and

Com

then

(Can. 29.) forbids reading Pfalms of private Compofi-
tion, or uncanonical Books, in the bunch,
mands, that only the Canonical Books in the Old and
New Teftament should be read there; and
adds (Can. 60.) Thefe Books of the Old Teftament
ought to be read, Genefis, Exodus, &c. and of the
New, thefe, the Four Gofpels, &c. reckoning up
all those which pue count Canonical only leaving out
the Revelation. Now the Difficulty is whether the
Revelation be left out, as a Book that is not Canoni
cel, in the Judgment of the Councilor as a Canoni
cal Book, which is not fit to be publickly read, because
not intelligible by the generality. For my part, I must
Say, that I cannot determine this Queftion either the one
way or the other. For fince the Fathers have not ex-
prefly declared themselves, they might, for ought we can
tell, leave it out as a Book which they thought not
Canonical; or they might leave it out as a Canonical
Book, which could not be rightly understood by Common
Hearers. For thus the Church of England does not
read this Book in the Leffons, for that very reafon,
but only fome Small Portions, instead of the Epistles,
on fome peculiar Festivals. And thus also she reads no
part at all of the Canticles upon the fame account,
and yet bas afferted both the one and the other, to be
part of the Canon, in the Thirty Nine Articles..

TH

CONCLUSION.

1

Hus I have gone through our Anfwerer, fo far as concerns the Vindicator, and have fhewn how little of what thet Author has faid is any way weakened, by all that is here brought against him; and that his Arguments are still as firm and convincing as ever. And the Reader may easily obferve, that though our Apfwerer fets

fets up for a Critick, and makes fad complaint, not only of the Vindicator, but Bishop Cofins, Dr. Barrow, and others of our greatest Writers, it is not for altering the Senfe of the Words, bur only for not keeping to a ftrictly literal Tranflation. Whilft, on the other hand, he allows himfelf a liberty of rendring (a) Caput and Origo, not only Head and Beginning, but Center likewife, against the Senfe of all Authors that ever made ufe of them; only because his Citations, if ftrictly rendered, would not have been to his purpose. At other times (b) Primum an Adverb, must be converted into an Adjective, and made to fignify Chief inftead of Firft. So (c) Primatus a Primacy, though it be of order only, is rendred Supremacy, (2) Summa rerum de pafcendis ovibus, is the chief Power of feeding the Sheep, that fo it may imply an univerfal Jurifdiction. Page 14, he is not afhamed to trump up that most abominably fcandalous Fable of their pretended Nagg's head Ordination, A fhameless Fiction, without any manner of Foundation, and againft abundant Evidence to the contrary; againft our Hiftories and Records; against the Teftimony of the old Earl of Nottingbam, who had been prefent at the Confecration in Lambeth-Chappel, and related the manner and particular Circumftances of it, upon his own certain knowledge; againft our conftant manner of proceeding in thefe Cafes; and after Forty Years filence on their fide, till it was thought, all that were at that Confecration, or any way concerned in it, muft needs be dead, and fo difabled for contradicting whatsoever Fallities fhould be forged concerning it; and which has been over and over confidered and confured, and

་

(b) Page 48 and 117. (c) Page 23.

(a) Page 22, 129. 48, 96. (d) Page 23.

efpecially

efpecially by the great Bishop Brambalp in shia Anfwer to Dr. Champnty, &c. bus word of

