A Survey of the Fifth Chapter

[Alleged evils from the free exercise of conscience — Charges of Parker against Nonconformists — Mischief of different sects in a commonwealth — Duties of a prince in regard to divided interests in religion — Principle of toleration asserted.]

The fifth chapter is at such variance with itself and what is elsewhere dictated in the treatise, that it would require no small labour to make any tolerable composition of things between them. This I shall not engage in, as not being of my present concernment. What seems to tend unto the carrying on of the design of the whole may be called unto some account. In the beginning of it he tells us that “a belief of the indifferency, or rather imposture, of all religions is made the most effectual, not to say the most fashionable, argument for liberty of conscience,” For my part, I never read, I never heard of this pretence or argument, to be used to that purpose. It wants no such defence. Nay, the principle itself seems to me to be suited directly to oppose and overthrow it: for if there be no such thing in reality as religion in the world, it is certainly a very foolish thing to have differences perpetuated amongst men upon the account of conscience; which, without a supposition of religion, is nothing but a vain and empty name. But hence our author takes occasion to discourse of the use of religion and conscience in the government of affairs in the world; and proves in many words that “conscience unto God, 455with a regard to future eternal rewards or punishments, is the great ligament of human society, the security of government, the strongest bond of laws, and only support of rule; without which every man would first and last be guided by mere self-interest, which would reduce all power and authority to mere force and violence.” To this purpose doth he discourse at large in one section of this chapter; and in another, with no less earnestness and elegancy of words, and repetition of various expressions of the same signification, that “the use and exercise of conscience will certainly overthrow all government, and fill the world with confusion”! In like manner, whereas we have been hitherto throughly instructed, as I thought, that men may think what they will in the matters of religion, and be of what persuasion they please, [and] no man can or ought to control them therein, here we are told that “no power nor policy can keep men peaceable until some persuasions are rooted out of their minds by severity of laws and penalties”! p. 145. And whereas heretofore we were informed that “men might believe what they would,” princes were concerned only in their outward practice, now are we assured that “above all things it concerns princes to look to the doctrines and articles of men’s belief”! p. 147. But these things, as was before intimated, are not of our concern.

Nor can I find much of that importance in the third and fourth paragraphs of this declamatory invective. It is evident whom he regards and reflects upon, and with what false, unmanly, unchristian revilings he endeavours to traduce them. He would have the world believe that there is a generation of men whose principles of religion teach them to be proud, peevish, malicious, spiteful, envious, turbulent, boisterous, seditious, and whatever is evil in the world; when others are all for candour, moderation, and ingenuity, — amongst whom, no doubt, he reckons himself for one, and gives in this discourse in evidence thereof. But what are those doctrines and articles of men’s belief, which dispose them inevitably to all the villanies that our author could find names for? A catalogue of them he gives us, pp. 147, 148. Saith he, “What if they believe that princes are but the executioners of the decrees of the presbytery; and that in case of disobedience to their spiritual governors they may be excommunicated, and by consequence deposed? What if they believe that dominion is founded in grace, and therefore all wicked kings forfeit their crowns, and that it is in the power of the people of God to bestow them where they please? And what if others believe that to pursue their successes in villany and rebellion is to follow providence?” All the world knows what it is that hath given him the advantage of providing a covering for these monstrous fictions, and an account thereof hath been given elsewhere. And what, now, if those intended 456do not believe these things, nor any one of them? What if they do openly disavow every one of them, as, for aught I ever heard or know, they do, and as I do myself? What if some of them are ridiculously framed into articles of faith, from the supposed practices of some individual persons? And what if men be of never so vile opinions about the pursuit of their successes, so they have none to countenance them in any unlawful enterprises; which, I think, must go before successes? What if only the Papists be concerned in these articles of faith, and they only in one of them, about the excommunication and deposition of princes, and that only some of them; and not one of those has any concern in them whom he intends to reproach? I say, if these things are so, we need look no farther for the principles of that religion which hath furnished him with all this candour, moderation, and ingenuity, and hath wrought him to such a quiet and peaceable temper, by teaching him that humility, charity, and meekness, which here bewray themselves.

