A Christian Directory Volume I Part 1

A Christian Directory.

by Richard Baxter and George Virtue.

VOLUME 1

Soli Deo Gloria Publications ... _for instruction in righteousness_ ...

A PREFACE,

GIVING

SOME ACCOUNT OF THE AUTHOR,

AND OF

THIS EDITION OF HIS PRACTICAL WORKS.

It is no vain boast, through a fondness of our own nation, but is generally owned by our protestant brethren beyond the seas, that there is no language in which there are more valuable treatises of practical divinity to be met with, than in ours. And perhaps upon the strictest search and comparison, as far as there is any occasion for a decisive judgment, it might be found that there are no writings of that kind among us that have more of a true christian spirit, a greater mixture of judgment and affection, or a greater tendency to revive pure and undefiled religion; that have been more esteemed abroad, or more blessed at home, for the awakening the secure, instructing the ignorant, confirming the wavering, comforting the dejected, recovering the profane, or improving such as are truly serious; than the Practical Works of this author. Many of them have been often reprinted, and are as generally spread through the kingdom as any tracts whatever. Others of them have been printed but once, and are not so commonly known as they deserve. Others are small, and might in time be as good as lost, if not preserved by being joined with the rest of his works. This collection of them is designed for the benefit of the present age, and of posterity; to be a standing monument in our libraries of the unwearied endeavours of one to promote serious G.o.dliness in the land; who under a mean education made mighty improvements; who in a crazy body had a most active soul; and in a private sphere had a n.o.ble public spirit, that would have filled the most eminent station with advantage. It is also intended for the advantage of ministers and students in divinity, who will here have, at an easy rate, such a treasure of practical divinity as no other part of the christian church can furnish with. And for a help to families, who will here find what may suit them, in all their different relations, capacities, and circ.u.mstances, and under that vast variety of providential dispensations in which they may need a.s.sistance.

That great man, Bishop Wilkins, was used to say of Mr. Baxter, That if he had lived in the primitive times he had been one of the fathers of the church. What then more fit than a collection of his works, that posterity may be taught to do him justice? It was a great attempt in a time of war; and the going through with it at such a time is a hopeful prognostic, that the G.o.d of peace hath blessed ends to serve by it; a subserviency to which cannot but be a matter of comfortable reflection.

It is usual to prefix to collections of this sort, some historical account of the author. This were perhaps as little needful in the case of Mr. Baxter, as of any other that could be mentioned, because of the large account of himself that he left prepared for the press, which has been published since his death in folio; an abridgement of which was afterwards drawn up in octavo, that has been as generally read by persons of all sentiments and persuasions as most narratives of that kind. But that the want of it may not be charged as an unpardonable omission, and that such as have not consulted either of those narratives, may know what sort of person he was that was the author of those works, which after having been long extant separately, are here published together, the following brief account of him is thought fit to be added.

He was a native of Shropshire, and came into the world, Nov. 12, 1615.

His family was of some standing in that county, and had made some figure. John Baxter, Esq. in the time of Edward the Fourth, was thrice bailiff of Shrewsbury; and owned a whole street in that town, which with other estates went with a daughter to Mr. Barker, of Hammond, grandfather to Colonel Mildmaye's lady. His nephew Roger married a co-heiress of Richard Leighton, of Leighton, Esq. by whom descended to him several hundreds per annum, of which he was deprived after long law-suits with the heir male. His son William was reduced to the quality of a freeholder, of 60 per annum, but was married to Elizabeth the daughter of Roger Biest, of Atcham Grange, a gentleman of 400 per annum. His son Richard married the daughter of Richard Forrester, of Sutton, of the family of Sir William Forrester, of Watling-street in Shropshire, who was secretary to Bishop Bonner. His son Richard married one of the Adeneys, who were wealthy clothiers in Worcestershire; and he was the father of our Richard, whose fame spread itself throughout the kingdom.

