Truth. But now I have brought these Colours into the Light; and if you will but take upon your felves to use your own Eyes, you may, I think, easily discern that you have been all this while abused. At least I have given you Reason enough to make farther Inquiries, and to Confider more particular Questions. But if upon Reading this general Difcourfe, you should refolve to keep where you are, and to trouble your felves no farther; I am Confident the true Reason thereof must be this, that you are afraid to proceed, lest you should be convinced; and this is nothing less than Wilfully to bar up your minds against the Knowledge of the Truth. For though I have no conceit of this performance, as if I had done any great matter in it; yet I am Conscious to my self that I intended honestly all along, and I am fure I have Written plainly, and have laid fome things together that may give juft occafion to any well meaning Papist or Sectary to Question the fafety of the way he is in at prefent; efpecially if he has never troubled himself to Confider these things before.

And now I do heartily defire you all, for I cannot defire this too often or too earnestly; that you would take the Word of God for your Rule, and propound the Rewards of another Life for your end, and fet the Fear of God before your Eyes, whileft you Confider and Examin these things. It is our concern for the Safety of your Souls, as well as for the Welfare of this Poor Church fo diftrefled with Adverfaries on both fides, that putteth us forward upon all occafions, to lay these things before you. Do not therefore Read these Books which are indeed publifht for your fakes, as if they were Written against you. There is not one of us, I am Confident but is troubled to fee you expofe

K 2

your

your felves to the penalties of the Laws of the Land that are against you: But we are more forry to confider,that at the fame time you do alfo incur the high difpleasure of God. We would fain have you to avoid both the one and the other. And if you would hearken to us, the worst you would get by it, is to live with less Disturbance in this World, but whether that fhould prove true or not, you would walk in a more Safe and Plain way to Heaven, than that which any of you are in at prefent. And I hope you would not grudge that good which this Church should receive by your return to us, when you would do your felves fo much more by it.

If therefore you think our Importunity troublefom, pray remember what it is that makes us Importunate;and let no misconstruction of the Design of your Friends, render their honeft endeavours Ineffectual to your conviction. We would have you understand the Truth, and do your Duty; And as this end is Charitable, fo you must needs grant those means to be Charitable alfo, by which we are contributing towards it. It is indeed our Concern that thefe means fhould take place, but it is yours fomething more, if you are under great and dangerous, mistakes as I am perfwaded you are. But if you should be fo prejudiced against us as to think that we Write these Controverfies more in Concern for the Temporal Interefts of this Church,than for your Spiritual Good, Pray will you make this profitable use of that hard thought, as to excel us in this matter, by being more careful not to mix any Carnal and Worldly affection with your Judgment in Reading these things, then you imagine us to be in Writing of them. Be as ftrict as you will in Examining what we fay in behalf of our Church; only be willing that Truth fhould Overcome;

Overcome; and Confider that if that prevails againft your Errors, you indeed are the Conquerours, and that the greatest Gain will be yours, both in this World and in the World to come.

I have no mind to prejudge which Party it is that we may hope to win more of to the Truth than of the other; being very willing to believe that there is no Cause of despairing to do good on either fide.

As for the Diffenters; methinks, it should not be hard to diffwade the most of them, from breaking the Communion of that Church any longer, with which they agree in the Substance of Faith and Worship, and from differing with Authority for the future about things Indifferent. The Caufe of the Separation, as it is managed by themselves is fo very Slight, that one would hope they fhould be of themselves fomething afraid to venture their being Schifmaticks upon it, and confequently that they fhould be ready to confider what has been faid to fhew that there is indeed no Just Cause given them to Separate from our Church; and that there is no Reason to call any thing Popery which they diflike in our Communion; as fome of them have done to the great difadvantage of the Proteftant Religion; fince as much as in them lay, they have made the World believe that the Caufe of Popery is better than it is; and that it doth not confift only of Opinions and Practices that cannot be defended, but of fome alfo that may. And it is not the least kindness that the indiscreet Zeal of fome Proteftants hath done to the Church of Rome, that they have inveighed against fome things, which may be eafily juftified, as if they alfo were Popish Corruptions. And the Learned Men of that Church have not been behind hand in making use

of

of this advantage, and that by ftraining their utmost Wit, to represent the Proteftant Religion under fuch Colours, as if it ftood in Opposition to Epifcopacy and Liturgy, and to all Ecclefiaftical Canons and Conftitutions. And I am perfwaded the Diffenters cannot do the Proteftant Religion a greater kindness, than by forbearing to give them this occafion for the Future. For let a Cause be never fo good in it felf, it is never likely to thrive in their hands, who instead of pressing their Adverfaries with what they can never maintain, are still forward to deny what they are well able to prove.

As for the Papifts amongst us, their mistakes in Faith and Worship are fo Grofs and Foul that if they would give themselves a little time to Confider what has, and what may farther be faid to convince them; I do not doubt but all of them that are endued with a Competent Understanding, and an Honeft Sense of things, would foon feel thofe palpable Errors, into the belief and practise of which they have been hitherto deluded, by an unreasonable deference to the Authority of the Church of Rome; and no longer stand off from the Communion of the Church of England. The bigger any fault is, one would think, it should be more eafily fpied. Now these Men Separate from us meerly because we have abandoned those wicked Doctrines and Practices, which are of themselves a most neceffary Caufe of Separation from any Church in the World,that should Impose them. And therefore they of all Men are the moft Notorious Schifmaticks that can be imagined. And I befeech God to open their Eyes to fee it; and to recover into the way of Truth all fuch as have Erred and are Deceived; that those who have hitherto been

Theff. 5.21. obftinate may prove all things, and that those who can

be

be perfwaded to Confider these things, may hold fast that which is good.

And the God of Patience and Confolation grant us to Rom. 15.5,6% be like minded one towards another according to Christ Fefus.

That We may with one Mind and one Mouth Glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jefus. Amen.

FINIS.

ERATA.

Page 18. line 18. for Term read Form. p. 15. 1.31. for cppear.r. appear

p. 25. 1. 27. r. 1 Cor. 14.