Let it be granted, as it must and ought to be, that all principles of the minds of men, pretended to be from apprehensions of religion, that are in themselves inconsistent with any lawful government, in any place whatever, ought to be coerced and restrained; for our Lord Jesus Christ, sending his gospel to be preached and published in all nations and kingdoms of the world, then and at all times under various sorts of governments, all for the same end of public tranquillity and prosperity, did propose nothing in it but what a submission and obedience unto might be consistent with the government itself, of what sort soever it were. He came, as they used to sing of old, “to give men a heavenly kingdom, and not to deprive them or take from them their earthly temporal dominions.” There is, therefore, nothing more certain than that there is no principle of the religion taught by Jesus Christ which either in itself, or in the practice of it, is inconsistent with any righteous government on the earth. And if any opinions can truly and really be manifested so to be, I will be no advocate for them nor their abettors. But such as these our author shall never be able justly to affix on them whom he opposeth, nor the least umbrage of them, if he do but allow the gospel and the power of Christ to institute those spiritual ordinances, and require their administration, which do not, which cannot, extend unto any thing wherein a magistrate, as such, hath the least concernment in point of prejudice; for if, on a false or undue practice of them, any thing should be done that is not purely spiritual, or that, being done, should be esteemed to operate upon may of the outward concerns, relations, interests, or occasions of men, they may be restrained by the power of him who presides over public good.

But besides these pretences, our author, I know not how, chargeth 457also the humours, inclinations, and passions of some men as inconsistent with government, and always disposing men to fanaticism and sedition; and on occasion thereof falls out into an excess of intemperance in reproaching them whom he opposeth, such as we have not above once or twice before met with the like; and in particular, he raves about that “zeal,” as he calls it, for the glory of God, which hath “turned whole nations into shambles, filled the world with butcheries and massacres, and fleshed itself with slaughters of myriads of mankind.” Now, omitting all other controversies, I shall undertake to maintain this against any man in the world, that the effects here so tragically expressed have been produced by the zeal our author pleads for, in compelling all unto the same sentiments and practices in religion, incomparably above what hath ensued upon any other pretence in or about religion whatever. This, if need require, I shall evince with such instances, from the entering of Christianity into the world to this very day, as will admit of no competition with all those together which, on any account or pretence, have produced the like effects. This it was and is that hath soaked the earth with blood, depopulated nations, ruined families, countries, kingdoms, and at length made innumerable Christians rejoice in the yoke of Turkish tyranny, to free themselves from their perpetual persecutions on the account of their dissent from the worship publicly established in the places of their nativity. And as for the humours, inclinations, and passions of men, when our author will give such rules and directions as whereby the magistrate may know how to make a true and legal judgment of who are fit on their account to live in his territories, and who are not, I suppose there will not be any contest about them. Until then, we may leave them, as here displayed and set up by our author, for every one to cast a cudgel at them that hath a mind thereunto.

For to what purpose is it to consider the frequent occasions he takes to discourse about the ill tempers and humours of men, or of inveighing against them for being “morose and ungentle, unsociable, peevish, censorious,” with many other terms of reproach that do not at present occur to my memory, nor are, doubtless, worth the searching after? Suppose he hath the advantage of a better natural temper, have more sedate affections, a more compliant humour, be more remote from giving or receiving provocations, and have learned the ways of courtly deportment, only was pleased to veil them all and every one in the writing of this discourse, is it meet that they should be persecuted and destroyed, be esteemed seditious, and I know not what, because they are of a natural temper not so disposed to affability and sweetness of conversation as some others are? For my part, I dislike the humour and temper of mind characterized by our author, 458it may be as much as he, — I am sure, I think, as much as I ought; but to make it a matter of such huge importance as solemnly to introduce it into a discourse about religion and public tranquillity will not, it may be, on second thoughts, be esteemed over-considerately done. And it is not unlikely but that our author seems of as untoward a composition and peevish a humour to them whom he reflects upon as they do to him, and that they satisfy themselves as much in their disposition and deportment as he doth himself in his.