The estate of the family was clogged with debts, which among other inconveniences that attended it, proved a great hinderance in his education. The schoolmasters of his youth, who were such as those parts of the country then afforded, were neither eminent for their learning, nor the strictness of their morals. His greatest help in grammar learning was under Mr. John Owen, master of the free-school at Wroxeter, with whom he continued till he had been some time the captain of his school, and was advanced as far as his a.s.sistance would forward him. His friends not being able to support the charge of an academical life, his master Mr. Owen recommended him to Mr. Richard Wickstead, who was chaplain to the council at Ludlow, with whom he spent a year and half. The main advantage he had while he was with him, lay in the free use of his library, which was valuable: and this advantage he improved to his utmost. Afterwards, he went through a course of philosophy, with the a.s.sistance of the learned Mr. Francis Garbett, then minister of Wroxeter, who conducted his studies, and much encouraged him: and he was making a hopeful progress, when on a sudden he was diverted.

Being about eighteen years of age, he was persuaded to make trial of a court life, as the most likely way to rise in the world. In order to it, he was sent up to Whitehall, to Sir Henry Herbert, master of the revels. He received him courteously, but could not prevail with him to stay: his inclinations were set quite another way; and Providence had other purposes to serve by him in the world. He returned down into the country, and followed his studies with indefatigable earnestness; and soon made such improvements as amazed those that knew how slender his helps were, and how difficult it is for a man to beat out his way himself. Though he never led an academical life, (which he much desired,) yet by the divine blessing upon his rare dexterity and diligence, his sacred knowledge (as Dr. Bates expressed it in his funeral sermon) was in that degree of eminence, as few in the University ever arrive to.

His early seriousness was remarkable. Dr. Bates tells us, that his father said with tears of joy to a friend, My son Richard I hope was sanctified from the womb; for when he was a little boy in coats, if he heard other children in play speak profane words, he would reprove them, to the wonder of them that heard him. As he grew up, he listened to the instructions and example of his father, and abhorred those profane sports which were common on the Lord's days, in the places where he lived; and while the rest were dancing, he was employed in religious exercises. He betimes loved his Bible, and was afraid of sinning. He loathed the company of scoffers; and loved religion the better for their reproaches. And yet corruption even in him had its sallies in childhood and youth, which he afterwards lamented with great concern and sorrow. But when he was fourteen years of age, upon his reading "Parsons of Resolution," as corrected by Bunny,[1] such impressions were made upon his spirit as never wore off to the day of his death. His bodily weakness kept him afterwards very solicitous about the state of his soul: he read all the practical treatises he could meet with, in order to his direction and satisfaction; and yet was long kept with the calls of approaching death as it were at one ear, and the questionings of a doubtful conscience at the other. The exercise of his spirit was very pressing for a great while; till at length it pleased G.o.d to quiet him, by giving him a probability of the safety of his state, though he had not an undoubted certainty. He observes of himself, that though for the greatest part of his life afterwards, he had no such degree of doubtfulness as was any great trouble to him, or procured any sinking, disquieting fears, yet he could not say that he had such a certainty of his own sincerity in grace, as excluded all doubts and fears to the contrary.

From the age of twenty-one, till near twenty-three, his weakness was so great, that he hardly thought it possible he should live above a year; yet being willing to do some good to ignorant and careless sinners before he died, he even then entered into the ministry, and was examined and ordained by the bishop of Worcester, who also gave him a licence to teach school at Dudley, where Mr. Richard Foley, of Stourbridge, had a little before erected a free-school, which he committed to his care.

He owns that when he received orders, he never had read over the Book of Ordination, nor half the Book of Homilies, nor considered the Book of Common Prayer with any exactness, nor weighed sufficiently some controverted points in the Thirty-nine Articles: and yet having read Downham, and Sprint, and Burgess, he concluded they had the better of the nonconformists, with whom he then had no acquaintance; and being told that they were men of little learning, he concluded they were in the wrong; and having no scruples he freely subscribed as usually. But when after his settlement at Dudley, he came to read Ames's "Fresh Suit against Ceremonies," and other books on that side, he repented his rashness in subscribing so hastily, and grew dissatisfied as to some parts of conformity. He continued there preaching to a numerous auditory with good success for about three quarters of a year, and then removed to Bridgnorth, in Shropshire, where he became a.s.sistant to Mr. William Madstard. This removal was the more agreeable to him, because the place being privileged from all episcopal jurisdiction, except the triennial visitation of the archbishop, he was the less in danger of being put upon any part of conformity that he then scrupled.

