trine of a chriftian man, and added to it a fection upon free will. in which free-will is defined "A power of "the will joined with eafon, whereby a reafonable "creature, without conftraint, in things of reason, "difcerneth and willeth good and evil; but CHU.

SETH GOOD BY THE ASSISTANCE OF GOD'S GRACE, "and EVIL OF ITSELF.”—“ Wherefore,” adds Granmer," men be to be warned, that they do not im

pute to God their vice or their damnation, but to "themselves, which by FREE-WILL have abused the "grace and benefits of God.-All men be also to be "monished, and chiefly preachers, that in this high "matter, they, looking on both fides" [i. e. regard ing both gofpel-axioms]" fo attemper and moderate "themfelves, that neither they fo preach the grace of "God" [with Zelotes]" that they take away thereby free-will; nor, on the other fide, fo extoll freewill [with Honeftus] that injury be done to the grace of "God."

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I grant that in the book, from which this quotation + is taken, there are fome errors, which Cranmer afterwards renounced, as he had done abfolute predeftination

+ Burnet's Hift. of the Refor. 2 Ed. Part. I. p. 291, and a pamphlet intitled A differtation on the 17th Article, &c. furnith me with thefe important quotations the laft seems greatly to embarrass Mr. Hill. He attempts to fet it afide by urging: (1) That in The neceffary erudition of a chriftian man," the doctrines of the mafs, tranfubftantiation, &c. are particularly taught as necessary to fatvation." (2) That "Bonner and Gardiner, as well as Cranmer, gave their imprimatur to it:" And (3) That " even in this book the "doctrine of predeftination is not denied, but the thing itself clearly ad"mitted; only it is laid down in fuch a manner as not to, &c. fuperfede the neceffity of perfonal boliness." To this I anfwer (1) That Cranmer expressly recanted the errors which Mr. Hill mentions, but inftead of recanting the doctrines of free-grace and free-will, he proceeded upon that very plan in drawing up our articles, and liturgy, as I fhall prove just now.-(2) That Benner and Gardiner gave their imprimatur to this quotation, no more proves that it contains falle doctrine, than their fubfcribing to the 39 Articles fome years after fhows, that our articles are heretical.-(3) We thank Mr. Hill for informing the public that the Book called THE ERUDITION OF

deftination before. But, that he never varied from the doctrine of free-will laid down in the above-mentioned paffage, is evident from the tenour of our ar ticles of religion, which he penn❜d, and which contain exactly the doctrine of the above-quoted lines.

Hear him, and the church of England, publicly maintaining free-grace and free-will. In the tenth article, OF FREE-WILL, they affert, that "We have "no power to do good works pleafant and acceptable to "God, WITHOUT THE GRACE OF GOD by Chrift

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PREVENTING [i. e. frft vifiting] us, that we may have a GOOD will, and WORKING WITH US "when we have that GOOD will.” Hence it evidently follows that WE HAVE A POWER TO DO GOOD, &C. WITH the grace of God by Chrift PREVENTING [i, e. firit vifiting us that we may have a good will. Let the article be thrown into the fcales, and the judicious reader will eafily fee that it directly or indirectly guards the very doctrine which the Fathers maintained, and which we defend, No. 1, against Honeftus, and No. 2, against Zelotes.

I. "The condition of 66 man after the fall of "Adam is fuch, that he " CANNOT turn and prepare himself BY HIS

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2. The condition of man after the fall of Adam [and the promise made to him] is fuch, that he CAN turn and prepare himself

to

A CHRISTIAN MAN clearly admits the doctrine of predeftination, only in fuch a manner as not to fuperfede the neceffity of holiness. This is juft the manner in which we admit it after Cranmer in our 17th Article. And we argue thus: If the doctrine of free-grace and free-will admirably-well balanced by Cranmer in The Erudition of a chriftian man, is a falfe doctrine, because that book contains fome papiftical errors: does it not follow, that the doctrine of a predeftination confiftent with perfonal holiness is a falfe doctrine, fince [Mr. Hill himfelf being judge] fuch a doctrine is clearly admitted in that very book?-If Mr. Hill gives himself time to weigh this fhort anfwer to his pamphlet intitled "Cranmer vindicated from the charge of [what he is pleafed to call] Pelagianifm, by the author of Goliath Bain; I make no doubt but he will fee, that Goliath, [if that word means our doctrine] far from being flain, is not fo much as wounded.

