Robinson's Disputes with the Arminians at Leyden.
Bradford's Account.
In these times allso were ye great troubls raised by ye Arminians, who, as they greatly molested ye whole state so this citie in particuler, in which was ye cheefe universitie; so as 3ther were dayly & hote disputs in ye schooles ther aboute; and. as ye studients & other lerned were devided in their oppinions hearin, so were ye 2. proffessors or devinitie readers them selves; the one daly teaching for it, ye other against it. Which grew to that pass, that few of the discipls of ye one would hear ye other teach. But Mr. Robinson, though he taught thrise a weeke him selfe, & write sundrie books, besids his manyfould pains otherwise, yet he went constantly to hear ther readings, and heard ye one as well as ye other; by which means he was so well grounded in ye controversie, and saw ye force of all their arguments, and knew ye shifts of ye adversarie, and being him selfe very able, none was fitter to buckle with them then him selfe, as appered by sundrie disputs; so as he begane to be terrible to ye Arminians; which made Episcopius (ye Arminian professor) to put forth his best stringth, and set forth sundrie Theses, which by publick dispute he would defend against all men. Now Poliander ye other proffessor, and ye cheefe preachers of ye citie, desired Mr. Robinson to dispute against him; but he was loath, being a stranger; yet the other did importune him, and tould him ye such was ye abilitie and nimblnes of ye adversarie, that ye truth would suffer if he did not help them. So as he condesended, & prepared him selfe against the time; and when ye day came, the Lord did so help him to defend ye truth & foyle this adversarie, as he put him to an apparent nonplus, in this great & publike audience. And ye like he did a 2. or 3. time, upon such like occasions. The which as it caused many to praise God yt the trueth had so famous victory, so it procured him much honour & respecte from those lerned men & others which loved ye trueth.