PURITANS.
The Reformers who took refuge in Germany, may be said to have
originated this schism from the Church of England. To show the
spirit of Lutheranism,it is sufficient to observe, thai they who were just
delivered from persecution themselves,expelled the English refugees
from many of their towns, and denied them hospitality; and for no
other reason than because they denied the real presence of tho body
and blood of Jesus in the bread and wine. Many, however, found
an asylum at Frankfort, where they fell out among themselves. On
their return U> England, they imported their disputes with them, and
6ndmg tho people's minds in a prepared state, they propagated their
advetse and peculiar theologies with great rapidity and success. The
more violent among them demanded the denatiocaltzing of the religion
of England; but when they became legislators themselves in the
New Ent/l&nd colony· they erected their own opinions into a system
tantamount to an establishment. The wilder and inoro moderate
amon£ them desired only liberty of conscience, with the privilege of
celebrating their own-.worship in their own way. Elizabeth listened
to neither party; but determined to coerce them into obedience, which
neither she, nor any of her successors have been ablo to do: but on
the contrary, the religion she set up bids fair to be abrogated by
their descendants, Thi» controversy wae not carriei on with excessive
animosity and zeal until 1588. when the fiamo broke out with redoubled
fury. Bancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury, assencd 'hat the Episcopal
order was superior to the bod ν of Ptesbyters, by virtue of djvine
appointment. To sustain this,the High Commissioners asserted that
the Church of ilnme was a true church, though corrupt and erroneous
in many points of doctrine and government. This doctrine the Fame
church maintains to the present day, since they could not otherwise etaim tike honor of deriving the Episcopal dignity by the "procession
of the Holy Ghost," in tn uninterrupted stream from the Apost!es9
days!! This fact fairlj establishes the connexion between the f'apal
and Protestant Horns of the Beast with the horns of a I amb, and
that spoke like a dragon. The Puritans stoutly denied the assumption,
but their descendants appear to have fallen in with the idea, and
to claim apostolicity to themselves. Had these religionists been united,
they would have been formidable, but their sentiments, views and
measures were quite otherwise, and this large and heterogeneous body
was suddenly divided into a variety of sects, of which some spread
abroad the delusions of fanaticism, which had turned their own brains,
white others displayed their folly in inventing new and whimsical plans
of church government.
Of ail these seots, the most famous was that which was formed
about the year 1581, known by the name of
BROWNISTS.
The founder of this sect was one Robert Brown, an insinuating man,
but unsettled, inconsistent, inconstant. In doctrine, he did not differ
much from the Puritans or the church He discarded all societies but
his own; and protested against the Church of England as a spurious
church, whose ministers were unlawfully ordained, whose discipline
was Popish and antichristtan. and whose sacraments and institutions
were destitute of all efficacy and virtue. AM of which is perfectly
true. Persecuted in England, the Brownists fled to the Netherlands,
where they founded churches. Their founder renounced hie tenets,
returned to England, and obtained a benefice. The Puritan txiloe,
his followers, some of whom had settled at Ley den, dispersed in the
year 1595; and it is to be noticed, that some of the members of
this church, transplanted themselves to America and laid the founda*"
lion of the colony of Now England. Others followed from the same
quarter in 1620, and settled at iNew Plymouth. Nine years after, their
Bombers were augmented by a second emigration from England, and
by a third in 1633. Out of the Brownists1 principles arose the
ENGLISH INDEPENDENTS AND THE AMERICAN CONGREGATION
A LISTS.
The Reformers who took refuge in Germany, may be said to have
originated this schism from the Church of England. To show the
spirit of Lutheranism,it is sufficient to observe, thai they who were just
delivered from persecution themselves,expelled the English refugees
from many of their towns, and denied them hospitality; and for no
other reason than because they denied the real presence of tho body
and blood of Jesus in the bread and wine. Many, however, found
an asylum at Frankfort, where they fell out among themselves. On
their return U> England, they imported their disputes with them, and
6ndmg tho people's minds in a prepared state, they propagated their
advetse and peculiar theologies with great rapidity and success. The
more violent among them demanded the denatiocaltzing of the religion
of England; but when they became legislators themselves in the
New Ent/l&nd colony· they erected their own opinions into a system
tantamount to an establishment. The wilder and inoro moderate
amon£ them desired only liberty of conscience, with the privilege of
celebrating their own-.worship in their own way. Elizabeth listened
to neither party; but determined to coerce them into obedience, which
neither she, nor any of her successors have been ablo to do: but on
the contrary, the religion she set up bids fair to be abrogated by
their descendants, Thi» controversy wae not carriei on with excessive
animosity and zeal until 1588. when the fiamo broke out with redoubled
fury. Bancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury, assencd 'hat the Episcopal
order was superior to the bod ν of Ptesbyters, by virtue of djvine
appointment. To sustain this,the High Commissioners asserted that
the Church of ilnme was a true church, though corrupt and erroneous
in many points of doctrine and government. This doctrine the Fame
church maintains to the present day, since they could not otherwise etaim tike honor of deriving the Episcopal dignity by the "procession
of the Holy Ghost," in tn uninterrupted stream from the Apost!es9
days!! This fact fairlj establishes the connexion between the f'apal
and Protestant Horns of the Beast with the horns of a I amb, and
that spoke like a dragon. The Puritans stoutly denied the assumption,
but their descendants appear to have fallen in with the idea, and
to claim apostolicity to themselves. Had these religionists been united,
they would have been formidable, but their sentiments, views and
measures were quite otherwise, and this large and heterogeneous body
was suddenly divided into a variety of sects, of which some spread
abroad the delusions of fanaticism, which had turned their own brains,
white others displayed their folly in inventing new and whimsical plans
of church government.
Of ail these seots, the most famous was that which was formed
about the year 1581, known by the name of
BROWNISTS.
The founder of this sect was one Robert Brown, an insinuating man,
but unsettled, inconsistent, inconstant. In doctrine, he did not differ
much from the Puritans or the church He discarded all societies but
his own; and protested against the Church of England as a spurious
church, whose ministers were unlawfully ordained, whose discipline
was Popish and antichristtan. and whose sacraments and institutions
were destitute of all efficacy and virtue. AM of which is perfectly
true. Persecuted in England, the Brownists fled to the Netherlands,
where they founded churches. Their founder renounced hie tenets,
returned to England, and obtained a benefice. The Puritan txiloe,
his followers, some of whom had settled at Ley den, dispersed in the
year 1595; and it is to be noticed, that some of the members of
this church, transplanted themselves to America and laid the founda*"
lion of the colony of Now England. Others followed from the same
quarter in 1620, and settled at iNew Plymouth. Nine years after, their
Bombers were augmented by a second emigration from England, and
by a third in 1633. Out of the Brownists1 principles arose the
ENGLISH INDEPENDENTS AND THE AMERICAN CONGREGATION
A LISTS.
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