XLVII She retir'd to Gaunt and from thence to Mechlin and form'd a Process before the King's Council at Brusselâ— against the Magistrates at Lisle for the Recovery of the Hospital and tho' it did appear most evidently that she was Innocent and that they had acted against her with inexcusable Violence yet they would not venture to give Sentence for her against a Party so Powerful and far more Considerable before Men than was the Innocence of a simple private Maid So the Process remains undecided to this Day and she could no longer abide in Safety in Lisle unless in secret XLVIII She staid Four Years in Flanders at Gaunt and Mechlin after she had left the Hospital and many well-dispos'd Persons made Acquaintance with her The first she spoke with at Mechlin was one Mr. Coriathe an Archdeacon who became afterwards Vicar General At his Request she wrote the first Treatise of her Life call'd La Parole de Dieu She wrote to him also many Letters which are printed in the First and Second Parts of La lum nèe en tenebr She had also there in the number of her Friends a Learned and Pious Divine M. Peter Noel Licentiate in Divinity Priest and Canon who had been Secretary of the Famous Cornelius Jansenius Bishop of Ypres This Man being of the Sentiments of Augustin engag'd her in Conferences concerning Grace where she unravell'd in an admirable manner all the Difficulties which have hitherto been inexplicable by Mens Spirits This gave occasion to her writing the Treatise call'd Academie des Sâ—avans Theologiens because of the great Contests which were then between the Jansenists and Molinists concerning Grace and the great Noise that was made about the Doctrine of the Casuists concerning Attrition Contrition Probability and their Morals wherein her Friends being all Jansenists discours'd to her often of the Excess of their Adversaries which she could hardly believe till she went and heard some of their Preachers who vented sometimes their sine Morality She was touch'd with Compassion for the Blind that were led and with Indignation at the Blind Leaders It pitied her to see the general Abuse among the Churchmen the Religious and the People who rested on Trifles and a meer Outside which the Blindness of some Guides recommended as a sure way to Salvation tho' they never thought of being purified from their inward and secret Sins nor of returning to the Love of God In this Treatise all these things are handled with great Penetration Clearness and Solidity Monsieur Noel was perswaded that she was full of the Holy Spirit but on the other hand it troubled him to see that the Holy Fathers had not still the same Light with her in Theological Matters or as to divers Places of the Holy Scripture She wrote to him several Letters on this and other Subjects which are in La Lum neé en tenebres Another of her Acquaintances was M. Gillemans Canon and Archpriest of Gaunt who one Day asking her Opinion of the Doctrine of the Casuists that one might be saved by Attrition without Contrition and telling her he had written a great Volume against the Jesuits upon that Subject she told him her Thoughts and that she had lately put them into Writing After having oft solicited for this Paper he obtain'd a sight of it for some Days which he read with such Admiration that when he return'd it he said You have said more things and more convinciâ—g on this Subject in these Three Leaves than I have done in all my Book which has cost me so much Time Labour and Expences and therefore I condemn my Book never to see the Light This Writing is the Fifth Chapter of the First Part of Academie des Sçavans Theologiens She return'd to Lisle May 1664. where she staid privately for some Months about her Affairs for the most part in the House of her Pastor Monsieur Lamberti where she wrote the Explication of the 24th and 25th Chapters of St. Matthew which are in La Lum nec en tenebres To him she wrote many Letters after her first Return to Lisle in the 23d and 24th Years of her Age which was the first of all her Writings and it is call'd L'Appel de Dieu le Rufus des Hommes Part I. XLIX But the most faithful and constant Friend she had in Flanders was M. Christian de Cort Pastor of the chief Church at Mechlin and Superiour of the Fathers of The Oratory there A Man full of Zeal for God and Charity for his Neighbour and void of all Self-seeking From the first time that A. B. spoke to him he was so touch'd enlightn'd and enflam'd by God that immediately he resolv'd absolutely to follow Jesus Christ even to Death in the abandoning all Honour Pleasures and Wealth of this World which he promis'd a little after to A. B. and perform'd with an inviolable Fidelity He no sooner discovered that God had hid in her the Treasures of his Divine Wisdom than he took all Occasions to be instructed by her and when alone set down in Writing the Summ of what had past in their Conversation but briefly and without order He acquainted her with his Resolution to publish this to the World thinking himself oblig'd in Conscience to undeceive others as by those Divine Truths he was undeceiv'd himself But when she had seen his Papers and read a little of them she told him they would be useful for himself but not for others because they often answer'd the Thoughts of his own Mind which no Body perceived but himself and being solicited by him to compose this Work anew returning him his Papers she her self wrote by way of Conference the things which God brought into her Memory in the same manner as they are now publish'd in the Three Parts Of the Light of the World L. In September 1667. she went for Holland at the Solicitation of M. de Cort in order to the printing of this Book her Friends having assur'd her that she would not be permitted to do it in Brabant and she propos'd to retire from thence to the Isle of Noordstrand where she had bought a Farm from M. de Cort the Director of it She had Debates with her self before she could resolve to go to Holland having never been in any Place without the Dependance of the Church of Rome and being made believe that all the Hereticks as they call'd them were monstrous and infectious But having recommended this Affair to God she was told That these common Differences of Religion do not bring Salvation but the Love of God only and Vertue which we ought to love in all Persons who aspire to it without regarding what outward Religion they profess that she ought to do Good to all and to communicate to all the Light of the Divine Truth of what Religion soever they be This wrought in her Soul such a perfect Impartiality that she never afterwards enquired of what Religion one was provided
to give a hateful Turn to ones Sentiments to make them pass for impious extravagant and ridiculous I shall therefore set down here a brief Summary of her Accessory Sentiments first premising some things that may dispose the Reader to consider them calmly and without prejudice 1. She declares they are reveal'd unto her by God and that now in the End of the World and near the Time of the Restitution of all things many things which were more darkly represented in the Holy Scriptures are now to be manifestly laid open when the Time of fulfilling all is at hand and that such things are now laid before us like a Clustre of Grapes of the Land of Promise to make us conceive something of the Beauty and Glory of the Heavenly Jerusalem 2. She declares as has been said that those Accessory Truths are not necessary to Salvation are not Articles of Faith ought not to be enquired into from a Spirit of Curiosity are not design'd for all but for those who being perswaded of them are thereby stirr'd up so much the more to the Love and Admiration of God and for others they maâ— let them alone XXXII 3. St. Augustin has given us an excellent Rule whereby to judge charitably of Sentiments and Interpretations of the Holy Scripture Whosoever says he so understands the Holy Scriptures or any part of them as that thereby he does not build up the twofold Charity the Love of God and our Neighbour he does not understand them aright But whosoever gives such a Sense of them as is profitable for advancing this Charity and yet what he says is not the particular Sense of the Writer in that place he does not err damnably neither does at all lie And if he err by a Sense which edifies Charity which is the End of the Commandment he so errs as if one by a mistake leaving the Highway should go streight over the Field to the Place whither the Way leads If these Accessory Sentiments then tend to promote the Great End of Religion the Love of God and our Neighbour tho' there were no Evidence for them from the Holy Scriptures they are neither hurtful nor damnable In giving an Account then of her Accessory Sentiments I shall consider them under these Heads Those which relat to 1. The State of the World before Man's Fall 2. The Fall of Man and its Consequences 3. The Methods taken for Man's Recovery by Jesus Christ 4. The Present State of the World 5. The Future State and the Restitution of all things And because the Series and Chain of those Accessory Sentiments cannot be well conceiv'd without some mention of the Essential Ones too I shall not scruple to do it where it is necessary to understand the Connexion of those Sentiments 1. As to the State of the World before Man's Fall the Summ of her Sentiments is as follows 1. VVHEN God created all things at First there was no Deformity in any of his Works all was Beautiful and Luminous no Grossness in the Earth no Whirlwinds and Hurricanes in the Air no Tempests in the Sea no Poison in the Herbs no Venom in Insects The Earth was all transparent throughout in it were to be seen the Plants the Stones and Metals all transparent likewise one might see thorouh it to its Center as easily as through the Air all the Beasts and Plants were all Beautiful in their respective kinds no Deformity in any of them and the Beauty of their Frame and Contrivance was to be seen throughout all being Transparent and Luminous All things were worthy of God and were Representations of his Greatness Magnificence Goodness Beauty Light and Fruitfulness in several ways and according to their different kinds 2. God having resolv'd to form a Creature that should love and enjoy him and in whose Love he would take Delight and Pleasure he creates Man after his own Image endues him with an immortal Soul breathed from himself with Understanding capable to receive him with a Heart to desire and thirst after him and cleave to him with a perfect Liberty and Free-will to do it heartily and freely and without the least Limitation or Constraint And to oblige him the more to love him his most Bountiful God and Lover gives him for an Accessory Felicity and Happiness the whole Creation subjects all his Works to him to be his Servants and to attend upon him puts all things under his Feet that he receiving the Homage and Delight of all the Creatures might return the Praise of all to God in the constant Love and Adoration of so Bountiful a God who would give himself to be lov'd and enjoy'd by him and would take his Delight with him and would give him such a world of beautiful Creatures to serve and attend upon him 3. That Man might partake of this Accessory Happiness and receive the Delight and Homage of all the Creatures and rule over them as their Lord and King he forms to him a Body as the Case and Organ of his Soul by which he might communicate with all the Creatures and rule over them and endues it with Faculties and Senses capable to give them Orders and to take in the Tribute of their Delights and Pleasures the Sense of Seeing to take in their Light and Beauty of Hearing to be entertain'd with their Melody and Musick Smelling to receive their odoriferous Steams and the Taste to relish their Sweetness and Delight the power of Moving of Speech and Gestures whereby to rule and govern them he might go to any place and make known his Will which all obeyed 4. This Body was not created by God after the manner that we see it at present but incomprehensibly more beautiful and more perfect as the Master-piece of all Nature clear subtile agile and transparent its Skin like Moscovy Glass its Flesh like Crystal its Veins like streams of Rubies its Waters like Diamonds its Nerves like the Hyacinth the Substance of the Fruits its Aliment that of all good Odours its Excrements all its Parts within and without its Bones Muscles Sinews Bowels all so bright fram'd with such Art that all the Beauties of the Universe were nothing to the least part of it The Quintessence of all Natural things was the Matter of which it was form'd and all Nature obey'd it If he design'd to go on the Waters they supported him if to the Center of the Earth it yielded to him if through the Air it was a Chariot to him The Sun the Stars the precious Stones and all the Beauties of the Earth were nothing if compar'd with the least Beauty of the Body of Man His Soul was wholly Divine his Understanding clear-sighted penetrating all the Secrets of Nature all things Divine and Supernatural 5. Man when he was created at First was endued with a Principle of Foecundity with a Power to produce his like without the help of another having within
of the World and of all the Creation worthy of God They let us see the Wisdom and Goodness of God in bringing about his great Designs tho' thwarted by the Perversness and Rebellion of Man They give us some glimpse of the unspeakable Glory to which Man is designed to partake of the Joys of God being united to him in Body and Spirit and to receive the Delights of all his Works They shew us that Almighty God design'd this World and all the Creation for some great End more worthy of him than to serve Devils and Wicked Men as a Theatre and Fewel of their Lusts and Instrument of their dishonouring him It is usual for the Learned to form Theories and Systems of Divinity whereby to give a clear Account of the Doctrines of Faith If Men will be pleased to consider these Sentiments in this View only and compare them with the Systems given us by the Divines of all Parties they may come to be convinc'd that they have a greater Tendency to promote True Christianity XL. And as they are very sutable to the known Articles of Faith so they do not contradict the Holy Scriptures but seem to be insinuated and pointed out in them and to serve to clear Thousands of Passages there which otherwise cannot be conceived as A. B. her self makes appear in several Instances 1. That all things were created Good and Beautiful at first without any Deformity appears both from the Nature of God and from his Word He is Perfect and therefore cannot make any thing Imperfect He is all Good and can make nothing Evil All things therefore have been made by him perfectly Good and Beautiful for the Workman is known by his Works A rare Painter or Writer is known by his Pictures or Writings tho' we do not know his Person much more is God known by his Works for he can never fail or commit a Fault in them which the most accomplish'd Spirits amongst Men may do This is then an Eternal Truth that God created all things Beautiful and Good which the Scripture also verifies when it is said that God saw all that he had made and behold it was very Good Which could not be if there were any Evil in it as a thing cannot be Beautiful if it have any Deformity But we see all his Works now are not Good and Beautiful in the Air are Tempests Whirlwinds c. destroying Men by Sea or Land In it is obscure Darkness nothing to be seen through it if it be not favoured with the Rays of the Sun or Stars The Earth has a filthy colour that sullies all that touches it and is of such gross Obscurity that we can see nothing in it and to make it bring forth Fruit Men must employ the sweat of their Body and after all it brings forth often nothing but corrupt Fruit and if it be not cultivated only Thorns and Thistles The Water often swallows and suffocates Men its greatest Masses are salt or filthy The Fire has in it a black Smoak ready to stifle Men if they were not succoured by the Air it spoils the Eyes of those who steadily look on it and consumes Men Beasts and all other things These things cannot be created by God as we see and feel them because they are neither Good nor Beautiful By a clear Consequence then we must believe that the Air has been created clear sweet and agreeable without these Tempests and so of the rest 2. It is as evident that our Bodies have not been created in the State they are now in in which there is nothing good and beautiful no more than in our Minds and that they have been form'd at first in a glorious State appears by this that it being generally acknowledged that Jesus Christ is to restore Man to that primitive Perfection both of Body and Mind in which he was created and the Scriptures telling us That we look from Heaven for our Lord Jesus Christ to change our vile Bodies and to make them like to his Glorious Body and we being told that when at his first Transfiguration on the Mount he was pleased to give his three Disciples some Prospect of that Glory and to let some Rays of his Glorious Body stream forth thro' his Mortality it is said his Countenance did shine as Lightning and his Raiment was white as Snow We may think how glorious the Body of Man was before his Fall and shall be when this Mortal shall put on Immortality and this Corruption Incorruption and Death shall be swallowed up in Victory 3. That Man in his first Creation was endued with a Power of producing his Kind appears in that at the Creation of Man it is expresly said that God created Man Male and Female and bid him be fruitful and multiply and replenish the Earth and tho' it be in the Original he created them in the Plural and not in the Singular he created him Male and Female yet that does not change the true Sence since God created in Adam all Men who were to proceed from him they were all originally in him And Eve was not as yet formed and he had rested from all his Works before he proceeded to the Formation of her how long after it is not known This seems most evident from the Story of the Creation for the Account of the six Days Works is contained in the first Chapter of Genesis and that God saw that all he made was very good but before the Formation of Eve out of Adam we are told of God's resting on the seventh Day from all his Works which he had made of his planting a Garden and there making to grow out of the Ground every Tree that is pleasant to the Sight and good for Food his placing Man there to dress and keep it his bringing all the Beasts of the Field and Fowls of the Air before Man and Adam's giving each of them a Name his finding it now not good that Man should be alone tho' before he saw all that he had made and behold it was very good his Resolution therefore to make a Help meet for him and therefore he caused a deep Sleep to fall upon Adam and took one Principle out of him called in the Scripture-stile one of his Ribs and so formed the Woman As from all this it seems evident that the Formation of the Woman cannot be supposed to have been upon the sixth Day without a great Straining of the History so it appears that Adam was at first created in such a State of Perfection as to need no Help for the Production of his Kind and that the Formation of the Woman from him was upon his beginning to decline from his God and to delight himself in the Creatures without referring all to God It is therefore said It is not good for Man to be alone tho' before God saw all that he had made and behold it was very good It
and no sooner is a Sinner converted but he receives him with joy according to the Parable of the Prodigal and therefore it is said there is Joy in Heaven at the Conversion of a Sinner more than over Ninety and Nine righteous Persons All this shews that God is so far from predestinating any Soul to Damnation that even he himself comes to seek and to save those who would damn themselves as appears by the Good Shepherd that left his many Sheep to go and seek the One Sheep that had gone astray and brings it back on his Shoulders with Joy After all this who can doubt that God has created us all for Salvation and none for Damnation which proceeds only from Mens Self-will and not at all from the Predestination or Presence of God This Doctrine of Predestination to Damnation is she says a most blasphemous and dangerous Doctrine robs God of the Honour due to him shocks all his Attributes of Righteousness Goodness and Truth renders him very unlovely to his Creatures gives those occasion who think they are reprobated to spend all their Life in blaspheming God for creating them to Damnation for no Fault of theirs before they had a Being and not rather leaving them into nothing and discourages them from all Endeavours of becoming better since of necessity they must be damned however and it encourages those who think they are predestinated to Salvation to a Libertine kind of Life since they are perswaded that notwithstanding of this they shall be saved and God will some time or other bring them to Repentance It seems Men have taken up these Sentiments that they may attribute to God the Cause of their Damnation and not to themselves which is a horrible Pride and Blasphemy or to flatter their Wickedness in excusing it by Adam's Sin and that they may not fulfill the Penitence that God has enjoyn'd them by him And being full of Passions themselves without Righteousness Goodness and Truth they would give Authority to their Wickedness by making a God to go before them in the matter of their Passions And as they see those who rule over Men do according to their Inclinations disgrace or favour them so they would make God as partial saying that he damns some and saves others according to his Pleasure which will never be for God is no more subject to Passions than to Change Yet nevertheless Men are ready to colour this Doctrine with Passages from the Holy Scripture especially some Expressions misunderstood in the Epistles of St. Paul The Apostle Peter when he touches this very Subject and tells us the reason of the Long-suffering of God because he is not willing that any should Perish but that all should come to Repentance he adduces St. Paul's Testimony to confirm the Truth of it and tells us that he has said the same in his Epistles but withal warns us that there are some things in them hard to be understood which the Unstable wrest to their own Destruction pointing out it seems to this very Subject The necessary Duties of Christianity are plainly set down in the Holy Scriptures and other things cannot be well understood but by the same Spirit that endited them and the Rule already mention'd for interpreting the Holy Scripture may be of great use viz. That we so interpret it as may consist with the known Perfections of the Divine Nature and may lead us to the Love of God and to a sence of our own Nothingness and if there be multitudes of Places of Holy Scripture that do plainly lead us to this and some few that are apt to be wrested to a Sence contrary to all these we ought certainly to interpret them by those plain Passages of the Holy Scripture which do clearly represent the Perfections of God Thus she instanceth in that Expression Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated and makes appear that to take it in the Sence of an irrespective and absolute Predestination and Reprobation from all Eternity is inconsistent with the Nature of God and the other plain Directions of the Holy Scripture which shew that God has no respect of Persons She says That all the things of the Old Testament are Figures of the New and that Jacob and Esau are the Figure of a Person sanctified and of him who lives according to corrupt Nature of the Soul that loves its God and the Soul that loves it self This is the Esau and Jacob which the Scripture understands by those Twins come from One Womb for all Men who are born since the Sin of Adam bring with them into the World the good Spirit of Jacob and the Evil of Esau For God gave Adam his good Spirit when he created him and thereafter the Divil by the Consent of the Will of Adam and Eve produced there his Evil Spirit so that those two are engendred in the Soul of all Men before they come out of the Womb They reside in the Womb of the Free-will that God has given us and there struggle before they are in a State to do Good or Evil as Jacob and Esau did in their Mother's Womb which of them should get out first All Men proceeding from Adam do derive from him all his Qualities by Nature and Grace as the Seed and Plant must still be of the Nature of the Tree and Stock from whence it comes an Inclination to Good being the Instinct he retain â— of the Grace of God and an Inclination to Evil the Instinct which he retain'd from the Corruption of his Corrupt Nature So these two Spirits live in Men before they are born as we see the natural Instinct of Beasts as soon as they are form'd as a Duckling come out of the Shell can swim and duck in the Water without being taught by its Mother so this Evil Spirit of Esau gives all Men this natural Instinct to Evil which they still follow if the Spirit of Jacob do not constrain them to Good and hinder them from Evil. Hence comes the War which Man feels throughout all his Life and according to the Victory so is his eternal Lot This Evil Spirit of Esau always gets first out of the Wombs of our Free-will which is rather inclin'd to the things we see than to the Good that is invisible the Pleasures of our Senses rather than the divine and inward Pleasures which we cannot perceive but at a great Distance and through Darkness This we cannot hinder till we have attain'd the use of Reason when we ought by all means to labour that the Spirit of Jacob may get the uppermost in dispite of wicked Esau Those things are true both in the Nature of these two Children and in that of the two-Spirits But Men not understanding the Scriptures do wrest and explain them to a Sence dishonourable to God and blasphemous of him XI But it may be said if there be no such Predestination how then comes any Man to be damn'd How came Sin into the World