ουτ the grace "God by Chrift prevent"ing us [i, e. vifuiting "us firft] that we may "have a good will, and working WITH" [not "WITHOUT]"us, when will. "we have that good will," |

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US,

when we have that good

Who does not fee, that there is not the least disagreement between these balanced propofitions? And that, when Zelotes produces the Xth article of the church of England to prove us hereticks, he acts as unreasonable a part as if he produced John xv. 5, to fhow that St. Paul was not orthodox when he wrote Phil. iv. 13.

2. I (Paul) can do all things THRO' CHRIST. Phil. iv. 13.

This

The Rev. Mr. Toplady makes much ado in his Hiftorical proof of the Calvinifm of our church, about fome diffenters, whom he calls free-willers, and represents as the first separatifts from the church of England. But they were rigid Pelagian-free-willers, and not moderate, bible-free-willers fuch as Cranmer was, and all unprejudiced church-men are. This is evident from the account which Mr. Toplady himself gives us of their tenets, page 54. Some of which are as follows, "That children were not born in original fin:-That luft after evil was not fin, if the act were not committed," &c. Honeftus does not run into fuch an extreme: much less we, who stand with Cranmer on the line of moderation, at an equal distance from Calvinian, rigid bound-willers, and from Pelagian, rigid free-willers. I hope this hint is fufficient to fhow, that, tho' the fimple may be frighted by the words free-willers and feparatifts, no judi cions churchof-England-man will think, that he feparates from our church, when he ftands to the harmonizing doctrine of free-grace and free-will, which is maintained in our Xth article, and in these pages.

This fuppofed "herefy" runs thro 'our common prayer-book. Take one or two inftances of it. In her catechifm fhe teaches every child whom he nurfes, to thank God for calling him to this ftate of falvation-i. e, to a state of initial falvation according to the chriftian covenant. She informs him that his duty is to love God with all his heart, and his neighbour as himself, &c. and then he adds: My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of THY SELF, nor to walk in the commandments of God, WITHOUT HIS SPECIAL GRACE, which thou must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer, &c. Now every child, whofe mind is not yet tainted with Calvinism, understands the language of our holy mother according to the doctrine of the scales, thus.

2. By God's special grace I AM ABLE to love him with all my heart, &c.

2. I am able to walk in the commandments of God WITH HIS SPECIAL GRACE, "and, by God's GRACE, SO I WILL."

2. To have God's SPECIAL GRACE I must learn at all times to call for it by diligent prayer; according to the help afforded me in my ftate of initial falvation.

This doctrine of free grace and free-will runs alfo thro' the collects of our church. Read one of those which Zelotes admires most. Grant to us, Lord, e befeech thee, the Spirit [i. e. the fpecial grace] to think and do always fuch things as be rightful; that we, who CANNOT DO any thing that is good WITHOUT THEE, may BY THEE BE ENABLED to live according to thy will, thro' Jefus Christ our Lord. 9th Sund. aft. Trinity. Divide the doctrine of this collect accord

ing to the two gofpel-axioms, and you will have the following balanced propofitions.

1. We cannot do any thing that is good WITH

OUT THEE, or THY SPI-
RIT.

1. We cannot but by thee live according to thy will, &c.

2. BY THEE or thy SPIRIT we can think and do always fuch things as be rightful.

2. By thee we can live according to thy will, &c.

To bring more proofs that this is the doctrine of the church of England, would be to offer an infult to the attention of her children. Nor can her fentiments on free-will be more clearly expreffed than they are in these words of the martyr'd prelate who drew up her articles: "It pleaseth the high wifdom of God, that "man prevented [i. e. firft vifited] by his grace, "which being offered man may, IF HE WILL refuse or receive, be alfo a worker BY HIS FREE CON"SENT and obedience to the fame, &c. and by "God's grace and help shall walk in fuch works as "be requifite to his" [continued * and final] “ juft:"fication." Necef. Doct.

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However, left Zelotes fhould object to my quoting the Neceffary Doctrine of a chriftian man, I substitute for the preceding quotation one, to which he has indirectly fubfcribed in fubfcribing to the 35th article of our church. "CAST WE off all malice, and ALL EVIL WILL; for this Spirit will never enter into an EVIL-WILLING foul" [to bring there his SPECIAL GRACE. LET US caft away all the whole lump of "fin that standeth about us, for he will never dwell "in a body that is fubdued to fin, &c. IF WE DO "OUR ENDEAVOUR, we fhall not need to fear. WE “SHALL BE AELE to overcome all our enemies, &c. "ONLY

I add the words continued and final, to guard the unconditional freeness of initial justification and salvation; because this juftification is previous to all works on our part, and because all good works are but the voluntary [Zelotes would fay, the neceflary] fruits of the free gift, which is come upon all men to juftification. Rom. v. 18.