28. Either every error in doctrine, and mistake in worship must be punished by the magiftrate, or only that which is more glar- ing and notorious. If it is only the latter, how are the limits to 29. But, how are heretics, '&c to be got judged in order to pu- nishment? It must be by perfons quite impartial---nowise at- tached to the contrary fentiments or practice, 30. If heretics, &c. be punishable, orthodox magiftrates, who happen to become governors of heretical, blafphemous, and idolatrous nations, must kill the most of their subjects, 94 31. The Christian law of doing to others that which we would have them do to us, demands that we fhould allow every man to think, profess, and act in religion as he pleaseth, &c 32. If infidelity and difference in religion do not make void magi- ftrates' right to govern nations, much lefs can herefy, &c. inva- lidate fubjects' right to protection-.. 33---In proteftant countries, Papists ought not to be tolerated, as they are fubject to the foreign power of the Pope.--Atheists ought not to be tolerated, as they cannot be bound by any oath. Such as are against tolerating others ought not to be tolerated, as they will kindle ftrife. And in Churches there ought to be ΙΟΙ 34. No carnal influence of magiftrates relative to religion is con- 35. The annexing of temporal encouragements to the profeffion and practice of the Chriftian religion, or external discourage- ments to the profeffion or practice of fuch opinions and worship as are contrary to it---tends to render men bypocrites, &c. 104 36. The abolishment of all civil establishments of revealed religion, would have a remarkable tendency to render men truly pious, &c. 105 38. Let things be reduced to practice---what could be done just now in Britain, without an authoritative toleration of the differ- 39. The great Dr. Owen zealously pled for authoritative tolera- LETTER II. On the Perfidy of all Authoritative Toleration of grofs Herefy, Blaf phemy or Idolatry. I. Our Covenanters' characterizing themselves Noblemen, Barons, Burgefes and Commons, prove their Covenants to be mere civil 2. In 1638, and 1645, they framed their Covenants to admit Epif- 3. The impofition of thefe Covenants under civil penalties, proves them to have been merely State. Covenants, 4. Our ancestors gave up with their Covenanting work, whenever they got the ftate of the nation fettled by means of it; and hav- ing got their civil liberties otherwise secured at the Revolution, Objections against the perpetual obligation of the Scotch Covenants, Anfavered. 1. Many things were wrong in the impofing and taking of these Covenants; and their words are ill chofen, &c. 2. Many in England and Ireland never took the Solemn League, or took it in a fenfe confiftent with Prelacy or Independency, 176 3. The influence of the Highland chiefs, and the ignorance of the Scotch Islands together with the general dislike of the Covenants at the Reftoration and Revolution, are internal evidences, that but a part, perhaps a small part, of the Scots took the Cove- 4. Force or fear caufed many to covenant, 5. It is impoffible our Covenanters could understand their bonds, particularly in that which relates to Popery in the national Co- 6. If nothing be engaged to in thefe Covenants, but what God hath required in his word, they never could lay any obligation up- on the Covenanters, much lefs a perpetual obligation upon 7. What have we to do with our fathers' engagements in religion, to which we never gave any perfonal confent, especially after / LETTER I. On the abfurdity of AUTHORITATIVE TOLERATION of grofs Herefy, Blafphemy or Idolatry. SIR, HOW God himself connected religion, and the civil welfare of nations, in his ancient laws, almost the whole of the Old Teftament doth bear witnefs. That religion is the great bafis of civil happiness, was the common, the avowed belief of every fenfible Heathen: It was, for ought I know, the infamous monfter Tiberius, who firft pretended, That the gods alone ought to regard or refent the injuries done them. Before the happy Reformation, the Popish clergy had reduced civil rulers into mere tools for executing their pleasure in religious matters; and pretended that they had no power of judging in them. To free thefe rulers from fuch Antichrif tian claims, the Protestant reformers, every where, as their Confeffions of Faith and other writings make evident, loudly maintained, That to magiftrates themselves independent of clergymen, belongs a dif tinguished power in the reformation and prefervation of religion. Not long after, Eraftus, a German phy fician and his followers, to curry favour with their respective princes, pretended, That magiftrates are the proper lords of the Chriftian Church, from whom her minifters and other rulers derive their whole power, and to whom they must be accounta ble. This notion, exceedingly flattering their ambition, was too greedily embraced by most of the B Proteftant princes; nor do I know of one Proteftant Church, which hath not fuffered by means of it. Meanwhile, the German Anabaptifts, having experienced the frowns, and fometimes the improper feverities of magiftrates, copied after the ancient Donatifts in the like circumstances, and warmJy contended, That magiftrates have no more power about religious matters than any private perfon, and ought to punish none for different fentiments in doctrine or forms of worship. The Socinians and remonftrant Arminians, except when magiftrates favoured themselves, and promoted their cause, zealously contended for the fame notion, at least in the cafe of minifters and worship, which were not maintained at the public expence. Many, if not most of the English Independents in the last century were much of the fame mind; and hence, by their influence, fome paffages in the Westminster Confeffion of Faith could never obtain a ratification by the English Parliament, or a place in their own Savoy Confeffion. Part of thefe paffages, relative to the magistrate's power, are alfo dropt from the Confeflion of Faith agreed to by the Independents of New England in 1682. Most of the English Diffenters of this century feem to be much of the fame mind; especially fuch as might otherwife have been expofed to danger on account of their open maintenance of Arian, Socinian, and Quakerifh blafphemies-Locke and bishop Hoadly, and fome others of the Epifcopalian party, warmly efpoufed the fame, cause. This notion never received much countenance in Scotland, till Mr. Glafs of Tealing commenced a furious new-fashioned Independent. He mightily contended, That the Jewish nation was an ecclefiaftical one, and their kings ecclefiaftical rulers; that Chriftian magiftrates have no more power in religious matters than private Chriftians, and ought not to employ their power in advancing the true religion, or in making laws with penalties in favour of it; or in restraining or punishing heretics or falle teachers, nor ought they to give more encouragement to good Chriftians, than to other peaceable fubjects; that the example of the reforming kings of Judah in punishing idolatry and falfe worthip, and in promoting the true religion, is not now to be imitated; and that our fathers' national covenanting against Popery and other wickednefs, in favour of the true religion was unwarrantable, and is not binding upon us. Dr. Wifheart, Principal of the College of Edinburgh, in his fermons contended, That magiftrates have only a right to punith fuch crimes as ftrike immediately againft the perfons or property: of men; but not to punish any thing which ftrikes immediately against the honour of God, as blafphemy or herefy; that all men ought to have civil liberty to think and fpeak as they please, providing they make no attack upon the welfare of civil fociety; that none ought to be hampered in their fearch after truth by any requirement of their fubfcriptions to Formulas or Confeffions of Faith; that children in their education, ought never to be biaffed to a fide by learning catechifms which maintain the peculiar principles of a party. These or the like notions have been adopted by not a few of the pretenders to modern illumination. In her public Standards, the Church of Scotland hath renounced, and in her folemn covenants hath abjured both these extremes. In her Old Confeffion of Faith, which is expressly sworn to in the national covenant of 1581, &c. as in all points the undoubted truth of God, Art. xxiv, fhe afferts, that the powerand authority of magiftrates is God's holy ordinance, ordained for manifeftation of his own glory, and for |