Places This says she is the greatest Falshood of all for I said from the Beginning that if my Life and Words are not conformable to the said Scriptures they ought not to believe me This I have often repeated since and say it over again now and on all fit Occasions I tell every one that the Sence of the Scriptures is the Nourishment of Souls It seems to me says she a very ill thing to forbid Christians the Reading of the Bible in the vulgar Tongue since it must teach us all that we ought to do and forsake c. The only Good says she that remains in the World is that the Text of Scripture remains in its Integrity that the Devil has never had Power to change and falsifie it but to oppose it only by the Glosses and Inventions of Men who endeavour to accommodate it to the modern Corruption but in vain they cannot change it since they who will follow Jesus Christ may yet find it entire and draw in its Fountain all that is written by the Apostles Prophets and other Souls filled with the Holy Spirit In this the Promise of Jesus Christ is fulfilled That Hell shall never be able to pluck it out of the Hands of the Christians that it may serve for Food and Nourishment to all true Believers who not stopping at the broken Cisterns of human Learning shall draw out of the Fountain of living Water to the End of the World In a Word thro' all her Writings she recommends the Reading of the Holy Scriptures looks on it as one of the greatest Miracles of Providence that they have been preserved uncorrupted and entire to be a standing Testimony against the Professors of Christianity while their Lives are a flat Contradiction to them That the Doctrine of Jesus Christ contained in the Gospels is the last Doctrine that is to come into the World and fully directs us the Way to eternal Life and desires that her Life and Doctrine may be examined thereby and no Regard had to it but in so far as it is conformable thereunto and that she aims at nothing but to perswade People to embrace in their Life and Spirit the Life and Doctrine of Jesus Christ contained in the Gospel It is true she did not give her self to reading of the Holy Scriptures being immediately and inwardly taught by God the same Truths which are contained in them Every one says she ought to use the Means that lead them best to the Love of God because the Ways to this Love are divers some attain to it by the Means of reading seriously the Holy Scriptures others by humble assiduous Prayers others by Solitude and retiring from human Conversation and so of many others It is of small Moment to know by what Means others have attained to this Love of God provided we take the Means that are most fit for us to attain to it also There are divers Ways as there are divers Sins which are Hindrances in those Ways which every one ought to oppose according as he knows them to be in himself without offering to make one general Law and Rule whereby to lead all to God for he who is not immediately instructed by the Holy Spirit would do very ill if he should not make use of the reading of the Holy Scripture or if he should not search for those who speak by the Holy Spirit for this would be to tempt God to Will that he should instruct all Men immediately while they are so taken up with or wedded to the Affairs of this World And on the contrary it would be very ill done if one should make use of Reading or other outward Means when he has withdrawn from all Creatures and finds the immediate Conduct of God Such a Soul would oppose the Holy Spirit and would hinder the operation of his Graces if it should make use of Reading or other outward Means because in this State it ought not any longer to act but to be passive and follow the Spirit who guides it it without operating any more it self In doing this she is far from despising or rejecting the Holy Scriptures when I am with a Friend and converse with him by Word of Mouth and he answers me after the same manner we will not then make use of Writing or Letters and yet it cannot be concluded from thence that I reject or despise his Letters this way of Communication by Letters is most agreeable but it is for the Absent They who see and converse with one another make no use of Writing but they do not despise it they have a more speedy and delightful way of communicating their Thoughts Thus A. B. having inward and immediate Conversation with God had no need of the Scripture for to know his Will she learned it from his own Mouth and enjoy'd his Presence but they who have not recovered that Divine Conversation must have Recourse to the Scriptures and other outward Means according as they find them helpful to bring them nearer to God till they attain to the Enjoyment of himself And this is very agreeable to St. Augustin's Doctrine in his excellent Treatise de Doctrina Christiana He therefore who is establish'd in Faith Hope and Charity and inviolably retains them needs not the Scriptures unless it be to instruct others Therefore many live in the Desart by these Three without Books Hence I think that in them is already fulfill'd that which is said whether there be Prophecies they shall fail whether there be Tongues they shall cease whether there be Knowledge it shall vanish away XXII That she declared so positively that there are no True Christians at present upon Earth and that God would make her the Instrument of renewing the Spirit of the Gospel is another grievous Prejudice against her this was often objected to her and is answered by her in many Places of her Writings It was not Uncharitableness but great Charity to Men's Souls that mov'd her to declare this to all the World She was perswaded that none were True Christians but they in whom the Spirit of Christ did live whose Affections and Desires were set only on things Eternal and not on things Temporal that one could not be a True Christian by serving God and Mammon both by joining the Love of God and Self-love seeking to please Men and to please God too She met with many of good Inclinations but none who were truly Regenerated She did well as she says to tell this and she had done a great Evil in saying the contrary for to have said so to others could not have profited them even tho' it had been true it could not encrease their Holiness but rather give them occasion of Vain-glory Nature being tickled with little But when we are told that we are not True Christians we have reason to use the means to become so and to humble our selves before God that we may obtain his Grace If there are True Christians
Esay accuses them that they had said Let us eat and drink for to morrow we must die we have made a Covenant with Death and with Hell we are at Agreement for we have made Lies our Refuge and under Falshood have we hid our selves Malachy It is in vain for us to serve the Lord we will call the Proud Happy c. This was not true in the Sight of Men but it was true in the Sight of God who saw that there were no living Impressions in their Hearts of the Divine Providence of a happy or miserable Eternity of the great Happiness of Vertue c. There are generally two sorts of Principles and Sentiments in Men which do widely differ from one another one by which they reason and discourse and preach and write Books and teach Doctrines and this is their speculative Principle The other is that by which a Man acts and governs both his inward Affections and his Life This last only is a Man's true Sentiments and Principle tho' for the most part this is unknown to the Man himself S. Paul before his Conversion and e'er he was enlightned by the Holy Ghost would have been highly offended with any that should have call'd him a Blasphemer a Persecuter of God and good Men and the Chief of Sinners as imputing to him Crimes and Sentiments of which he not only thought himself innocent but that those very things were Vertues in the Sight of God tho' when God opened his Eyes he found he had been truly such So strange is the Blindness of corrupt Man Therefore when God would deliver Men from Death he stops not at the outward Appearance and what Men say and at their dead Reasonings and Sentiments who may tell him We teach Vertue we preach good Works we recommend Mortification of the Old Man we detest Security and Presumption c. while in effect their Lives are regulated by quite contrary Principles and their Hearts live in another Element and therefore he warns them of that which is hid within them and which they do not yet perceive and tells them that tho' they profess to know him yet by their Works they deny him being abominable disobedient and to every good Work reprobate Now it is according to this Measure that A. B. speaks of Men and Parties and of their Sentiments When a whole Society lives according to Principles the contrary of which they affirm with their Mouths it is certain this may be imputed to that Society When the greatest part of particular Persons in that Society have certain Sentiments as to flatter themselves that they are in the State of Grace or predestinated to Salvation it is certain that the Society in the gross may be said to have these Sentiments If while they live in a worldly and carnal Manner yet they commonly believe they shall be saved by the Use of the Ceremonies and Sacraments this is to be reckoned the real Sentiment of the Society in gross tho' the Speculations of some particular Persons and Doctors do not say so It is the People that makes the Church and not a small Number of learned Heads It is the living and inward Principles Inclinations and Dispositions of the Spirits and Hearts of the People that makes the Sentiments of the Church and not some vain Theories of the Learned which are oft-times dead and barren in their own Hearts When in a Society some particular Persons teach expresly evil Doctrines as the Justifying of horrid Murthers or that we may be saved without the Love of God and direct Souls according to these Doctrines if the whole Body of such a Church knowing this do not openly and loudly extirpate such a Doctrine by their Councils or other proper Means undoubtedly such a Society and particularly they who preside in it are reckoned by God as if they themselves authoritatively taught and maintained these detestable Maxims Now if what A. B. says as to the Principles Sentiments and Evils of Parties or Persons be examined by these Rules it will appear that she imputes nothing to them falsly XXV Another Accusation brought against A. B. is that she gives wrong Explications of several Passages in the Holy Scripture as her applying that of S. Paul We know in part c. to a greater Degree of Knowledge and Illumination than God will give in this last Age of the World Her understanding the Words of our Saviour Joh. 12. 23. of his glorious Appearing in the End of the World when the Context shews it is meant of his Death and Sufferings her singular Exposition of the Lord's Prayer as containing things that we are to obtain only in Perfection when Christ comes to reign in Glory We see what Expositions the Apostles give of the Scriptures of the Old Testament and the Fathers of both the Old and New which oft-times seem very different from the Sence that naturally offers S. Augustin's Rule already mentioned has Place here That whosoever gives such a Sence of the Scripture as serves to promote the Love of God and our Neighbours which is the great End tho' it cannot be made appear that the Pen-man of the Scripture did so understand it in that particular Place he does not err damnably nor does he make a Lye But that other remarkable Rule he gives serves fully to remove this Accusation That as to all the Sences that are given of the Holy Scripture which are not repugnant to the Truth it is to be believed they were intended by the Holy Spirit That when many Sences are given of the same Words if it appear from other Places of the Scripture that they are agreeable to the Truth and to Faith there is no Danger For perhaps the Author of those Writings did perceive the same Sence of them and certainly the Spirit of God who wrought by him foresaw without doubt that this would occur to the Reader and the Hearer yea took care that it should occur For what more liberal and bountiful Provision could be made by God in the Divine Oracles than that the same Words should be understood in many Sences all which the other no less Divine Writings might confirm Agreeable to this we have a Divine Maxim of a pious Writer of the last Age That according to the State that Man is in so he understands the Holy Scripture if he be as yet in the State of Nature he explains it of Natural Things if he have ascended higher he understands it of more sublime Things and the higher State he is advanced to he still finds so much the more sublime Testimonies of things in the Scripture Inferiour things are the Image and Similitude of the superiour If a Man therefore be in the lowest Degree the Scripture proposes low things to him but if he be placed in superiour Degrees it points out to him higher things When Paul says Not in Rioting and Drunkenness not in Chambering and Wantonness c. Rom. 13. 19. this concerns
Actions of Men and it is so pure and excellent that her greatest Enemies have been forc'd to acknowledge it to be so that they might be the less suspected when they blame her in other things XI This Account of the Essentials of Religion I have given in her own Words she having summ'd them up in several Parts of her Writings sometimes under fewer Heads and sometimes under more tho' as to their Substance they are still the same And all her Writings have no other Tendency but to awaken in Mens Hearts a Sense of those Divine Truths and to convince them how far they are from them in their Practice She aims at nothing but to perswade Men that they cannot be saved without the Love of God that their corrupt Nature now leads them only to love themselves and the Creatures which is inconsistent with the Love of God that they cannot return to it without denying and mortifying this corrupt Nature which Jesus Christ by his Merits and Intercession has obtained Grace for them to do and this can be done only by obeying his Gospel-Law and following his Example which no body truly does This is the Substance of all her Writings These Truths she inculcates a hundred and a hundred times This is the constant Burthen of her Song Some other Sentiments which she calls Accessory Truths she mentions perhaps but three or four times in all her Writings And because every Palate does not relish them shall therefore those Books be despised and thrown away which do so lively represent the Essential Truths of the Gospel Would we throw away a Box of Pearls because some conceited Friend snatch'd at something amongst them and squeezing it hard at our Nose made it smell as Dung and then cry'd out Fie all is Filth throw all away Sure if these be the Great and Essential Truths of Religion they who love the Religion of Jesus Christ more than Prejudice or Party will greatly value and esteem the Writings of which those Truths are the Marrow the Substance and the All and will no more be scandaliz'd at them because of the Snarling of some than they would despise Pearls because Swine trample on the or Holy Things because Dogs bark at them XII Now that these are the Great and Essential Truths of Christianity will I think be readily granted by all The Holy Scriptures declare unto us that God is Love that they who dwell in Love dwell in God and God in them that there is none Good but God that the Sum of his Law is to love him with all our Hearts and our Neighbour as our selves that while we love the World the Love of the Father is not in us that Jesus Christ became Sin for us who knew no Sin that we might be made the Righteousness of God in him that Jesus Christ is come to bless us in turning every one of us from our Iniquities that unless we repent we shall certainly perish that in his Life and Death he was given us an Example that we should follow his Steps that by Nature we are the Children of Wrath that we cannot be his Disciples unless we deny our selves take up our Cross and follow him that if we be risen with Christ we will set our Affections on those things that are above and not on those things that are beneath that they who are Christ's have crucified the Flesh with the Affections and Lusts thereof that Knowledge puffs up but Charity edifieth that all Knowledge and all Faith without Charity profits us nothing XIII Thus S. Augustine in his Writings and particularly in his excellent Treatise De Doctrina Christiana Lib. 1. makes a Summary of the same Nature Of the Essentials of Christianity He considered all Beings under Three distinct Ranks and Orders Some which are to be enioy'd others which are to be used and others in the middle between these and they formed to enjoy and to use those other Beings The Things to be enjoy'd are those which make us happy The Things to be used are those which help us to attain to that which makes us happy and to cleave to it We who are to enjoy and use those things being plac'd between both if we give our selves to Enjoy the things which we should only use we are stopp'd in our Course and come short of our Happiness being entangl'd with the Love of things below To enjoy is by Love to cleave to something for its self To use a thing is to employ it as a Mean to attain to that which we love as Strangers travelling to their Native Country make use of Horses by Land or Ships by Sea to bring them thither That which is to be enjoy'd is only God the Father Son and Holy Ghost the Infinite and Unchangeable Good We ought to love nothing for it self but God and all other things only in and for God Other things are to be used or avoided as they are Helps or Hinderances of the Love of God All who are capable of Enjoying God as we are that is all our Neighbours we ought to love them as our selves that is to desire or endeavour that they be brought with us to love and enjoy God All Sin and Evil consists in the Loving and Enjoying what we ought only to use the Creatures and their Perfections and the Using what we ought to Enjoy Vtendis frui Fruendis uti This has so darkned and corrupted our Minds that we are not capable of loving and enjoying this infinite Good In order to this they must be cleansed and purified which is as it were a Travelling and Voyaging to our Country This could not have been if Wisdom it self had not stoop'd to our Infirmity and cloath'd himself with our Flesh to obtain Pardon and Grace for Sinners and to give them an Example in their own infirm Nature And as to convey our Thoughts to others we must cloath them with Words tho' thereby they are not defil'd nor chang'd so the Eternal and Unchangeable Word became Flesh and dwelt among us the Truth and the Life became the Way and brought us the wholsom Physick that is necessary to cure the Maladies of our Souls Remedies for every Disease The Sum of all is that the Fulness and End of all the Holy Scriptures is the Love of God and our Neighbours the Being that is to be enjoy'd and those Beings which are capable of enjoying him with us And that we might know and be able to do this the Providence of God has order'd the whole Temporal Dispensation for our Salvation which we ought to use not with an abiding Love but a transient one as we would love a Way or a Chariot that we may love those things in which we are carried for the sake of that to which we are going This is the Substance of that Excellent Book XIV It is true A. B. mentions other Sentiments which are not of the Essence of Religion but then she declares they are not