He never baptized with the sign of the cross, nor wore the surplice, (being not satisfied as to either,) and yet came into no trouble. At his first coming hither he was an instrument of the conversion of several to G.o.d and a holy life; but was not afterwards so successful here as in other places.

Soon after his settlement here, the _et caetera_ oath put him upon a more close inspection into the English frame of church government, which he thought he had need to be well satisfied in, before he swore he would never consent to an alteration. He read Bucer de Gubernatione Ecclesiae, Didoclavii Altare Damascenum, Parker de Politeia Ecclesiastica, and Baynes's Diocesan's Trial; and though upon the whole he saw no reason to believe all kind of episcopacy unlawful, he yet was far from so approving the English episcopacy, as to think it lawful to swear he would never consent to have it altered. And he observed upon this occasion, that that oath which was designed unalterably to subject the nation to diocesans, did but set many the more against them; and that instead of ruining the nonconformists, which was intended, it proved a great advantage to them, and inclined many to fall in with them.

The broils in Scotland quickly followed, that were occasioned by the imposing the Common Prayer Book, and English ceremonies. There were great tumults there, and the design was to subdue that nation by force: and at the same time there were great dissatisfactions in England upon the account of ship money, and other impositions that were reckoned illegal. The Scots entering into England, there was a form of prayer to be used against them in all churches, printed by the bishops, though there was no command of the king for it. Mr. Baxter would not use it, at which some were disturbed.

The long parliament upon its being opened, fell directly upon a reformation of church and state. Among other things that were determined, a committee was soon appointed to hear pet.i.tions and complaints against such as were scandalous among the clergy. Amongst other complainers the town of Kidderminster, in Worcestershire, had drawn up a pet.i.tion against their vicar and his two curates as insufficient. The vicar was rather for compounding the business, than suffering the pet.i.tion to be presented. The living was worth near 200 per annum, out of which he offered to allow 60 per annum to a sufficient preacher, to be chosen by fourteen trustees. They hereupon unexpectedly invited Mr. Baxter to give them a sermon; and upon hearing him, unanimously chose him to be their minister. He accepted their invitation, and settled among them, making this observation, That among all his changes he never went to any place he had before desired, designed, or thought of; but only to those places he never thought of till the sudden invitation did surprise him.

He spent two years at Kidderminster before the civil war broke out, and above fourteen years after, and yet never touched the vicarage house, though authorized by an order of parliament; but the old vicar lived there without molestation. He found the place like a piece of dry and barren earth; ignorance and profaneness as natives of the soil were rife among them: but by the blessing of Heaven upon his labour and cultivating, the face of paradise appeared there in all the fruits of righteousness. At first rage and malice created him much opposition; but it was soon over, and a special divine blessing gave his unwearied pains among that people an unexpected success.

On a day when they had in that town a yearly show, in which they walked about the streets with the painted forms of giants, he was one part of the game of the rabble. Having preached the doctrine of original sin, many railed at him, and represented him as saying that G.o.d hated and loathed infants. Thereupon he next Lord's day returned to the same doctrine again; and told them that if their children had no original sin, they had no need of Christ, or of baptism, or of renewing by the Holy Ghost. And after that, they were ashamed and silent. Another time one of the drunken beggars of the town reported, that Mr. Baxter was under a tree with a woman of ill fame. He got some that spread this report bound to their good behaviour; and then he that raised it confessed in court, that he saw Mr. Baxter in a rainy day stand on horseback under an oak in a thick hedge, and the woman mentioned standing for shelter on the other side the hedge, under the same tree, though he believed they saw not one another. They all asked Mr. Baxter forgiveness; and were released. At another time, when the parliament's order came down for demolishing all images of the Persons of the Trinity, the Virgin Mary, &c. in churches, or crosses in church-yards, the churchwarden of the town being about to take down a crucifix upon the cross in the church-yard, the drunken crew took the alarum, and ran with weapons to defend the crucifix. It being reported Mr. Baxter was the actor, they sought for him, and might probably enough have murdered him, had he come in their way. But as Providence ordered it he had taken a walk out of town; and in his return when the hurly-burly was over, he was surprised to hear some of them curse him at their doors; and quickly understood how fairly he had escaped. The next Lord's day he told them publicly, that seeing they so requited him, as to seek his blood, he was willing to leave them, and save them from that guilt. Whereupon they appeared amazed and ashamed, and took on terribly, and after all were loth to part with him.

