evil for his love and seem to be a people given up to do wickedly till the time of your distruction and like Rulers like Teachers all in the hard-heartedness and in the pathes of death and destruction your Church your Ministry your Religion is all of it a weariness and abomination to the Lord while that spirit of murder and â—alice lodges in you wherefore repent least you perissh the day of God Almighty is approaching the terrible day of the Lord is at hand I am a lover of righteousness and a friend to the Seed of God throughout the world and that waits for the Redemption thereof E. BVRROVGH THE END