him the instructions he had received, and the course which he designed to pursue in his visit to Holland and Germany, on which he was then on the point of embarkiag. Mr. Mede retur

"6. That all controversies, beyond this tenour of belief, shall be discussed by the learned men of both parties, with the preservation of charity; but that of such controversies the more simple sort of people may safely and usefully remain in ignorance, and, therefore, they ought not by any means to be made contentious subjects of discourse in the pulpit: It is evident that this was the practice of the Fathers of the Primitive Church.

7. That the causes of the schisms and of the inextricable confusions in the Christian Church have arisen, in the present age,-partly, from neglecting the limits in Faith and Practice between FUNDAMENTALS and NONFUNDAMENTALS;-partly, from an over-curious prying into mysteries, and the indiscriminate promulgation of private opinions about them ;-partly, from a contempt for the judgment of Primitive Antiquity respecting the meaning of the Holy Scriptures ;-partly, from a preposterous and bitter itching to refute the sentiments of other people, rather than from an inoffensive desire to explain the truth according to their own perceptions of it;partly, from a tyrannical power of determination and censure, which one party usurps over the conscience and the understanding of the other;partly, from having lost the rule of the Ancient Discipline;-and, in the last place, partly from neglecting the duties of Holy Communion, and of fraternal communication between different churches, while the passions are appeased by their mutual edification in spiritual things. From these sources has arisen every diversified species of opinions and rites, and from thence have proceeded the multiform appearance of churches that, on other points, are at complete agreement in the foundation of the faith: These circumstances have, in the eyes of unskilful estimators of things, borne the semblance of contrariety, and have afterwards afforded a pretext for doubting, discussions, dissension, and schism.

8. That, in the present calamitous state of affairs, no remedy for these evils can be devised of a more suitable kind than the Convention of Protestants which is here prescribed. The effect which it is desirable to obtain from such an Assembly is this,-to confirm by general suffrage a fraternal concord in the Doctrinals conceded by both parties, a moderate and suitable explanation in matters of doubt and of utility, and, on the remaining topics, liberty of sentiment and mutual toleration; but, in public worship and ecclesiastical rites, certain laws shall circumscribe such a conformity as may appear necessary for confirming the affections of mutual edification and holy intercourse.

"You have here a display of my purpose: And though I acknowledge myself to be unequal to the attainment of it, yet, acccording to the small measure of my powers, I will leave nothing undone towards a great and sincere attempt. Most deservedly I ascribe much to your erudition, piety, and prudence: If, therefore, you consider it needful to tender me any advice on these points, you will perform an office which will be agreeable to a friend, and to a most respectful fellow-servant of your Lord Christ, and which will probably not prove useless to the public, &c.-LONDON, July 19th, 1635.”

Every man conversant with the ecclesiastical history of that period will trace, in this letter, no sentiment which could have been dictated by a Calvinist who approved of the decisions of the Synod of Dort; for the obvions tendency of the whole of Dury's instructions, of which the preceding is a good summary, was to counteract the pernicious effects of that Assembly, whose intolerant SPIRIT had been imparted to every christian community in Europe, that had been so improvident as to admit or to admire its DECREES. The allusions to the early Fathers and to Christian Antiquity, which this letter contains, could be relished solely by the Protestants of the Church of England, and by those of the Augsburgh Confession; from the former of whom the document itself actually emanated. From the preceding note, (p. 748,) the reader will have learnt, that while the Calvinists have without just cause pointed with triumph to the pacific labours of Dury, the honour of which is claimed for the whole of their party, Archbishop Laud and his Arminian

ned a very polite answer, in which he "advised Mr. Dury to urge men to devise a criterion according to which some judgment might be formed about Fundamental and Non-Fundamental Articles, and to think of such a definition, as a ground by which to examine the points of difference of what nature they are." And he informs Mr. Hartlib, "I intimated withal to Mr. Dury, how likely they [the zealots] would be to detrect it, and wherefore,-namely, lest by that means they might either declare some darling opinion of their own not to be Fundamental, and thereby prejudice their own cause; or else exclude out of that ' number some articles formerly determined by the Church, and so incur a suspicion of, or be liable to be upbraided with, favouring some condemned heresy.' In the same letter to Mr. Hartlib, he tries to define the nature of Fundamental Articles. His method is described in the subjoined note,* and

friends were almost the only active promoters of that scheme, and Dury himself, at the first convenient opportunity, evinced his real disposition by joining the standard of the greatest enemies to a General Ecclesiastical Pacífication, and by traitorously furnishing them with extracts from the private correspondence of Grotius.

