ders in his laft Section? He thinks fit to put the Bishop in mind of fome Paffages in our Articles, Canons, and Hiftory relating to Ordination, &c. as if the Bishop had either forgot, or rejected 'em. Undoubtedly Mr. H---gs is as proper a Monitor, as Harding was to Bishop Jewel. 'Tis well for that Bishop that Mr. H---gs was not his Cotemporary, he wou'd have reprimanded him feverely for feveral Paffages in his admirable Apology; as particularly for thefe Words, p. 182. Animo pio ac Deum timenti promiffa eft Dei Gratia, non "Cathedris & Succeffionibus. Mr. Hgs wou'd have loaded him with Tragical Accufations of flighting and defpifing the Epifcopal Powers and Sacred Character, of rejecting the great Evidence of the Christian Religion, and of holding Principles that feem destructive of all Reveal'd Religion. I think Mr. H---gs is one of the first who has made a Regular Uninterrupted Succeffion one of the prime Evidences of the Christian Religion. The Papists, indeed, have made it one of the Marks of the true Church; but whoever looks into the Writings of our most eminent Reform'd Divines, will find, that they have by no means laid any ftrefs upon fuch a Regular Uninterrupted Succeffion of Perfons in Holy Offices; bat upon a Succeffion in the true Faith, and found Doctrine, which was the very Senfe of the Primitive Fathers. Tertul. in Lib. de Prafcription. fays, Non ex perfonis fidem, fed ex fide perfonas probari oportet. And St. Ambrofe, de Pænitentia, l. 1. c. 6. fays, Non habent Hareditatem Petri, qui fidem Petri non ha bent. Mr. H-gs may fee, that the Pope's Pretence of a regular uninterrupted Succeffion from St. Peter, would have been defpis'd by St. Ambrofe, unlefs he fucceeded to the Faith of St. Peter, which we are fure he does not. Yet in this Point of Succeffion, the Vanity and Pride of our Romish Adver

faries

faries is very remarkable, and very ridiculous: And 'tis not lefs remarkable, that fome amongst us fnatch up Popish Cudgels, with which they affault their own Proteftant Bishops. 'Tis a melancholy, but a true Obfervation, that fome peevish Spirits amongst us, who are weak in the Faith, but ftrong in their Paffions and Refentments, having taken Offence at the late Revolution, are grown angry with their Leaders, and are making daily Advances towards Popery. Several Proofs of this are to be met with in the Writings of Dr. Hickes, aud Mr. Lefly, and others too, whom I am unwilling to name, because I would hope they may grow wifer.

S.83. But I muft return to Mr. H--gs, who be cause he fo boldly challenges the Bifhop in his Enr quiry, and his Addrefs to the Convocation, upon the point of a regular uninterrupted Succeffion, &c. he's defir'd to look over any Series of Bifhops, of any of the Sees now extant, and confider with himself, if he can trace any one Succeffion, from the prefent Bishop up to the Apostles, that has been strictly regular in all the intermediate Bishops; and if he can produce fuch certain and undoubted Accounts of fuch a Succeffion, as may fully fatisfy himself and all other reasonable Men, that there has been no Irregularity in the whole Succeffion. My Lord, Mr. Hgs must be furnish'd with fome extraordinary Accounts befides what are now publick, if he can, make out this regular Succeffion with that Certainty, as his Opinion of the Neceflity of fuch a Succeffion does neceffarily require he fhould. He will find himself oblig'd to fuppofe and prefume in many Particulars, where he cannot have Certainty, and will be forc'd to speak in as modeft Terms about this regular Succeffion, as the Bishop and other wife Men have done; who taking things as 'they find

them,

them, lay no greater stress upon them than they will bear.

S. 84. My Lord, this Gentleman's Zeal would not let him reft after a fingle Attack upon the Bishop. of Bangor; but he comes on with another Affault upon him, and two other Divines, in a Paper call'd, The Layman's humble Addrefs to the Convocation, &c. The Title and Conclufion are in the Stile of one Perfon, but the beginning is Plural. What Helps he has had, I know not; but I doubt he has no Friends to advise him, or is deaf to all Advice. It must be fome Satisfaction to the Bishop and his Friends to obferve, that the Prefervative has not yet been oppos'd by one judicious Writer. His Lordship's only Antagonists are the open Enemies, or the ignorant Friends of our Church and Conftitution: Of the laft there would be fome Hopes, if they would please to review the Prefervative with lefs Paffion, and more Attention and Modesty : Rare Qualities, I confefs, in an Adverfary, but not impoffible to be found in a good Chriftian. Had Mr. H-gs acted in this matter with a due regard to himself and his Superiours, for whom he often profeffes a great regard, the Publick had not seen his Addrefs to the Bishops. My Lord, there are, as is well known, abundance of Lay-Gentlemen and others of our Communion, as much concern'd in thefe Matters, and as capable of reprefenting their Concern to the Convocation, as Mr. H-gs. But fince the Cafe of two of the Reverend Divines, against whom Mr. H-gs is become an Appellant, has been difmifs'd by that venerable Body; he should have fhewn them fo much Duty at least, as to forbear to follicite them, and have left them to take their own, which we hope will be a feasonable time, for a further Deliberation upon those weighty and important Points; which are of that high

Nature,

Nature, that they deferve the ftrictest and most attentive Confideration. Upon all the ordinary Heads of Controverfy with the Church of Rome, our and the foreign Reformers had written with fo much Judgment and Exactnefs at the beginning of the Reformation, that they left little room for Additions or Improvement. Most of the Texts were examin'd, and the feveral Passages in the Fathers were produc'd to the greatest advantage: But the Doctrines of the Trinity, and the Divinity of our Bleffed Saviour, were receiv'd in our Church at the beginning of our happy Reformation, as thofe Doctrines were then generally understood and explain'd in all the Western Churches. These great Myfteries being attended with Difficulties both in the Manner of our Conception of them, and Expreffions about them, our Divines of the highest Rank have, upon occafion, unhappily interfer'd; as Dr. South, Dr. Sherlock, Dr. Wallis, and others, did at the end of the last Century, and fome other great Men at the beginning of this. By which wife Men plainly fee the great Neceffity of Charity and Temper in fuch fublime Speculations, and do alfo humbly hope a happy time may come, when thofe great Points may be fully examin'd, and fairly ftated in our Supreme Ecclefiaftical Council; fo as to filence all Difputes amongst our felves, and to fet a Standard to all other Chriftian Churches. This would be a glorious Work, and be attended with blessed Confequences.

S. 85. May Tour Lordship, whom God has honour'd with the higheft Dignity in the Chriftian Church, and with a Zeal for our Church, and Love to your Country, futable to your facred Character, be one of the happy Inftruments of advancing the Honour and Peace of our Church; that she may be the Praise L

of

of all Nations, and the Glory of Christendom, under the most aufpicions Reign of his Sacred Majefty King GEORGE. I am,

My LORD,

With the greatest Duty and Veneration,

Your Lordship's most Obedient, and

Moft Humble Servant.

FINI S.

ERRAT.

In the Marginal Note at the bottom of p. 24. at the end of

the firft Line, for deriv'd from their Offices, r. depriv'd.