Keith hereafter mention'd Of which he has given us a full Account in Print Entituled The Pretended Yearly Meeting of the Quakers their Nameless Bull of Excommunication given forth against G. Keith c. And in another Treatise which bears this Title The True Copy of a Paper given in to the Yearly Meeting of the People called Quakers the 15th day of the 3d Month 1695. with a Brief Narrative of the most material Passages of Discourse betwixt George Whitehead Charles Marshal and George Keith the said day c. Together with a short List of some of the Vile and Gross Errors of George Whitehead Iohn Whitehead William Penn c. Both these are Printed for R. Levis 1695. and the Bull of Excommunication is inserted Verbatim in the first of these Accounts As to the Justice or Injustice of the said Bull I refer the Reader to these two short Treatises above-mentioned But the use I have to make of it is to shew the Authority which their Church or Meetings do assume over the Light within Particular Persons which was the great Pretence upon which the Quakers first set up and decry'd all Church-Authority as Carnal and Anti-Christian That is as they have done the Power of the Sword till it come into their own Hands See Sect. II. p. 14. This Grace-Church-street Excommunication may be added to the Proceedings against G. Keith in Pensilvania to the Barbadoes Judgment and other Instances of their Church-Authority over Particular Persons which are mention'd at the end of Sect. X. from p. 118. But there is another thing of a more astonishing Nature You will see Sect. IX of the Antient Pretence of the Quakers to Immediate Revelation in the same Degree that the Prophets and Apostles had And as a Consequence of this it is shewn Sect. X. how they have aspir'd to Infallibility and that not only of their Church as they call it but in each of their Particular Persons And Hence they have taken upon them to pronounce Prophecies and Curses as all their Prophecies that I have met with are in the same Stile with the Holy Prophets Thus saith the Lord. This is from the Mouth of the Lord c. Several of which Prophecies thus solemnly Denounced have prov'd Errant Lyes as is shewn from Remarkable Instances 2. Now I did really think that the Present Quakers were asham'd of these Gross Delusions so Palpably Detected past all Contradiction Tho' they wou'd not own it nor Publicly Censure these False Prophets of theirs because of overthrowing their Foundation the pretended Sanctity of these their Leaders And this was the reason that I thought it highly useful to lay open their Horrid Deceit for this purpose chiefly That I might by this bring our Present Quakers under that Happy Necessity as I thought of Disowning the Mad Enthusiasm of these their Adored Guides and thereby persuade them to return to the Sobriety of Religion in Odium to which as a Carnal and Spiritless Dispensation they had been Betrayd by these Pharisaical Pretenders to quit the Communion of a Regularly Constituted and Apostolical Church But Alas the Issue has quite deceived my Expectations for our Present Obstinate Quakers not only refuse to be brought to disown their own False Prophets though they cannot deny the Instances wherein they are prov'd to be such but do still Fearlesly go on and pretend themselves to the same Extraordinary Commission of Immediate Divine Revelation and thereby a Right to affix God's Seal Thus saith the Lord to whatever their Rage their Malice or their Folly shall suggest If they think these too hard words they shall have harder yet For this matter cannot be compounded No! This is nothing short of Blasphemy Rank wild Blasphemy And the Honour of God must take place of any Respect to Men and I have a great deal for some who are too much herein concern'd therefore I must I cannot help it yea Wo to me if I do it not I must freely and openly Rebuke this Proud Blasphemous Spirit which Seduces the Servants of God and speaks to them in the Name of the Lord whereby they are brought to Worship It What is That What is It which pretends to be God and is not Even That which Inspires Men to think what It Dictates to be the Immediate Revelation of God Himself and Emboldens them to affix to it Thus saith the Lord. This is the Prince of the Spirits of Delusion and this Prince they Worship tho' Ignorantly for God who mistake his Inspirations for God's Now I am to tell the Reader That the same day month after G. Keith was Excommunicated as abovesaid George Whitehead one of the Quaker Metropolitans thought not that Condemnation sufficient but pursu'd him with his Prophetical Curse in the following words Thus saith the Lord Because thou hast poured out great Contempt and Reproach upon My Servants and People I will assuredly pour out and bring great Contempt and Confusion upon Thee This is signed George Whitehead and Dated the 17th of the 4th Month that is June 1695. and was sent to G. Keith But Copies of â—t were likewise given out amongst the Friends that they might admire these Prophetical Gifts and if any thing infortunate should in all G. Keithâ—s Life-time befall him that it might cerâ—ainly be esteem'd as the Consequence of his Curse and G. Whitehead be bought as much a Prophet and to have spoken from the Mouth of the Lord as certainly as ever Jeremiah foretold the Destruction of Jerusalem and the Seventy years Captivity But I proceed to a Man of much greater Consideration It is told at the end of Sect. 10. from p. 136. how the otherwise highly-valuable Mr. Penn pronounced a Sentence of Apostacy against George Keith In the Name of the Lord. It is true this was not taking upon him the Gift of Prophecy like G. Whitehead but it was delivering his own Judgment as the Positive and Infallible Oracles of God And if G. Keith does tell us truth if not he is in a Man's Hands that can and will surely correct him in the second of his Books above-mentioned The true Copy c. p. 14. Mr. Penn did own before the Yearly Meeting That the Glorious Power of God which he felt did so Transport him that he was carry'd beyond himself and knew not whether he was sitting standing or kneeling when he Pronounc'd that Sentence This was like St. Paul 's whether in the Body or out of the Body he cou'd not tell Good God! How great is the force of this Mad Spirit of Enthusiasm That a Man of Mr. Penn's Known Sense and Abilities shou'd not be able to distinguish betwixt the violent Transports of Passion and the Immediate Inspiration of the Holy Ghost O that our Religion and the whole Scriptures shou'd be thus expos'd to loose and Atheistical Wits when they shall compare the Inspirations of the Holy Prophets and Apostles with these of W. Penn G. Whitehead c. and turn both alike into Ridicule O
of the Serpent that is the Devil Now which of these several Treatments do testifie the greatest Respect And whether their Veneration does Hereby appear more to the Holy Scriptures or to their own Writings I leave it without more Argument to the Reader Manger their Thin and Hypocritical Distinction of the Letter It is plain they never gave the Scriptures a good word but meerly for Popularity when forc'd to it to avoid the Odium of the World And therefore since the year 1660. when the Restoration of the Church and Her Liturgy brought the Holy Scriptures again into Request the Quakers have been more Pharisaically Civil towards them and upon some Turns will bestow upon them the Epithet of Holy because it is so common in the Mouths of other Men. But in all their Preachings or Writings before 1660 where-ever they had occasion to name the Holy Scriptures they seldom or never gave them that Epithet of Holy or Sacred but plain Scriptures at best tho' most commonly they did not let them pass without some of their sweet Appellations before-told of Beastly Ware Serpent's Meat Death and Carnal to beget the greater Reverence for them in the People And it is desir'd to Confute this Observation that they wou'd give us what Citations they can they will not be many out of all their Books which were wrote before 1660. and they are very numerous which name the Scriptures with the Appellation of Holy or Sacred or indeed with any sort of Respect Especially let them Quote Fox Burrough Howgil or some of their Principal Pillars But if this Observation be Malicious and that they cannot disprove it now then let them take time and put in such Expressions as oft as they please in the New Edition of G. Fox's Works according to their Laudable Custom before spoke of to chop and change the Writings of their Dead Prophets to answer the Exigency of the Times Tho' if what they wrote was Dictated Immediately by the Holy Ghost as they pretend they are of Equal Authority with the Scriptures and it must be as great a sin to Add or Diminish in the Writings of the Quakers as in the Holy Scriptures themselves And then by the Sentence pronounc'd Rev. 22.18 and 19. all those Quakers shall be Blotted out of the Book of Life who in the New Editions of the Works of Edward Burrough Francis Howgil c. have taken away from the Words of the Books of their Prophecies And I have given them Lawful Warning not to incurr the like Sin and Shame in the new design'd Edition of their great Apostle G. Fox's worthy Remains But that they may not pretend Ignorance or Inadvertence I do here particularly Caution that the following Passages may not be left out nor Blended in a Book Published by Him and other Quakers call'd The West Answering to the North Printed 1657. where p. 7 8. They tell That Strafford's Head was cut off and Canterbury's and Charles Stuart's as Traytors for endeavouring to subvert the Fundamental Laws And p. 79. That His Charles Stuart 's Arbitrary Actions were Recorded every where in the Blood and Misery of the late Wars and the Destruction of Him and His Family The Dreadful and Sad Examples of His Righteous Judgments who Renders to every one according to his Deeds And p. 89. Doth not here appear from the Grave the Spirit that was in Christopher Love Priest and his Fellow-Traytors who being within the Jurisdiction of this Common-wealth look upon them to Commissionate Divers Men to treat with Charles Stuart the Proclaim'd Traytor of the Government P. 95. The Common Enemy Charles Stuart c. and forget not the wonderful Deliverances from them all which the Right Hand of the Lord effected p. 96. 