*These are Mr. Mede's words "But what if we should go this way to work, make two sorts of FundamentalArticles, Fundamentals of salvation, and Fundamentals of ecclesiastical communion? one, of such as are necessarii cognitu et creditu ad salutem simply and absolutely, and therefore no christian soul that shall be saved, uncapable to understand them; another, of such as are necessarii creditu ad communicationem Ecclesiasticam in regard of the predecision of the church. The first not to be of such truths as are merely speculative, and contained only in the uuderstanding; but of such only as have a necessary influence upon practice: and not all those neither, but such as have necessary influence upon the act and function of christian life, or whereon the acts, without which a christian lives not, necessarily depend. Such, namely, as without the knowledge and belief whereof we can neither invocate the Father aright, nor have that faith and reliance upon him, and his Son our Mediator Jesus Christ, which is requisite to remission of sins, and the hope of the life to come. How far this ratio of a fundamental article will stretch, I know not; but believe it will fetch in most of the articles of the Apostle's creed. And by it also those two main errors of the Socinians, the one denying the Divine Nature, the other the satisfaction of Christ, may be discerned to be fundamental. For, without the belief of the first, the Divine Majesty cannot be rightly, that is incommunicably worshipped, so as to have no other Gods besides him. For he that believes not Christ to be consubstantial with the Father, and yet honours him with the same worship, worships not the Father incommunicably: which is the formalis ratio of the worship of the true God, from whom we look for eternal life. And without the belief of the second, the Satisfaction of Christ, there can be, I suppose, no saving faith or reliance upon Christ for forgiveness of sin. After this manner, may other Articles be examined. Thus much of the first sort of fundamental truths, measured by the necessitude they have with those acts which are required to salvation. Concerning the second sort of fundamentals, viz. necessary ad communicationem Ecclesiasticam: it is not fit that the church should admit any to her communion which shall professedly deny or refuse their assent to such catholic truths as she hath anciently declared, by universal authority, for the symbol and badge of such as should have communion with her. And this sort of Articles without doubt fetches a greater compass and comprehends more than the other, as being ordinate and measured by another end, to wit, of discipline, and so contains not only such truths, the knowledge whereof and assent whereto is necessary unto the being of christian life, but also to the well-being thereof; and

resembles much the following brief account which he gives to the same individual in another letter:

"The way to determine fundamental articles must be made very short, easy and evident; or it will breed many controversies, as are about the points themselves in question. I can gather that by what I sometimes meet with. It is not fit that a confession, which concerns all that will be saved to know and remember, should be any long or tedious discourse. The ten commandments given by God are an Epitome faciendorum; the Lord's prayer is Summa or Epitome petendorum: According to which pattern the confession we seek for should be but Summa credendorum." See a similar passage, p. 757.

In accordance with the liberality of these FUNDAMENTAL ARTICLES, he delivered the following advice to Mr. Hartlib, for framing a Fundamental Confession : "When I read over Mr. Dury's Consultation, I perceived he aimed at the self-same ground for the discovery and discerning of Fundamental Verities from Non-Fundamental that I had formerly done in mine to you, though in a differing way of expression, as men that conceive apart are wont to do. I made them to be such truths as have necessary influence upon the acts and functions of christian life, or without the explicit knowledge_whereof 'those acts and functions cannot be exercised.' He goes further and specifies wherein this christian life consisteth:* therefore not needful to be understood of every one distinctly, and explicitely, as the former, but implicitely only and as far as they shall be capable or have means to come to the knowledge thereof."

The letter to Mr. Hartlib, to which in this extract Mr. Mede refers, contains an intimation very similar to this by Mr. Dury. It occurs in some remarks on Mr. Streso's book, on which he says: "As for the third sort of Fundamentals, or super-fundamentals, which Mr. Streso makes such as are by immediate or necessary consequence deducible from the fundamentum 'salutis,' I make some question whether all such are necessaria cognitu et creditu ad salutem simply.-FIRST. Because the necessity of such consequence may not be apprehended by all who hold the fundamentum.SECONDLY. Because I am not yet persuaded, that to deny or to be ignorant of a truth which is merely speculative, (such as some of these consequences may be,) is damnable; but only [to be ignorant] of such truths, the knowledge and acknowledgment whereof hath necessary connection with some practical requisite unto salvation; mean, whereon depends necessarily the acquiring of some act necessary, or the avoiding of some act repugnant, to salvation."-From this paragraph every man of discernment will perceive the true reason, why the more rigid Calvinists spurned all these conciliatory schemes, that represented the doctrine of Absolute Election and Eternal Reprobation as "a truth merely speculative, the denial or ignorance of which was not damnable." This was in their eyes past all human endurance. See pages 496 and 748.

Mr. Mede then proceeds, in the same letter, thus to explain himself:"So that still it seems to me, the readiest and easiest way for resolution in this matter is, to inquire and examine what those acts are wherein consists our spiritual life, or that union and fellowship, which we have with the Father and his Son our Mediator Jesus Christ. That which is necessarium cognitu et creditu unto them, is fundamental to salvation, that is, cujus agnitioni salus tanquam fundamento innititur. That which is not so, is not fundamental ad salutem. For example: He that comes unto God,' says St. Paul, must believe that God is.' So likewise, he that comes unto

6

Namely, as natural life consists in the conjunction of the soul with the body, so doth spiritual life in the conjunction of men with God, that is, in being in covenant with him. All those verities, therefore, the knowledge and belief whereof is necessary to the acts and functions requisite to the being and continuation in the covenant with God in Jesus Christ, are Fundamental Verities, without the explicit knowledge and belief, of which a man cannot be saved."