[Catull., xxii. 18]

Sect. v. pp. 155, 156, he inveighs against the events that attend the permission of different sects of religion in a commonwealth; and it is not denied but that some inconveniences may ensue thereon. But, as himself hath well observed in another place, we do not in these things inquire what is absolutely best, and what hath no inconvenience attending it; but what is the best which, in our present condition, we can attain unto, and what in that state answers the duty that God requireth of us. Questionless, it were best that we should be all of one mind in these things of God, and it is no doubt also our duty on all hands to endeavour so to be; but seeing, “de facto,” this is not so, nor is it in the power of men, when and how they will, to depose those persuasions of their minds and dictates of their consciences from whence it is not so, on the one part or the other (although in some parts of our differences some may do so and will not, namely, in things acknowledged to be of no necessity antecedent to their imposition, and some would do so and cannot), it is now inquired, What is the best way to be steered in for the accomplishment of the desired end of peace and tranquillity for the future, and maintaining love, quietness, and mutual usefulness at present amongst men? Two ways are proposed to this purpose. The one is, to exercise mutual forbearance to each other whilst we are inevitably under the power of different persuasions in these things, producing no practices that are either injurious unto private men in their rights, or hurtful unto the state as to public peace; endeavouring, in the meantime, by the evidence of truth, and a conversation suited unto it, to win upon each other to a consent and agreement in the things wherein we differ. The other is, by severe laws, penalties, outward force, as imprisonments, mulcts, fines, banishments, or capital punishments, to compel all men out of hand to a uniformity of practice, whatever their judgments be to the contrary. Now, as the state of things is amongst us, which of these ways is most suitable to the law of our being and creation, the best principles of the nature of man, and those which have the most evident resemblance 459of divine perfections, the gospel, the spirit and letter of it, with the mind of its author, our Lord Jesus Christ, — which is most conducing to attain the end aimed at, in ways of a natural and genuine compliance with the things themselves of religion, conscience, and divine worship, — is left unto the judgment of God and all good men.

In the meantime, if men will make declamations upon their own surmises, jealousies, and suspicions of things which are either so indeed, that is, really surmised, or pretended to be so, for some private interests or advantages of their own, which no man can answer or remove; if they may fancy at their pleasure ghosts, goblins, fiends, walking sprights, seditions, drums, trumpets, armies, bears and tigers; every difference in religion, be it never so small, be the agreement amongst them that differ never so great; be it the visible, known, open interest of them that dissent from what is established to live quietly and peaceably, and to promote the good of the commonwealth wherein they live; do they profess that it is their duty, their principle, their faith and doctrine, to obey constantly their rulers and governors in all things not contrary to the mind of God, and pretend no such commands of his as should interfere in the least with their power in order to public tranquillity; do they offer all the security of their adherence to such declared principles as mankind is necessitated to be contented and satisfied with in things of their highest concernment; do they avow an especial sense of the obligation that is put upon them by their rulers when they are protected in peace; have they no concernment in any such political societies, combinations, interests as might alone give countenance unto any such disturbance; — all is one, every different opinion is press-money, and every sect is an army, although they be all and every one of them Protestants, of whom alone we do discourse, Other answer, therefore, I shall not return unto this part of our author’s arguing than what he gave of old, —

[Plaut., Trin. i. 2, 44.]

Only, I may add, that sundry of the instances our author makes use of are false and unduly alleged; for what is here charged on differences in and about religion, in reference unto public tranquillity, might have been, yea, and was, charged on Christian religion for three hundred years, and is so by many still on Protestancy, as such; and that it were a very easy and facile task to set out the pernicious evils of a compelled agreement in the practice of religion, and those 460not fancied only or feigned, but such as do follow it, have followed it, and will follow it in the world.

