fused so many fenceless Jealoufies, and not being content to have at first infused these need lefs fears, do ftill go on to nurse up and cherish them? Who first betrayed great numbers into folly, and ever after continued to hu mour them in it? He who can conform himself, and yet refufeth to do fo, for fear left his Auditory and Acquaintance should abate in their efteem or contributions towards him If he means fincerely,& to fhew himself an honest man, he ought to deal faithfully with hisAdmirers,& tell them really what himself thinks, communicate the Satisfaction which he hath received, and perfwade them not to be longer needlefly afraid where no fear is: It is very plain that the generality of Diffenters do entertain wild fufpicions about the Service of the Church, upon no other ground than an implicite faith which they have in the skill and honesty of their Teachers. Such and fuch a one is a very precious and knowing man, and do you think that he would not conform, if he did not know Conformity to be a fin?

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The Paftor and his Flock in this Cafe do mutually guide and are guided by each other; he makes it his business to please and humour them,, and they look upon it as a great mark of their Judgment, and an infallible token of their Election to admire him.

But if the weakness of these our Brethren hath fo great a privilege entailed upon it, as that we must do nothing which they have taken a fancy against; a thing in it felf lawful and imposed by lawful Authority muft immediately become unlawful, if so be that any fcrupulous man can be brought to entertain a foolish jealoufic about it: Then is this kind of weakness endued with a very strange degree of Omnipotence; because that upon this fuppofition, the very mistakes of men are able to alter the Nature of things; A thing in it felf innocent, doth according to this Doctrine, immediately become unlawful, as foon as ever that any fanciful deluded man doth erroneously conceive it to be fo; But me

thinks that those who pretend to be fuch eager afferters of Chriftian Liberty, as this fort of men have always done, should, of all other perfons, the leaft endure to have it thus trifled with; as to have it believed to be openly exposed to lie perpetually at the mercy of all the Humour, Melancholy, Artifice, Cheat and Discontent in the whole Nation.

But if this be the meaning of thofe Texts of Scripture, where we are com❤ manded to avoid the giving of Scandal (as most certainly and evidently it is not) That the Actions of all Private Men, and the Authority of all Publick Constitutions must be as often over-ruled as any single Person is, either by his own Folly or by the Arts of other men, impofed upon to believe evil of them; then can no man tell in any matter of Action Sacred or Civil (except in the Matters of immediate and plain divine Precept) what one thing shall be lawful for him to do in the very next moment.

But if it be thus appointed by the Apostle, That the mistakes of other Men,

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Men, though we should fuppofe them to be well-meaning ones, are to have fo uncontrollable an influence upon the Actions of all private Perfons, and the Decrees of all Publick ones; If it be thus, I fay, it will thence follow very apparently, that there is a great neceffity lying upon the Government, of taking care what kind of Persons are intrusted with teaching the People. For if Confcience, though never fo erroneous, are of right, and by Apoftolical appointment to have fo great a regard had unto them; then of all things great circumfpection fhould be used, and fecurity taken, for the Understanding and Honesty of all those who are intrusted to be Guides of Confciences. For if the Errors of Conscience are things of fo great Authority, as to be an immediate Superfedeas to our whole Chriftian Liberty, to all forts of Humane Laws, then it is the greatest Phrenzy imaginable, to grant a promifcuous Liberty to whoever pleaseth to teach and inftruct the People. Alas! the Vulgar are easily impofed upon; and

it is not impoffible but that we may find in our days, what St. Paul did in his, That there are those who will Speak lyes in hypocrifie because of advantage; and bring their Auditories to admire those very Doctrines which themselves do heartily defpife; outwardly court their Hearers, and inwardly laugh at them. And in the mean time, are not Religion and Government like to be at a very fine pass? when who so pleaseth fhall have the Privilege of making all poffible advantages of that very Scruple which himself was Author of; and, when all other Objections fail, fhall be allowed to plead his own exemption from all Obedience to the fettled Constitutions, from the diffatisfaction of other men, who, if it had not been for him, had never entertained the least thought of being dissatisfied.

But in the next place it is frequently urged, That those Terms of Communion are not looked upon as fufficient, which were always looked upon as fuch in former days; but there D 2

are