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We dare not be too much exalted, only we bless God from our heart, who is beginning to shine on our army, and make it, after very long expectance and beating down of our pride, to be a fountain of joy and hope to these who love the welfare of religion. We hope things in the assembly and parliament may go more after our mind. Our army oft signified to us, they conceived their want of success flowed most from God’s anger at the parliament and assembly, for their neglect of establishing of religion. We oft told them the truth, that we had no hope of any progress here, till God gave them victories; and then, we doubted not, all would run both in parliament and assembly.
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July 12, 1644.—In our assembly we go on as we may. The Independents and others kept us long three weeks upon one point alone, the communicating at a table. By this we came to debate, the divers coming up of companies successively to a table; the consecrating of the bread and wine severally; the giving of the bread to all the congregation, and then the wine to all, and so twice coming up to the table, first for the bread, and then for the wine; the mutual distribution, the table-exhortations, and a world of such questions, which to the most of them were new and strange things. After we were overtoiled with debate, we were forced to leave all these things, and take us to general expressions, which, by a benign exposition, would infer our church-practices, which the most promised to follow, so much the more as we did not necessitate them by the assembly’s express determination. We have ended the matter of the Lord’s Supper, and these last three days have been upon baptism. We have carried, with much greater ease than we expected, the publickness of baptism. The abuse was great over all this land. In the greatest parish of London, scarce one child in a-year was brought to the church for baptism. Also we have carried the parent’s presenting of his child, and not their midwives, as was their universal custom. In our last debate with the committee of Commons, for our paper of ordination, we were in the midst, over head and ears, of that greatest of our questions, the power of the parliament in ecclesiastick affairs. It is like this question shall be hotter here than any where else: but we mind to hold off; for yet it is very unseasonable. As yet we are come to no issue what to do with that paper.
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The chief point we wish were proven, is the real authority, power, and jurisdiction of synods and classical presbyteries over any the members, or the whole, of a particular congregation; also the right of ordinary professors to the sacraments, though they can give no certain or satisfactory signs of real regeneration. These two are the main heads; also I wish the power of presbyteries classical, to ordain and excommunicate, were cleared. Many besides the Independents, by Voetius’s writs, are brought to give the rights of both these actions to the congregational presbytery, much against our mind and practice. The churches of Jerusalem, Corinth, and the rest of the apostolick churches mentioned in the New Testament, which can be proven to have practised either ordination or excommunication, appear to us to have been classical, consisting of more congregations than one, and of greater numbers, when they did exercise either of these acts, than could meet in one place. Also it is a great question about the power of jurisdiction in a congregation. We are not against the people’s power of election of the officers, or, at least, free consent thereto; but beside, they press all process and acts of censures to be done, if not in the name and authority, as the Brownists, and those of New England, yet necessarily in the presence, and with the consent, not only of the presbytery congregational, but also of the whole people, even every communicant male. If in these we were agreed, I think the difficulty would be small in any other matter.
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To Mr David Dickson. July 23, 1644.
Our progress in the assembly is small; there is so much matter yet before us, as we cannot win through for a long time after our common pace. Our Independents continue and increase in their obstinacy. Much is added to their pride and hope by their service at the battle of York; albeit much of their valour is grounded on very false lies, prejudicial to God, the author, and to us, the true instruments, of that day’s honour. The politick part in the parliament is the stronger, who are resolute to conclude nothing in the matters of religion, that may grieve the sectaries, whom they count necessary for the time. Our army is much diminished in number and reputation. Also here Callendar’s army is called very small, and no ways able to reduce Newcastle. The letters we have, both from the committee and presbytery at York, are much for a safe peace; which we wish from our heart; but think their proponing of it is from the conscience of their present weakness. We fear the extraordinar long stay of our commissioners be from new factions and divisions among yourselves.
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