But notwithstanding such opposition, his unwearied labours in this town had amazing success. He preached twice every Lord's day before the civil war; afterwards once; and once every Thursday, besides occasional sermons in the lectures at Worcester, Shrewsbury, Dudley, Sheffnall, &c.

On the Thursday evenings such as were so disposed met at his house, one of them repeated the sermon, and afterwards they propounded to Mr.

Baxter any doubts they had about it, or any other case of conscience, which he resolved. On Mondays and Tuesdays in the afternoon, in every week, he and his a.s.sistant took fourteen families between them for private catechising and conference, spending about an hour with a family. Every first Wednesday in the month he had a meeting for parish discipline. Every first Thursday in the month there was a meeting of the neighbouring ministers for discipline, and amicable disputation about matters theological: and every Thursday in the month besides, he had several ministers at his house, after the lecture was over, with whom the afternoon was spent in profitable conversation, till the neighbours came in to repet.i.tion and conference.

He had an attentive, diligent auditory, that was very numerous. On the Lord's day there was no disorder to be seen in the town, but you might hear a hundred families singing psalms, and repeating sermons, as you pa.s.sed along the streets. When he first came, there might be a family in a street that worshipped G.o.d, and called on his name; and when he came away there was not above a family on the side of a street that did not do it. Nay, in the most unlikely families, even inns and alehouses, usually some in each house seemed to be religious. He had six hundred communicants; and there were not above twelve of them, of whose sincerity in religion he had not hopes. There were few families in the whole town that refused to submit to his private catechising and personal conference; and few went away without some tears, or seemingly serious promises of a G.o.dly life.

The greatest enemies of serious religion in that town were carried off by the war. When that was over he had the favour of the government there. He had a great interest in the affections of the inhabitants, for which his practising physic among them gratis, gave him a great advantage; and he had much a.s.sistance in his work, from the zeal and diligence of those among them that were pious. Many were won upon by their exemplary conversation. Their unity and concord were remarkable.

All were of one mind, and mouth, and way. The private meetings that were kept up amongst them, (which were under his oversight and guidance,) were also very helpful to promote serious religion. His stated income was not above 90 per annum, besides which he some years had 60 or 80 a year of the booksellers for his books, which being given away amongst the people, (except so much as was necessary for his comfortable subsistence,) made them the readier to listen to him. He took several of their children that had capacities from school, and sent them to the University, where he maintained them by his own and others'

contributions, some of which afterwards proved useful ministers.

One of his main difficulties when he fixed in this town, was how to set up any thing of a true ecclesiastical discipline, without being satisfied with the shadow instead of the reality of it on one hand, or unchurching the parish church on the other. Upon mature consideration, he determined to take the parish for the church, if they were willing to own their church membership, and acknowledge him for their pastor.

He desired all that were willing, to give in their names, or some other way to signify their consent; and the rest he desired to be silent. This kept many quiet that were not church members, because they knew they might come in if they would. He baptized all their children, (if desired,) upon their giving an account of their faith.

If the father were a scandalous sinner, he made him openly confess his sin with seeming penitence, before he would baptize his child. If he refused it, he forbore till the mother came to present it; rarely, if ever, finding both father and mother so dest.i.tute of knowledge and faith, as, in a church sense, to be utterly incapable. Sir Ralph Clare, a noted cavalier, discovered the greatest dissatisfaction of any in the parish, with his method of proceeding. He would not communicate unless he would administer the sacrament to him kneeling, and upon a distinct day, and not with those that received it sitting.