An inquiry in this invective, tending to evince its reasonableness, is offered in p. 158, — namely, “Where there are divided interests in religion in the same kingdom, it is asked, how shall the prince behave himself towards them?” The answer thereunto is not, I confess, easy, because it is not easy to be understood what is intended by “divided interests in religion.” We will, therefore, lay that aside, and consider what really is amongst us, or may be, according to what we understand by these expressions. Suppose, then, that in the same profession of protestant religion, some different ways and observances in the outward worship of God should be allowed, and the persons concerned herein have no other, cannot be proved to have any other interest, with respect unto religion, but to “fear God and honour the king,” it is a very easy thing to return an answer to this inquiry: for, not entering into the profound political speculation of our author about “balancing of parties, or siding with this or that party,” where the differences themselves constitute no distinct parties, in reference to civil government and public tranquillity, let the prince openly avow, by the declaration of his judgment, his constant practice, his establishing of legal rights, disposing of public favours in places and preferments, that way of religion which himself owns and approves; and let him indulge and protect others of the same religion, for the substance of it, with what himself professeth, in the quiet and peaceable exercise of their consciences in the worship of God, keeping all dissenters within the bounds allotted to them, that none transgress them to the invasion of the rights of others; — and he may have both the reality and glory of religion, righteousness, justice, and all other royal virtues; which will render him like to Him whose vicegerent he is; and he will undoubtedly reap the blessed fruits of them in the industry, peaceableness, and loyalty of all his subjects whatever.

There are sundry things, in the close of this chapter, objected against such a course of procedure, but those such as are all of them resolved into a supposition that they who in any place or part of the world desire liberty of conscience for the worship of God have indeed no conscience at all; for it is thereon supposed, without farther evidence, that they will thence fall into all wicked and unconscientious practices. I shall make, as I said, no reply to such surmises. Christianity suffered under them for many ages; Protestancy hath done so in sundry places for many years; and those who now may do so must, as they did, bear the effects of them as well as they are able. Only I shall say, first, Whatever is of real inconvenience in this pretension, on the supposition of liberty of conscience, is no way removed by taking away all 461different practices, unless ye could also obliterate all different persuasions out of the minds of men; which, although in one place he tells us ought to be done by severe penalties, yet in another he acknowledgeth that the magistrate hath no cognizance of any such things, who yet alone is the inflicter of all penalties. Nay, where different apprehensions are, the absolute prohibition of different answerable practices doth a thousand times more dispose the minds of men to unquietness than where they are allowed both together, as hath been before declared. And he that can obliterate out of and take away all different apprehensions and persuasions about the worship of God from the minds and consciences of men, bringing them to centre in the same thoughts and judgments absolutely, in all particulars about them,

[Lucret., v. 8,]

he is God, and not man.

Secondly, It is granted that the magistrate may and ought to restrain all principles and outward practices that have any natural tendency unto the disturbance of the peace; which being granted, and all obligations upon dissenting parties being alone put upon them by the supreme legislative and executive power of the kingdoms and nations of the world, public tranquillity is, and will be, as well secured on that respect as such things are capable of security in this world. All the longsome discourse, therefore, which here ensues, — wherein all the evils that have been in this nation are charged on liberty of conscience, from whence not one of them did proceed, seeing there was no such thing granted until, upon other civil and political accounts, the flood-gates were set open unto the following calamities and confusions, — is of no use, nor unto any purpose at all: for until it can be demonstratively proved that those who do actually suffer, and are freely willing so to do (as far as the foregoing otherwise lawful advantages, open unto them as well as others, may be so called), and resolved to undergo what may farther, to their detriment, yea, to their ruin, be inflicted on them, to preserve their consciences entire unto some commands of God, have no respect unto others of as great evidence and light to be his (as are those which concern their obedience unto magistrates, compared with those which they avow about the worship of God); and that private men, uninterested in, and incapable of, any pretence unto public authority of any sort, do always think themselves warranted to do such things as others have done, pleading right and authority for their warranty; and until it be made manifest, also, that they have any other or greater interest than to enjoy their particular conditions and estates in peace, and to exercise themselves in the worship of God according as they apprehend 462his mind to be, — these declamations are altogether vain, and, as to any solid worth, lighter than a feather.

And I could desire if these controversies must be farther debated, that our author would omit the pursuit of those things which are really ἔξω τοῦ πράγματος, and, according to the ancient custom, attend ἄνευ προοιμίων καὶ παθῶν, without rhetorical prefaces or unreasonable passions, unto the merit of the cause. To this purpose I suppose it might not be amiss for him to consider a few sheets of paper lately published under the title of “A Case Stated,” etc, wherein he will find the main controversy reduced to its proper heads, and a modest provocation unto an answer to what is proposed about it.