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On this Subject it is needless to produce many

Authorities from our own Writers.

If the Reader pleafe, one or two may fuffice at prefent.

W. Penn's Key, p. 31. 32.

THE

HEY, the Quakers, honour all Men in the LORD, but not in the Spirit and Falhions of this World, that paffes away; and tho' they do not pulf off their Hat, or make Gurchings, or give flattering Titles, or ufe Compliments; becaufe they believe there is no true Honour, but Flattery and Sint in the ufing of them; yet they treat all Men with seriousness and Gentleness, tho' it be with Plainnefs, and are ready to do them any reasonable Benefit, or Service, in which they think real Honour confiftech, reafonable Commands, and ready Obedience this is honouring Government, and Governours, and not empty Titles, and Servile, and Fantastick Gestures, and drinking of their Healths. till, they drink away their own, the vain and evil Cuftoms of the World, taken from the Heathen Practices, and adapted by loofe Chriftians into their Converfation, and fo become the Fashion of the Times; and if to diffent from these Things, be to be Vile. they are content to be accounted more Vile, having CHRIST's Command, Primitive Example, and their own Convictions on their fide.

Ibid. Works, Vol. 2. p. 613.

It is known to GOD, with what Sincerity we are acted in Obedience to the Convictions of His own Spirit, and that is is not affected Sin gularity, but real Confcience that engageth us to thofe Things you make the Subject of your Mockage and Contempt; and G O Dhath to reckon with you for the Liberty you give, and your People take to indulge them in that unchriftian Latitude, and fling Monkish Aufterities upon us; who through fear of offending ALMIGHTY GOD, by giving Way to a worldly Appetite, confciencionfly live under fome more than ordinary Reftriction, is to deal deceitfully with them. and injuriously with us, and G O'D will judge for thefe Things.

The Truth of the Matter is, you are angry with us the Prople can live without you, and rack your Wits to bring that Principle, People, and Way in Sufpicion and Hatred, whofe self-denial judgeth you and yours; and this if I am not mifinform'd was the very Ground, Reafon, and Caufe of first Publishing the Queries aforefaid.

REMARKS,

·Chriftian Reader,

I'm

F thou doft fee with other Men's Underftandings, even those, whofe Intereft it may be to put a Bear's Skin on Us, I am no ways furprised, if thou haft ill Sentiments of Quakerifm, as by them painted, Did I believe that People held fuch Tenets as their Adverfaries and this Querift infinuate, I should abominate it from my yery Soul; but I certainly know they are grofly mifreprefented, and fo doft Thou, if Thou haft had fo much Faith and Patience as to read and credit the former Reply.

And whereas he advises us with open Eyes to compare our Doctrines with the Holy Scriptures, which, as in Section I. we call our Creed, I have, pursuant thereto, obferved that Method throughout; and do further add, we are fo far from veiling our inmoft Parts, that we cheerfully offer our felves to the narroweft Scrutiny aud most prying Search: Nay, we befeech you, do that Juftice to your Selves, our Adverfaries, and our Caufe, as to make the strictest and jufteft Inquifition after us and our Principles. Twas that, fays William Penn, (Serious Apology, 1671.) rendred the Bereans noble; and to try all Things the Apoftle held to be a certain Means of knowing what is Good For as it is a Mark of great Folly to cenfure what is neither understood nor known, fo may the fouleft Error be difguifed with the fair Pretences of Truth; and Prejudice or Intereft may traduce the most inoffenfive People upon Earth, which has necellitated us to offer this Apology, or thofe fo often refell'd and refuted Doctrines and Accufa tions would not have deferved our flightest Notice.

But

But as we can never think our Time better employed than in defending Track against the mean (yet malicious) Ellays of her Adverfaries, fo we may reafonably expect (as the juft Success of our Endeavours) the Happinets of being better understood by this renewed Occation of once more remonftrating our real Innocence to the World.