Mr. Baxter having openly told the parishioners, that if they scrupled sitting at the Lord's table, they should have the liberty of their own gesture, sent word to Sir Ralph, that if he could not upon reasoning be otherwise satisfied, he would give it him kneeling; but that as for doing it at a distinct stated time from the rest, it would make such a breach or schism as he could have no hand in. However, the generality acquiesced; and church discipline was kept up, though not without some difficulty. A young fellow given to excessive drinking, offering himself to communion, was told that he could not be admitted, without a humble, penitent confession, and promise of amendment. He thereupon confessed his sin, and promised to amend, but soon relapsed. He was oft admonished, and as often renewed the profession of his concern, and promises of amendment. But still persisting, Mr. Baxter warned him publicly, and prayed earnestly for him several days successively in the church, but he was not reclaimed. At last he declared him utterly unfit for church communion, and required all to avoid unnecessary conversation with him. Afterwards he grew extravagantly mad, would freely curse Mr. Baxter to his face; and once as he was going into the church laid violent hands on him, with a design to have murdered him.

He continued raging about a year, and then died of a fever, in great horror of conscience. Three or four more also were cast out; one for slandering, and the rest for drunkenness; and they were enraged and much the worse after it, and so were loud warnings to others. In short, so much of the presence of G.o.d did Mr. Baxter find accompanying him in his work, and so affectionate was his regard to the loving people of that place, that he would not willingly have changed his relation to them for any preferment in the kingdom, nor could he without force have been separated from them.

When the civil war broke out, he was dubious how to steer. He took the protestation which the parliament required, to defend the king's person, honour, and authority, the power and privileges of parliaments, the liberties of the subject, and the protestant religion, against the common enemy. And he joined with the magistrates of Kidderminster, in offering the same protestation to the people. A little after, the king's Declarations were read there in the market-place, and the commission of array was set on foot; upon which the rabble grew so riotous and furious, that he was advised to withdraw awhile from home. He retired to Worcester, and so to Gloucester, where he first met with the anabaptists; and after a month's absence he returned home, lest his absence should be interpreted either as the effect of fear on the account of some guilt, or as signifying his being against the king. At his return he found the drunken rabble very boisterous; and their common cry was this, We shall take an order with the puritans ere long. He did not think himself in safety if he stayed at home, and so he withdrew again. He preached at Alcester, on that Lord's day that was the day of Edge-hill fight; and was informed while he was preaching, by the noise of the cannon, that the armies were engaged. And the next day he went into the field of battle.

The soldiers on one side or the other still pa.s.sing to and fro, and being ready to make a prey of whatsoever came before them, he determined to go to Coventry, and stay there till one side or other had got the victory, and the war was ended, which it was then thought would be in a very little time. The committee and governor of that city desired him to stay with them and lodge in the governor's house, and preach to the soldiers; which offer he readily accepted. He continued there a year, preaching once a week to the soldiers, and once on the Lord's day to the people, having nothing but his diet for his pains. Here he had the society of about thirty worthy ministers, who fled to the same place for safety, and among the rest, of Mr. Vines and Mr. Anthony Burgess. When his year expired, he found the war so far from being ended, that it had dispersed itself into almost all the land. He determined therefore to continue there another year; and in that time preached over all the controversies against the anabaptists, and against the separatists, and so kept the garrison sound. After the fight at Naseby, (not far from Coventry,) he went into the army to visit some of his old intimate friends. He stayed there a night, and got such intelligence as to their state as amazed him. He found plotting heads were designing to subvert both church and state. The sectaries were like to carry all before them, and were resolved to take down not only bishops, liturgies, and ceremonies, but all that did withstand them. This made him lament that the ministers had left the army, as they generally did, after Edge-hill fight. It made him also repent his refusing of Cromwell's invitation to be the pastor of his troop, when he first raised it; by which means he would have had an opportunity of dealing freely with those that afterwards headed much of the army, and were the forwardest in all the public changes. But he was told that it was not even yet too late to do service, if he would come into the army; and was invited by Colonel Whalley to be chaplain to his regiment. He returned to Coventry, and consulted the ministers that were there, and with their advice, (in order to do what in him lay to prevent the mischief that was threatened by the prevailing temper of the army,) he accepted the invitation.