97. Multitudes of People flock'd up out of the City to Westminster to complain of their Sufferings which Charles Stuart called Tumults and by the Guard one of them was slain at the place of the shedding of whose Blood was Charles Stuart's Head struck off and His Blood poured forth on the ground A remarkable Record of the Righteous Iudgments of God Lastly Mark these words p. 102 The Righteous Ends of the Wars for Liberty and Law And these Innocent Servants of the Lord who have been All of them Always Faithful to the honest Interest of the Nation and many of them for it have drawn the Sword and Fought in the Field from first to last And p. 83. The honest Men then who own'd them the Parliament Army throughout England against the Priests and the Common Enemy That is the Church and the King And by the Honest and Innocent Servants of the Lord they meant Themselves For they allow none other to be such as is fully shewn hereafter The Defence of them the Laws say they p. 16. have we in the late Wars vindicated in the Field with our Blood c. There is another Book of this Great Apostle wherein I am very apprehensive his New Editors may do him wrong It is a most Bitter and Senseless Invective against all Kings and Monarchical Government which was Printed in the beginning of the Year 1660. but before the Restoration which was in May the same Year to shew what Obstinate Rebels these Quakers were who held out against the King to the very last Day That Book bears this Title Several Papers given forth by George Fox London Printed for Thomas Simonds at the Sign of the Bull 1660. I set it down thus particularly because the Friends may know that it is still in being and in the Hands of those who will watch the New Edition of Fox's Works that they shall neither Add nor Diminish without being told of it I give this Caution because great pains has been taken and by some Arts which I will not here mention to recover this Book out of the Hands of any who are in the least Disaffected to their Cause and it may rationally be suppos'd that the Design is either wholly to suppress it or to take out its Sting that it hurt them not and render them odious to all Kingly Government I will give the Reader but a Taste out of that Delicious Dispensatory He says p. 8. That all Kings and Emperors have sprung up in the Night since the days of the Apostles among the Anti-Christs p. 12. So the Christians goes out from Christ and set up Kings like the Heathens p. 15. And all these Novice-Christians that are crying up Earthly Kings and fighting for the Kings of the Earth are not such as follow the Lamb. p. 16. We know that these Kings are the Spiritual Aegyptians got up since the days of the Apostles p. 18. and 9. You never read of any King among the Christians but among the Apostates since the days of the Apostles p. 8. Many cry for an Earthly King and will have Caesar and is not this the same Nature the Jews was in and do not they in this Crucifie Jesus p. 9. Are not all these Christians that will
the Quakers p. 97. Witness Immediate Revelation They are come to that the Apostles was in the Spirit of Christ the Spirit of God they Witness Immediate Revelation p. 153. But the rest of the World have never heard the Voice of God nor the Voice of Christ and have not the same Infallible Spirit as the Apostles had and no Immediate Revelation nor Inspiration as they had p. 221. Revelation is now witnessed in our Days as it was in the Apostles but not amongst you who have inwardly Ravened from the Spirit of God which have Apostatized from the Apostles And so you be in the Diabolical Devilish that expects not that now which was in the Days of the Apostles If ever you own the Prophets Christ New Rome Unmask'd p. 42. G. F's Answer to the Westmorland Petition p. 30. Truth 's Defence G. F. and R. H. p. 2 89 104 and the Apostles you will own our Writings which are given forth by the same Spirit and Power You may as well Condemn the Scriptures to the Fire as our Quaeries Our giving forth Papers and Printed Books it is from the Immediate Eternal Spirit of God You are now Answered from the Mouth of the Lord. Of their stiling their own Writings The Word of the Lord and denying it to the Holy Scriptures you will see farther Sect. 11. Concerning the Authority of the Holy Scriptures SECT X. Concerning the Quakers Infallibility THis Section may seem needless as being included in the former For who pretend to an Equality with God to the same Immediate Revelation with Christ the Prophets and Apostles had must needs be Infallible But I conceive it will be worth the Readers while to see how they Branch it and Descend to particular Marks and Instances of their Infallibility This Section therefore is like opening the Jugler's Box And you may expect to see Rareties I told you before how their Infallibility was Palm'd upon them by the Church of Rome Of which they were so greedy that they swallow'd it down by whole-sale and wou'd have none of those Cautions with which the Church of Rome us'd to Defend themselves or else forgot them in their Haste and in their Hony Month while they were New-fangl'd Thus while the Church of Rome plac'd their Infallibility only in their Church or at most in the Pope alone as the Head of it the Quakers set up for it All and every One of them There was an Infallibility for you The Church of Rome had cunning Hiding Places and if you attack'd the Infallibility of their Church they wou'd not tell you what they meant by their Church nor where to find their Infallibility some wou'd make you believe that it was in the Pope as Head of the Church and only Successor of Peter to whom the Promises Super hanc Petram and Tues Petrus were made But then some distinguished and said not in Peter alone nor always but only when he was in Cathedra and some said that was with his Conclave others said no but only with a General Council Again some plac'd the Infallibility in the Council above the Pope others in the Pope above the Council others in neither of them asunder but only in both together And lastly some will have it none of all these ways but say it is only to be look'd for in the Diffusive Body of the Church And then as to the Infallibility it self some tell us that it relates to Manners as well as Faith and to Practice as well as Theory Others will by no means admit of that but confine it wholly to matters of Faith And then it will be a long Dispute what shall be adjudg'd a Matter of Faith and what not but only as Relating to Faith These are long and intricate Mazes and it requires no little Skill to be able to follow them thro' all these various Subterfuges But the Simplicity of our Quakers has depriv'd them of every one of these Helps For as they place Infallibility in every single Quaker so they confine it not to matters of Faith but extend it to all Persons and Things To know all Mens Hearts and all Things in the World by their inward Light without being told by any I am sure by this time the Reader is impatient to come to the Proof to see if it be possible for Men to be possess'd with such an incredible degree of Enthusiasm And I am willing to begin that I may no longer lie under the suspicion of Imposing unjustly or at least of Aggravating any thing against them G. Fox says plainly Gr. Myst p. 89. That they can discern who are Saint who are Devils and who Apostates without speaking ever a word Ibid. p. 5. That they have the Word of God Christ which is Eternal and Infallible in their Hearts to judge Persons and Things Thou says he to his Opponent p. 96. not being Infallible thou art not in the Spirit and so art not a Minister and art not able to judge of Powers that is not Infallible nor