have also the Pencil which is the Word with which Jesus Christ and his Apostles laid on these fine Colours of Vertues in Souls but they want as that Ape the Spirit of that excellent Master which is Jesus Christ They have on Paper the same Words which the Holy Spirit dictated but they have not the same Holy Spirit to apply them in Practice to their own Souls and far less to the Souls of their Hearers XXV 10. Those Writings give us such just and clear Representations of the Truths of Christianity as tend to take us off from Self and from the Creatures and to make us turn unto and depend wholly upon God such as does not favour us in the least Sin and yet encourages the greatest Sinner to turn to God such as leads us to ascribe nothing to our selves but Evil and nothing to God but Good Such as lets us see that nothing can excuse us from obeying the Commands of the Gospel and following the Example of Jesus Christ without which by him tâ—ere is no Salvation It is true of Doctrines as well as Men By their Fruits ye shall know them Such Doctrines as tend to sooth Mens Corrupt Inclinations to teach them how to love God and the World too to gratifie their Appetites here and yet hope to enjoy God hereafter I do not mean in so many express Words but in their natural Tendency such certainly are not of God Now the Doctrines contained in those Writings have quite another Tendency as has been said There we have such true and lively Representations of God as shews us that he is altogether Lovely of his Design in creating Man only to be enjoy'd and lov'd by him without any decree or purpose of damning the greatest part of Mankind as may stir us up to comply with so tender a Love with so generous a Design of the horrid Degeneracy and Corruption of Man now both in Soul and Body as may make us abhor our selves of our Sins their being purely our own deed without any the least Predetermination or Concurrence of God but the contrary as may keep us from excusing our selves or laying the blame on God of the Merits Satisfaction and Intercession of Jesus Christ as may convince us that Pardon and Reconciliation with God and Grace and Means to return to God is to be obtain'd and that only by him of the Necessity and Nature of the preventing concurring and renewing Grace of God as may make us continually seek to him for it and yield up our selves to be guided by it of the Nature and Corruption of our Will as shews the absolute necessity of denying it and yielding it up to God of the Doctrine and Example of Jesus Christ as may convince us that our Corrupt Nature cannot be overcome and we cannot return to the Love of God without obeying his Precepts and following his Example Now Writings of such a Tendency ought not to be despis'd and ridicul'd by the Professors and Preachers of the Religion of Jesus Christ and that they have this Tendency I appeal to any who have read any of them without an Evil Eye XXVI 11. Those Writings do contain also many Divine Explications of the Holy Scripture not after the way of criticizing and reckoning up the several meanings and acceptions of a Word or the various Sences of Inpreters which a Man may be well vers'd in and yet be altogether ignorant of the true sence and meaning of the Holy Scripture where he pretends to Interpret it We see all Sciences have a certain Light by which they are discerned a certain Disposition of Faculties which makes us capable to understand them certain Principles which lead to the Knowledge of them and when these are wanting we grope in the Dark Children and Boys may understand all the Words of a Book of Philosophy of the Propositions in Euclid and yet understand nothing of the Truths contain'd there To understand the Holy Scriptures and the things of God we had need to be endued with the same Spirit and to be in the same Disposition with those who wrote them Now if any will be pleas'd to compare the Expositions given in those Writings of some places of Holy Scripture with the learned Comments of the Interpreters and Criticks of the Age I am perswaded that if they be not greatly prejudic'd they will be convinc'd that her Expositions come from a more Divine Original than than the most of the other that they give a clearer Light more worthy of God and more suitable to the great Ends of Religion that in this the Truth of our Saviour's words is manifest that God hides these things from the Wise and Prudent and reveals them unto Babes and that with great reason she blest God who preserv'd her from drinking in Humane Learning Of all these I shall instance one which deserves a particular Consideration and that is her Exposition of the 24th Chapter of St. Matthew set down in the First Part of La Lumiere nee on Tenebres It is too long to offer to transcribe it here they who are desirous to see it need not want Occasions To this I cannot but subjoin the just Cautions she gives and the excellent Rules for the Interpreting of the Holy Scriptures She makes appear how rash Men are in glossing the Holy Scriptures since the things which concern our Salvation are so plainly set down in them that they need no Glosses and the obscure things cannot be understood but by the same Spirit who endited them and not by Humane Wisdom which is directly opposite to the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit which descends only into humble Souls That they who will needs interpret the Scriptures by Humane Wisdom fall into great Mistakes and understand the Terms quite othewise than the Spirit of God intended Thus it is said that God hardened Pharaoh's Heart the meaning cannot be that he hardens Mens Hearts by making them obstinate in Evil for God can never co-operate to any Evil being the Fountain of all Good But he speaks thus to make us know that he leaves a wicked Man to go on in his Wickedness when he will not be restrain'd But on his part he uses always Goodness towards them that he may convert them both by good Inspirations Admonitions and other proper Means But when their Free-wills are willful to persist in Evil he leaves them to themselves The main Difficulty there is in understanding of the Scriptures arises from this that we do not know the Qualities of God and we are ready to attribute to him such as Men have imagining that he has a Love for some and a Hatred for others And thus every one is wedded to his own Sence and Opinions and will maintain them as the Truths of God But the best Course is still to take the Holy Scriptures in that Sence that draws us more and more to the Love of God and to the Knowledge of our own
Nothingness and to leave all these things which seem disputable to the Wisdom of God reckoning our selves unworthy to be able to comprehend what he is how he does his Works and by what means he saves Men relying on the Faith that shews us that he does all things in Goodness Righteousness and Truth without amusing our selves with any other thing but to put in practice the things which he has openly declar'd to us by his Gospel which are necessary for our Salvation such as Humility of Heart Self-denial the Love of God and the Love of our Neighbour It is better to exercise our selves in these solid Doctrines than to break our Heads in disputing and desiring to comprehend what is in God or how he governs Men Better let our selves be govern'd by him as little Children than to be inform'd how he will govern us It is to this says he that I exhort all the World knowing well that all the rest is nothing but Vanity and Amusement of Spirit For all the Learning and Curiosities of all the Men in the World cannot save us on the contrary their Doctrines Learning and Sentiments do rather withdraw us from God and our Salvation They either furnish us with means of Self-presumption or they slacken our Care to work out our Salvation Those words of Scripture which seem to say that God reprobates or damns Men cannot be understood but by the Signification of them which cannot be known but by the Light of Faith for if we take these words according to our Sense we should speak Evil of God and believe that he is Furious or Evil which cannot be for he is all Goodness all Peace and Tranquility and therefore he who would not utter Slanders against God ought not to stick to the Terms of the Scripture but in so far as they lead us to love and adore God or to the knowledge of our own Nothingness and Charity to our Neighbour for God has neither said nor taught to us but the things which tend to these Truths Thus when we believe that all Grace and Salvation comes immediately from God as it is true because we are Nothings then we honour God and acknowledge his Almighty Power in making so great things by his Grace of nothing and we must needs love him also by this Consideration and beg that he will continue and encrease this Grace and when we believe that God is so Gracious towards us that as soon as a sinner shall repent and turn unto him he will have Mercy on him this reinforces our Love to him in consideration of the Love he bears us so mercifully to Pardon us In these two Senses we may hold different Opinions about Grace and believe that it comes entirely from God and believe also that Men may have it when they will since God never rejects a penitent Sinner But whether we hold the one or the other of these in terms which do not tend to humble us and to acknowledge the Greatness of God that we may love and adore him it is an evil thing and it is a great rashness for Man to interpret and corrupt the Scriptures by Terms which authorize a Remissness in Vertue For they who will Gloss on the Scripture Words might say that God spoke not truly when he said to Jonas yet Forty Days and Ninevah shall be destroyed for the thing did not fall out according to the Terms which were not conditional but absolute Yet notwithstanding we ought not to surprize God in his Words or in the Scripture Terms but we ought to draw profit to our Souls from them conformably to his Designs who speaks only for our Profit He says absolutely that Ninevah shall be destroyed because the Inhabitants merited this Sentence the Justice of God condemn'd their Injustice but how soon they repented and embraced Penitence his Goodness and Mercy did also pardon them We must not therefore say that God did not speak truly but that he judg'd them justly and that he afterwards mercifully pardon'd them without being nice or grumbling about the Form of his Words or Expressions which are design'd only to make us grosly to understand the things according to our Capacity and Weakness These are certainly most excellent Cautions as to the expounding and understanding of the Holy Scriptures where the most necessary Duties are most plainly set down and obscure things cannot be discovered by human Wisdom but by Divine Faith and by the same Spirit that endited them where we ought not to quibble about Words and Phâ—ases but so to consider them as may tend most to the Love of God and Charity to our Neighbours and a deep Sense of our own Nothingness This is the excellent Rule given by S. Augustine hereafter to be mentioned this is the Method which the holy Fathers observed in interpreting the Holy Scriptures which makes their Writings so full of Unction and how desirable a Blessing is it that they who write Commentaries now adays may be acted by the same Spirit but this is thought too mean and simple for the Learning and Criticks of this Age. XXVII 12. The Clearing of Difficulties about Divine Truths in a few Words is likewise a singular Quality of those Writings The Learned we see still wrangle about them to Eternity writing huge Volumes and confounding rather than clearing them by a Multitude of Words and Distinctions The Doctrines about Grace Predestination and the Free-will of Man have been toss'd unsatisfactorily thro' many Ages Multitudes of Volumes written concerning them and yet the greatest Difficulties still left unresolved both Sides having a Mixture of Truth and Error the one that they might give all to God taking from Man what he had irrevocably given him and the other that they might reserve this to Man taking from God and subjecting to the Caprice of Man that which belongs to the pure Grace of God and from both there do follow Consequences most injurious to God and most prejudicial to the Salvation of Men tho' disclaimed by the most Now in two or three Sheets of Paper of those Writings there is more said for the clearing of those Difficulties than in whole Libraries of Volumes This in the â— and 2. Chap. of the 1. Part of Academ des Scavans Theologiens written upon Occasion of Conferences with and at the Desire of a learned and pious Divine Mr. Peter Noels Canon at Maline a Jansenist who had been Secretary to the famous Jansâ—nius Yprensis and had a great Veneration for this Virgin and her Writings to his Death I shall mention another Instance of this Nature of Mr. Gilleman's Canon and Arch-Priest at Gaunt famous there for some Writings who having ask'd her Judgment of the Doctrine of the Casuists then much talk'd of viz. That a Man may be sav'd by Attrition without Contrition by Sorrow for his Sins without the Love of God telling her that he had writ a large Volume against this false Doctrine she told him
even the Learned as well as the Vulgar begin again to acknowledge to be somewhat else than meer Mechanism This Production all the Art of the World cannot imitate but it is derived down from the first of every Kind to the respective Series of Individuals of that Kind thro' all Generations That all Men do thus derive their Off-spring from Adam as to their Bodies no body will deny but the general Opinion of the Learned has been that our Souls are immediately created or infus'd by God into our Bodies and that we do not derive them from our Parents and so from Adam But as God has endued Man with a Power of producing the Bodies of his Off-spring so also it seems evident that he has endued Man's Soul united to his Body with a Power of producing Souls united to Bodies which receive also from their Constituents the same Power of producing other Souls united to Bodies and that altogether like themselves There is no Contradiction in the Nature of the Thing and the Blessing of Multiplying given to Man is as unlimited as that to the other Creatures and the Scripture speaks of the Children in the Parents Loins and by this we easily conceive how the Corruption of Man's Nature is communicated to his Posterity without any Blemish in the Holiness and Righteousness of God for he having created Man Holy and Righteous with a Power to produce his like had he continued so the Souls which proceeded from him had been so too but he being corrupted in his Nature he could derive no other to his Posterity For Propagation is redoubling of the same Being and of the same State in which it is But on the other Hand if Souls are not derived from the Parent but immediately created by God Children may be less said to be the Off-spring of their Parents than the Young of the other living Creatures are from them so that they all do more perfectly produce their Kinds than does Man But above all this will never satisfie as to the other great Truth That all Souls are now impure and corrupt from their Original and Children of Wrath by Nature as the Scripture says It were blasphemous to say That God creates Souls impure ignorant and corrupt and it is no less evil to think that God creating them pure and holy does immediately put them into Bodies where they no sooner are but immediately they are thereby reputed so corrupt and guilty as to merit an eternal Separation from God The devout and profound S. Augustine was so sensible of the Difficulties in this Matter that he was undetermined what Side to take and professed that he had seen nothing that cleared them and he was for bearing with one another as to a Difference of Sentiment in these Things It is absurd to conclude this Sentiment to be false because we cannot conceive how Souls should propagate Souls without communicating of themselves in whole or in part if the last they are divisible and not spiritual if the first they should cease to animate their former Bodies this is to reason about Souls from the Idea's we have of Bodies Do not we experience ten thousand things in the World tho' we cannot conceive how they are We see the Soul produces Thoughts and one Thought produces another and this in infinitum Now it is easie for God to make that in certain Circumstances the Divine productive Vertue of the Soul should beget a Thought which has in it a Principle of Activity as it self has and that this Principle after its Production should not depend any longer on the producing Soul but subsist by it self 8. It has been judged the greatest Uncharitableness for her to declare to the World that there are no True Christians whereas in Truth it is one of the greatest Acts of Charity If a number of Persons were desperately Sick and their Distempers had so craz'd the most of them that they were not sensible of their own Sickness and Dangers tho' they perceived sufficiently the Illness of their Neighbours would it be Uncharitableness to awaken them and tell them of their Danger and direct them to the true Remedies even tho' some of them were using the proper means and tending to recovery it were certainly a Kindness done them all She does not say that there are not among Christians who have good Purposes and good Desires and who are good in Comparison of the Wicked but none who are truly regenerately into the Spirit of Jesus Christ She says * To be a true Christian is to imitate the Actions of Jesus Christ and to obey his Instructions Thus Jesus Christ says To enter into the Kingdom of Heaven we must become as a little Child we must take the last Place we must do Penitence we must be poor in Spirit we must deny our Selves we must love our Neighbours as our selves we must take the Kingdom of Heaven by force we must pluck out the Eye or cut off the Hand that offends us we must leave our Offering to go and be reconciled to our Brother we must love our Enemies and do good to them that hate us that we cannot serve two Masters we must not care for the Morrow but lay up Treasures in Heaven we must enter by the strait Gate that a rich Man will hardly enter into the Kingdom of Heaven that we must take up our Cross and follow him that we must give an Account of every idle Word that God hides his Secrets from the Wise and Prudent and reveals them to Babes that he came not to be served but to serve c. She appeals to Christians whether they be renewed into this Spirit and makes through all these Instances how far they are from it and how few there are who aspire after it And to make People believe otherwise is but cheating Men into Damnation 9. That the present State of Christendom is a Babel where the Language is confounded and the Builders do not understand one another is but too sad a Truth to be denied If a wise Master Builder design to build a glorious City and give particular Instructions how the inferiour Workmen shall be trained up for it and by what Marks they shall be chosen and what Measures they shall observe in squaring fitting and laying of the Stones and if the Workmen shall be trained up by quite different Measures and chosen for the Office by other Marks and if the Workmen do so far mistake their Measures Rules and Instructions as that some of them say he commanded one thing and others the quite contrary some that the Stones should be hewn after such a way and others after a quite different way and should live in a continual Debate and Scuffle each side contending that they were only in the right and striving to draw as many Stones as they could to themselves and then instead of carefully and wisely hewing them and fitting them for the Building should animate
when this is not fully done here it continues to be done in the other Life as the Soul is capable to admit it and its Indisposition requires This is a Doctrine very agreeable to the Tenour of the Holy Scriptures which tell us that God will render to every Man according to his Works that no unclean thing can enter into the Kingdom of Heaven that only the pure in Heart only shall see God The Sence of it seems to be imprinted in the Spirits of all Men from the Sence they have of the Purity and Righteousness of God and their Consciousness of their own Impurity The Heathens Jews Turks and Christians have been perswaded of it those of the Antient Church both Greek and Latin It is a Doctrine that most powerfully engages to lead a Life of Penitence here in which the Anguish and Pain of Purification is far less sensible and whereby a Soul may still acquire new Graces and Capacities of Attaining to a higher Degree of Glory whereas the Sufferings of Purification after Death are unspeakably more sensible and the Soul is not capable of advancing to a higher State It affords also great Consolation to truly sincere and pious Souls who seek God unfeignedly but are sensible of the greatness of their Corruption to know that God will not cast them off nor deny them his purifying Grace here and hereafter till he have made them fit Temples for himself to dwell in and will still so support them in the most dolorous Purification with a full Acquiescence in his righteous Will that they would not desire that it were otherwise but will say with Job Tho' he slay me yet will I trust in him I shall conclude this with a Passage of the most learned and pious Dr. William Forbes sometimes Bishop of Edinborough who disproving the Popish Purgatory and owning that the Greek Fathers and many of the Latins were for a State of Purification after this Life tho' he says without Pain he concludes thus Ad Contraversiam hanc tollendam vel saltem minnendam Romanenses Opinionem suam de Purgatorio punitivo quum nullis certis Fundamentis nec in Scripturis nec in primorum saeculorum Patribus nec in priscis Conciliis nitatur ut supra demonstratum est pro Fidei Articulo nec habeant ipsimet neque aliis obtrud in t Protestantes etiam quibus Opinio ista improbatur quidem Jure Meritoque Hereseos tamen aut Impietatis aperte eandem ne damnent Senientiae vero communi Graecorum atque etiam quorundam Virorum doctorum in Latina Ecclesia de Purgatorio expiatorio quod solum Purgatorii Nomen proprie loquendo meretur in quo sine Poenis Gehennalibus Animae Sanctorum quorum quasi media quaedam Conditio est in Coelis quidem sed in Coelorum Loco soli Deo noto magis magisque usque ad Diem Visionis Dei clarae fruentes Conspectu Consortio Humanitatis Christi sanctorum Angelorum perficiunt se in Dei Charitate per fervida amorosa Suspiria ut supra dictum est nutri pertinaciter obluctentur Sua enim atque ea quidem haud exigua probabilitate minime destituitur There are others who give unjust Representations of her Sentiments concerning Predestination Grace and Free-will I shall therefore give a just Account of them from her own Writings and in her own Words and no Reader needs think strange nor load her with Reproaches upon that Head if he find that in some things they differ from the Doctrine which he has been accustom'd to hear there are such differences of Sentiments upon these Subjects even among Persons of the same Communion X. As to the Doctrine of Predestination she says That God did certainly create all Men for Salvation and none for Damnation That God being infinitely Good without any mixture of Evil and his Nature Love nothing can come from him but what is Good but if he had created a Mass of absolutely reprobated he would have made Evil things That Predestination to Damnation could not come from God since the Damnation of â—oul is the greatest Evil in the World that this had been to give them occasion to curse him to all Eternity looking on him as very unjust toward them for having predestinated them for Damnation before they had received a Being without having merited or demerited any thing That in Truth and Justice such might have said Why didst thou not leave me into nothing rather than to have created me for an eternal Damnation What had I done before I had a Being to render me thus Miserable For it had been far better I had never been created than to have created me only for Damnation How cruel is it to hear that God should predestinate a Mass of Reprobates This is to proclaim God wicked in the Creation of Man For else he would not have created a Mass of Reprobates to be Miserable to all Eternity do what they will he could not create them for Damnation but out of pure Malice A greater Blasphemy cannot be uttered against God than this For it shocks all his Qualities of Goodness Righteousness and Truth without which he can never do any thing If he had created one part of Men for Damnation he should not have done a just thing since those Reproabates did not merit Damnation before they had a Being and could not in Justice be reprobated without having deserved it Neither could he exercise his Goodness in decreeing the Damnation of any thing since this Damnation is the greatest Evil in the World And how should he be true in reprobating those of whom he says that his Delight is to be with them since they are the Children of Men. This is inconsistent with the original Design of creating Man and the manner of his Formation He made him to take his Delight with him and that Man might love and enjoy his God he form'd him for that End after his own Image He created one Man only and in him all Men. Would he predestinate to Damnation a Creature whom he made to take his Delight with him before he had a Being whom he endued with such wonderful Perfections Was this only to damn him the more profoundly Were not all Men created in one Man for Grace and Salvation He took not two Masses of Earth to create the one of them for Salvation and the other for Damnation but one Mass only with which he created one Man only for Salvation creating in him all the Men that ever were or shall be he created them all in general in the State of Innocence and Salvation and for this End gave abundance of Graces both bodily and spiritual and that equally to all without Exception of any giving to all a Divine Soul and Free-will that they might be capable of all manner of Good And seeing he thus created all Men in Adam he could not have created any for Reprobation but all for Salvation Is