Mr. L. in the beginning of his Cafe stated, had put this Queftion to his Lord; (a) Prays Miljo Loril, what is there in the Communion of the Church of England, fhould make you think your Suk in any Danger? Would there be any hazard of your Soul, if there were no Invocation of Saints that are dead in the Publičk Offices of the Church: No Pictures, or images off Goll, to be feen there: No Elevation of the Holt, bith was but of late Tears brought into the Church No Prayers for Souls out of Purgatory: If dhe Bublick Prayers were in the Vulgar Tongue: do if the Sacrament were given in both Kinds me All this the Reftarer paffed over in a profound filence: He knew the Queftion was not to be answered, and was therefore lo wife as to fupprefs it all he could, by not only taking no notice of itinbat untruly (4) calling the next following, the First Paragraph, which the Vindicator complained of as a difingenuous manner of proceedings and endea voured to extort a fair and categorical Anfwer to it. Having repeated Mr. L's words, he adds, (b) It is certain, they are things which God has not required at our bands, all but the Two last. The rest be has no where enjoined, yet you practife them. Thefe be bas taught, and exprefly commanded, and you for bear and forbid them. And our Worship therefore s not the worfe, for not concurring with you in theft Cor ruptions, nor our Souls any way endangered, fo long as we are found in the Faith, and our Offices right in other refpects, our Service cannot poffibly be the left available to Salvation, for being free from ground lef Additions he fhould have faid, or Substractions Yet ftill there is no Anfwer to be obtained. In was an unlucky Difficulty started, andɗsince t

1

t

alannot otherwife be got over, it was neceffary to throw it afide, and fay nothing of it. And bwe must therefore not be fo unreasonable, as to expect an Anfwer where it is not to be had e -The Kindicator objected that as S. Peter had no $ foundation for an Univerfal Supremacy over the Church of Chrift, and in particular, over his Fellow Apoffies, (a) fo neither did he claim any fuch Privilege, even when the faireft occations dwere offer'd for it. He did not take upon him oto ndminâte Matthias_ro fill the place ofadas; snor did he i prefide sin the Council at Jerufalem, shor order fome others of the Apofties to go to Samarin, upon the News of that Cities having received the Word of God; nor did he undertake by his Authority, to filence the Differenges that were in the Church of Corinth, or to punish the Promoters of them, nor to cenfure SPeak for withstanding him to bis Face. To all which, here is not a word of anfwer given, fave only,s that weak pretence of the Apoftles affembling at Ferufalem not as a Synod, but as Arbirators between S. Paul and the Antiochian Jews. And whereas the Reftater had affirmed, (b) that The History of the Acts of the Apostles has enough in its to convince any unprejudiced Perfon, of S. Peter's Supremacy and the Vindicator had followed him, through all his Proofs of this nature, and fhewn the Infufficiency of them, this Author is fo far from making them good, that he takes no notice at all of them. As I have all along had occafion tol obferve a great many other Inftances of an ufeful Silence in the Body of this Anfwer to him, and fometimes in the most important Matters of iri Shuchi as thofe contained, p. 19. 20. p. 41, 42. la the former of which places, our Saviour's Pro

(4) Cafa truly fated, P. 23.
R 2

(b) Q. R. p. 18)

mife

mife to S. Peter, fo far as it concerns their Apotle himself, is hewn to relate to his laying the firft Foundation of the Church Auguftin ist noted alfo, p. 35. to have rettified. And in the latter is urged, the unreafonableness of suppoling fuch a mighty uncontroulable Power left by S. Peter at Rome, and that Antioch, where he fate firfty should have no fhare at all of itlowm

.

Besides, much the greater Part of the Cafe truly ftated, is not at all touched; I fuppofe, becaufe the Answerer would confine himfelf chiefly to what concerned the fuppofed Supremacy. However, this fhews, that he cannot any way pretend to have answered that Tract, having faid nothing at all to the far greater Part of it, having paffed over divers confiderable Paffages in thofe Parts he has taken into his confideration, and having very unfatisfactorily answered what Places he has fixed upon."

Whence it is easy also to collect, by parity of Reafon, how far he has been from confuting thofe Great Men he has made an attempt upon, as well as the Vindicator. The main of their Works he has faid nothing to. And where he has fallen upon them, it is a natural conclufion, from the course of his Procedure here, that he has treated them only in the fame flight, fuperficial manner, as he has the Vindicator: and by confequence, whoever would undertake to confute them, or any of them, has his work to begin afresh. The famous Bifhop Stillingfleet, in the Preface to his Difcourfe of the Idolatry practiced in the Church of Rome, complains of Two of his Adverfaries, for anfwering in the way that Rats anfwer Books, only by gnawing some of the Leaves? But certainly, none ever did it more exactly than this Anfwerer; whofe only Bufinefs is to carp here and there at fome particular Paffages, which

he