Magistrates nor Kingdoms nor Churches Now which of the Quakers is it who have this Spirit to judge thus Infallibly of Persons and Things of Powers Magistrates Kingdoms and Churches And to discern Mens Hearts who are Saints and who Apostates and that without being told by any as G. F. expresses it without speaking ever a word This is told us in p. 7. of Edward Burrough's Epistle to the Reader of G. F's Great Mystery where he says that this Infallible Spirit was given To us says he every one of us in particular And this Light gave us to discern between Truth and Error between every false and right way and it Perfectly discover'd to us the true state of All Things Thou say'st says Fox to his Opponent p. 107. that the Holiest Man is not able to give an Infallible Character of another Man Hast thou not in this discover'd thy self to be no Minister of Christ or of the Spirit Who cannot give an Infallible Character of another Man how canst thou Minister to his Condition How canst thou see where he is How canst thou see them that be turned from the Darkness and that be in the Darkness and distinguish the one from the oother and an Holy Man from an Unholy Man that canst not give an Infallible Character of and Man's Estate And p. 94. Have ye given your selves a Name of the Church of Christ and is there not a Spirit of discerning among you Have ye not manifested here that ye are Harlotted from the Church of Christ the Apostles were of And how can ye Minister or Teach People if ye do not discern their states how they stand before God How can you commend your selves to every Man's Conscience in God's sight How can ye present the Souls of Men to God and see not their states how they are in his sight How come ye to have Fellowship in the Spirit How can you or any Minister to the state and condition that People be
of the Truth as were in few years gathered then the Heavenly motion came upon George Fox as the Lord 's Anointed as being the Great Apostle of Jesus Christ and as one whom the Lord had ordained to be in the place amongst the Children of Light in this our Day as Moses was amongst the Children of Israel in his Day to set forth Methods and Forms of Church Government and to Establish Monthly and Quarterly Meetings of Men and of Women distinct from Men and these Meetings are since called the Church whose Counsel Advice and Judgment as occasion shall offer is to be submitted unto by every one who Professeth himself a Member of the Church And saith George VVhitehead We are to Believe as the true Church Believes c. Christian Quaker Part 1. p. 9. 1680. I was told by one present at the Quaker-Meeting at Radcliff on Sunday the 17th of February last 1694 5. that Mr. Penn having Preached and after George Keith rising up and Expounding some Scripture in another manner than Mr Penn had done that Mr. Penn stopt him and solemnly Denounced these words against him In the Name of the Lord I Pronounce him an Apostate over his Head Upon which occasion I have these few Questions to ask 1. Whether this was a Sentence from Mr. Penn himself or from their Church If the latter it comes in the Class just before-mention'd of their Church-Authority over the Light within particular Persons But if the former then here is Private Light against Private Light And Mr. Penn will please to tell us by what Authority he Pronounc'd this Sentence against G. Keith in the Name of the Lord. If by an Ordinary Commission of Succession to Christ and the Apostles by Regular Ordination That I should be glad to hear But if by an Extraordinary Commission such as the Prophets and Apostles had we wou'd desire such Credentials as they had that is Miracles Otherwise any Reason why this is not rank Enthusiasm and liable to the Sentence of those who spoke In the Name of the Lord when He had not sent them Mr. Penn owns the Enthusiasm but does not shew the Miracles for he said publickly in their last Yearly Meeting in May 1695. in Excuse or Justification of his above-said Sentence of Apostacy against G. Keith That he was then so Transported with the extraordinary Power of God upon him that he knew not whether he was sitting standing or kneeling when he spoke the words But whether this Enthusiasm proceeded from Divine or what other Inspiration will be best known from the Doctrine it supported and which was the ground of the Contest And it was thus told to me by one who was present viz. That Mr. Penn at a former Meeting had Explain'd this Scripture 1 John 1.7 The Blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin in this manner That the Blood was the Life and the Life was the Light within This Resolves all into the Light within which as will be further shewn they make to be the Archi-Type and Substance of what Christ's outward Body Blood and all that He did or suffer'd in it were but the Types and Shadow and so of much less Value and Consequence to our Salvation But to go on with our present matter of Fact At the fore-mention'd Meeting the 17th of Feb. 1694 5. G. Keith taking occasion to Discourse upon the above-said Text 1 John 1.7 did Expound it in a quite different manner from what Mr. Penn had done but without naming of Mr. Penn Said that it ought to be taken Literally that it was the outward shedding of Christ's Blood which cleanseth from sin and that this was not to be Resolv'd into the Light within nor to be Spiritualiz'd away from the Letter For that this was overthrowing of the Faith Upon which Mr. Penn rose up and Interrupted him in the middle of his Discourse which I am told is contrary to the Method and Freedom of their Meetings and Church-Discipline and taking it to himself and his former Exposition of that Text which is told above he inveigh'd not without great Passion against G. Keith concluded with the Sentence of Excommunication above-told and stopping G. Keith from any Reply immediately Dissolv'd the Assembly I will not here enlarge upon the Subject matter of this Dispute betwixt them because it will be fully Discuss'd in the following Sections Particularly Section 12 17 and 18. But for the present I only apply it to the point of their Church-Authority over the Light within particular persons which was their Original and Great pretence SECT XI Concerning the Authority of the Holy Scriptures THE Quaker's Refuge Printed Anno 1673. p. 17. states this as truly own'd by the Quakers in these words VVhether the first Pen-Man of the Scriptures was Moses or Hermes or whether both these are not one or whether there are not many words contained in the Scriptures which were not spoken by Inspiration of the Holy Spirit whether some words were not spoken by the Grand Impostor some by wicked Men some by wise Men ill Apply'd some by good Men ill Express'd some by False Prophets and yet True some by True Prophets and yet False And from these Suppositions he goes on and concludes that some part of the Scriptures concerning the Redemption and Salvation of Mankind were True And p. 18. That the Scriptures as above Distinguished are a true Record c. Instead of Answering these Diabolical Suggestions against the Sacred Authority of the Holy Scriptures of God and which evidently overthrow the Certainty of the whole G. VVhitehead in his Innocency Triumphant Printed 1693. in Answer to F. Bugg's New Rome Arraign'd p. 28. does own the whole by way of an Excuse for it and says That this question'd but of some words in Scripture not all But the Holy Scriptures confirming the whole of themselves one part Quoting another if the whole be not therefore True the whole must be False And we must take this to be the Opinion of the New Quakers as well as the Old because Non Asserted G. VVhitehead endeavours to solve this Ibid. p. 21. in Answer to the Quotations which F. Bugg had brought out of their Authors which call'd the Holy Scriptures by the Wicked and Contemptible Names of Dust Death Serpents Meat c. Whitehead says that was only in opposition to those who wou'd have the very Paper and Ink and Characters to be the Word of God and the Gospel wherein they were oppos'd says he Christ being the Word and the Gospel the Power of God which Endures for ever which the Books and Letters or Characters cannot Here Whitehead says that there were some Priests in the North in and before the year 1653. when those Books which Bugg Quoted were Printed who were thus Ignorant And that this was the Reason for those Expressions in these Quaker Books First This had been no Reason for these Barbarous Expressions if it had been so But Secondly I will joyn Issue with