He then immediately adds: "But for the framing or composing such a fundameutal confession as is sought for, let me discover my opinion, fancy, or whatsoever it be. I observe, that the confessions or creeds of the ancient Church, (which were their symbols of communion,) were always the former creeds or confessions enlarged with such further additions or explanations subjoined to the former articles respectively, as the heresies of the times made requisite for the distinction of orthodox believers. So the Nicene creed was the creed of the Apostles enlarged in the Articles of Father and Son, and one or two other. The creed of Constantinople added, to the Article of the Holy Ghost in that of Nice, these words, The Lord and Giver of Life, who proceedeth from the Father [and the Son,] who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified;' against Macedonius. This is the creed we say at the communion in our Church. That of Athanasius yet more enlarges that of Nice, as doth that of Chalcedon also the article of the Son

Christ, or unto the Father by him, (as every one must do that will be saved,) must believe that Christ is, and that he is constituted the Mediator between God and us. He that comes unto and relies upon Christ for remission of sin, must believe that Christ suffered, and was offered a sacrifice for the sins of men, and thereby purchased that power to confer remission unto all that should repent and believe in his name. He that bids a true farewell to sin, and savingly buckles to the works of a new life, must believe there is a life to come, and a day wherein God, by the man he hath ordained, shall judge "both the quick and dead, and give unto every one according to his works;' according to that of St. Paul, Acts xxiv, 15, 16. I have hope towards God, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust. For this cause do I exercise myself to have always a conscience void of 'offence toward God and toward men.' According to these examples you may examine more.-Take this similitude: In a creature endued with animal life, are many members or organs, whereof though none can be wanting, hurt or wounded, without some deformity, defect or detriment of the whole, yet all are not essential unto the life of the body, but such only from whence those faculties and functions flow, whereon life necessarily depends, such as are, respiratio, nutritio, gustus, tactus, pulsus, somnus, and the like. Therefore the organs whereon these depend can neither be wanting, nor notoriously hurt or wounded, but the body presently dieth. Without legs, arms, tongue, eyes, ears, nose, a man may live, though a most pitiful, ugly, and loathsome spectacle, and more fit for the spital than the public society of men: But without head, heart, lungs, stomach, and the like, he cannot, namely, because these members, and the sound and good temper of them in some degree, are necessary to those faculties and functions which are requisite unto life. Apply this, and improve it by your meditation."

against Eutyches.

Were it not fit therefore, that we should tread in their steps, and frame our confession or symbolum in like manner? to wit, not making the form of our confession wholly new, but taking the former creeds or some of them for our ground, to enlarge their articles, with such further additions and explanations as the state of the times requires: that so our confession might be the creeds of the ancient Church, specified only to the present condition of the Churches and no other. Thus we should both testify to the world our communion and agreement with the ancient Catholic Church, (a matter of no small moment, that we may not seem to have made a new church or religion, as we are charged,) and yet withal distinguish ourselves from the sects, heresies and apostacies of the times. To which end it were fit the words of the ancient creeds should be retained as much as could be; and for the more easy reception thereof, that the additions and insertions should be made in the express words of scripture, as near as the nature of the composure would suffer it, and not otherwise. As for the meaning of them, their application to the several articles would specify it, as far as were needful to the end aimed at by such a confession. Compare the creeds of Nice, Athanasius and Chalcedon, with that of the Apostles, and you will understand my meaning. And consider, that in such a business as this we must not be too much in love with methods of our own devising, (though perhaps they seem better,) but follow that which all the Churches will most easily yield unto, and cannot except against. I believe our own, (as may by some passages be already guessed,)* would hardly be brought to subscribe to any other form than of such a mould. Take this also before I conclude: That my meaning is not, we should do as the council of Trent hath done, by adding twelve more articles to the creed; but that our additions should be inserted into the several articles of the ancient creed, as subordinate to them, and further explanations of them. Which those of Trent indeed could not well do, those which were added being the worst of them, incompatible and inconsistent with the former articles according to the true and original meaning of the same, and therefore not to be incorporated with them.”

To those already apprised of the aversion which the Calvinists generally manifested to the authority of the Christian Fathers, (page 430) it will not seem marvellous that they should reject all outlines of a Catholic Confession, like that which Mr. Mede had devised. His old friend Dr. Twisse, who had with avidity sought his acquaintance while he talked about the destruction of Antichrist, (page 510) could not endure the bare mention of Fundamental Articles. In a letter which Mr. Hartlib sent to

* See an account of this in pages 496 and 741.