Profession of this new Worship and are joined to those Persons and their Opinions Now she establish'd no new Worship nor new Exercises nor Laws nor Rules that savour of a Sect but only by her Life and Writings call'd on People to return to the Love of God and to imitate the Life of Jesus Christ in which State they were not and without which they could not be saved In her Letter to M. Reinboth Superintendant in Holstein I am very far says she from making a new Church as some maliciously slander me for I bring no new thing and Novelties are very displeasing to me I am careful therefore not to introduce any but I labour to advance in a Gospel-Life and to practise it And all my Writings and all I said formerly to well-disposed Persons aimed only at this and I forbear now to speak to them because I found it was unprofitable Your Preachers wrong me greatly when they cry out that I draw their People from them for in the ten Months I have been in Holstein I have not made Acquaintance with so much as one Person not so much as with my Landlady so that I give them no ground to say or think that I strive to draw People to form a new Church or teach a new Doctrine seeing that which Jesus Christ left us is the most perfect and the last that God will send unto Men. No new thing needs be invented but we should labour to perfect our selves in it and to put it truly in Practice instead of Disputing about it for all these Disputes are raised by the Devil to bring Hatred Divisions and Discords amongst Christians whereas the Church of God should be united in Peace and Love in the meek Spirit of Jesus Christ and it is now divided in as many Parties as there are different Sects which is lamentable and disturbs the Peace of Christian Souls and makes that they do not love one another tho' Jesus Christ has so earnestly recommended to them to love one another They are all partial and only love the Party which they have undertaken to stand by or defend This proceeds from an Antichristian Spirit and not from the Spirit of Christ XX. They libell'd her that she despised Sermons Sacraments Pastours Priesthood and all Government which were all most horrid Calumnies This says she in her Letter to Dr. Nieman Superintendant in Holstein is a gross Calumny for I wish with all my Heart that both Church and State may continue in Vigour for otherwise there would be no Knowledge of God in the Land nor Commonwealths maintained Seeing Preachings and Sacraments preserve amongst Men the Memory of sacred things and States keep their People in their Duty by Justice or else there would be nothing but Confusion and the Good would be destroyed by the Wicked if there were no Government and Magistrates to rule and govern them I indeed despise the Abuse of Churches and Sermons and Sacraments but not the Use of them nor the Essence of these which are established by God as is also Government and Magistracy And there is a great Difference between the despising a thing in it self and the Abuse that is made of it For it is one thing to say that every Sect abuses the Holy Scriptures and another to say that the Scripture is of no Worth or to despise it because many abuse it Now it seems Buchardus would make People believe that I despise all these Holy Things when I despise only the Abuse of them as true Christians ought to do who lay to Heart God's Honour They ought to lament when they see Men to degenerate as to the Love of God that they seem to hold meerly to the Bark of the things ordained by God without squaring their Lives by them They say I despise the Sacraments and other Offices of Piety while I believe there is no body that esteems them more than I do For the Quakers accused me by their defamatory Treatise That I had an abominable Doctrine sending Persons to Churches Sermons or Sacraments or other outward Solemnities desiring to infer from this that I had not the Spirit of God since I still esteemed those outward Devotions and also incited others to make use of them as Means to approach unto God Your Preachers may read what I have written in that Advertisement upon this Head so that I need not enlarge my self farther here but will satisfie them as to what they say That in effect I despise the Sacraments and other outward Devotions because I do not go my self to the Church nor to the Sacraments and they will needs reject all that I say in the Praise of Holy Things because I do not observe them my self to give an Example to others and would infer from thence That I speak with Dissimulation in praise of Holy Things and not sincerely as I think in my Heart This convinces me that they no ways know me For if they only knew me outwardly they would sufficiently see that I am sincere and not at all feigned or dissembled so that if I had in my Heart a Contempt for the Sacraments and other outward Devotions I would openly declare it by Word and Writ for I have overcome the World and am not afraid to tell the Truth of what I know I have indeed written against the Abuse of the Sacraments and other outward Solemnities but I never spoke against the things themselves seeing they are good and have often serv'd me as Means of Union with God But if I do not go now to the Church or Sacraments it is not out of Contempt of Holy Things but because I have no longer so great need of outward Means of Union with God as I had formerly when the Conversation of Men and the Diversion of the Cares of temporal Affairs did divert my Attention from God I retired then to Churches and approached the Sacraments that I might be the more recollected and united to God But since God has given me the Grace to find this Recollection in my little Chamber and to entertain my self in Spirit with God in Solitude I have not thought it so necessary to use these outward Ceremonies which sometimes would serve me for a Distraction to my inward Recollection This is partly the Reason why I have left them off but this is not all For if I had the Freedom to go to Church I would go to it on the Days commanded and would receive the Sacrament at the Times appointed Since I am under the Ordinances of the Roman Church Jesus Christ teaches me to obey the Laws both of God and Men as he himself did on Earth obeying Caesar and other Superiours tho' they were sometimes evil but their Ordinances good as I have particularly shewn in the said Advertisement But I cannot go to Church without hazard of my Life and it is not lawful for me to expose my self to so evident Dangers and Necessity has no Law There are Persons in the
a Man according to the different State of this Life either literally or spiritually If he live carnally it is to be understood of the visible Flesh If he lives spiritually it denotes also the Flesh but a more subtile Flesh to which he must likewise die But before he die to it he must first live to it but he cannot live to it until he be first dead to the more gross Carnality It is impossible that a Man can conceive this sublime Way of Dying until he have attained to that Degree but if any attain it rather in the Contemplation than as to the true Essence of things there is great Hazard of Erring The carnal Life spiritually understood is most clearly express'd in that rich Man who was cloathed in Purple and fared sumptuously while on the other hand Lazarus was lying poor and hungry and naked and full of Sores But what 's the Event Riches are reduced into the extreamest Poverty and extream Poverty is exchanged for the greatest Riches We ought to consider that the Holy Scriptures are dispensed by the Spirit of God to afford Life and Nourishment for Mens Souls according to all the different States of Men and all the several Ages of the Church to the end of the World and as the same Holy Spirit that endited them gives the true Understanding of them only to humble and simple Souls so he gives them different Degrees of Light and Notices from them according to the different States they are advanced to when it is for their own spiritual Profit only or according to the different States of the Church when it is for the spiritual Good of the rest of Mankind and when he is to accomplish the things he has foretold and all these Sences are intended by the Holy Spirit one of them always being not only true in it self but also a. Figure and Similitude of what is to follow and the full Sence of them cannot be had till the Perfection and Completion of all things We see an Image of this in Natural Things Thus the Buds of Fruit-trees in the Winter-season are very small to Appearance and seem nothing but a little dry Excrescence but when the Spring comes first the Leaves break forth and after them the Flowers and Blossoms and last of all the Fruit which by Degrees advances to Ripeness and Perfection all which are not new form'd but were originally in the Bud even in the Winter-season and were discoverable by magnifying Glasses so they are only an Evolution and Displaying of what was all formerly shut up in the Bud according to the different Seasons Thus from the small Eggs of Insects there break out first Caterpillars and small Worms which afterwards casting Skins put on another Shape and at last break forth into Butterflies or Flies of their respective Kinds which is no Transformation but an Evolution of Parts which were formerly wrapp'd up within the Caterpillar as it were in Swaddling-cloaths as Dr. Swammerdam most ingeniously discovers and were no doubt also originally within the little Egg. So the same Seed of the Word of God which to the natural Man seems dry and insipid does by the Warmth and Operation of God's Spirit display different Degrees of Light and Truth according to the different Degrees by which the Soul advances towards God or the Periods of Time in which things are to be accomplished the Displaying of one Degree still making Way for another Thus God in his Word has prohibited Idolatry when all the Heathen Nations were given to the Worshipping of Idols and the Grossness and Rudeness of the Jewish Nation was such that they were easily led to imitate them the Commandment was understood no farther But when afterwards in our Saviour's Days they had a sufficient Aversion from the worshipping of outward Idols in Groves or Temples but in the mean time their Hearts were set upon Riches and this Worlds Goods the Commandment was farther explained and they were told that that was Idolatry and that they could not serve God and Mammon And as the Soul is weaned from this Idol and advances to another State the Spirit of God does there also discover to it other more spiritual things which it is ready to worship instead of God and so the Sence of God's Law is displayed to it far beyond what could be at first conceived So true is that of the Psalmist I have seen an end of all Perfections but thy Commandments is exceeding broad This with those who are not disposed to cavil will serve to clear A. B. as to this Accusation form'd against her And as to the Passages mentioned as 1 Cor. 13. 8. c. tho' ultimately it is to be understood of the Life to come yet it is no Absurdity to say that it may imply also a more plentiful Light and Communication of God's Spirit in after-times S. Augustin we see gives an Interpretation of it relating even to this present Life They says he who have Faith Hope and Charity and do firmly cleave to them do not need the Scriptures except for Instructing others And therefore many live by these Three in the Desart without Books Whence I think that Saying is already fulfilled in them Whether there be Prophecies they shall fail whether there be Tongues they shall cease whether there be Knowledge it shall vanish away As to Job 12. 32. I think it will be granted that the full Completion of it is not yet come to pass but is that we look for As for her Exposition of the Lord's Prayer no Body who loves not to carp will be scandaliz'd at it She says That in it is comprehended all that we can ever ask of God for his Honour and our Salvation all the Adorations we owe to God all the Thanksgivings we can render him all that we may or ought to ask of him for our selves or for all others And therefore tho it contain all the things that relate to our Pilgrimage in our way to Eternal Bliss and so may be understood in that Sence likewise as she does so interpret it in other Places yet since it contains all that we ought to ask of God and nothing in Perfection is granted here and God will not make us ask the things which he has no Mind to grant it is most reasonable to conclude that this most excellent Prayer in its compleat and perfect Sence refers to a future State which he would have us always to long after as the Jews did Jerusalem when they were by the Rivers of Babylon and in which we shall obtain in Perfection the effect of our Requests XXVI Some are greatly disgusted because they think her Writings are full of Tautologies and Repetitions and without exactness of Order and Method Had she put her Thoughts in an orderly System as the Learned do they might have look'd into them but when the same things are said over and over again this passes in their Stile for Cant and they nauseate
render the Scriptures useless to give way to a Private Spirit and to all manner of Confusion and Imposture 3. And both these are the more confirm'd in their Sentiments by seeing the many false Pretenders to Divine Inspiration which have been in the World The Devil studies always to ape and counteract God and since he can easily transform himself into an Angel of Light he most effectually undermines the True Religion of Jesus Christ by appearing to be for it and under a Cover of Religion he insinuates into Mens Minds his Infernal Qualities of Pride Hypocrisie and Unrighteousness and one of the Disguises under which he acts is that of a Pretence to Divine Inspiration and the being led by the Spirit of God And this he has done in all Ages both before and since the Coming of Jesus Christ He rais'd up among the Jews false Prophets and that especially when there were any truly inspir'd by God that those last might be discredited and despised because of the Impostures of the other And this is also one of the Artifices he had used among Christians through all the Ages of the Church and particularly in this last Age setting up whole Orders and Societies of Persons who pretend to be immediately enlightned and guided by the Spirit of God tho' the quite contrary appear by their Life and Spirit And thereby he not only infatuates some but makes them also such a Stumbling-Block to others as to make some of them to despise all Revelation from God and to look upon it as an Imposture and others to be altogether prejudic'd against any who may be truly inspir'd by God in this present Age tho' the Evidences were never so Uncontestable and Convincing however they own the Divine Authority of the Holy Scriptures because the Convincing Reasons which prove it have not the Prejudices of a contrary Education to withstand them And thus the Devil is become most successful in Disparaging and putting out of Credit with the Wise the Rational and the Learned all immediate Inspiration by the Spirit of God in this Age of the World tho' it were ever so clear and evident III. As for those who are Enemies to all Divine Revelation it is a folly to think of Convincing them that God has been pleas'd to communicate to any in this Age the immediate Knowledge of his Will by the Light of his Holy Spirit for if they believe not Moses and the Prophets Jesus Christ and his Apostles neither will they be perswaded tho' one should rise from the Dead Yet if they were sincerely and truly rational and not fantastically so it would certainly astonish them and awaken their Consideration to see a Chain of Sentiments so well connected so agreeable to True Reason so worthy of God so sutable to his Divine Perfections so clearly pointing out the Nature and Duty of Man the great End of his Being and the true way to prosecute it so plainly unfolding the Mysteries of Providence and the past present and future State of the World so far beyond all that ever any or all of the Philosophers have said of former or later Ages and that declared by an illiterate Woman void of all Study and Learning without conversing with Men or Books but living retir'd from the World in a continual Dependance upon God and Elevation of her Spirit to him and in a Conformity of her Heart and Life to those Sentiments And if they are not greatly partial and prejudic'd they must needs acknowledge that here is the Finger of God But they who 〈◊〉 the Holy Scriptures to be the Word of God and that the Penmen of them were inspir'd by the Holy Spirit that Holy Men of God spake of old time as they were mov'd by the Holy Ghost tho' there were then false Prophets among the People as there shall be now false Teachers among Christians they can neither think it impossible nor improbable that God should even in this Age immediately enlighten and guide by his Holy Spirit Souls truly denied to the World and to themselves and wholly resign'd to him IV. For God having created Man after his own Image to love and to enjoy his Maker and that he might take his Delight with Man his Soul was originally design'd for God's Temple and Dwelling-place that he might reside in it and fill it with his Light and Love And tho' Man by turning away from God did wilfully deprive himself of this Happiness yet through the Merits and Intercession of Jesus Christ God has pity on him and continues to prosecute his first Design of taking his Delight with him And this is the End of all his outward Dispensations toward Man Therefore says St. Chrysostom We ought in all things to lead so pure a Life as that we should no ways need the help of Letters but instead of them should use the Grace of the Holy Spirit that the Holy Spirit might write upon the Table of our Hearts as they write upon Paper But since we have thrust this Grace from us let us at least make use of the second Mercy But that the first was far more sublime God makes appear both by his Words and Deeds For he spoke to Noah and Abraham and his Posterity and to Joseph and Moses not by Scripture but by himself because he found their Hearts Pure But when all the People of Israel did degenerate into the Sink of Vices then Scripture and Tables were given them by which they were warn'd And we see this happened not only to the Holy Men of the Old Testament but also of the New For Christ did not deliver any Writing to the Apostles but instead of Scripture promised to give them the Grace of the Holy Spirit He says he will teach you all things And that you may know that this is far better than the other hear what the Lord says by the Prophet And I saith the Lord will make a New Covenant with you I will put my Laws in your Minds and write them in your Hearts and they shall be all taught of God St. Paul also to shew the Excellency of this says he had receiv'd the Law not in Tables of Stone but in fleshly Tables of the Heart But because in process of time many had stray'd from the right way they needed therefore again that Warning that is given by Scripture Consider then what a Degree of Madness it is that when we ought to lead a Life of such Integrity and Perfection as not to need Scripture but should yield up our Hearts to the Holy Spirit for Paper to be writ upon how is it I say if when we have lost this first Dignity and stand in need of the lesser yet we will not use aright even this second Remedy for our Salvation Thus he begins the Preface to his Homilies on St. Matt. shewing that if Mens Hearts were pure God would speak inwardly to them by his Holy Spirit that he has done so
after it but nevertheless an immediate Revelation tending to explain and illustrate the Doctrine of Jesus Christ to vindicate it from the false Glosses of Corrupt Teachers and to awaken and excite Men to follow and obey it may be both useful and necessary The Jewish State did no more call for his Mercy than does ours Have we the whole Will of God and our Duty consign'd to us in Writ So had they Was it that from time to time their Faith and Hope might be strengthned and encouraged in the Approach of the Messiah the same need have we who are bidden hope and look for his Coming again in Glory and yet in these last Days there are Scoffers walking after their own Lusts and saying Where is the Promise of his Coming Was it because of the great Degeneracy both of the Priest and People that they needed such extraordinary Messages and Warnings from God So do we Ought we to reject all who lay any Claim to Divine Inspiration without any farther Enquiry because there are in this Age many Impostours Enthusiasts who falsly pretend to be led by the Spirit of God and are not So might they Were they in Circumstances to discern those who were truly led by the Spirit of God from those who were acted by a Lying Spirit So may we So that from the Nature of God the Methods of his dealing with Men and the present State of the World and of Mankind this appears to be no impossible nor improbable thing XI Nay there are strong Presumptions on the other side that God will shew his Mercy to Mankind We are forbidden to believe every Spirit but are bidden try the Spirits whether they are of God or not If none are inspir'd by God what need is there to try any but to reject all We are told that in the last Days God will pour out of his Spirit upon all Flesh And when the Apostle S. Peter applies this Prophecy to the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles in the Day of Pentecost he meant not thereby to limit that Promise to that Time as if it had its full Completion but to shew that then it began to be fulfilled and that Jesus being now ascended to his Father and having received the Promise of the Holy Ghost had shed forth this upon them And it evidently appears that he did not limit it to that Time but shew that that was rather the first Fruits of it and that it was to be fulfilled and continued in all After-ages he saying expresly Repent and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the Remission of Sins and ye shall receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost For the Promise is unto you and to your Children and to all that are afar off even as many as the Lord our God shall call Which was as it were a Preludium and first Fruits of what they might expect For it is not God's Manner to promise largely and liberally and to perform meanly and sparingly and the Number of Persons on whom the Gifts of the Spirit were poured out in those Days was too small to fill up the Extent of Joel's Prophecy especially if we compare it with and interpret it by other Prophecies of the same Nature it will appear that this is a Mercy which God designs to communicate in a higher Measure after the coming of Jesus Christ than formerly For he has promised that he will put his Law in their inward Parts and write it in their Hearts And they shall teach no more every Man his Neighbour and every Man his Brother saying Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them saith the Lord. And we are told that the Earth shall be full of the Knowledge of the Lord as the Waters cover the Sea So that the Reason why this is so little experienced among Christians now adays is not because the Lord's Hand is shortned that he cannot do it or that this was a Mercy to be shewn only to the first Christians but because our Sins have separated between us and our God XII There have not been wanting in the several Ages of the Church some pure and holy Souls extraordinarily enlightned by the Spirit of God as Anthony and Paul the Hermit and many others of the Ancient Fathers of the Desart and in the later Ages Thaulerus Thomas a Kempis and some other extraordinary Persons as they who read their Lives or Writings without prejudice may see XIII It is generally believed by all Protestants that we are at present in the Reign of Antichrist and it is generally own'd by all That before the End of the World there will be a Destruction of the Antichristian State and a glorious State of the Church of Jesus Christ in Purity and Holiness without which the Conversion of the Jews and the bringing in of the fulness of the Gentiles cannot be hoped for All the Prophecies both of the Old and New Testament do point at this and their Description of it is so great and magnificent that it were absurd to apply it to any Event has fallen out already for in Divine Things the Reality of them does vastly transcend the most magnificent Descriptions that can be given of them There is nothing more plain from the Holy Scriptures and the State of the World than that the glorious Times foretold by the Spirit of God are not yet come And considering the great Corruption of the World and how unlikely it is that by human Wisdom or Reason such a Change will be wrought since the World by Wisdom knows not God there is all Ground to believe and hope that God will by an extraordinary Effusion of his Spirit bring about so great a Change XIV There being a two-fold Coming of Jesus Christ and a double Completion of Prophecies in relation to both therefore as the Preaching of John the Baptist was the first Coming again of Elias so many judge the Prophecy imports a Second Coming not of his Person but of some in his Spirit to restore all things Jesus Christ telling us even after John was beheaded that Elias will come indeed and restore all things To this Purpose a very sincere Enquirer into the Prophetick Stile takes out of the Prophecies and History concerning Elias and John Baptist a Character of that Spirit of Elias that must renew the World That its Doctrine must be that of casting away all Corruption Insincerity and Hypocrisie Declaring against all Distortion or Perversion of the Simplicity of Christian Truth by proud or politick Persons which will be no sectarian Spirit to rend and tear but a reconciling Spirit to solder together the Affections of Men Which will neither abrogate what is authentick noâ— introduce what is new but be a Restorer only of what useful Truths and Practices may seem to have been lost in the long Delapse
