Chapter 3: Motive, Matter, and Method
Motive, Matter, and Method of our Author's Book.
What remains of our Author's Preface is spent in the persuit of an easie task in all the branches of it. To condemn the late Miscarriages in these Nations, to decry Divisions in Religion, with their pernicious consequences, to commend my Lord Chancellour's Speech; are things that have little difficulty in them, to exercise the skill of a man pretending so highly as our Author does. He may secure himself, that he will find no opposition about these things from any man in his right wits. No other man certainly can be so forsaken of Religion and Humanity, as not to deplore the woful undertakings and more woful issues of sundry things, whereunto the concernments of Religion have been pleaded to give countenance. The rancour also of men, and wrath against one another on the same accounts, with the fruits which they bring forth all the world over, are doubtless a burden to the minds of all that love Truth and Peace. To prevent a returnal to the former, and remove or at least allay the latter, how excellently the speech of that great Counsellour, and the things proposed in it, are suited; all sober and ingenious men must needs acknowledge. Had this then been the whole design of this Preface, I had given his Book many an Amen, before I had come to the end. But our Author having wholly another mark in his eye, another business in hand, I should have thought it a little uncivil in him, to make my Lord Chancellour's Speech seemingly subservient to that which he never intended, never aimed at, which no word or expression in it leads to; but that I find him afterwards so dealing with the words of God himself. His real work in this compass of words, is to set up a blind, or give a false alarm, to arrest and stay his unwary Reader, while he prepares him for an entertainment which he thought not of. The pretence he flourisheth over both in the Preface and sundry other parts of his Discourse, is, the hatefulness of our Animosities in and about Religion, their dismal Effects, with the necessity and excellency of Moderation in things of that nature; the real work in hand is, a Perswasive to Popery, and, to that end (not of moderation, or forbearance) are all his Arguments directed. Should a man go to him, and say, Sir, I have read your learned Book, and find that heats, and contests, about differences in Religion are things full of evil, and such as tend to further misery; I am therefore resolved quietly to persist in the way of Protestancy wherein I am, without ever attempting the least violence against others for their dissent from me, but only with meekness and quietness defend the Truth which I profess; I presume, he will not judge his design half accomplished towards such a man, if at all. No, I dare say with some confidence, that in reference to such a one, he would say to himself, Op[illegible]ram & Oleum p[illegible]rdidi. And therefore does he wisely tell us, pag. 12. that his matter is perceived by the prefixed general Contents of his Chapters, his Design which he calls his Method, he confesseth that he does purposely conceal. But the truth is, it is easily discoverable, there being few pages in the Book, that do not display it.
The Reader then must understand, that the plain English of all his Commendations of Moderation, and all his Exhortations to a relinquishment of those false Lights and Principles, which have lead men to a disturbance of the Publique Peace, and ensuing Calamities, is, that Popery is the only Religion in the world, and that centring therein is the only means to put an end to our differences, heats, and troubles. Unless this be granted, it will be very hard to find one grain of sincerity in the whole Discourse: and if it be; no less difficult to find so much of Truth. So that whatever may be esteemed suitable to the fancies of any of them whom our Author courts in his Address, those who know any thing of the holiness of God and the Gospel, of that reverence which is due to Christ and his Word, and wherewith all the concernments of Religion ought to be mannaged, will scarsely judge, that, that blessed Fountain of Light and Truth will immixe his pure beams and blessing, with such crafty, worldly, sophistical devices; or such frothy ebullitions of Wit and Fansie as this Discourse is stuffed withall. These are things, that may be fit to entangle unstable spirits, who being regardless of Eternity, and steering their course according to every blast of temptation, that fills their lusts and carnal pleasures, are as ready to change their Religion (if men can make any change in, or of, that which in reality they neither leave nor receive, but only sport themselves to and fro with the cloud and shadow of it) as they are their cloaths and fashions. Those who have had experience of the power and efficacy of that Religion which they have professed; as to all the ends for which Religion is of God revealed, will be little moved, with the Stories, Pretenses and Diversions of this Discourse.
Knowing, therefore, our Author's design, (and which we shall have occasion to deal with him about, throughout his Treatise) which is to take advantage from the late miscarriages among us, and the differences that are in the world in Religion, to perswade men not indeed and ultimately to mutual moderation and forbearance, but to a general acquiescency in the Roman-Catholicism, I shall not here further speak to it. The five Heads of his matter may be briefly run over as he proposeth them, pag. 13. with whose consideration I shall take my leave of his Preface.
The first is, That there is not any color of Reason, or just Title, to move us to quarrel and judge one another, with so much heat about Religion. Indeed there is not; nor can there be: no man was ever so madd as to suppose there could be any reason or just Title for men to do evil; to quarrel and judge one another with heats about Religion, is of that nature. But, if, placing himself, to keep a decorum, among Protestants, he would insinuate, that we have no reason to contend about Religion, as having lost all Title to it by our departure from Rome, I must take leave to this general head, to put in a general Demurrer; which I shall afterwards plead to, and vindicate.
His second is, That all things are so obscure, that no man in prudence can so far presume of his own knowledge, as to set up himself a guide and leader in Religion. I say so too; and suppose the words as they lye, whatever be intended in them, are keenly set against the great Papal pretension: whatever he may pretend, we know, the Pope sets up himself to be a guide to all men in Religion; and, if he do it not upon a presumption of his own knowledge, we know not on what better grounds he does it. And though we wholly condemn mens setting up themselves to be guides and leaders to their neighbours; yet, if he intend, that all things are so obscure, that we have no means to come to the knowledge of the truth concerning God and his mind, so far as it is our duty to know it; and therefore, that no man can teach or instruct another in that knowledge; I say, as before, we are not yet of his mind: whether we shall be or no, the process of our discourse will shew.
3. He adds, That no Sect has any advantage at all over another, nor all of them together over Popery. Yes; they that have the truth, wherein they have it, have advantage against all others that have it not. And so Protestancy has advantage over Popery. And here, the pretext or vizor of this Protestant begins to turn aside: in the next head, it quite falls from him.
That is, (4.) That all the several kinds of Religion here in England, are equally innocent to one another; and Popery, as it stands in opposition to them, is absolutely innocent and unblameable to them all. I am little concerned in the former part of these words, concerning the several kinds of Religion in England, having undertaken the defence of one only; namely, Protestancy. Those that are departed from Protestancy so far as to constitute another kind of Religion; as to any thing from me, shall plead for themselves. However I wish, that all parties in England were all equally innocent to one another, or that they would not be willing to make themselves equally nocent. But the latter part of the words contain, I promise you, a very high undertaking. Popery is innocent, absolutely innocent and unblameable to them all. I fear we shall scarce find it so, when we come to the tryal. I confess I do not like this pretence of absolute innocency and unblameableness. I suppose, they are men that profess Popery, and I do know that Popery is a religion or profession of mens finding out; how it should come to be so absolutely innocent on a suddain, I cannot imagine: but we will leave this until we come to the proof of it, taking notice only, that here is a great promise made to his noble and ingenious readers, that cannot advantage his cause, if he be not able to make it good. The close is,
5. That as there neither is, nor can be any rational motive for disputes and animosities about matters of Religion; so is there an indispensable moral cause, obliging us to moderation, &c. But this, as I observed before, though upon the first view of the sign hanging up at the door, a man would guess to be the whole work that was doing in the house, is indeed no part of his business; and is therefore thrust out at the postern, in two short leaves, the least part of them, in his own words after the spending of 364 pages in the pursuit of his proper design. But, seeing we must look over these things again, in the chapters assigned to their adorning, we may take our leave of them at present, and of his Preface together.
