The sectaries of divers sorts, Anabaptists chiefly, increase here. Very many are for a total liberty of all religions, and write very plausible treatises for that end. Sundry of the Independents are stepped out of the church, and follow my good acquaintance Mr Roger Williams, who says, there is no church, no sacraments, no pastors, no church-officers or ordinance in the world, nor has been since a few years after the apostles. If our commissioners were once come up, we mind to put them a little harder to it, and see what they understand by their uniformity, which they have sworn to us. We can make no certain conclusion, but that we believe God will work his own gracious ends by man’s weakness. One week we have fair appearance to get all things quickly done according to our mind, another week such alteration in affairs, that nothing less can be hoped for. These vicissitudes of hopes and despair, when we look to the earth, are very frequent.
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Our assembly being wearied with sitting since the beginning of July was a-year, without any intermission, was earnest for a little relaxation; so fourteen days were obtained from the Houses, of vacation. We sit not till Wednesday, August 7th.
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For Glasgow. August 7, 1644.
This day we sit down in our assembly, after our vacance. The House of Commons have past the paper of ordination unanimously, with some alterations, which are to be considered by us. The right settling of that business will be a great step to advance our affairs. The little interruption we have had in our sitting, make both ourselves, the Houses, and the city, and all the world, to call on us for dispatch; and it seems God, disposing of all affairs, is making for our furtherance; so we hope for a farther progress quickly, than for a long time by-gone we have made.
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That old fox Urban is at last gone to his place; yet the devil his father cannot die, and will never want a son to be the Pope’s successor. At our sitting down this day, a great many of our brethren did complain of the great increase and insolency in divers places of the Antinomian and Anabaptistical conventicles. A committee was appointed for a remedy of this evil, to be represented quickly to the parliament. Mr Edwards has written a splendid confutation of all the Independents apology. All the ministers of London, at least more than 100 of them, have agreed to erect a weekly lecture for him in Christ’s Church, in the heart of the city, where he may handle these questions, and nothing else, before all that will come to hear. We hope God will provide remeids for that evil of Independency, the mother and true fountain of the church’s distractions here.
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For Mr William Spang. August 10, 1644.