G. Whitehead upon it that there never were such Priests either in the North or any where else that were so Ignorant No George This is an Arrant Lye without all doubt Did any Man ever Think or Say that the very Material Paper and Ink and Letters wou'd Endure for ever Where is now thy Infallibility Where thy Common Honesty or Morality thus grosly to bely these Priests as thou callest them But they thank Thee that it was so Grosly for it is so very Ridiculous that it is in no Man's Power to believe Thee or that Thou canst have the least pretence to Infallibility or even that Thy word shou'd be trusted in any thing that Thou averrest when Thou darest Print so notorious and impossiblean Untruth Like G. Fox's senseless Reply to Richard Baxter c. Writing says he Paper and Ink is not Infallible Great Mystery p. 302. nor the Scripture is not the ground of Faith Your Rule Paper and Ink that will come to Dust Here I wou'd fain ask them a Question How it comes that since they are such bitter Enemies to the Letter they yet make a Conscience of saying Thee and Thou instead of You in the singular because these were old English words in the first Translations Is there any Immorality or Iniquity in these Letters y o u more than in T h o u And is not every Nation Master of its own Language Besides these were not the words of the Languages in which the Scriptures were wrote It is likely that G. Fox and the rest in the Year 1650. thought they were and lighting upon some old English Bible took it for the Original For if stress must be laid upon the Letter it must be surely upon the Original Letter in which the Scriptures were wrote And the Quakers may as well lay stress upon the Latine or French or Dutch Translation as upon the English in this Case How do they in other Languages make the Distinction betwixt thou and you when you is us'd in the singular Number Behold here these Men whose Chief Principle it is to Decry and Damn the Letter do set up at the same time the most Superstitions and Ridiculous sticking to the Letter that ever was heard of since Adam so very Extravagant that if it had not been no Man cou'd have believ'd that it cou'd have been Or that any Men cou'd have made a Case of Conscience of such a senseless and insignificant Criticism But as the Scorpion is said to carry Oyl which cures its own Venom so the wise Providence of God has dispos'd of most Errors that they carry Contradictions to themselves in their own Bowels But if the Holy Scriptures of God must not be call'd the Word of God because they are wrote in Letters why must the Quakers most Blasphemous and Prophane Scribbles be Stil'd the Word of the Lord Even Solomon Eccles's Lying Prophesie before told in his Letter to John Story To you all this is The Word of the Lord says George Fox of his own Writings Great Myst p. 225. I charge you says he in the presence of the Lord God Some of the Quakers Principles c. p. 4. to send this amongst all Friends and Brethren every where to be Read in all Meetings To you all This is the Word of God G. Fox's Letter to all Friends Printed 1671. with several Papers c. p. 60. 62. The Scriptures are not the Word of God G. F. c. Fire-brand c. p. 159. 2d Part 1678. A Printed Letter of G. Fox's which is now lying before me Dated at Dalston the 13th of the 10th Month 1683. Bears this Title All Friends every where this is The word of the Lord unto you all And there is a Postscript in these words This you may read amongst the Children of the Light and of the Day And p. 4. of the Letter he says I remember before we were call'd Quakers as I was sitting in an House in Nottingham-shire about the Year 1648. the word of the Lord came to me and said c. And yet in his Great Myst p. 246 247. he calls it Blasphemy to say that the Scriptures are the Word of God His words are these They the Scriptures are not the word of God which thou Christopher Wade hast Blasphemously affirmed But says he Jesuitcally to amuse the Reader Christ is the word of God As if Christopher Wade or any Christian had ever affirmed that the Book of Scriptures was the Word of God in the same sense as Christ or any otherwise than as the Records of those Revelations which God by his Holy Spirit did dictate to the Inspired Pen-Men But not a Living Person partaking of the Substance of the Father like the Word Eternally Begotten Cou'd this George either of these Georges Fox or VVhitehead produce any one Man even in Bedlam who ever asserted this of the Ink or Paper of the Holy Scriptures Why then do they use this Distinction Against whom do they use it Against No Body it was only to Shufle and Cut to Cover and Excuse their Contempt of the Holy Scriptures and in their place Deifying of their own Spirit and their own Scriptures They knew that the Holy Scriptures cou'd not be discarded openly and above Board nor all at once That the World had been long in Possession of them and of a just Veneration of them and therefore wou'd not so easily part with them nor accept of any Foxes Inspirations instead of them Therefore they set up a Power like that of the Church of Rome of Infallible Interpretation of Scripture And improv'd it as above is told into Immediate Revelation equal to that of the Prophets and Apostles And pursuant to this Plenitude of Power they have taken upon them not only to Abrogate the most express Ordinances of the Gospel and Pronounce them expir'd at their Pleasure as Baptism and the Lord's Supper But to set up and Institute new ones as the Womens Preachings directly contrary to 1 Cor. 14.35 which suffers not VVomen to speak in the Church and the Prelacy of the VVomens Meetings an Invention never heard of in the World till G. Fox Cobbled it out And they Enjoyn not these only as Ecclesiastical Injunctions of their Church but upon their pretence before told to the same Immediate Revelation which was given to the Apostles as the Institutions of Christ Solomon Eccles in his Letter already mention'd to John Story calls these the VVomens Preachings and the VVomens Meetings the Great and Good Ordinance which Christ Iesus hath set up in his Church This is directly giving us New Scriptures and a New Gospel For which they will find their Reward Gal. 1.8 9. Rev. 22.18 19. And they having as they pretend the same Spirit which gave forth the Scriptures they cannot be bound by the Scriptures or any Command in them unless their Spirit does anew require the same thing which the Scripture Commands So that the Scripture remains of no Authority with them
words Our Ministers do not teach that the Name of Jesus and Christ belong to every Member in the Body or Church as Amply as to Christ the Head And that you may take notice of it the word Amply is put in a different Character in old Black Letters lest you shou'd mistake and think that George was Christ as Amply as Jesus That was modest indeed But then George Thou art Christ as well as Jesus tho' not so Amply and then your first Art above Quoted which calls Jesus the Christ means no great matter but is rank Sophistry and Dodging and casting a Mist before the Eyes of poor deluded People For I have that Charity for a great many of your Followers as to think that they do not know those Depths of Stan and that Mystery of Iniquity into which thou and others have led them And out of which thou dost not desire to Rescue them but to bind them faster in it by this thy Equivocating and Jesuitical Confession of Faith As Article 2. where you confess with the Socinians Christ's coming in the Flesh That is as before explain'd taking Flesh upon him as a Veil or Garment but not in the Language and true Sense of the Scripture That he was made Flesh John 1.14 that is took it into his Person and joyn'd it in a Personal Union with his Divine Nature so that as it is express'd in the Athanasian Creed as the Reasonable Soul and Flesh is one Man so God and Man is one Christ. If you had believ'd what is contain'd in these words you wou'd not have scrupl'd setting it down in these words which must have given the best satisfaction if it had been your design to have given satisfaction without any reserve for that wicked Heresie which you wou'd seem not to plead for yet in such words as you might easily afterwards explain to mean nothing against it Article 7. You say We own no such saying as that the Holy Doctrine or Divine Precepts of Scripture is either Dust Death or the Serpent's Meat But you say that wicked Men have Perverted the Scriptures That no Body can deny to You. But what then Is the Holy Word of God therefore become Death and Serpent's Meat because you have made it Death unto your selves God forbid says St. Paul Rom. 7.13 in answer to the same Argument which you bring Wherefore the Law is Holy and the Commandment Holy and Just and Good tho' the Vnlearned and the Vnstable wrest them to their own Destruction 2 Pet. 3.16 But what was it you call'd Dust and Serpent's Meat Was it nothing else but the Ink and the Paper Did any Body ever say that These were not Dust Or is that any part of the Contest betwixt us Was it the Ink Only and the Paper of which you doubt as before Quoted in the Quakers Refuge whether Moses or Hermes was the Pen-Man Thou meanedst verily which of them made the Pen that was all upon the word of a Quaker Was it the Pen or Ink of which you doubt that some of it was not spoken by the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit And whether some of it was not spoken by the Grand Impostor Some by False Prophets and yet