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Forty Years ago, when we were not fo well known as now, did the judicious and learned Judge Hales give this Chriftian Character of us; "The Quakers, "(faith he) take away fome Singularities, the Men "are as other Men; fome indeed very fober, boneft, << juft, plain-hearted Men, and Sound in moft, if not all the important Doctrines and Practices of Chri"Atianity. Nature of True Religion, p. 15. 1684.

Thus that wife and fober Perfon, whofe Words favour of that Chriftian Spirit of CHARITY and MODERATION, to which our aged Querift feems too much a Stranger, as well as to our Princi-. ples, notwithstanding what he elegantly writes against his prefent Conduct in Page 359. of his Works.

"And, alas! fays he, how little do the moft of "Chriftians confider, how much they do to quench "the Holy Spirit, who is a Spirit of Unity and Love, "by the unchriftian Violence and Difcord wherewith "they manage their otherwife very inconfiderable "Differences. It was never the Delign of the Spi"rit of GOD, to bring all the Members of Chrift's "Myitical Body by an exact Uniformity in unnecef"fary Opinions and Practices, but to bring them to "an Unity in the great Effentials of Faith and Ho"linefs, and thereby to cement them in the Bonds "of mutual Love: And to this Defign, all the nume"rous Precepts that relate to Unity, Peace, and "Love, are plainly calculated and fuited; bow de "we then counter at it, when all the little Differences “of Judgment and Practice, wherein the Interest of

"Faith and Holinefs have little or no Concern, be

come the Engines of SATAN to divide our Af"fections, and fet us at an unreasonable Distance "from one another: Accordingly thefe Differences "are purfued, uncharitable Judgment, unreasonable "Sufpicions, unjuft Cenfures, reviling Language con"cerning one another? How grievous must that be "to the Holy Spirit, that dwells in all the Children of "GOD to infpire them with Charity, that fhould "rather exprefs it felf by pitying the Ignorance, coit"defcend to the Weakness, and bearing the Infirmi

ties of his Brethren, by putting the most favoura "ble Construction of their Words and Actions, by "efteeming whatever we difcern of the Image of "our LORD in them, and improving the far grea "ter Things wherein we agree, as a fufficient Foun "dation for mutual Love and Communion.

Turpe eft Doctori cum culpa redarguit ipfume

'Tis the old Doctor's Shame and grand Disgrace,
When the fame Faults do fly in his own Face.

POST

POST SCRIPT.

Candid Reader,

T

HE better to imprefs on thy Memory the Contents of the former Sheets, let me, before I take my leave at prefent, Recapitulate the whole, in that ample Confeffion of Faith deliver'd by our Friend Thonias Beaven, Second Part, p. 18, 19. 20.

To give them the true Senfe of that People (the Quakers) I fay, that as I, fo they, believe in the FATHER, the SON and the HOLY GHOST, All-mighty, All-feeing, Omniprefent, One GOD the Creator of all Things, both in Heaven and Earth: That the SON, in the fullness of Time, came down from Heaven, and took upon Him, not the Nature of Angels, but the Seed of Abraham; was born of the Virgin Mary, fuffered under Pontius Pilate, the cruel and fhameful Death of the Crofs, to be a Propitiation and Attonement for the S ns of the whole World; but He rofe again the third Day from the Dead, and afcended into Heaven, and is the Interceffor, Advocate and Mediator between GOD and M AN; the King, Prieft, and Prophet of His Church; the only Author of Salvation unto all that obey Him; true GOD and perfect MAN. That the HOLY GHOST proceedeth from the Father and the Son, the Lord and Giver of Light to the Minds and Confciences of Men; the Sanctifier of the Heart; the inward Comforter of good Men ; and Condemner of Evil Men, the fafe Leader into all neceffary Truth; the Guide fent us from Heaven to lead us thither.

That GOD hath always had a Church or People in the World, confifting of believing and obe

dient

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