Devil is haughty proud and desirous of Honour He who is of the Devil has a Deference to none The surest Mark to know true Prophets is to remark if they who call themselves such are true Christians since of Necessity they must first be this before they can be true Prophets Examine if they have the Qualities of a true Christian and if they truly know God He who truly knows him loves him and he cannot love him without partaking of his Divine Qualities and being transform'd into them As God is good righteous and true so will he be who truly knows and loves him If we see in these Prophets any thing contrary to the Goodness Righteousness and Truth of God we must not believe that they are sent from him because he who is his Friend is always transform'd into him and partakes expresly of his Three Qualities Righteousness Goodness and Truth bringing them forth in all his Works They also are not true Christians who are not true Disciples and Followers of Jesus Christ To be his Disciple we must do as he did and to be his Follower we must depend in all things on God as he depended and be willing for the Salvation of our Neighbour to endure hard Treatments Affronts Pains yea Death And if they who call themselves Prophets are not possess'd with this Sentiment they have not true Charity are not true Christians nor the Disciples of Jesus Christ You may ask me if I do not believe that I am a true Christian I will answer My Belief may perhaps deceive me but if you do not observe in me the Qualities of Charity the Fruits and Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the Eight Beatitudes you ought not to believe it For these Marks are infallible to a truly Christian Soul so that they who have them not or at least do not labour to obtain them cannot be call'd truly Christian far less Prophets say what they please The Affectation of Desiring that People believe them is a Sign that they seek their own Glory For the Prophet of God affects nothing and forces nothing He only declares his Commission to him to whom he is sent as a Messenger that has no Concern in the Contents of the Letter that he carries Therefore they use to make themselves be believed the Desires they have that their Prophecies may come to pass and their Eagerness to act in their Designs shew that they seek their own Satisfaction For the Friend of God acts always with Meekness and Indifferency leaving all the Success of his Commission to God and he is as content with his own Confusion as with his Honour seeking and aiming at no other thing but to have satisfied him who sent him If those Prophets were of God they would all speak conformably and also with Constancy for there can be no mutability in God what he said to the Ancient Prophets he says yet now adays to the Souls which he possesseth They can be no new Prophecies for God has forâ—â—old all from ancient Times but he gives now the understanding and clearing of these ancient Prophecies to Souls resign'd to him Neither do they bring new Laws or Instructions because Jesus Christ has brought the last which is the Gospel and he teaches all things in Perfection and what Men ought to do and avoid that they may return to a Dependance upon God from whence they have strayed and this so perfectly that he has perfectly compleated all the Laws and all saving Instructions So that if any would teach another thing he is a Seducer and ought not to be believed But when one comes from God to awaken Men that they may consider how they are fallen from the Doctrine of Jesus Christ and how far they are estranged from a Dependance upon God making this appear to them by eternal Truths and by so clear Reasons that all Men of sound judgment may comprehend it these things ought not to be rejected because they are good in themselves and cannot but profit those who believe them tho' they should come from the Mouth of a false Prophet yea of the Devil himself We ought not then to stick so much at examining the Instrument from whence those Truths came to know if it be true and good and aim at God's Glory and the Salvation of Souls For God makes use sometimes of Persons who are imperfect and vicious yea of the Devil himself to declare to us the Truth that is necessary for us that we may not pretend Ignorance or blame God for our Damnation as being wanting to warn us He therefore sometimes makes Beasts wicked and possess'd Persons to speak that they may manifest his Will to us but we must not therefore make reckoning of the Beasts Devils and wicked Persons but Profit by the Things that God makes known to us by them when that which they say is good and true If a Soul be truly possest with the Holy Spirit he discovers himself sufficiently by his Operations He brings forth there always his Fruits he brings thither infallibly his Gifts by which we may truly know that it is he Tho' he be an invisible Spirit he is seen and sensibly comprehended by his visible Works and by the Operations he works in the Soul and Understanding of him who possesses him which may be clearly seen in the Conversation of the Person who says he possesses him For he must be Charitable Joyful Peaceable Patient Persevering Good Gentle Meek Faithful Modest Continent and Chast The Holy Spirit cannot be in a Soul without producing those Fruits no more than the Sun can be without giving Light to the Earth which feels 〈◊〉 Heat and Splendour tho' it does not comprehend the Essence of the Star There may be Fruits in the Soul resembling these which are only Sensualities and Self-love and Moral Vertues tho' they may take the Name of the Fruits of the Spirit they are vain because they respect only the present time They who do not possess the Holy Spirit cannot discern if he reside in another but by the Wisdom of the same Spirit which is known by the Holy Scriptures without which there is nothing but Darkness and Ignorance If we would discover that a Soul has True Charity we must see if its Works are accompanied with the Conditions of that Charity described by St. Paul That we may give Credit to the Sayings of those who say they are led by the Holy Spirit we must first see if what they say be conformable to the Holy Scriptures for the Holy Spirit is Uniform through all He inspir'd the Prophets of the ancient Law and thereafter the Apostles and Disciples of Jesus Christ as he does Souls living at present upon Earth There must be a Conformity in Substance between all those Inspirations if they proceeded from one and the same Holy Spirit All being but the same Doctrine and the same Spirit in which there can never be any Deceit because the Spirit of God
will tell me that you would try the Spirit of God by true Miracles and not by such as come by the Intervention of the Devil I ask by what means you shall discern between these so long as you have not that Holy Spirit which would learn you all Truth Then you would discern all things and would not need to ask Miracles to know if another be guided by that true Spirit For Faith alone would give you Evidence enough When the Pharisees ask'd Miracles of Christ and he had done some they said presently he had a Devil and that he cast out Devils by the Power of Beelzebub who was more Powerful than the inferiour Devils Do you not think that the same would happen now and if I also wrought Miracles would they not undoubtedly say that I were a Sorceress which were even to be feared since now there is no more need of Miracles except to bewitch Mens Spirits with Admiration our Faith being sufficiently confirm'd and the Gospel Law verified There is nothing wanting but that it is not put in practice and there is no need of Miracles to assure all Christians that they cannot be sav'd without the practice of it since Jesus Christ and his Apostles have so strongly affirm'd it One must deny the Gospel to believe that he can be saved without imitating Jesus Christ seeing he says that he is the way and that he who enters by him shall be saved that he also is the Door and that we cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but by him What Miracles will you require Sir from one who does no other thing but repeat the same Words which Jesus Christ and his Apostles pronounc'd and says no other thing but that to be a Christian we must have the Spirit of Jesus Christ I have done no ill to any Body nor said any other thing in Substance but that Men are fallen from the Faith and that they have by their Sins drawn down the Judgments of God upon their Heads that of necessity we must be converted to God and take up the Spirit of the Christians of the Primitive Church or otherwise we are not True Christians All these Truths are so clear that all Men ought to become silent and confounded by them silent in that they cannot bely the Truth and confounded to see that they are so far from God and the practice of True Christians But being unwilling to yield to this Truth and to be asham'd that their Degeneracy is laid open they will not be silent but strive to reproach those who tell this Truth and tempt them with Foreign Questions and Arguments even demanding of them outward Signs and Miracles as if they were of the Essence of Vertue while they cannot give the least Ray of Vertue to him who works them for True Miracles come from God and not from the Person that does them who is only his Instrument to shew to Men that which God operates So that you cannot be assured that a Person has the Holy Spirit even tho' he should work outward Miracles since Judas did them as well as the other Apostles and yet was a Devil We need another Touchstone to know the Spirit of God for St. Paul says tho' we could remove Mountains and had the Gift of Prophecy all this would be nothing without Charity It is a great Blindness to seek for Miracles and outward Signs that we may believe that a Soul is guided by the Holy Spirit It were better to search in the Scriptures what Gifts and Fruits the Holy Spirit brings always along with him and observe if they who say they are endued with the Holy Spirit have in them those Gifts and Fruits for then it is certain they are possest with the Holy Spirit for all these things are Supernatural and Divine Not that I would exclude True Miracles from Souls that love God for they would certainly do them in this present Time as much as the Apostles did them in their Days if it were necessary for God's Glory who will always do the Will of those who love him in all Times and Places But I have said all this to make appear to you that this is the least Favour that God does in this World to a faithful Soul that it has the Gift of Prophecy or of doing Miracles and that these things ought not to be valued in respect of Faith and Charity which unite Souls to God These are True Miracles with respect to the Souls of their Neighbour they restore to them Sight Health and Life and with those Philosophers Stones of Living Faith and Charity they change earthly Souls into the pure Gold of Divine Charity These are the True Miracles which shall be done in this Fulness of Time to prove the force of the Holy Spirit by the Cure of Souls more worthy beyond Comparison than Mortal Bodies The Summ of what she says on this Head is this That it is not necessary that every one who is immediately taught by the Spirit of God should prove the same by outward Miracles that they are necessary only for the Confirmation of a New Doctrine That she declares no other Doctrine than the Gospel of Jesus Christ which our Lord and his Apostles have sufficiently confirm'd already That to demand Miracles now is to tempt God and to expose our selves to be deluded by the Devil who we are told will in these last Times by his false Prophets do Signs and Lying Wonders which without the Spirit of God cannot easily be distinguished from true Ones That they are not the surest Touchstones of one's being guided and taught by the Spirit of God but the Gifts and Fruits of the Spirit particularly Living Faith and Charity and that by these the Spirit of God does greater Miracles in converting and healing the Souls of others than all outward Miracles on Bodies would amount to And that in these last Times God will manifest the Power of his Spirit by working these Miracles on Souls by turning them away from things Earthly and Temporal to things Heavenly and Eternal There were many of the ancient Prophets of whom we do not read that they wrought Miracles and their Prophesies were generally for After-times and not fulfilled in their own Days yet the People were bound to receive them as sent from God and there were sufficient Evidences for it in their Doctrine and Lives Besides it was no less than a Miracle and beyond the Power of Nature that she knew the Thoughts of other Mens Hearts and their inward Dispositions not that she always did so but when God thought fit to discover them to her either for her own Safety or for the Good of others This is oft-times declared and Instances given of it not only by her self but also by M. de Cort Poiret Tiellens Francken and many others The manner also of having so clear and comprehensive a Knowledge of Divine Things without Study Conferences Meditation or Books is no less strange
by the Spirit of God who cannot contradict himself for God is Yesterday and to day the same unchangeable and always equal to himself from whom no Variableness nor Contradiction can proceed But if her Adversary would examine all the Holy Scripture after the Manner he had done her Writings he would find many more such seeming Contradictions in the Bible For indeed there are many more according to the narrow Apprehension and shallow Judgment of Men who being earthly and carnal cannot understand spiritual things or those endited by the Holy Spirit and they forge in their little Brains Errours out of most solid Truths and Contradictions out of the greatest Conformities From hence have sprung so many Errours Schisms and Divisions in the Church of God because every one would understand the Scripture after their own Mode they have invented so many different Religions and each says This is founded on the Holy Scripture tho' very often they have different Sentiments and contradict one another in the same Truths while every one thinks he understands them aright Tho' they are uncapable of understanding Divine Things for the same Spirit that endited the Holy Scriptures gives the Understanding of them and when the Spirit of Man undertakes to do it he still falls from one Errour into another and loses himself in that great Ocean of Divine Wisdom which he cannot understand nor comprehend It does not trouble me that there appears to be Contradictions in my Writings to the Judgments of Men since they will hardly find two Prophets speak the same Words upon the same Matter and the four Evangelists do not relate the same Things after the same Manner Must it therefore be said that there are Contradictions in the Holy Scriptures as this Benjamin Furly says there are in my Writings God commands to honour Father and Mother and Jesus Christ says we must hate Father and Mother adding that he who does not forsake Father and Mother and all things cannot be his Disciple How will this Benjamin reconcile these two Passages For to honour Father and Mother is a thing quite contrary to the hating and forsaking them And Jesus Christ says that he is not come to bring Peace upon Earth but War between Father and Son c. And elsewhere he says my Peace I give you In one Place he says Drunkards and Gluttons shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and elsewhere he says that that which enters into the Mouth does not defile the Soul Truth is invincible and does not change for all that may be thundered against it but it is the more established when it is opposed and contradicted by ignorant Persons as this Benjamin who cannot discern Truth from Lying and from Contradictions He confounds one time with another and will needs give general Rules for all sorts of Occasions and when these Rules are not punctually observed at all times he thinks that Persons do change or contradict themselves And if he had been an Apostle of Jesus Christ when he lived upon Earth he would have often reproved him as at present he does me For when Jesus Christ was afraid of his Enemies he bids his Apostles buy Swords and if they wanted money to do it that they should sell their Garments and a little after he commands to put up the Sword and threatens that he who strikes with the Sword shall be strucken by it If this Benjamin had been in S. Peter's Place when he cut off Malchus's Ear he would certainly have been displeased at Jesus Christ and blamed him for Inconstancy and Contradiction because he could not discern the time when he ought to strike and when he ought to forbear He reproaches me that I have written somewhere that I might say something that is not true without lying or sinning He does not consider that there are material Lies which are not Sins He would have Words precisely spoken which are true according to his Caprice for it is a chief Article of the Quakers to justifie themselves before Men for they study precise Words that they may not commit a material Lie and they dare not call a Christian by that Name without adding as they call them fearing to Lie by calling him a Christian when he is not truly such For my part I am far from these Maxims for I never regard the pronunciation of Words but the Essence of the Truth of the things which I advance If I express them in this or that Term it is all one to me provided I deceive no Body and that I make the things to be understood which I would signifie But there is this difference between the Spirit that guides me and the Spirit that guides that Sect that they would be esteem'd by Men for good Men and for the People of God whereas I am not concern'd how they esteem me for I am content with the Testimony of my own Conscience and seek not the Approbation of Men far less will I say any Words to the end they may think that I am Just and guided by God It suffices me that I know it and God knows it for it is written He who would please Men is not the Servant of Jesus Christ Therefore I will freely speak a material Lie when I believe the thing is true for Example I have often said that I was Two Years younger than I find I am since I caus'd one to search the Register of my Baptism I grant I have thus made many material Lies yet without sinning thereby or lying since a Lie is a Deceit or Falseness of the Heart that kills the Soul which I could not do by saying that I was Two Years younger for I aim'd not thereby to deceive any Body nor to speak against the Truth I have uttered many such material Lies I love rather to possess the Essence of Truth in the bottom of my Soul than to speak verbally true Words through Hypocrisie For what else is it to call Men by the Name of Christians and to add to it as they call them than Hypocrisie and Contempt of the Truth such as the Jews had when they said to Pilate that he ought to write on the Cross of Jesus Christ that he was King of the Jews by adding to it as he said which Pilate would not add saying only What is written is written as I also answer to this Benjamin when he would teach me to speak Words which are true before Men For I know well that all whom I call Christians are not truly Christians before God yet I will not learn from the Quakers to add to the Name of Christian as they call them since this seems to me superfluous and I have no other Intention in calling them simply Christians but to make it be understood of whom I speak to wit that I speak not of the Jews or Heathens but of those only whom I call Christians yet without design to maintain that they are true Christians Since I declare elsewhere that I