When he came thither, Cromwell welcomed him but coldly. He set himself from day to day to discourse the officers and soldiers out of their mistakes, both religious and political. He found a few fiery, self-conceited men among them made all the noise and bustle, and carried about the rest as they pleased. Some of these became the laughing-stock of the soldiers before he left them. He marched with the army westward, and was at the taking of Bridgwater, and the siege of Bristol, and Sherborne Castle, and Exeter. He was also with Colonel Whalley before Banbury Castle, and at the siege of Worcester. He had full employment in opposing the sectaries in all places: and particularly he had at one place a dispute with them of a whole day's continuance. And by what success he met with, he found reason to apprehend, that if there had but been a competent number of ministers, each doing their part, the whole plot of the furious party might have been broken, and king, parliament, and religion preserved. But he was separated from the army by great weakness, occasioned by the loss of a gallon of blood at the nose; upon which, retiring to Sir Thomas Rouse's, he was taken up with daily medicines to prevent a dropsy, and was in continual expectation of death.

He did what he could to keep his people at Kidderminster free from a concern in the public changes. He kept them from taking the Covenant, as fearing it might be a snare to their consciences: nay, he prevented its being much taken in all that county. When the Engagement came out, he spake and preached against it, and dissuaded men from taking it. He had a whole day's disputation with Mr. Tombs, in his church at Bewdley, upon infant baptism; and thereby kept his people free from the spreading notions of those times. When the army was going against King Charles II. and the Scots, he wrote letters to several of the soldiers to tell them of their sin, and desired them at last to begin to know themselves. And instead of praying for their success in public, he freely inveighed against the forcing men to run to G.o.d upon such errands of blood and ruin; especially where brethren were concerned. He often and various ways declared against Cromwell's usurpation, when he had got the ascendant: he preached once before him after he was Protector, by means of the Lord Broghill and the Earl of Warwick: his text was 1 Cor. i. 10. The design of his sermon was to show how mischievous it was for politicians to maintain divisions in the church for their own ends. A little while after the Protector sent for him, and made a speech to him of an hour's length, about the providence of G.o.d in changing the government, and favouring that change by such great things done at home and abroad. Mr. Baxter freely told him, that the honest people of the land took their ancient monarchy to be a blessing; and desired to know how they had forfeited that blessing, and to whom the forfeiture was made. He with some pa.s.sion replied, that there was no forfeiture, but G.o.d had changed it as it pleased him.

In the controversy about church government, which was then so hotly agitated, Mr. Baxter was all along against extremes. He neither fell in with the Erastian, nor episcopal, nor presbyterian, nor independent party entirely; but thought all of them had so much truth in common among them, as would have made these kingdoms happy, had it been unanimously and soberly reduced to practice, by prudent and charitable men. At the desire of the neighbouring ministers he drew up an agreement for church order and concord, containing only so much church order and discipline, as he apprehended the episcopal, presbyterian, and independent were agreed in, as belonging to the pastors of each particular church; which he afterwards published in a book called "Christian Concord:" and the ministers of those parts a.s.sociated upon that bottom; not disputing with each other in order to an agreement in their opinions, but agreeing in the practice of what was owned by all.

Upon Oliver's becoming Protector, the extent of the toleration was the subject of many debates. The committee of parliament proposed that it should be extended to all that held the fundamentals of religion: hereupon it was queried which were the fundamentals of religion? and it was agreed that the members of the committee, who were fourteen in number, should each of them nominate a divine; and that they meeting together, should draw up a list of the fundamentals, to be as a test to the toleration. Mr. Baxter was upon this occasion nominated for one, (in the room of Archbishop Usher, who refused,) by the Lord Broghill, and took a journey accordingly to London. There he met Mr.

Marshal, Mr. Reyner, Dr. Cheynel, Dr. Goodwin, Dr. Owen, Mr. Nye, Mr.

Sydr. Sympson, Mr. Vines, Mr. Manton, and Mr. Jacomb, who were also nominated. Mr. Baxter was for offering to the parliament the creed, the Lord's prayer, and ten commandments, as the fundamentals of christianity: but the rest were not for so large a bottom, but were for having a greater number of fundamentals. If he did no other service among them, he at least prevented the running many things so high as might otherwise have been expected.