True some by True Prophets and yet False The Ink or Paper are neither True nor False but the Doctrine only which is written in them And therefore George notwithstanding all thy mealy Modesty it is It is indeed George it is the very Doctrine of the Scriptures which you Blaspheme as Dust and Death and Serpent's Meat on purpose to bring Men off from trying your Pernicious Heresies by those Sacred Oracles and to make your Followers trust wholly to your New Light within in comparison of which it is that you vilifie the written Doctrine and Precepts of God which are most opposite to all your Gross Delusions it is not the Ink nor the Paper that you quarrel at No they do you no hurt But it is the Law and the Testimony according to which written Word if any do not teach the same Holy Scriptures do Instruct us it is because there is no Light in them Isai 8.20 No Light George Mark that Your false Pretences to the Light within is here over-rul'd and to be measured by the written word without These are hard sayings to the Infallible Friends And it was for the sake of these and such like Texts which Detect and Explode the miserable Ignorance and Blasphemy of these Pretenders to Light which made Thee Friend George in this same Book to which Thou hast prefix'd Thy abovesaid Affirmative Confession of Faith p. 28. Excuse and Justifie the Diabolical Suggestions in the Quakers Refuge against the Authority of the Sacred Scriptures by saying that it Question'd but of some of the Scriptures not all as I have shewn before But now come George we are near an end and we know not if ever we shall meet again tell me in the Plain Downright Honesty and Simplicity of thy Light within Didst Thou mean no more by this but that only some and not all the Ink was thick and muddy and fit for Serpents Meat and that only some Sheets of the Paper or Parchment or Barks of Trees on which they wrote in ancient time and might write the Scriptures for ought thou knowest was course and ugly Is all thy Malice only against those base Printers or VVriters who Prophane the Letter by poor sneaking Impressions and provide not good Ink and Paper If thou thinkest all this to be Railery not becoming thy Gravity See I pray thee if it be any thing more than what thou settest forth as the very true and only Reason for those vile Epithets which thou and thy Friends do bestow upon the Holy Scriptures of God And be asham'd and blush if thou canst for that Silly and Childish come off with which thou Gravely undertakest to Banter all Mankind as if all your Ignominies and Contempt cast upon Scripture were to be understood only of the Ink and Paper Nor is thy salvo more Ingenious in the Eleventh Article of thy aforesaid Creed wherein thou endeavourest to reconcile the Heretical Notions of thy Sect against the true Incarnation of Christ calling his Body a Figure Veil c. It is really say'st thou contrary to our Faith and Principle to make Christ Jesus himself only a Figure a Veil or Garment Here the word only as the word Amply in the tenth Article is put in great Black Letters to shew the stress thou layst upon it And to discover thy Sophistication thou sayst That Christ Jesus is not only a Figure or a Garment Not only No more is a Cloak or a Veil It is not only a Garment for it is Cloath or Stuff and may be put to many other uses There is no one thing in the World that is only one thing It may be taken under more considerations than one But this as I observ'd at first of thy Equivocating manner is but a Negative Confession
as by the other But this plainly discovers their Preference of their own Writings to the Holy Scriptures that while they rejected the Scriptures as not Necessary to the Guidance or Direction of their Light within they at the same time enjoin'd under the severest Penalties even of rejecting the Authority of God Himself not only the Private Studying but the Publick Reading of their own Writings in their Meetings Thus their Great Fox Commands This is the Word of the Lord says he I charge you in the Presence of the Lord God to send this Epistle amongst all Friends and Brethren every where to be read in all Meetings To them All this is the Word of God c. Yet he calls it Blasphemy to say the Holy Scriptures are the Word of God as you will see hereafter p. 150 151. and George Whitehead in what he calls An Epistle for the Remnant of Friends concludes thus Let this Epistle be read distinctly in the Life and Authority of God from whence it came amongst Friends in and about London and elsewhere c. Now I do desire G. Whitehead to produce out of any of his or all of their Writings such an Advice or Encouragement as this for reading of the Holy Scriptures Or to tell us whether they ever yet endur'd so much as one Chapter of them to be read upon any occasion whatsoever in any of their Meetings And then whether it be not a plain Consequence that they do Prefer their own Writings which they so strictly enjoin to be read to the Holy Scriptures which they not only not Enjoin or Command but never so much as Advise or Recommend to be read But on the contrary they give all the Threatning Discouragements that can be to deter any from reading of them calling them Carnal and Death as before is told But to come to further Evidence and give you even a Judicial Determination of the Quakers Assemblâ—d in their Publick Meeting when they durst speak out against the Scriptures about the Year 1658. this Cause was brought before them and solemn Judgment given For then it was that Thomas Padle accus'd John Chandler both of Southwark Quakers at a Meeting of the Quakers at the Bull and Mouth up one pair of Stairs I give it thus particularly that the Friends may not pretend Ignorance and because I have Eye and Ear Witness to produce if it be in the least Disputed that Then and There the said John Chandler was Accus'd by the said Thomas Padle for saying That he Preferr'd the Scriptures before the Friends Books which Accusation J. Chandler did not deny he was something of a Scholar beyond the common Quaker Level but being Reprov'd for it by the Meeting he said in Excuse that it was in Dispute with some Opposers and that the People urg'd him to it And some of those who were present at that Meeting do very well remember that one principal Reason they gave for the Preference of their own Books to the Scriptures was That tho' the People had had the Scriptures many years yet they had not Converted so many to the Truth as Their Books had done They really thought themselves tâ—â— have a Dispensation beyond the Prophets or Apostles whom they call'd Low and Carnal in their Day see hereafter p. 235. I can name those that now stand high among them who being press'd with a Text out of one of St Paul's Epistles not twenty years ago did before many Witnesses of the Principal Quakers not stick to say That Paul was Dark and Ignorant like him whom they oppos'd and that they saw beyond him The occasion of this if the Friends pretend not to remember it was a solemn Meeting or Council which was call'd of some of their Principal Preachers in London about the Yeaâ— 1678. upon an Accusation preferr'd by some of them against one of their Number for these three Heretical Doctrines as they esteem'd them 1. That the Body of Christ arose out of the Grave 2. That Christ is â—o be Pray'd to 3. That we must come to the Father through Christ There were various Opinions in that Learned Council concerning all of these they being such Deep and Abstruse Points in Divinity But none of the Heretical side were Disown'd by the other or caus'd to sign Instruments of Condemnation against themselves as in other Cases is usual with them Upon the 2d Point that Text 1 Cor. 1.2 being urg'd as a Proof for the Invocation of Christ the above Answer was return'd That Paul was Blind and Ignorant and that they saw beyond him Anâ— they stood upon it that no English Quaker was ever heard Pray to Christ If the Friends think it more for their Service that Names Time and Place be set down it shall be done whenever I can say that it is upon their Request because I wouâ—d be Civil In the mean time I can tell them that about the Year 1662. John Parrot one of their Chief Preachers being question'd for some Expression he had us'd he justify'd himself by shewing the like in the Prophet Hosea to which G. Fox answer'd That the Prophets were not come to the Son This was a common saying with him And at another time one pressing him hard with the Authority of Abraham he said Abraham was before John â—nd that the least in the Kingdom â—i e. of the Quakers was Greaâ—er than He. Greater indeed When as is shewn hereafter near the â—nd of Sect. V. and of Sect. XII G. Fox was Ador'd with the Epithets and Worship of Christ And that Blasphemous Vulpone took it Gravely without any Reprehension but on the contrary with Delectation stroaking his Hand over their Faces as his Custom was who kneel'd or fell Prostrate before him But because the Friends call always for an Instance tho' the Case by never so common I will to oblige them go a great way back and name Ann Gargil who when G. Fox came first to London threw her self upon her Knees betwixt his Feet and cry'd out to him Thou art the Son of tâ—â— Living God! S. B. another Quâ—ker now alive was present aâ—â— confesses she was struck with that Blaâ—phemous Expression At another time a She-Preacheâ— arose in a Publick Meeting anâ— with a Trembling Voice anâ— singing Tone thus accosted G. Fox then present Thou art the King of Saints Whereat another Quakeâ— Woman being offended did expostulate with her after the Meeting anâ— her excuse was that it was not to G. Fox she spoke those words but tâ— Christ who was within him thâ— same Distinction which all Idolater use for Worshiping their Idols Anâ— which G. Whitehead uses in thiâ— same Case as you will see hereafter at the close of Sect. XII And the same wou'd excuse Simon Magus for being call'd The Great Power of God Act. 8.10 That was more modest than our Magician who was call'd The Christ himself and not only His Power or Virtue Simom desir'd only That the Holy Ghost might be given by his Hands