know no true Christians it cannot be understood that I know them for true Christians because I call them by that Name but I conform my self in this to the Disposition of those who hear me and not to the Truth of what they are Which if I would follow I behov'd sometimes to call those nominal Christians Atheists or Antichristians which scarce any Man would understand therefore to make my self be understood I must use common and ordinary Terms and pronounce them as briefly as I can since we must give an account of every idle Word I ought not to add uselesly to the Name of Christians as they call them since it is understood well enough of it self without pronouncing those Words as the Quakers do To make appear how fully she clears her self as to Contradictions which they were ready to impute to her I shall here adduce one Instance I understand says she by yours that my Writings have had some good Operation in your Soul but withal that you have found as it seems to you some Contradiction in them in that I say absolutely that to be a true Christian one must abandon all that he possesses and nevertheless you find in one of my Letters that a Man must keep his Goods for his Necessities since the World is now without Charity and they would leave the Just without help in his need Both these things are most true and do not at all contradict one another for a Man must absolutely abandon the Love of earthly Goods if he would become a true Christian Jesus Christ has very often affirm'd this Truth in his Gospel and said that he who does not renounce all that he possesses cannot be his Disciple I bring no Novelties when through all my Writings I press this Necessity of forsaking all things to be a Disciple of Jesus Christ since Jesus Christ his Apostles and all who have received the Holy Spirit say the same thing and there is but one Truth which is God which says through all the same thing So that they who speak otherwise are Liars and Seducers of the People who flatter Men to destroy them under the Pretext of Glosses and false Reasons which they draw from the Holy Scriptures without any Ground This I have declar'd sufficiently in my Writings as you have well observ'd and approved as you say seeing I very much blam'd a Woman of Friesland who was yet careful what she should eat and drink and wherewithal she should be cloathed after she had resolved to become a true Christian as you have remarked in the Second Letter of the Fourth Part of La lum née en tenebres And I am still of the same Sentiment that when one relies upon temporal things and will not voluntarily abandon them to follow Jesus Christ he cannot be his Disciple and that Woman will never be one so long as she is not disengag'd from temporal Goods Tho' she be now gone out of her Country with a design to embrace a Gospel Life she cannot attain to it because of the Affection she has still for her Ease and Conveniences which proceeds from Self-love being anxious for the temporal Part and fearing Want And I can assure all those who are still in that Disposition that they are not true Christians But when I wrote to one of my Friends in the 24th Letter of the Fourth Part of La lum née en tenebr as you alledge that he â—ought to keep his Goods for his own Necessities or that of others without leaving them to his Friends or giving them to the Poor now adays I had reason to do it because this Man was more disengag'd in his Soul from temporal Wealth than that Woman and had already resolv'd to abandon them all so that his Heart was free to possess them as if he did not possess them which a Person wedded to them could not do tho' it seems to him he could and he will say so with his Mouth for there is nothing more deceitful than the Heart of Man which none knows but God and he to whom God reveals it And I had reason to advise this Man to keep his Goods and that Woman that she should not care for the Morrow without any Contradiction in my Advices but in the Disposition of those Two Persons whom you mention Since the one was free to possess Wealth without sinning and not the other and a good Physician ought always to consider the Original of his Patient's Disease if he would heal him For if he ordain the same Physick for all sorts of Maladies he would kill more than all the Executioners together So you must not think that there is a Contradiction in my Two Letters mentioned by you but that there are Two divers Remedies for Two different Diseases to wit one Remedy against the Love or Desire of earthly things and another against too great Liberality or Indiscretion Again A. B. says somewhere That no Body ever was or can be saved but by the Merits of Jesus Christ and some Pages after in the same Treatise she says that no Body can be saved by the Merits of another This seems contradictory as well as those Two Propositions the one of St. Paul and the other of St. James Man is justified by Faith without the Works of the Law and Man is justified by Works and not by Faith only This last Contradiction â—s reconciled by saying that St. Paul understands that the Principle which admits in us that true Righteousness which God places there is Faith and that Works are not that Principle But St. James means that that Principle which admits in us the Righteousness of God is Faith but that Faith is not destitute of Works for if Faith were without Works it were a dead Faith which would justifie no Body Thus these have no Contradiction and yet are harder to reconcile than any Passages of the Writings of A. B. Thus as to the forecited Passage when she says that no Body is saved but by the Merits of Jesus Christ her meaning is that Jesus Christ is the Author and meritorious Cause of the Salvation of Men who will accept of this Salvation by the ways that God teaches them and when she says that no Body can be saved by the Merits of another this signifies that none who will not co-operate to their Salvation by the ways that God preâ—cribes them câ—n be saved by the Merits of Jesus Christ or that the Merits of Jesus Christ will not save those who will not follow the way of Salvation Thus you see how easie it is for critical and captious Spirits to find Contradictions where there are none that the Holy Scriptures themselves have many seeming Contradictions tho none in Truth that they who are led by the Spirit of God write in great Simplicity regarding the Essence and Substance of divine Truths and not the niceness of Terms and how captious Spirits may misinterpret them and divine Truths had need to be read and
greatest Evidences that can be given to those who were not Eye-Witnesses nor have experienc'd that Efficacy of her Writings themselves XXVII And seeing by the Testimony of her greatest Enemies these Writings are valued and esteem'd by some who have the Reputation of being Men of Sense Learning and Probity and that there are others highly deserving that Character still alive who were Witnesses of her Life and Spirit and have found so much of the Divine Power accompanying those Writings as has made them abandon the Love and Care of all Temporal things to mind and prepare for Eternity And seeing they are known to be Men of no Hypochondriack nor Enthusiastick Spirit do not pretend to immediate Revelations themselves are not led by the heat of Fancy or Imagination but were addicted to all the sorts of rational Learing and to the mechanical Philosophy wherewith the World now abounds this may so far Counter-ballance the Prejudices raised by some other Men of Reputation for Learning and Parts who never read those Writings till they came to them with an evil Eye with a design to expose ridicule and confute them this I say may so far Counter-ballance that Prejudice as to encline People not to throw them away as unworthy of their notice but impartially to weigh and consider what they say XXVIII And I am the more bold and earnest to perswade this because they contain the matters of the greatest Importance in the World They encourage no New Sect nor Schism set up no New Creeds teach no Disobedience to Superiours Civil or Ecclesiastick no Contempt of the Holy Scriptures or Divine Ordinances they do not teach Men to distinguish themselves from the rest of the World by a Preciseness in Words Gestures Apparel or other outward indifferent things But they clearly manifest the horrid Corruption of our Nature the indispensable necessity of the Love of God to be saved the only means to recover it by following the Life and Doctrine of Jesus Christ how contrary all Men walk to this and yet flatter themselves with their false Glosses on Christ's Life and Doctrine and the great and universal Judgments that God is now to bring upon the World as he did in the Days of Noah its Wickedness being as Universal and at as great a Height With many other important Truths which I cannot now repeat And as they are of such Weight and Moment so they are so clearly and rationally represented as to convince our natural Reason XXIX It needs divert none from laying to Heart those great and necessary Truths because they may meet with other accessory things which they cannot relish they are told they may lay them aside suspend their belief of them they may be sav'd without them And whereas it is replied That they being declared to be revealed by the Spirit of God we ought to believe them It is answered That it is not necessary to Salvation to believe that those Writings are Divinely inspir'd many may believe the Divine Essential Truths contain'd in them because of their Agreement with the Holy Scripture and labour to form their Lives and Hearts accordingly and yet not be perswaded that she had immediate Revelation besides the same Spirit that declares even those accessory Truths declares also that they are not necessary to Salvation and that they who do not relish them and are not bettered by them may let them alone Even as God of his infinite Bounty has provided not only for the Necessities of Man's Life but also variety of Entertainment of which some is agreeable to some Palates and naufeous to others It is not needful that every Man should eat of all sorts of Food but it is fit he take that only which is most convenient for his Health not despising other Food because he cannot relish it for it may be very agreeable and healthful to others however he may let it alone God grant us all the Spirit of divine Charity and a sound Mind and that whereto we have already attain'd the Essential Truths we all acknowledge we may walk by the same Rule and mind the same things And then if in any thing we be otherwise minded God will reveal this unto us Advertisement IN Opposition to all the Prejudices rais'd against the Writings of A. B. this may be a favourable one for them that whereas her Enemies do all they can to frighten People from looking into them and would have them to know no further of them than what they think fit to put into their Narratives those on the other hand who give good Characters of them aim at nothing thereby but to perswade People impartially to read and consider the Writings themselves and not to trust them upon their Words no more than those who bespatter them even as we Protestants perswade the People to read the Holy Scriptures and those of the Roman Church do all they can to hinder them as being conscious that they make against them And as thus the Intention of these Witnesses is much more Candid and Just than the other so their Testimony will by all impartial Judges be esteem'd no less Weighty The one are Eye-Witnesses and the other only upon Conjecture Inferences or Hearsay and they who thrust in to be Evidences upon no better Grounds give occasion to suspect them as false Witnesses and to put them to the Oath of Calumny e'er they be admitted And as they had far the Advantage of knowing the Truth of what they declare beyond these others so their Ability to make a right Judgment and their Probity is unquestionable of these I shall instance only in two The one is the great Anatomist and Naturalist Dr. Swammerdam whose Writings are well known and esteem'd by all Enquirers into the History of Nature and it is certain that that Genius does not lead to a Brainsick Enthusiasm but after that he had seen some of the Writings of A. B. and convers'd with her he was fully perswaded in his Conscience that she was led by the Spirit of God and found the happy Effect of it upon own his Heart and Spirit The other is Dr. Ant. de Heyde known also to the World by some curious Enquiries and Observations in the History of Nature and in Physick who for many Years had no small Contempt and Aversion for A. B. and her Writings so that it was the force of Truth only and no favourable Prepossession that brought him to esteem them who has now abandon'd all earthly things to follow his Master Jesus Christ and such powerful a Mean they were for this End appears from this following Account which he permits to be communicated to the World being heartily desirous to contribute for the Good of those who labour under the same Indispositions A DISSERTATION OF Dr. Ant. de Heyde Famous Physician of Middleburg in Zealand CONCERNING The Sanctity and Divine Illumination of Antonia Bourignon Translated from the Original Latin M. S. Quest 1. If A. B. did
lead a Pious and Holy Life 2. If she was moved by the Spirit of God to write for the enlightning of others I. THAT we may know if A. B. did lead a Pious and Holy Life we must first understand wherein true Holiness and Piety does consist to wit in the Love of God only and of those things which are Eternal And seeing two Contraries cannot be lov'd at the same time and the Love of the Creatures and things Temporal is opposite to the Love of the Creator and of things Eternal it is from hence more clear than the Sun at Noon-Day that he who loves God cannot love the Creatures Our Saviour having taught us that no Man can serve two Masters but he must needs hate the one and love the other St. Paul says expresly If ye be risen with Christ seek those things which are above and set not your Affections upon those things which are on Earth And St. John warns us That we love not the World nor the things which are in the World for if we do so the Love of the Father is not in us II. This is likewise confirm'd by the Example of all the Holy Patriarchs Prophets and Apostles as he who reads the Holy Scriptures will find through all so that there is no need to produce Testimonies here But seeing this Love of God and of things Eternal is hidden in the Heart and the Heart is known by God only it is therefore difficult to know if any truly love God This Difficulty is so much the greater that Hypocrites and wicked Persons can so craftily counterfeit the outward Actions which are the Signs and Fruits of this Love that it is hard to distinguish them That this Difficulty may be removed it is to be observed and considered 1. That there are nevertheless sure Signs by which one may be convinc'd of the Holiness of another and that he is endued with the Love of God For we affirm that Abraham Isaac Jacob and the other Patriarchs Prophets and Apostles were Holy and that with so much Assurance that we look upon it as an Example which we ought to imitate But 2. it is to be considered that we cannot know but by Divine Light and not at all by Natural Reason if one be Holy and a Lover of God And this is bestowed on those only who are Holy themselves or at least endeavour in Sincerity of Heart to become so To such God reveals his Secrets in so far as it is fit for them to know them for their own Conduct or that of others as for others who are not in that State but care for and seek after earthly things they really cannot know if any be truly Holy and a Lover of God or not Nevertheless they take upon them to judge magisterially of all things as if they only did possess all divine and humane Wisdom tho' in the mean time they are ignorant of the Essence of things and content themselves with their outside and surface So that their Testimony as to Holiness and the Love of God even of the Patriarchs Prophets and Apostles is founded meerly upon their own Advantage For they judge that to be Good and Holy which advances this but on the other hand they account that to be Evil and Prophane which brings them in no temporal Gain III. It is just of this Matter as it is of the Light of which a Blind Man cannot judge neither can he form the Idea of it because his Eyes by which alone the material Light is perceived are ill disposed for it Yet this does not hinder but that he whose Eyes are well-disposed may be certain that he sees the Light because when he opens his Eyes he discovers many things round about him which without this Light could not be discern'd and withal he can walk and do other Works which would be impossible for him if he were depriv'd of that Light And when he sees other Men walk resolutely and steddily and do their Works by sure Rules he has reason to conclude that these Men do also enjoy the Light This may be easily applied to Spiritual things For tho' the natural Man turning his closed Eyes towards the Divine Light is Blind in Spiritual things neither can he know if one be Holy and have the Love of God yet this does not hinder but that he who has the Eyes of his Mind opened may be assured that he himself and others like unto him are illuminated by God for when the inward State of his Soul is discovered to him and the work of God in his Soul and the means that are to be made use of for the preserving and strengthning of that Work he justly concludes from hence that he enjoys the Divine Light and he walking in that Light and abandoning all the Creatures that he may love the Creator only may be certain that he loves God and is Holy And observing the like in others he concludes that they also do truly love God and are Holy Upon such Grounds is founded that Knowledge by which Holy Men do understand their own State and the State of other Holy Men. And after this manner are they perswaded that the Patriarchs Prophets and Apostles were Holy Men. IV. Some perhaps may reply to all this Altho' Good and Holy Men may mutually know their own and others State yet it is not so with those who has not as yet attain'd to Holiness and the Love of God I answer such imperfect Persons may be of two sorts to wit some know that they are Blind and therefore are desirous of the means whereby they may see and be enlightned others altho' they be more Blind than Moles yet they do not desire to see either because they imagine that they are enlightned and see sufficiently or for that they are so sunk into and carried away by the Love of the Creatures that they have no thought of the Creator and of things Eternal Those of this second kind are so far from being able to know their own State or that of others that they cannot form any Idea of it more than a Blind Man can judge of Light and Colours Hence it would be to no purpose to endeavour to demostrate to such that one is Holy and in the Love of God But as for those of the first sort who know they are Blind and desire the Light they according to our Saviour's Promise shall see And as they are conscious of their own Blindness and anxious about it so God will reveal unto them the Holiness and Illumination of his beloved ones in so far as that may be a Mean of recovering them out of Darkness into Light and from Sin to Holiness So St. Paul was instructed by Ananias Cornclius the Centurion by St. Peter And God in all times has employ'd Holy Men for the enlightning of others and for guiding them by their Examples Words and Writings into the way of Holiness This is the Ground and
that A. B. was Holy and in the Love of God and that to such a Degree that this Love seem'd to flow from her into them and other well-disposed Souls because many are brought by her to abandon their own Wills and the Creatures that they may Love God only and subject themselves wholly to his Will And I am perswaded that her Writings will have such Operations in all those who shall read them with a sincere and hearty desire to find the saving Truth and to endeavour to walk in it in so far as they know it Unless they be so far possest with Prejudices as that they will admit of nothing for Truth but what is consonant to their formerly receiv'd Opinions looking upon every thing that differs from them or seems contrary unto them as Lies and Error This is as if one looking always through a coloured Glass by which all Bodies would appear to him of the same Colour should imagine and affirm that other Men who look with the naked and single Eye are perfectly mistaken when they say that they see clearly that every Body has its own distinct Colour XVIII Unto these Four Evidences of the Sanctity of A. B. this Fifth ought to be added to wit the wonderful Works that A. B. did and the extraordinary Divine Lights that God communicated to her To reckon up all these we behov'd to narrate her whole Life and to adduce all her Writings which are full of such wonderful Works and Light Therefore let every one that loves the Truth apply to these Writings and which soever he shall be pleas'd to peruse he will by them be sufficiently convinc'd of this matter But that some Instance of this may be given it is to be considered that this ought to be look'd upon as a great Miracle in A. B. that she so generously fought against her corrupt Nature that she wholly subdued it not by her own Strength which could do nothing but Evil but by the Grace of God through which the weakest can do all things This Miracle ought to be more esteemed than raising the Dead giving Sight to the Blind and such like which serve only for this present Life and therefore may be performed by Men who are not Holy But to overcome corrupt Nature is an infallible mark of Holiness for the obtaining of which all other Miracles ought to be done otherwise they avail nothing but on the contrary do much hurt Among the innumerable Divine Lights communicated to Antonia Bourignon this is the chief that she had explain'd the Truths of the Gospel more clearly and efficaciously than any has done hitherto demonstrating that an Obedience to them is absolutely necessary for Salvation and rescuing them from the Glosses and false Expositions by which the Learned have so perverted the Truths of the Gospel that almost every Christian promises Salvation to himself although he do not walk according to these Truths XIX Since then it seems to appear sufficiently from what has been said that A. B. was Holy and in the Love of God it will be now fit to consider the Second Question proposed to wit If she was moved by the Spirit of God to write and to enlighten others For answer to this Question there needs nothing be adduc'd but what has been said as to the First Question For it A. B. was Holy and in the Love of God she would not have committed so great a Sin as to pretend that she was moved to write by the Spirit of God if it was false or if she was not certain that it was most true But that I may answer something in particular to this Second Question it is to be considered how we may be assured that any Writing is endited by God In order to this let us enquire how it appears that the Holy Scriptures were written by Men led by the Spirit of God as all Christians do believe XX. That we may proceed aright in this Enquiry it is to be remarked that God gives unto Men Breath and Life and all Things for in him we live and move and have our Being Nevertheless he has given to all Creatures the Faculty whereby to continue in their Being or to exist For God is Eternal and his Gifts are without Repentance therefore his Works do never perish besides they are endued with a Power of multiplying themselves and producing their like It is true many things perish but these are not the Works of God but Corruption and Vanity brought into the World and yet coming into it by Sin and Lust But besides these Faculties of preserving themselves and producing their like God gave to Man the Liberty of turning himself to God that he might be govern'd and ruled by him or of acting by the Strength already given him without asking new Strength from God If he do so he departs from God the Author of all Light and Good and then such a Man of necessity becomes Miserable and is sunk in Darkness as appear'd in the Fall of Adam and is to be seen daily in those who follow their own Wills that is who act by the Strength once given them and will not ask new Strength from God nor yield up themselves to be govern'd by him But if a Man yield up himself to God and ask help from him in every thing he goes about he will find God ready to help him Even as one in a very close Chamber is in the Day-time immediately enlightned by the Sun how soon he permits the Windows of the Chamber to be opened and the more Windows there are opened he receives the greater Light XXI From what has been said it appears that when we say that the Holy Scripture is endited by God we understand thereby that the Holy Men who committed it to Writing did so wholly deny their own Strength whether innate unto them or acquired by Diligence Learning and Meditation that they willingly acknowledged that thereby they could do no good nor any thing that was acceptable to God but did so entirely yield up themselves to be govern'd by God that they no longer lived to themselves but God did live and operate in them Now that we may be assured that the Holy Scriptures were penned by such Men we must examine what Operation the Holy Scriptures have in our Souls When then we experience that the Thoughts of our Hearts are manifested by them which can be done by none but God who alone knows the Heart and if this Holy Scripture be a powerful Mean for loosing our Hearts from the Love of Temporal things and drawing them to the Love of God and of things Eternal For the Word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any Two-edged Sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of the Soul and Spirit the Joynts and Marrow and is a discerner of the Thoughts and Intents of the Heart overthrowing every Imagination and Thought that exalts it self against God So that an Unbeliever perceiving