Truth and peace were the things he earnestly pursued all his days. He by writing treated with Dr. Brownrigg, bishop of Exeter, about concord with the diocesan party in this nation: and made also some proposals to Dr. Hammond to this purpose, a little before the Restoration of King Charles. By means of Mr. Lamb and Mr. Allen, two anabaptist ministers, whom he prevailed with to quit the way of separation, he dealt with the rest of the anabaptists, about communion with other churches. He treated with Mr. Nye about an agreement with the independents, in a moderate scheme; and he was often engaged in disputes with the papists also. And indeed it is amazing how one of so much weakness, who was constantly followed with divers bodily infirmities, should be capable of so much service.

He came to London just before the deposition of Richard Cromwell. He preached before the parliament the day before they voted for King Charles's return. He preached also before the lord mayor and aldermen of the city at St. Paul's, on the day of thanksgiving for Monk's success.

And when the king was actually restored, he became one of his chaplains in ordinary, in conjunction with some others of his brethren of the same sentiments with him. He preached once before him in that capacity; and often waited on him with the rest of the ministers, in order to obtain by his means some terms of peace and union with the bishops and their adherents, who were many of them inclined to run things to extremity. He a.s.sisted at the Savoy conference as one of the commissioners, and then drew up a "Reformed Liturgy;" which some persons not very likely to be prejudiced in his favour, have thought to be the best of the kind they ever saw. He has under this head fallen under the censure of our late English historian, who, vol. iii. p. 235, makes this reflection: "He drew up an absolute form of his own, and styled it the 'Reformed Liturgy;' as if he had the modesty to think that the old Liturgy, compiled by a number of very learned confessors and martyrs, must now give place to a new form composed by a single man, and he by education much inferior to many of his brethren." But had this gentleman been so just as to have read the reasons which Mr. Baxter gave,[2] for his doing that which he represents as so a.s.suming, he would have seen little occasion for his reflection. For the design of this Liturgy was not to jostle out the old one, where persons were satisfied with it, but to relieve those that durst not use the old one as it was, by helping them to forms taken out of the word of G.o.d. Or suppose we, that the old Liturgy had in the esteem of many fallen short of this new one; others are at a loss to discover why this should appear so preposterous, unless it be unaccountable for persons to prefer a Liturgy entirely Scriptural, to one that is made up of human phrases, and some of them justly enough exceptionable. It must be owned that the old Liturgy was framed by sundry confessors and martyrs, and upon that account it deserves respect: and it was a great step in their day, for them to cast so many corruptions out of the public service as they did, at that time, when this Liturgy was drawn out of the several forms that were in use in this kingdom before. But it was but a pursuit of their design, to render the public service yet more Scriptural: and had they risen from the dead, there is good reason to believe they would generally have approved of it; and been so far from looking upon it as detracting from them, that they would have applauded it as a good superstructure upon their foundations. Suppose then he that drew up this "Reformed Liturgy," was by education much inferior to many of his brethren; it neither follows from thence that he must really be so much inferior to them in useful knowledge and valuable abilities, as this author would seem to intimate; nor can it justly be thence argued that his performance was contemptible; nor that there was any want of modesty neither, when his brethren put him upon the undertaking. And besides, they approving it when they perused it, and joining in the presenting it, made it their own; as sufficiently appears from the preface prefixed; and some of them had academical education, and great applause in the world too, and yet thought not Mr. Baxter at all their inferior.

He was also one of the three that managed the dispute at the end of the conference at the Savoy, and freely charged some things in the Liturgy as sinful, and contrary to the word of G.o.d. As, that ministers are obliged in baptism to use the transient image of the cross; that none be admitted to communion in the Lord's supper that dare not receive it kneeling, &c. The forementioned author speaking of this in his history, says, "That it seems very strange that he and his brethren should undertake to mention eight unlawful things in the Liturgy, when they could not affirm any one of those things to be in itself unlawful; but argued altogether upon the unlawful imposition of them, which they might as well have done by the same argument in eight hundred of other indifferent and most innocent matters." But if this gentleman had considered, that the unwarrantableness of keeping up such impositions in the church was the thing which Mr. Baxter and his brethren undertook to prove, in opposition to those who were zealous for retaining them, and how little in that case depends upon the simple unlawfulness of the things imposed, (abstracting from all circ.u.mstances in a metaphysical sense,) the strangeness of their proceeding would have disappeared. For though the same argument would have done in eight hundred indifferent things, (had there been so many so imposed,) yet it does not follow but that it would be good and valid in those eight things mentioned, in which they thought they should be bound up by the ecclesiastical const.i.tution, (if they really must have been so confined,) while they could not discover their compliance to be lawful.