Acts 8.19 but George Magus own'd no other Holy Ghost than what was within himself of which he was the Possessor and Owner These have far out-strip'd their Master For Simon Magus was the Father of the Quakers Socinians and all the rest of the Anti-Trinitarian Hereticks He first Blasphem'd against the Holy Trinity slighted the Scriptures Epiphan Haer. 21. Iren. Advers Haer. l. 1. c. 20. denying the Law of Moses to be from God set up Magic Idolatry and Sensuality In all of which he was not more follow'd by the Gnosticks than the Quakers as I think I have sufficiently shewn I hope without Exception unless it be that sometimes I do not name every Voucher and sometimes set down but the two first Letters of their Names which is but seldom and then only when they were not willing unless upon necessity to clear the Truth which they will not refuse to have their Names expos'd to the Fury of the Quaker-Spirit which throws so much Dirt upon any who dare oppose them that no Man tho never so Innocent wou'd desire to be so bespatter'd which is the Reason given by the Ingenious Author of The Third Part of the Quakers Quibbles Printed 1675. why he did not let himself be known And may be one Reason why they have not yet attempted any Answer to that Book alone I think I may say of all that have been wrote against them being depriv'd of their beloved Topick which they use instead of Argument to Vilifie and Discredit all that is in their Power the Good Name of any who writes against them Let the Reader take this for one Reason if he please tho' I say not that it is the only one why the Author of this small Treatise has not troubled the World with his Name For he desires no stress to be laid upon who says but upon what is said Besides he thought it needless to tell his Name to these Gentlemen with whom he has to do because as hereafter Quoted p. 71. George Fox says That they the Quakers have an Infallible Judgment to judge Personâ— and Things Which yet has not discoverâ—d to them the Author of The Quakers Quibbles and this Author may perhaps escape as well tho' his Concern is not great if it prove otherwise But this by the bye To return to Edw. Burrough p. 47. of his Works determines clearly that the Scriptures are not now of any Authority at all to us at this day Why Because they were Commands given to others and not to us For example That the Epistles to the Corinthians bound no other Church that to the Galatians had respect only to those of Galatia and so of all the rest And that the old Prophets were only to be hearkened to at that time by those particular People or Nations to whom they then directed their Prophecies For it being objected that the Quakers held this pernicious Principle That the Saints were not to do Duties by or from a Command without but from a Command within and that the word Command in Scripture was not a Command to them till they had the word within them Burrough owns and justifies it I answer says he That is no Command from God to me which he Commands to another neither did any of the Saints which we read of in Scripture act by the Command which was to another not having the Command to themselves I Challenge an Example of it they obey'd every one their own Command and thou or any other who goes to Duty as you call it by Imitation from the Letter without which was Commands to others your Sacrifice is not accepted but is Abomination to the Lord c. Here it is made Abomination to the Lord to obey the Command of Scripture or to live by Imitation as he calls it from the Letter that is not to follow our own Imaginations without the controul of Scripture or any other Law This is the same Principle which is hereafter p. 156. related from Mr. Penn and almost in the same words That what was a Command of God in old time that is in the Scriptures is not so to us unless requir'd by the same Spirit Anew Here the whole Authority of Scripture is at one blow cut down For no Command in Scripture is by this Rule obligatory unless it be Commanded Anew by the Quaker Light within that is by every Man's Roving Imagination and if it be Commanded by their Light within then they think that it is Dictated by the same Spirit which gave forth the Scriptures of old and upon that account only that it is obligatory but not because it is contain'd in Scripture which was only a Command to those in former Ages but not to us who have another Rule given unto us Anew that is our own Light within So that the Scriptures are by this as much out-dated as an old Almanack And we must no longer search the Scriptures we must not live so much as by Imitation of what we find there Burrough says it is Abomination to the Lord. And therefore it was no strange thing to hear George Whitehead in his Serious Apology p. 49. Prefer not only their Writings but their Extempore Preachments and even all whatsoever they speak upon any account to the Holy Scriptures themselves The Question demanded was this Do you esteem your Speakings to be of as great Authority as any Chapter in the Bible And his Answer is in these words That which is spoken by the Spirit of Truth in any is of as great Authority as the Scriptures and Chapters are and Greater And therefore tho' they have let no suppos'd contempt of their own Books go unrebuked as in the Instance before of Chandler yet we never heard of any Censure they have pass'd upon those many much grosser contempts of Scripture which daily are found among them Particularly that we may always name some Instance of Mary Tucker a Quaker Servant to William Reyman a Barber now living in Queen-street Cheap-side but formerly in Bread-street where this Mary then his Servant took the Bible and in the open day publickly Burnt it against the Church in Bread-street to shew her Zeal Pursuant to this their Principle in their Disputes among themselves they appeal to their own Writings instead of the Holy Scriptures Thus when in their Publick Meeting at Philadelphia upon Sunday 11. Dec. 1692. G. Keith was Accus'd of Heresie See Heresie and Hatred before Quoted p. p. in saying That the Light within was not sufficient to Salvation without something else i. e. Christ Jesus as without us And that G. Keith desir'd to have that Pretended Heresie prov'd against him by Scripture it was Reply'd by Sam. Jennings as the Mouth of the Meeting we are not to prove it from Scripture but from Friends Books for the Question betwixt us and George Keith is not who is the best Christian but who is the best Quaker And indeed they did rightly distinguish betwixt the Christian and the
