being fo reconciled, he then embraces all their Corrupt Doctrines without any farther Examination. This is the natural Effect of giving the Name Popery to fuch Doctrines as are not really fo, but are fo plainly and evidently the Doctrines of the truly Primitive Church.

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§ II. Whereas on the other hand, would we rightly and truly inform our People what are the Doctrines of the truly Primitive Church, would the Governors of the Church rettore those Parts of the firft reform'd Liturgy, in King Edward the VIth's Days, which were expung'd chiefly to gratify Foreign Presbyterians, who nevertheless did then, and still do refuse to come into the Epifcopal Communion; and which Liturgy was, by the First Act for Uniformity, declared to have been Finished by the Aid of the Dalp-holt; whereof we have no Reason to doubt, fince the Compilers of that First Liturgy had fo great a Regard to the Holy Scripture, and the Ufages of the Primitive Church for the first Four Centuries of Chriftianity; all which Time it must be allowed that the Church continued in its greatest Purity: Would we, in our Sermons and Difcourfes, fhew the People, that what we call Popery is a Corruption and Deviation from these Doctrines and Practices of the Primitive Church, introduced fince that Time by the Bishop of Rome and thofe of his Commu nion: Would we fhew them what those Cor ruptions are, and how they have been fummed up by the Pope himself in the Additional Ar

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ticles to the Apostles Creed, of which I have -given an Account in my Vindication: Would we thus inform the Flocks committed to our Charge what Popery is, and what is true Primitive Chrifianity, we should certainly deprive the Romish Emiffaries of many Advantages they now have of feducing People to their Communion.

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III. In order therefore to give People right Notions of these Matters, and as far as lies in me to deprive the Romish Emiffaries of the Advantages they may take from fome Peoples calling thofe Things Pepifh which really are not fo; fince the giving the Name of Popery to that which is truly Chriftian and Primitive, may fo naturally give thofe Emiffaries an Handle to represent fuch Guides as Deceivers, and thereby to feduce well meaning, but unwary Perfons to their abominably corrupt Religion; as I have, in my Vindication, fhewed the World, from the Creed of Pope Pius, what are the corrupt Doctrines of the Romish Communion, and also that fome Doctrines of Primitive Christianity, which have lately been pleaded for, are not Popery nor favouring of Popery, as fome would mifrepresent them to be; I thall now, in farther Profecution of the fame Argument, re-confider those Doctrines, more fully prove them to be Primitive and Chriftian, fhew the Usefulness of them, and how all the People may be trained up to the Knowledge and Understanding of them, and thereby be the better fecured from the Subtlety of Romifb Emillaries.

§ IV.

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6 IV. I fhall take them in their Order as they are laid down in (d) my Vindication, adding only two more Particulars which I am fenfible are of equal Antiquity and Univerfality with the others: Which are, ift, The mixing Water with the Wine in the Celebration of the Holy Eu charift: And, 2dly, The Practice of Chrism in Confirmation. And if any other Matters, not yet received or practifed in our Church, fhould be found to be of equal Antiquity and Univer fality, I declare it to be my hearty Defire that they also may be restored: For I am well affured, that from the Beginning of the Gospel of Chrift, to the Time of the Council of Nice, and long after, during the Fourth Century, the Catholick Church, all over the World, was united in one Holy Doctrine, Difcipline and Manner of Worship. It is certain that the Bishops, who met in that celebrated Council, came from all the known Parts of the Chriftian World, and were all cotirely of the fame Communion: For although there were two or three Arians who differed from the reft in the Senfe of an Article of Faith, yet neither then nor after does it appear that they differed in their Manner of Worship; nor, till the Church thought fit to expell them for their Heretical Pravity, did they innovate any thing in the Publick Offices. Indeed, during thefe firit Ages, there was fome

(d) Pag. 22, 23.

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Difference between the Afiaticks and fome other Chriftian Churches, about the Day whereon Eafter should be kept; but even that Difference was adjusted by this Council, and all were brought to an Uniform Practice alfo in that Point. The Practice of the Church therefore at the Time of the Council of Nice, is certainly best fitted to be the Standard for every Reformation of the Church. And when I confider what was done by our Reformers in the firft Liturgy of King Edward VI, I am fully convinced they intended to make the first three or four Centuries the only Pattern for themselves, and purposed to reform all the corrupt DoEtrines and Practices of the Roman Church, to make them agreeable to the Practice of thofe Ages: But were induced afterwards (as we have Reason to believe) upon Political Reasons, to lay aside divers of those ancient Doctrines and Practices, to gratify Calvin, Bucer, and other Foreign Presbyterians, in order to fecure a Party abroad: But that Party abroad, instead of af fifting and defending our Church, which had yielded so much to gratify it, and gain its good Will, on the contrary raifed fuch a Party at home against our Conftitution, both in Church and State, as once prevailed fo far as to overturn both, and have ever fince been as Thorns in our Sides, and a Snare unto us.

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V. Since then we have feen and experien ced the Folly of deviating so far from the Pri mitive Plan, to gain those who cannot be gained

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by any thing but the utter Extirpation of Epif copacy and Liturgy, and all that is not accord ing to their own Novel Fancies, why fhould we not entirely restore our Liturgy to the Pris mitive Standard, and revive thofe Ufages which were retained by our firft Reformers before they had any Thoughts of gratifying the Calo nian Party? Which has been fo far from being gained by thofe unwary Conceffions, that it has only given them an Opportunity to do us the greatest Mischief. But by returning to thofe Ufages, we shall plainly lead the Van for the Introduction of Catholick Unity into the Church of Chrift: For we fhall then want no thing (as we now most certainly do) that is agreeable to the Practice of the Primitive Church, when a Catholick Uniformity was univerfally preferved. Whilft these Doctrines and Ufages I am now pleading for were ob ferved, the Church-Universal was united in the fame Faith, Difcipline and Worship. The laying them afide has been the Caufe of our Dif-union. The only Means to remove this Dif-union, is by every Church's returning to a closer Union with the Primitive Church in Doctrine, Difcipline and Worship: For as the Church never was fo ftrictly and firmly united as in the Primitive Times, and particularly about the Time when the Council of Nice was celebrated, because whatever Differences might then be between particular Churches about faiting upon the Saturday, or any other indifferent Rite or Custom, yet this made no Difference

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