The same author also falls in with Bishop Morley, in representing Mr.

Baxter as very perverse and disingenuous, by persisting in his denial of a certain proposition, after it had been turned and altered several ways. But had he thought fit to have considered what is suggested upon that head in the abridgement of his Life, which he had so often consulted, and quoted upon other occasions, he would have seen the aspersion wiped off, which he so freely repeats: and whether in so doing he has meted with the measure he would have used towards himself, upon occasion, is left to his second thoughts.

When the king's Declaration came out, Mr. Baxter was offered the bishopric of Hereford, and some of his brethren some other preferments in the church; but he refused acceptance, because of the uncertainty of the continuance of the terms of that Declaration, and so did several others: and Mr. Calamy and he were, by a majority of three voices, chosen by the city clergy to be their clerks in the convocation; but were by the bishop of London excused from sitting there. A continuance at Kidderminster was what he had most desired of any thing; and he did all that he was able in order to it; but Providence forced him another way.

While he was away from the town of Kidderminster, in great weakness, more likely to die than live, after his great loss of blood, the people renewed their articles against Mr. Danse, the old vicar, and his curate; and the committee sequestered the place, and left the profits in the hands of divers inhabitants to pay a preacher till it was disposed of.

Mr. Baxter, though pressed, would not accept the vicarage, but continued to officiate among them as their minister. He would have taken no more out of the profits of the living than the 60 per annum which the vicar had before bound himself to pay him, but they made it 90. At length the people fearing some one should get a grant of the sequestration from the committee, went privately and got an order to settle Mr. Baxter in it; but never showed it him, till King Charles came out of Scotland towards Worcester, when they desired him to take and keep it, and save them harmless by it, if they were called to repay what they had received and disbursed. After this, the t.i.thes were gathered in his name by some of his neighbours: but he gave them orders, that if any refused to pay that were poor, it should be forgiven them; but if they were able, what was due should be sought for with the help of the magistrates with damage; and that both his part and his damages should be given to the poor. When this was known, none that were able would do the poor so great a kindness as to refuse payment.

Upon King Charles's restoration the old vicar was restored. He had before lived unmolested in the vicarage house, and had 40 per annum duly paid him. Mr. Baxter would now very willingly have been his curate. Being often with my Lord Chancellor, he begged his favour about a settlement there, which he signified to him he preferred to a bishopric. Sir Ralph Clare was the great obstacle. He once told Mr.

Baxter, in Bishop Morley's chamber, that of eighteen hundred communicants in the town, he had not above six hundred for him. To clear which he sent to Kidderminster, and in a day's time his friends there got the hands of sixteen hundred of those eighteen hundred for him; which subscription being shown, made both the Bishop and Sir Ralph the more against his return thither. My Lord Chancellor wrote to Sir Ralph, but without effect. Mr. Baxter going down thither to make terms with the vicar, he would not suffer him to preach above twice or thrice. He could not be accepted, though he would have preached for nothing. It would not be allowed him so much as to administer the sacrament to the people, and preach a farewell sermon to them. Bishop Morley denied him the liberty of preaching in his diocess. He told him that he would take care the people should be no losers. And for awhile he sent the most acceptable preachers among them; and once took the pains to preach to them himself, but it was in a way of invective against Mr. Baxter and the presbyterians. Dr. Warmestry did the same once and again, but with little success. When Bishop Morley forbad him preaching in his diocess, he asked him leave but to preach in some small village among the ignorant, where there was no maintenance for a minister: and he told him, that they were better to have none than him. Mr. Baldwin the minister was present.