that Men see or know painting out Vertue like to a hideous Old Wife wasted with Penitence tho' all these things may be done in Hypocrisie and a Study of Self-esteem But the Spirit of God gives Liberty to those whom he governs rendring them sincere affable and friendly without any Dissimulation to treat with an open Heart with the Friends of God without any Reserve or Windings but freely and openly tho' with Prudence towards the Wicked This is to be simple as Doves and wise as Serpents and to beware of Men as says the Scripture But her Character is to be had best from her Writings and from the Spirit that guided her The End of the Fourth Part. A LETTER CONCERNING The Preface to the Snake in the Grass and Bourignianism detected SIR I. YOU tell me that you have seen a written Apology for A. B. and that you thought strange to find no Mention there of the Preface to the Snake in the Grass and Bourignianism detected Sir I am perswaded that the Writer of the Apology did that upon a good Design he saw how hard it was to reason with Men in Passion and not become angry too or inflame them the more He thought it was best not to answer and yet to answer them and by this Means to preserve the Quiet of his own Mind and yet give them a fair Occasion to reflect upon their own Mistakes Yet since you say that Zeal for the Truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and Charity to Mens Souls especially those who may have conceived Prejudices from their Misrepresentations and to the Authors themselves in particular do require a more particular Application to these Writings I shall therefore freely and plainly tell my Sentiments of them with that Candour and Charity to the Persons concern'd that I hope they will take them for the Reproofs of a Friend and so count them better than the deceitful Kisses of Flatterers or the groundless Plaudites of unthinking Persons who are more taken with an Air of Confidence and a bold Way of Representing things than with Truth and Reality II. They who take upon them to write Narratives and to give the World Characters of the Sentiments Spirit and Writings of any Person as those two Authours do of A. B. the one in some Instances only the other more fully ought to have these Qualifications if they would do it aright 1. They ought throughly to be acquainted with the Writings and Sentiments before they can give a just and true Account of them things being cleared express'd and owned in one Place that are not so in another 2. They ought to consider the great Scope and Design of the Writer and the Means by which he prosecutes it and it both the one and the other be good and excellent to give his Words and Sentiments in other things as favourable an Interpretation as they will bear sutable to the main Scope and Substance of the Writings If they be Things wherein they have no Knowledge nor Experience they ought neither to judge nor censure them and if there be even Mistakes in lesser Things they ought not to aggravate nor ridicule them but to extenuate and cover them for the sake of the main things that are so excellent and praise-worthy This same Rule also is to be observed in â—udging of the Lives of Persons to consider the main Scope of them whether it be Time or Eternity and the Means by which they prosecute that great End and not rashly to judge or give a Character of them from some outward Actions which may be good or evil according to the inward Principle they proceed from 3. They ought to look upon the Sentiments and Actions they would judge of with a simple unprejudiced Eye otherwise they cannot judge aright they look in coloured Glasses and so deceive both themselves and others who listen to them 4. Narrators ought to be faithful and sincere not falsifying in the least nor singling out Pieces of Sentences or Purposes or some Circumstances of Actions studying thereby to blacken them and designedly concealing what would serve to clear and justifie them but faithfully and honestly narrating the whole III. Now I am sorry I must say that in this Affair those Authors have been greatly wanting as to these Requisites and so were very unfit for such an Undertaking 1. They were Strangers to the Life or Sentiments of A. B. the one neither knew nor had read any of her Writings but such as were done in English and the other had read few or none of them till he applied himself to confute them and tho' he never knew her himself will now Eighteen Years after her Death essay to blacken her by most horrid Imputations tho' her Innocence and Purity be sufficiently attested by Persons of unquestionable Credit and Integrity 2. In their Narratives they have neither regarded nor mentioned the great Scope of all her Writings which is to perswade Men to the Love of God and to convince them that they are estranged from it Nor the Means by which she prosecutes this End the leading Men to the Imitation of the Life of Jesus Christ in Mortifying their corrupt Nature and living a Life of Penitence And how she makes it appear they do it not Nor does the Doctor in the Character of her Life of represent the great Scope thereof the Travelling towards Eternity nor the Means she used in order thereto 3. It is visible That what they have read of her Writings has been with an evil Eye with a Design to carp at them to pick out such Expressions as might serve them to render her and her Writings hateful and ridiculous to the World They who compare their Narratives with her Writings will easily be convinc'd of this when they find them skipping over the most excellent Matters and fixing only upon such Things as they thought capable of being perverted and empoisoned by their false Turns and malicious Glosses while hundreds of indifferent Persons have acknowledged that they could not read any of her Writings without being touch'd with a serious Sense of Divine Things and that they see the practical Part of Christianity represented in them with a Clearness beyond any that is to be seen in most practical Writers And 4. It is no less evident that they have not been faithful and ingenuous but have either singled out some mangled Sentences concealing the Context that might clear them or tack'd together a Number of Passages of different Places to make them ridiculous or most untruly translated them of which I shall hereafter give some Instances IV. One would have thought that the Author of the Preface to the Snake in the Grass who exposes others for their furious spiteful and foul Language and gives a necessary Caution That in Answering his Book they should not after their usual Fashion carp at some Ward or Expression and neglect the whole Substance of the Matter and who had sufficient Caution given him
own Favours both from Scripture and Reason and argues against the Philadelphian in that View I think moreover that when the Doctor in the heat of his Opposition against Pretences to Inspiration argues thus as if it were impossible or unheard of for one to be deluded and yet not to be sensible of it or to exclaim against a thing of which he himself is as guilty as any puts a Sword in the Hand of the Deists whereof they may very dexterously turn the Edge against such as were unquestionably inspired since they who truly bore that Character did very much cry out against false Prophets and many of them I believe did not justifie their Pretences to Inspiration by working Miracles In fine I think the Doctor needed not have made such a Bustle about the Import of neither a Friend nor an Adversary since it seems obvious that the Philadelphian meant no more than one who is neither a fond Friend nor a fierce Enemy III. I proceed next to glance at some things in the Doctor 's Second Narrative He introduces it with a very fair Promise assuring us that he will set down her own Pretences in her own Words without adding to them or diminishing from them or courtailing any Passages which may be necessary to qualifie the Meaning of them This if he keeps to it is a very honest and candid Resolution And indeed could he assure also that he will put no other Meaning on her Words but her own nor distort them to a Sense that she never intended he might then very plausibly invite his Readers to depend on his Citations without needing to consult her Writings But I much doubt if this can be expected from one who examines in the View and with the Design that the Doctor doth We know that a great many who pretend to make free and impartial Enquiries gloss or rather pervert the Holy Scriptures themselves in favour of their own Prejudices That I be not uneasie to you I shall only touch on a very few things and by my Animadversions on them you may judge if the Doctor be as Candid and Impartial as he pretends to be or hath kept his Promise 1. He charges A. B. as arrogating to her self a Sanctity above the Prophets and Apostles without the Alloy of humane Passions or Infirmities a Sanctity which is next to it or rather the same with that of God himself Now let any free and disinteressed Spirit determine if the Passages which the Doctor adduces will amount to this Assertion I would ask him Is it not our Duty to have Truth Righteousness and Goodness in all our Thoughts Words and Actions And if so is it not attainable by the Grace of God And if A. B. by this Grace attained to some singular Measures of them ought that to have been made her Crime and Reproach Doth she arrogate any Truth Righteousness or Goodness to her self as the Cause and Author Where doth she say That she arrived at these Heights of Sanctity that the Blessed are possessed of For I think that to pretend to these were to assume to ones self a Sanctity without the Alloy of humane Passions or Infirmities But why doth the Doctor assert That a Sanctity without this Alloy is the same with that of God Is not the Sanctity of Angels without it Shall we then say that theirs is the same with that of God Further are not the Actions of such as are made Partakers of the Divine Nature in the Apostle's Phrase more than humane that is Do they not come from a higher and more noble Principle than what is meerly Natural And when a Soul hath attain'd to this Bliss when Christ is formed in him when he is the Master and Guide and Inspirer of his inward Man must it be accounted Blasphemy or a Rivaling the Deity to say that his Actions are not Humane This is certainly all that is meant by that Passage which so scandalized the Doctor A. B. owns indeed that by the Divine Grace she arrived at great Measures of Sanctity but yet such as others might attain to by a faithful Dependance on that same Grace and she encouraged all that conversed with her generously to aspire after it What if she had delivered her self in the Words of the Psalmist I am undefiled in the Way I keep God's Testimonies I seek him with my whole Heart I also do no Iniquity I walk in his Ways Would the Doctor have quarrelled it Is not this the Character of every truly Righteous Person The Doctor p. 5. after a scornful Preamble brings an injurious Aspersion upon A. B. he will have it that either she was born without Sin or that Original Corruption was perfectly cured in her and so that she was not as others liable to Sin without external Temptations How is this proved Why because she says For my part I can say in in Truth that I do not remember I ever committed any Faults but when I believed the Counsel of Men Now if I have any Sense this Passage overturns what the Doctor would establish by it For does not our yielding to outward Temptations evidently suppose that there is something within us that complies with them and what is that but our Original Corruption For I think it is very plain that if Original Corruption were perfectly cured in us there would be nothing within us on which outward Temptations or evil Counsel could get hold Achan's taking the goodly Babylonish Garment which he saw among the Spoils and Judas's complying with the Offer of Thirty Pieces of Silver did discover the covetous Dispositions of their Hearts When I believe and listen to the evil Counsels of another and thereupon commit Faults this seems clearly to demonstrate that there is something within me that likes and agrees to the wicked Suggestions that are made to me which plainly implies a Depravation Very often it comes to pass that outward Temptations do awaken and discover some latent and hidden Corruption or wicked Inclination that the Person was not sensible of before Doubtless St. Peter did not know that latent Cowardice and Infidelity that were in his Heart till the outward Temptation gave him the Discovery of them so that tho' it were true that one did never actually sin but by means of outward Temptations yet it will not therefore follow that he hath no internal Corruption or that he is exempt from that Degeneracy of Nature that is common to all the fallen Posterity of Adam The Doctor for all that he talks here since he reads A. B's Books could not be Ignorant that she frequently acknowledges the Degeneracy of her Nature and that she was of the same Make and Frame with the rest of lapsed Mankind Take this one Passage for the Proof of it If I had not known says she that my own Will was Evil and Corrupt I should never have learned to resist it since there is not any thing more agreeable to our
expresly bear that were needful to be known for her own and others Conduct and therefore not of such as would tend only to gratifie Pride and vain Curiosity and carnal Interests of Men and consequently tho' we should suppose that A. B. had the Spirit of God yet it will not follow that she would be useful to the Doctor for easing the Minds of curious Girls by shewing them what was written in the Book of Fate as he very piously jests pag. 18. He falls very foul on M. P. ◠Narrat p. 49. as if he and others descended to the light and wanton Railleries of the Profane for relating a much more innocent Jest tho' I think his half Page looks liker that sort of Wit The Doctor seldom narrates any thing A. B. said or did or was said of her but he pushes it to an Excess and carries it to a height that was never intended However I suppose he will not neither indeed can he deny the possibility of the thing since the Holy Scriptures furnish us with a great many Instances of God's having discovered the secret Dispositions of the Souls of Men and other matters of fact to illuminated Persons All then he can aim at must be to evince the Nullity of this Pretence as to A. B. 5. To say* that A. B. requires the same Respect to her Sayings as to the Scripture is in my opinion to do her very great Injustice for since very plainly and frequently she acknowledges and asserts that the Sacred Writings are the Standard and Rule by which all other Doctrines must be tried and examined it is evident that in so doing she owns a peculiar Respect and Deference to be due to the Holy Scriptures which neither hers nor any others Sayings ought to pretend to Look says she with a suspicious eye upon any thing I declare unto you as coming from God in case you find my Doctrine not entirely agreeing with the Holy Scripture Whence it is plain that she would have her Sayings to be tried by the Holy Scriptures and that the value of what she says is to be determined by its Conformity to them This one would think is not to put the Scriptures and her Sayings in the same ballance or to require an equal respect to be paid to both The Doctor now that he peruses A. B's Writings could not but remark this and a great many more Passages to the same purpose How comes it then to pass that he brings not in these into his Accounts of A. B. Why this would spoil the design that he hath conceived of exposing her to the World altogether in black and horrid shapes But says the Doctor what she delivered must be of the same Authority with the Holy Scriptures because God is the Author of it But tho' we should suppose A. B. to be truly inspired yet his Consequence will not follow and the Reason is because as one very pertinently expresses it Quae à Deo procedunt ejusdem sunt veritatis c. Things that proceed from God are of equal Truth but not of equal Authority for tho' some things may be of God yet if any Person do not know or doubt if they be such they have not the same Authority nor Right to such a Persons Obedience as those things whose divine Origin is allowed by universal Consent altho' when it is evident to any person that any thing is revealed to them by God they are bound to pay the same Obedience to things thus revealed as to God himself Several Books that are now universally received into the Canon of Scripture were for some time doubted of in the Primitive Church it is certain that the questioned Books tho' really of Divine Original were not of the same Authority with these that were by unanimous Consent acknowledged to be Divine 6. If the Doctor can hit on any Period in A. B.'s Books that can give the least Colour to an invidious Consequence he is sure to make it serve his turn but without any Regard to that Candor that might be expected from him Of this we have a remarkable Instance pag. 32. n. 7. I shall give you the whole Passage to which he refers as it is If saith she I should say any thing contrary to the Gospel do not believe me for you ought not to believe any thing because I say it to you but because it is really true And if you knew me you should also know God because he is one and the same Spirit in all things so far as you shall discern Righteousness Goodness and Truth in any Person so far shall you discern God living in them and no farther So that its never good to follow Persons for themselves but to follow the Righteousness Goodness and Truth which you shall discover to abide in them Now to discover the Vanity of that Improvement which the Doctor makes of this Passage let it be considered that when things which import Excellency are attributed both to Jesus Christ and to Christians his Followers it is undeniable that we must alter our Idea's of these things according as we differently apply them either to him or them Our Lord calls himself the Light of the World and he is so in a Supernatural manner because he is the Divine Source and Original of all spiritual Light he in whom are hid all the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge This same very Title he gives all his faithful Followers But will any Body imagine that it is applied to them in that same Sence in which it is understood of him No sure for we conceive of them only as subordinate Luminaries which receive all their Light and Heat from the Son of Righteousness And when St. Paul assures Timothy that by doing what he recommended to him he would save both himself and those that heard him we must not entertain the same Idea of Saving when we apply it to Timothy that we have when we attribute it to Jesus Christ Just so tho' our Lord uses concerning himself Words to the same Purpose with these which A. B. hath in this Period yet we must not imagine that they are of the same Import or that she intended they should Indeed the very Scope of the Passage plainly enough determines that she meant no more but this if you were acquainted with me and saw my Life and Practise you would see that I imitate and transcribe in my Conversation the Divine Qualities of Truth Righteousness and Goodness for God who by his Holy Spirit works uniformly in all his Children imprints these Characters of himself on them all and as much of these as you discern in me so far do you discern God in me and your seeing me exemplifie them before you in a lively manner will be an Inducement to you to imitate them and so to know God truly for then we truly know God when we imitate his Perfections If the Doctor had not been visibly in a
blinded ones so often repeat that Jesus Christ has satisfied all for us and say that I reject his Merits by teaching that of necessity we must imitate him if we would be saved This might well surprize some weak Spirits who would think that they did Honour to Jesus Christ in saying that he had merited all for them and that they are too weak to endure any thing But this cannot surprize one of sound Judgment who will very clearly perceive that I esteem the Merits of Jesus Christ since to them I ascribe my eternal Happiness 11. For if Jesus Christ had not interposed with God his Father for our Reconciliation never any Man had been saved since every one of them would have turn'd away from God to cleave to their natural Sentiments of which they were become Idolaters to love them with all their heart as they were obliged to love God having chang'd the Love of God into that of our fleshly Sensualities Of necessity there behov'd to be a MEDIATOR between God and Man to make this RECONCILIATION and to obtain the PARDON of so great a Fault 12. We were all guilty of High Treason against God and justly condemn'd to eternal Punishment unable to deliver our selves from it having lost the Grace of God and become his Enemies There was nothing to be hop'd for on our part for obtaining Mercy for we even knew not our Miseries so far were we from having Strength to help them or Assurance to beg of God his Grace whose Enemies we had made our selves by our Sins There was no ground of hoping for Mercy by our selves therefore JESUS CHRIST as our Advocate undertook our Cause and procur'd this Pardon not as the Ddvocates at the Tribunals of this World who plead that they may gain Money but as a divine Advocate who aims at nothing but his Father's Glory He offers to pay himself the Penalties due to our Sins that his Father might in justice pardon the Guilt of them and take us again into his Favour which he has assuredly obtain'd for Light and Grace have been given us by Jesus Christ otherwise no body would see from whence he had strayed by Sin nor whether he had gone by the forgetting of God 13. It is the Light only which Jesus Christ brought upon Earth that has made us see both the one and the other for after that he had obtain'd the PARDON of our Sins as to the Guilt by his Merits only who was innocent and subjected himself to Sufferings and to Death that he might reconcile us with God and deliver us from the Power of the Devil to which we had voluntarily subjected our selves this bowed the heart of God to speak after our way and forc'd his Will unto Mercy towards us This Grace was grace was granted unto us by God only for the Merits of Jesus Christ of his Death and his Sufferings without our Intervention So that Jesus Christ may for this be truly call'd our Saviour for he alone has saved us from the death of Sin and recover'd us from eternal Damnation into which we had miserably fallen through our own Fault and our Sins for it was impossible for Man to recover himself from so grievous a Fall 14. He would have remain'd to all Eternity in his Damnation without remedy since he saw not the means by which he might be re-united to his God But Jesus Christ brought Light unto them when he came into the World and has made them see by his Deeds and Words the things which had withdrawn them from God and what things they must do that they may return unto him for he was not satisfied to have obtained Grace for them but he would also procure their Salvation which cannot be obtain'd without the co-operation of our own Will because we are created by God free Creatures He cannot take back that which he his once given So that tho' God was able to create us of nothing without our own Will before we had a Being yet we cannot be saved without the co-operation of this Free will which he has given us for Adam could not be saved after his Sin without his accepting of the Penitence due unto it even so Jesus Christ cannot save Men by the Merit of his Sufferings and of his Death if they will not take the Remedies for their Evils 15. He is indeed the Physician who prepares Physick for our Souls and takes it himself in our presence but if we will not swallow it our selves it will have no operation upon us This we ought well to consider if we would know how Jesus Christ has suffered for us and how his Merits will be applied unto us for to believe foolishly that the Merits of Jesus Christ will save us without our co-operation is a very dangerous Mistake seeing God could not pardon the Sin of Adam who had committed but one Disobedience without obliging him to so long a Penitence how could he save us who have committed so great a number of Sins unless we will embrace for them the Sufferings which Jesus Christ has taught us since the Scripture assures us by Jesus Christ that unless we do Penitence we shall all perish 16. How can we refute this Truth by saying That we are too frail to imitate Jesus Christ This is directly to reject his Merits since they have merited for us Pardon and Grace to amend our Sins and to do Penitence for them They who after so many Favours say that they are uncapable to imitate him despise his Merits and will not have them applied unto them rejecting them as insufficient to give them strength to do well which is false for there is nothing wanting to us on God's part He says Be faithful in few things and I will set you over many things We have received by Jesus Christ the Light of Truth which is not a small Grace since by it we can discern Good and Evil and in what state our Soul in 17. If we were faithful in this Grace of Knowledge we would obtain that of amending our Faults and resisting Vice and after being faithful to this Resistance we would obtain Grace to renounce all together the Inclinations of our Nature and to die unto the Old Adam that we might live unto the New which is Jesus Christ This is to have no Faith nor Belief in Jesus Christ for if we did believe that he has merited for us the Grace of God by his Death and Sufferings it would be impossible to say or believe that we are too frail to be able to imitate him 17. Your Friends reject my Sentiments as if I rejected the Merits of Jesus Christ and they do not see that it is they themselves who do indeed reject them while they say that they esteem them This cannot proceed but from a great blindness of Spirit that they do not sufficiently-discover it and in this they are much to be lamented since they cannot be saved in this Belief because Faith without
