12                                1666

____________________________________________________________________________

         To the honoured General Court now sitting at Boston

These are for the Elders & Ministers of the churches mett at Boston April 30

1668 touching the case of those that set up an assembly heer among us in

the way of Anabaptisme.

 

That it belongs to the civill authority to exercise their care & power

about matters of this nature & to restrayne & suppress open Enormities in

Religion, that are of momentous & perilous consequence is abundantly

clear from the Scriptures : Magistrates ought to be nursing fathers to

the church Isai 49 23. & 60 16  To be a terror to all sorts of Evill works

breaking forth in the outward man Rom 13. 3 4. I Pet 2. 14 Prov. 20 8

Possitively to put forth their power in reference to godliness as well as honesty

I[27] Tim. 2. 2. To put away evill from Israel Deut. 13. 5 11 & 17 7. 12. 13

to serve Christ with all the power that is in their hand psalm 2. 10. 11. 12.

to look to the Externall observation of the 4^th commandm^t  20 Exod 10. ffor

who but the magistrate can restrayne the stranger within our gates from Sab=

=bath breaking? Magistrates in all times & places, In Israel, In Judah (before

& after the captivity) in the land of Uz (Job 31 20-28.) In Caldea (Dan 3

29) In Persia [Ezra 6 &7] and Nineveh [Jonah 3. 7 8] are commanded for

putting forth their power this way & soe alsoe in the New Testament the

improvement of civill power for the help of the church in the work of re

formation & in rooting out Heathenish & Antichristian corruptions is prophe

=sied off as a great favour from God; a matter of the earnest prayers & hopes

of the church & a great advancement to Christs kingdome Zack. 13. 2-3.

Prov: 12 5 7-10 and 16. 4, 7. & 17: 13 16 & 11 15 & 19. 13 16. & 21 24 

 That this setting up of an assembly heer in y^e way of Anabaptisme Is

such an open Enormity of soe momentous & perilous consequence as ought

not to be allowed in this place by the governm^t of this Jurisdiction may

appear by the reasons following. –––

The way of Anabaptisme is a known & Irreconciliabl enimy to the ortho

dox & orderly Churches of Christ & soe to these heer established, 1 by making

infant Baptisme a nullity & soe making us all to be unbaptized persons, and

therefore to have noe Regular churches, ministry or ordinances, yea to be

incapabl of obtayning them in any ordinary way. 2. by Renouncing all

our churches, either as noe Churches or as soe bad & corrupt that they are

not fitt to be held communion with: 3 by Rejecting the true covenant of God

(Gen 17. 12-14) wherby the church is constituted, & continued & cutting of from y^e

churches half the members that belong unto them: 4 By its known & constant

opposition to an orderly settled able ministry, & to the power of the magistra

=tes in matters of Religion: 5 By teaching men to disacknowledge or slight

a political ministerial judg (either Ecclesiastical or Civill) & to set up them

=selves as their own sole Judges in their own case, & soe introducing a

spirit of anarchy & confusion: 6 By entertayning those that are weary

of Christs truth & governm^t in the churches, or fall under censure therein

soe multiplying Schismes & Confusion, & makeing our discipline to be of none

Effect:  Hence an assembly in the way of Anabaptism would be a Mount

Gerasim among us, and its temple an Enimy in this habitation of y^e Lord

An anti-New England in New=England manifestly tending to the disturbing

and destruction of these churches, which their nursing fathers ought not to be

                                                                allowed