Quaker For as before Quoted out of Smith's Primmer p. 9. they are as distant as East from West And according to their Rule they produc'd instead of Scripture 〈◊〉 Citation out of Mr. Penn's Part of the Christian Quaker against G. Keith to prove him an Heretick Mr. Penn's words were these The Talent is in it self sufficient And so G. Keith was Damned as an Heretick for saying That the Light within was not sufficient without something else Ut supra It was two years before this when Thomas Fitzwater hereafter mentioned p. 129. and 131. another Quaker Preacher at Philadelphia being ask'd how he liked G. Keith's Doctrine Said not at all For that he was Building up what they the Quakers had been throwing down these 40 years to bring People back to the Scriptures and the Professors of Christ This is the True and Genuine State of the Controversie betwixt G. Keith and the other Quakers and betwixt the Quakers and other Christians And here I will end this tedious Paragraph 15. And I will enlarge no farther than to assure the Reader that there is no mixture of any Personal Prejudice in this undertaking For I do freely own that I have a real Kindness and good Wishes for every one of the Quakers that I have hitherto been acquainted with and I never receiv'd any sort of Disobligation from any of them in my whole life And that it was in a great measure for their sakes that I ingag'd my self in this Controversie out of an earnest desire to open the Eyes 〈◊〉 least of some of them to see those Horrible Delusions wherein they are â—â—d And in the next place to hinder â—he encrease of such Pernicious Doctrines and prevent others from falling into their Snares But because it wou'd be too great hopes to expect the Conversion of all of them at once I wish I may be mistaken and that I am told it is their Custom to Answer all Books which are Printed against them I do before hand give a necessary Caution to whomsoever shall be appointed to this Task that they shou'd not after their usual Fashion Carp at some word or Expression and neglect the whole substance of the matter against them or give one general Evasive Answer to the whole as they have done to the Seven Quaeries bearing date the 15th of May and Presented to their last Yearly Meeting the 17. of the same May 1695. the same day that they Excommunicated George Keith whereby the better to Conceal their Janus Answers which All carry two Faces looking to direct contrary ways For being Caution'd in the Introduction to the said Quaeries in as plain Terms I think as words can bear of their manner of double Answers particularly as to the Nature of Christ how that they can subscribe the whole Creed as above-told and yet not mean one word of it of a Personal Christ existing now in Heaven in his own true Humane Nature without all other Men or that he is now any otherwise a Man than as existing in His Saints But that they mean all they say of their own Light within Only which they call a Spiritual Christ and shedding Spiritual Blood c. within them And being thus Caution'd and Desir'd to clear themselves from this Imputation if it was one by giving a plain Yea or Nay to the said Seven Quaeries of which the 1st Quer. was 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 Humane Nature without all other Men These are Plain and Short Quaeries And yet they say in their Answer That they cannot give their Yea or Nay to each Quaery as desir'd because they were not Plain and Direct Quaeries And therefore put them all off together with one â—neral Answer wherein ther proâ—â—â—â—â— the same manner against which they werâ— Caution'd and which they were told was laid to their Charge as a Trick and Deceit of theirs to Hide and Cover theâ—â— Monstrous Heresies but notwithstooding of all this Provocation they still use iâ— they must use it for they have no other way left to blind the Eyes of the World and to preserve the least pretence to the Name of Christian Accordingly in their said Answer they tell of Christ born of the Virgin Mary who suffer'd under Pontius Pilate c. but they keep off the whole stress of the Quâ—ries viz. Whether they believe in such a Christ as without them And that he is now at this day a Man without all other Men. No not a word of this this pinches too close And I think this a full Consession of their Heresie while they will not by any means be brought in plain Terms to disown it And then give such a Senseless and apparently False Excuse for it as that the Quaeries were not so Plâ—â— and Direct as that they cou'd Answer to them Particularly And refer in general to their Books already Printed Out of some of which G. Keith has Collected their True and Genuine Answers to each of the said Quaeries And they are Printed together with the Quaeries and their Answer by Walter Kettilby at the Bishop's Head in St. Paul's Church-Yard 1695. under this Holy Title Gross Error and Hypocisie Detected c to which I refer the Reader And I may perhaps present him with a further Examination of the above-said Quaker-Answer to the Seven Quaeries of their waving to Answer as to the Satisfaction of Christ wherein they dare not deny themselves to be direct Socinians and of some other Material Points which I will not insist upon in this that has already swell'd so much beyond its first intended bounds Only I do now give this Caution to those Quakers who shall be ordain'd to Answer this Book if they so think fit that they serve it not as they have done the Quaeries before-told but that they wou'd Reply distinctly to each Section by its self And not Answer a Book as Rats do by nibbling at some corners of the Leaves stealing through it like Moths to no other purpose than to deface some Words at a venture without any need so much as to open the Book or examine into the Sense and Meaning of it Otherwise let them pass it in Silence and that shall be taken for a full Confession of the Charge But if they will Answer I desire that they wou'd for Brevity and to give us a taste of their Spirit begin with a plain Yea or Nay to the two of the Seven Quaeries which are above inserted viz. the First and the Sixth These are not so Long nor so Intricate as not to admit of a Plain Yea or Nay in Answer to them But if the Quakers refuse this or shall over again after all this Caution give only a General and Evasive Answer Then I shall Conclude and I believe all the Readers with me That nothing fair is intended by them or to be expected
cannot be Infiniteness in it self Against this G. Fox Disputes and no Kind of Infiniteness will serve his turn but Infiniteness in himself which is the Infiniteness of God alone for He only has Infinity in Himself as not being given by any other Is not the Soul says he without Beginning Hath this a Beginning â—r Ending and is it not Infinite in it self and more than all the world P. 29. Now consider what 〈◊〉 â—â—â—dition these call'd Ministers are in They say that which is a Spiritual Substance is not Infinite in it self but a Creature Here he will not let the Soul be a Creature His proof is in the next words That which came out from the Creator and is in the Hand of the Creator which brings it up and to the Creator again That is Infinite in it self I do not medle with his Philosophy which is wretched I only shew you his Opinion that the Soul is not a Creature but Infinite and that in it self Which is making of it God in the strictest terms Will you have any more of it He makes the Soul to become one Soul with God Christ says he p. 19. brings the Soul up into God from whence it came whereby they come to be one Soul And p. 229. who are come up into the Bishop Christ they are one Soul It is horrid Blasphemy said Alexander Ross to say The Soul is a part of God It is not horrid Blasphemy reply'd G. Fox p. 273. to say the Soul is a part of God for it came out of Him and that which came out of Him is of Him Fox does not say that the Soul came from God that is that God Created it But that it came of God as a Part of God of his Substance Person and Essence And p. 100. is not this of God's Being Says he And he Disputes against this Position That there is not an Essential In-dwelling of the Divine Nature in God's People and That God dwells not in the Saints by a Personal Union Or that Christ's Person is not in Man which is as much as to say replies G. Fox p. 248. as if we were not of his Flesh and Bones and had not his Substance Here the Light within is not only an Illumination or Inspiration from Christ but the very Person of Christ his Substance his Flesh and Bones And he says p. 207. That Christ is not distinct from his Saints That Christ is the Elect. p. 88. That the Light within is Christ p. 310. That they who are of the Faith are the Flesh of Christ the Flesh of Him who Suffered But this will come under a following Head Sect. 17. therefore for the present we dismiss it Only I will tell you before I go Mr. Penn's Excuse for G. Fox in all these particulars He lays it upon George's extreme Ignorance The Invalidity of John Faldo 's Vindication c. 1673. p. 353. That when he said the Soul was Equal with God by Equality he meant only Unity And that when he call'd the Soul Infinite he did not mean Infinite but something that is not Finite or which comes to an End And that when he said the Soul was without Beginning and a Part of God he did not mean the Soul but the Breath of God c. He says that George observ'd no nicety of Expression and finds great fault with those who make ill use of his Plain and Vulgar Phrases An Indifferent Man wou'd rather have said Ne sutor ultra Crepidam That this Fox shou'd rather have kept to his Original Trade than to set up for Interpreting the Scripture before he had learned to speak Sense or write English A defect in which is a strange excuse for Infallibility But it is just with God thus to detect such Wicked and Blasphemous Pretences to all who are not resolv'd to shut their Eyes For will any one believe that that Spirit which cou'd dictate an Infallible Knowledge of the Scripture and of all Persons and Things as G. F. c. pretended cou'd not have enabl'd these Men to speak common sense or to understand plain English words But the truth is all this was a Bewildring of G. F's poor understanding and not to be charg'd only as Mr. Penn's over Charity does upon his Plain and Vulgar Phrases For in both the