Proposal to the Archbishop of Cambray XXIV Pere du Bois and sâ—me Maâ—â—s esteem her XXV The Jesuits disturâ— her XXVI The Bishop grants her desire XXVII The Clergy incensed against her XXVIII 〈◊〉 Bishop retracts his Permission XXIX She waits on her Mother at her Death keeps her Father's House He marries and she retires XXX Lives in great Solitude at St. Andrew XXXI I disturbed by an insolent Youth XXXII Is forced from thence by the War XXXIII Does the last Offices to her Father and succeeds to her Mother's Goods XXXIV Nothing in this contrary to the Laws of God or Man XXXV St. Saulieu accosts her XXXVI She undertakes the Care of a Hospital of Orphans XXXVII Her frequent Sicknesses there XXXVIII St. Saulieu's Persecution of her XXXIX Her Delivery from him and his end XL. She turns her House into a Cloyster XLI The Discovery of the Childrens Sorceries XLII Their Declarations XLIII No ground to disbelieve this Story or that the World swarms with such XLIV The Parents accuse her to the Magistrates XLV 〈…〉 XLVI Malefices to take a way her Life XLVII She wiâ—hdraws to Gaunt and Mechlin XLVIII Is esteem'd by Learned and Good Men there XLIX Particularly by M. de Cort L. Goes to Holland LI. â— sick at Amderdam and is visited by Persons of all Perswasions Tomb. de la fausse Theol. Part 2. Letter 1. LII Wrote here some of her Books LIII Mr. de Cort cast into a Dun geon by the Jansenists LIV. Her Concern for him and his Deliverance LV. They Peâ—â—n him in Holstein LVI Her long Sickness LVII M. de Cort had left her his Rights to Noordstrand LVIII They persecute her therefore LIX She goes to Holstein LX. The Quakers write and she Answers LXI Some Anabaptists of Friesland come to her LXII Their Behaviour LXIII The occasion of a new Persecution LXIV The Pastours of Holstein are alarmed LXV She is persecuted at Flensbourg LXVI At Husum and robb'd of her Printing Press Books and Papâ—rs LXVII General-Major Vanderwyck appears for her LXVIII The Pastors write against her LXIX She lives in great Secâ—ecy and Hazard at Sleswick the People being inflam'd by the Pastors LXX The scattering the Sheets of her Books discovers the Calumnies of the Pastors LXXI The Court gives her Protection LXXII She gives in a Confession of her Faith LXXIII The Church men prevail LXXIV She goes to Hambourg LXXV Her Exercâ—se and Writings there LXXVI She is persecâ—ted by the Pastors there LXXVII Goes to Lutzburg in Friesland LXXVIII Her Employment and Writings there LXXIX Long Sickness LXXX Persecuted anew by her Servant's Sorcerers LXXXI By those who pretended to protect her LXXXII The Pretence for it and the true Cause LXXXIII Goes to Franeker LXXXIV Her Death LXXXV Her Character Matth. 26. 48. 73. Temoign de Vertie Part 1. p. 146. Tomb. de la fausse Theol. Part 3. Letter 1. nu 17 18. Avis salut lett 133. I. The Occasion of the Letter II. Necessary Qualifications in Writers of Narratives und Characters III. These wanting in the Authours of the Preface to the Snake in the Grass and Bourignanism detected IV. The first Authour's rash and spiteful Charge against A. B. V. A. B. Vindicated from the 1 Of blasphemous Priâ—â— Parole de Dieu p. 127. Temoig de verite Part 2. p. 47. Ibid. p. 59 60. Iâ—id p. 81 â—â— VI. From the 2. That she overturn'd Priesthood c. * Sâ— Is 1. VII From the 3 Of Uncharitableness c. * p. 63 161 c. Gen. 6 12. Ps 14. 3. Mic. 7. 2. b Light of the World Part 1. p. 47. c â—emo igâ— de veâ—iâ—e Part 2. p. 71. VIII From the 4 Of 〈…〉 the Design 〈…〉 IX From the 5 Of her denying the Satisfaction of Jesus Christ * p 86 87 c. * See Apâ—logy p. 59 c. Light of the World p. 139. Light of the World p. 142. X. From the 6 Of her Contempt of the Holy Scriptures * p. 159 c. XI From the 7 Of her wild and barbarous Notions * See the Apology p. 72. c. * Ibid. p. 180. c. XII The undiscreet Treatment of M. Poiret pag. 127 c. XIII The Fury of his Zeal wrong levell'd XIV The Doctor the Author of the Narratives the Occasion of all this Noiseâ— XV. Great Caution to be used in judging of Spiritual Things XVI The Falseness of the Charge of a Sect. XVII His Uacharitableness to his Country-men XVIII In both the Narratives he fights with his own Shadow XIX His Disin genuity in his Narrations XX. Appears in his unjust Way of forming her Character 1. By pâ—ecing together half Sentiments from different Places 2. By borrowing pieces of it from her avow'd Enemies * Nar. 1. p. 75. 3. By obtruding false Translations Rev. 4. 14 4. By affirming things as said of her without giving Evidence * Pâ—eface §. 2. * p. 3. §. 3. p. 5. §. 4. 5. By drawing Consequences contrary to their Principles which their Sayings do not infer and they expresly disclaim Nar. 1. p. 18. §. 10. c. La paix de bonnes ames p. 186 c XXI The Dr's great Mistake as to the Regard required to the Testimony of Men. See Apology p. 14. c. XXII The true Reasons why A. B. was highly esteemed not adduced by the Doctor Nor those adduced sufficiently disproved As 1. her Sanctity * See Apology p. 137. The Doctor not faithful in relating the Proofs of her Sanctity * See Apology p. 42 43. XXIII His Reasons against her Sanctity disproved and she vindicated from 1. That of a light and vain Conversation 2. From following her own Humour without any regard to the Principles of Religion 3. From her Disobedience toâ—her Parents 4. From Covetousness because of her Law Suits a Vie exter â— 49. b 〈…〉 c ibid. n. 57. d Viâ— exter n. 52 54. e ib. n. 5 49 51. f ib. p. 180. g ib. and Part de Dien n. 9. p. 163. h Parole de Dieu p. 67. i Vie exter p. 186. k Avâ—s salut p. 86. l Vie Continuè◠cap. 12. p. 128 129. Temoign de Verite Part 2. p 3â—2 303 * Avertis contre les Tremb p 213 c. XXIV 〈…〉 c. XXV 2. Her Knowledge of secret Thoughts not disproved XXVI 3. Her foretelling things to coâ—e not disproved * Apology p. 230. c. XXVII 4. The Supernatural Means of her Knowledge not disprov'd XXVIII 〈…〉 c. 3â— n. 5 6 〈…〉 XXIX Just Remarks upon what 〈◊〉 of the 〈◊〉 Narra 1. p. 75. Ibid. p 76. XXX Some Remarks upon the Second Narrative 1. He persists in his false Representations 2. In his Curtailings and Glossings Nar. 2. p 4. Light of the World Part 2. p. 84. Light of the World Part 1. p. 92. Nar. 2. p. 5. Light of the World Part â— p. 39. 3. Makes Questions upon a false Supposition 4. He opposeth the Truth and joins with the Pelagians Light of the World Part 2. Conf. 13. p. 85. e 1 Cor. 6 17. D. C. Nar. p. 36 37. 5. A just Character of M Poiret and the Narrator's unchristian dealing with him considered Tem. des S. Ecrit p. 387 388. Ibid. p. 402 4â—3 D. C's Essays part 2. pag. 163 164 165. 6 The Narrator's Mistakes as to the comparison betwixt Jes Christ's First birth and the Renovatioâ— of his Gospel Spirit 7 His rash Censure of things he does not understand Narr 2. p. 49. 8. His 〈…〉 〈…〉 I. The Occasion and Design of the Letter II. Remarks upon Doctor Cock bourn's Letter to his Friend 1. H. judging others condemns himself * Letter p. 2. 2. Unjust 〈…〉 and 〈◊〉 * Pag. 9. c. â— pag. â—â— 3. The Doctor in Danger by becoming hâ—s own Interpreter * Pag. 30. 4. Not just in making of Characters 5. Makes a Controversie where there is none A. B's Writings valuable for their Plainness Simplicity and Disinterestedness 7. The Doctor 's Prenciples not friendly to St. Paul Etoile du Matin p. 23. 8. His Rudeness to A. b's Friends 9. His Rudeness to the Philadelphian III. Remarks upon the second Narrative 1. A. B's Pretences to Sanctity not so high at he describes them for she does not exalt her self above the Prophets c. She does not pretend to be without Sin or Corruption Solid Vertue Part 2. p. 71. She owns her Failings * 1 Narrat p. 49. In that very passage cited by the Author Vie exter p. 150. * Pag. 6. He most injuriously mistakes and translates some of A. B's words Put malicious glosses upon others * Tomb. dela Faus Theol. part 2. let 14. p. 115. Ibid. Ibid. Pag. 7. Pag. 2. 2. A. B. â—as made no Additions to the Essentials of Christianity * a Nar. p. 11. 3. Her Expression about Moses's Chair no mark of Pride * 2 Nar. p. 11. Pierre dâ— Touche p. 286. 4 Her Pretences to Knowledge not such as he describes them 2 Nar. p. 15. 5. That she requires the same respect to her Sayings as to the Scripture is false 2 Nar. p. 20 22. * Lum en ten part i. pag. 2. 6. The Doctor draws unjust and invidicus Consiquences 1. Instance * Light of the World Part 2. p. 85. Matt. 5. 14. 1. Tim. 4. 16. * Pag. 32. Second Instance * Light of the World Part 2. Conf. 17. p. 128 129 7. The Doctor 's Ignorance of A. B.'s Princâ—ples appears 2. Nar. p. 33. n. 7. IV. A 〈◊〉 Survâ—r of the Doctor 's whole Performance with Reflections on his undisercet Zeal 2 Nar. p 55. Letteâ— p. 21. V. 5. The Writer apologizeth for himself I. God alone Lovely Motives to the Love of God 1. He is the Fountain and Accomplishment of all Good II. 2. The Soul's Likeness to him III. 3. Of the Benefits bestowed by him upon the Soul and Body IV. 4. The Provision he has made both for Soul and Body V. 5. His Mercy to become the Saviour of Man VI. 6. His Inacrnation VII 7. His Annihilation VIII 8. His becoming a Teacher and Prophet IX 9. His becoming a Priest X. 10. That he gave his Life even for his Enemies XI 11. The Advantages of Divine Love XII 12. The Vanity of the earthly Love of Riches Honours Pleasures XIII 13. Nothing Lovely but God 14. Without him all is Folly and Misery
from the Natural Spirit that cloaks it self with the Spirit of God for this Divine Spirit never tends but to Divine Things If you had observed Sir that that fine Spirit which you attribute to me had been applied to get Wealth or to gain Praise or to Conversation to take Pleasure with Men you would have had some Reason to say that I had nothing but a natural Spirit or if you had discovered in my Words any Ornament of Language to make me be esteemed Eloquent or in my Writing any Affectation of speaking well that I might be praised these would be all Marks of a human Spirit I would gladly ask you Sir if you have ever seen me acted by this natural Spirit First if I have ever done any thing to gain Money Or if I have desir'd any sensual Pleasures or fed my self with Praises or lov'd the Conversation of Men Have you not rather perceiv'd that I ask nothing of any Body For I can say in Truth that if they would give me Riches I would not accept of them for my own Goods are a burthen to me and the two things I hate in the World are Honour and Sin the Conversations and Divertisements of the World are a Weariness to me and if I affected to be prais'd for my Words or Writings I would study to speak well to write well and to spell well whereas I have nothing but a simple vulgar Language nakedly to signifie my Thoughts without Curiosity or any Circumspection And for my Writings do you not see they are without any Study or Ornament full of Faults of Writing and Orthography without any human Regard or Reflection Do you think I have not enough of Spirit to correct all these Faults and to learn in a little time to write and spell perfectly that Men might see my Skill I am far from these Sentiments for I would never learn any thing of Men because I desired not to be prais'd by them One would have freely taught me Orthography another Poesy another the Mathematicks another the Latin Tongue and I despis'd all this to content my self with writing on my Knees on a little piece of Board the things that God sheds into my Spirit without desiring to make any Reflection to see if I wrote well or ill or if what I say will please one or displease another whether they will be well receiv'd and approved or despis'd or censur'd I have no other aim in Speaking or Writing but eternal things without caring for temporal and earthly things having no Pretensions upon Earth but only that of pleasing God and stirring up my Neighbour to his Love This cannot proceed from a Natural Spirit which is confin'd to earthly things and cannot aim to please God nor at eternal things for Nature cannot find its Pleasure and Satisfaction in a God which it does not see and feel What is beyond Sense is not Food agreeable to Nature more than precious Stones can be Food for Horses for neither of these are Aliments proportioned to the Nature of either For the Natural Senses will no more be filled with God and things Eternal than a Horse will be satisfied with Jewels for his Food but he loves the Grass and Hay far better as Food more sutable to his Nature Even so it is of the Natural Spirit and Senses they do far more esteem things earthly and sensual than God who is an Invisible Spirit or things Eternal which they do not perceive and feel with their Senses Whence we may draw a sure Consequence that he who does not seek or desire the Goods and Pleasures which tickle our Senses has the Spirit of God and lives supernaturally and he who seeks nothing but God and things Eternal cannot have this from a Natural Spirit and when you will needs say that my Writings proceed from a Natural Spirit you must prove that they aim at some Profit Pleasure or Praise from Men. If I desired to Profit by them I would endeavour to please them and to gain their Friendship and if I desired to take Pleasure among them I would draw them to me as you do and if I desired their Praises I would speak that which they would willingly hear and would not say that they are not true Christians For if I would say that all who have visited me are vertuous Souls and true Christians undoubtedly every one would esteem me and greatly praise me but when I do the quite contrary I shew it is the Spirit of God who acts in my Writings since they aim at nothing but to make known the Truth of God which alone can guide Souls to eternal Life and that the same Writings speak nothing but of despising earthly and temporal things There cannot be a more evident mark of Distinction between the actings of the Spiri of God and that of Nature than what is assign'd by her the last tending only to things Temporal and the other to things Eternal and that the Spirit she was guided by had this constant Tendency to God and Eternity and not to Honour Praise Wealth or Pleasure or any Temporal and Earthly things appears by the whole Course of her Life and Conversation XXII 4. It was alledged as another Presumption that she could not be led by the Spirit of God but by her own wild Imagination that they say she was ready to ascribe to the Spirit of God even all her Mistakes in writing or citing of Passages of Scripture naming Peter for Paul or the like and for an Evidence of this they cite the Story concerning M. Noel a Divine in Flanders who when he first read some of her Writings they being full of Faults of Orthography and Language and not so methodically ordered and the same things often repeated in different places tho' after a different manner he offered to put them in a better Order and Stile without changing the Essence of the Truth but when she ask'd Counsel of God it was said to her What rashness is it for Men to offer to Correct the Works of God All this may be very true and yet it does not follow that she ascribes all her Mistakes to the Dictates of the Spirit of God yea she plainly affirms the contrary and that all the Mistakes and Errors she falls into are from her self and not from God When you ask says she If there be any thing humane in my Motions Words and Deeds This Question seems to me Ridiculous Since being a humane Creature as well as others I must have natural Motions and Faculties as others have otherwise I should be an Angel or a Statue of Wood Stone or Metal which Instruments God never makes use of for declaring his Truths to Men. But the Devil has oft spoken by such Oracles But God spake by his Holy Prophets Natural Persons as others are who through their natural Frailty did often commit very great Faults yea sometimes gross Sins Must we doubt if Moses had the Spirit of God and
that he spake to his People by him because he was incredulous and rendred himself unworthy of entring into the promis'd Land Must we not believe the Holy Scripture endited by Solomon because â—e fell into Idolatry Or ought we to doubt if David had the Spirit of God because he fell into Adultery and other Sins Truly this would be very extravagant and render all the Works of God suspected and doubtful because of the Trailty of Men. For in the New Testament does not the Apostle make this Distinction of his own Spirit from the Spirit of God When he says It is I who says or does this and elsewhere It is the Spirit of God who says it Even Jesus Christ had he not the Spirit of God in him and the Natural Spirit both When he prays to his Father that his own Will might not be done If he had not had a Natural Will he would not have prayed thus And it could not be the Spirit of God that made him say If it be possible let this Cup pass from me Nor which made him doubt that he was forsaken of his Father in the very brink of Death of necessity these were simply natural Motions which mov'd him to all these things and not at all the Motions of the Holy Spirit Why would they then have me of another Stuff than the Prophets Apostles and Jesus Christ himself and hinder that my natural Motions should not act any more in me after that I have received the Holy Spirit Must I become immoveable in Body and Spirit that I may move no longer naturally Must the Spirit of God make all the Functions of my Spirit and Body to cease that he alone may operate in them Truly God would make use of a strange Figure against his Ordinary since he always makes use of humane Creatures to speak to Men and to make known his Will to them by Organs of those like themselves And for this Cause Jesus Christ took a truly humane Body that by means palpable to their Humanity he might make himself to be understood and obeyed And the Body and Spirit of Jesus Christ did act humanly And the Apostles acted in many things according to their natural Motions and in many things were mistaken for we read that the Apostles being one night assembled after that they had received the Holy Spirit when St. Peter was in Prison from whence being come out miraculously he knock'd at the Gate where they were assembled and the Maid Roda told them he was at the Gate they thought with one common Judgment that the Maid dream'd saying to her that she was a Fool. All the Motions which this Holy Assembly had could not come but from Nature Must we conclude from thence that they had not received the Holy Spirit or that they had lost him because of such Mistakes or because they acted according to their natural Passions or Functions in this Opinion I think we should commit a great Sin to believe any such thing or to suspect the Holy Spirit in them because they are mistaken in some things for these Faults and Mistakes are annexed to humane Nature since Sin which has so blinded Man's Understanding that he is oft-times mistaken in that which he sees before his Eyes But the Holy Spirit can never be mistaken in any thing nor inspire things that are not true And it would be an abominable thing to believe it or to judge that a Person were not guided by the Holy Spirit because he is mistaken in some indifferent things For the Holy Spirit does not teach the Soul that he possesses all the Circumstances of that which it ought to do and say but he teaches it the essential things of Righteousness Goodness and Truth in all that it ought to do or avoid And it is the Business of the Understanding to comprehend and search out the means to attain to these Ends whetting its Spirit and all the Faculties of its Soul that it may rightly accomplish in all things Righteousness Goodness and Truth And if those natural Functions were made to cease acting after this manner the Holy Spirit could do nothing by the Person who is the visible and sensible Organ an Instrument of God without which Instrument he cannot make gross and natural Men to understand him Therefore the Angels themselves have sometimes taken humane Bodies to make themselves be seen and perceived by Men according to their natural Sight and Sentiments Now it is true that God has given me his Holy Spirit promised by Jesus Christ which teaches me all Truth but yet it is not true that he teaches me in particular all the Words that proceed out of my Mouth nor all the Letters or Syllables that I write far less all the Motions of my Body for this is done humanly by my own Spirit or my visible Body For if the Holy Spirit did dictate to me all the Words that I must pronounce or all the Words that I must write I could never commit Faults in Speaking or Writing which I do often commit not knowing sometimes where to find Words to express my self well nor Orthography to write well which I have declared in my printed Writings saying It is the Spirit that teaches me the Doctrine which I write but as for the Faults which are in the Pen or the Words it is I who commits them and not the Holy Spirit which may satisfie all captious Spirits who seek to discredit the Wisdom of God by the Faults that I might have done Naturally Since the Proverb says that all Men do fail and mistake themselves and the Perfect are in Heaven because there are no Perfections but in God alone And it would be to tempt him to require of a human Creature the Perfection of all things since this appertains to God only and not to Men who have only a limited Perfection every one his Talent one the Perfection of speaking well another of writing well another of singing well with other natural Gifts which do not come immediately from the Holy Spirit tho' he makes use of all those Gifts when they may serve for the Glory of God and when the Person offers and resigns them up to his Government For Example God has given me an Ability to compose my Writings and it is his Will that I do it for his Glory and the Good of Souls These things come in Substance from the Holy Spirit but it is my natural Hand that writes it and my natural Spirit that conceives it which may commit accidental or material Faults but there can be no Faults in the thing it self every one may assuredly believe and follow that without amusing himself whether I have any Defect in the Manner or if there be any thing of natural mingled with it since God makes use of Nature and even of its Defects to teach Men to seek those things that are above and not the things that are upon the Earth For all that fine Learning and studied