above Instances of the Soul 's Infinity and Equality with God the Distinctions were plainly given to G. F. what sort of Infinity and Equality was allow'd to the Soul and he expresly Disputes against such Distinctions and rejects any Limited Sense of the Souls Infinity and Equality with God But will have it Infinite in it self and no Lesser kind of Infiniteness which was allow'd him And to be Equal to God not only in Quality but in Equality which was a great deal too much to be Granted But that it self wou'd not satisfie G. F. And this must proceed past help of Mr. Penn and all the World either from a most Impious Blasphemy or such an immoderate degree of Dullness and lack of Understanding as cou'd not befall any thing in Human shape much less any one who pretended to Inspiration and proudly to Decry and Damn all the World since the Apostles SECT VIII Of the Quakers pretence to a sinless Perfection THis is dispatch'd already Sect. 6. where we see them claim a Perfection even Equal to God But because I suppose there are some of them who are not willing now to go that Blasphemous length I will set down some of their more Moderate Pretences to Perfection that is to a sinless State even in this Life I have before Quoted Mr. Penn upbraiding the Church of England as Opposers of Perfection and Ridiculing us for confessing our selves sinners and imploring God's Mercy Now hear G. Fox p. 101. It is the Doctrine of Devils that Preacheth that Men shall have sin and be in a Warfare so long as they be on Earth They that pretend coming to God and Christ out of Perfection they be in the Error p. 111. All who come to Christ they come to Perfection p. 231. They attain to Perfection in the Life of God p. 271. For who are Sanctified have Perfect Unity Perfect Knowledge Perfect Holiness p. 281. The Life of the Saints is Christ not sinful at all This will appear further in what follows which might be put all under one Head but for Method's sake and Plainness I distinguish them SECT IX Concerning the Quakers pretence to Immediate Revelation Equal to what was given to the Pen-Men of the Holy Scriptures GEorge Fox says p. 242. That they are in the same Power Understanding Knowledge and Immediate Revelation from Heaven that the Apostles were in Are not ye says he to the Professors p. 241. in the Presumption and Usurp Authority to Preach or to Teach that have not the Immediate Revelation as the Apostles had p. 213. Thou canst not know the Scriptures but by the same Degree of the Spirit the Prophets and Apostles had They
be ought to do so and the Light within did not inform his Conscience To which George Replies in these words Did not Christ say that it was hard for him to kick against that that prickt him and was not that within him that prickt him Here is manifest Perverting of Scripture For Christ did not say that it was hard to kick against that that prickt him or that any thing prickt him The words which Christ spoke were these It is hard for thee to kick against the Pricks Acts 9.5 That is against the Power of Christ which wou'd be too hard for him if he strove against it as a Man that kicks against Pricks or Goads of Iron only hurts himself But G. F. Perverts the Text to make it bear this sense that the Pricks here mention'd were nothing else but the Pricks of St. Paul's own Conscience or the Light within his Conscience as the Quakers love to speak But whether there was any thing of this in the Case of St. Paul himself can best tell who said Acts 26.9 I verily thought with my self that I ought to do many things contrary to the Name of Jesus of Nazareth And Chap. 22.3 4. That he was not only fully persuaded but Zealous in the Persecution of the Christians exceeding mad against them Chap. 26.11 Had he then any Pricks of Conscience or of his Light within against the Lawfulness of that wherein he was fully persuaded and Zealous Or cou'd he think verily that he ought to do such a thing if he had had but any the least doubt or surmise against the Lawfulness of it It will be very hard when all this is consider'd to make Sense of the Quaker Notion of the Light within Against which this Instance of St. Paul among many others stands as an irrefragable proof But it is strange that the Quakers shou'd arrogate to themselves such lofty Titles above all the rest of Mankind even to take to themselves the very Attributes of God upon the pretence of this Light within and yet allow that every Man in the World has it as well as themselves Indeed they make a Pretence from this Light within to excuse their Blasphemous pride while they assume all the Worship due to Christ whom they call this Light upon the account of His or Its Inhabitation in them And this was the very Ground and Foundation of all Idolatry viz. the suppos'd Presence or Inhabitation of the Divinity in their Images or in the Sun and other Creatures whom they Worshiped upon that only Pretence and as transferring the Honour to God Residing in them or Represented by them And this very Excuse do the Quakers give here Some of the Quakers Principles Sect. 32. G. Whitehead thus answering the Charge of Idalatry in their Adorations before-mentioned paid to G. Fox And as to his Fran. Bugg's Charge of Idolatries if not Blasphemous Names and Titles given to George Fox how proves he they gave and intended those Names and Titles to the Person of G. Fox and not to the Life of Christ in Him whereof He was a Partaker Innocency against Envy p. 18. This as I said before is the same Excuse that the Heathens and Romans give for their Idolatries Secondly By this Rule Every Quaker may be Ador'd with Divine Honour and all the Attributes of God given to him because of his Light within or the Life of Christ in him Thirdy I will shew in Sect. 17. That they allow of Divine Honour to that Man Christ Jesus upon no other account than as G. Whitehead allows it to G. Fox that is because of the Residing of the Divine Word in Him And they distinguish it from his Person as Here from G. Fox's for as they express it They can never call the Bodily Garment Christ And they do own that the Name Christ does belong to every Quaker as well as to Jesus that is to both only upon the account of the Light within which they call the Divine Word or Christ All which shall be prov'd in its place Let me here only observe what an Uncouth and Preposterous piece of Humility it is to deny the Title or Civility of Master or of their Hat while at the same time they Worship one another with Divine Honour and bestow upon themselves Titles far above what any Angels since Lucifer durst pretend to to be even Equal with God of the same Substance and the fame Soul with Him and grudge not to apply all the Attributes of God to the Light within them and to themselves for its sake Thus transferring the Honour of God unto Themselves SECT XIII Of the Resurrection of the Body THis the Quakers do positively deny Mr. Penn makes Non-sense of it Reason against Railing 1673. p. 138. and worse He compares it to Transubstantiation nay to the Alcoran In short says he if the compleat happiness of the Soul rests in a re-union to a Carnal Body for such it is sown then never cry out upon the Turks Alcoran for such a Heaven and the Joys of it suit admirable well with such a Resurrection If the Reader thinks as I did when I first read this that Mr. P. meant this only of such a gross Conceit of the Resurrection as if our Bodies shou'd be in the same frail condition as now addicted to Sensualities If the Reader think thus as I did for what else cou'd any one think he will be to his astonishment undeceiv'd as I was in reading of what follows 2dly No Christian ever held that there was not a great Change of the Body in its Qualities at the Resurrection It is sown in Weakness in Corruption it is rais'd in In-Corruption and in Power c. And therefore if Mr. Penn meant no more than as abovesaid he wou'd dispute against no Christian But alas as you will find they deny any Resurrection at all of that Body which is sown that they leave wholly neglected for ever in its Dust Some of them suppose a perfectly New Body will be made for the Soul But others that the Soul it self is the Spiritual Body which is mentioned 1 Cor. 15.44 and consequently that there is no other Resurrection than at each particular persons death when the Soul which they call the Spiritual Body is freed from the Natural Body never more to meet again And in consequence of this these believe no General Resurrection no nor some of them any End of the World every Man's Resurrection being as they suppose perfected at his Death But let us return to Mr. Penn. In his Book above Quoted in the Margent Reas against Rail p. 134. he is answering this material Objection That if it be a New Body which is made for the Soul then there is no Resurrection of the Body For that does not rise again which never lay down And when St. Paul says 1 Cor. 15.42 speaking of the Resurrection of the Body that It is sown in Corruption and It is rais'd in Incorruption c.