mine to thee found that Acceptance, fo as to answer 1726, my Request.

And whereas thou fay'ft thy Aim and Hope hath been to perfwade us who call ourselves Friends (we profeffing ourselves Friends to all People) that our fuperior Strefs fhould be upon the grand Point of Chrift within; we having found, by Experience, living and bleffed Experience, the great Benefit and Comfort of his moft sweet and glorious Prefence, by the Manifeftation of his Power, Spirit and Grace, in and to our Souls, we cannot do otherwife than lay the greatest Strefs thereon, our Benefit therein, and thereby, being not easily expreffed, fo as to be understood by the carnal Mind, or to those who are in a State of Degeneration; Chrift within was, is, and ever will be, the Hope of the fanctified Soul's Glory, though a Myste ry hid from Ages of unregenerate People, or from those who are in the Reprobation; Know ye not your ownfelves, that Chrift is in you, except ye be Reprobates, faith the Apostle Paul, 2 Cor. xiii. 5. Col. i. 2.

From the above I would not be understood as though I believed that Chrift is no where but in his People; neither did I ever understand any of our Friends fo, though we have been often mifreprefented on that Head.

And as to the Ceremony of the Hat, and the Plural Language to fingle Perfons, I thus anfwer, that many of us left that Way of Salutation and Speaking, thro' strong Conviction, accompanied with thefe Reasons ;

1st, It being a Refpect we pay Almighty God, He being our Head, is honoured by uncovering our Head (as faid the Apostle Paul, 1 Cor. xi. 4.) We think for that Reason it is not right to uncover our Heads to Men; but that to give one another our Hands, in an inward and hearty Refpect, is better.

2dly. We read in the Holy Scriptures, that Mordecai could not bow to Haman for Confcience Sake, Esther iii. 4. and I think it may fafely be concluded,

that

1726. that he did not take off his Hat, or uncover his Head, though he was in Danger to have fuffered for it. And,

3dly, The three Children of God walked in the Prefence of the great King of Babylon (and those prefent with him) with their Hats on and they stood the King's Fury, and the Fire, though feven Times hotter than usual, with their Hats on, as there related in Dan. iii. 21.

I beseech thee, my good Friend, to confider the Tenor of the Holy Scriptures maturely, and then I hope thou will not think the Hat, and the Language of Thee and Thou to a fingle Perfon, to be needlefs Ceremonies and Incumbrances, according to our Principle and Practice; I do not write thus to thee for Contention, nor in a contentious Spirit or Mind, but in the innocent Love of our dear Lord Jefus, and for Edification, or if Need be, for Information.

Alfo, as to Thee and Thou to a fingle Perfon, I answer, That the Holy Scripture (or the Words of God therein recorded) is by all Proteftant Profeffors of Chrift, acknowledged a Rule to us all, next to the Holy Spirit, from whence they came, or the Holy Ghost, that our Saviour promised "fhould lead into all Truth, and abide with the true Believers for ever;" and that God and Chrift's Spirit, doth not contradict the Holy Scriptures, which came and proceeded from thence: This general Propofition we all agree to, if we rightly understand one another.

Then, according to this Rule, our plain Language is right, otherwife I fhall be obliged to thee to fhew us wherein we err from that good Rule. Now, the Moft High thought good to teach and ufe that Language in the Beginning to our firft Parents; fo that it is our Mother Tongue, and it is the Language of the Bible, or Holy Scrptures, from Genefis to the Revelations. I fuppofe I need not tell thee that You to a fingle Perfon had its Rife from Pride and Flattery; and

thy felf

thyfelf knoweth, that You to a single Perfon, is neither 1726. good English, nor good Grammar.

And if I am rightly informed, your Forefathers,as well as ours, made Ufe of this plain Scripture Language of Thee and Thou to a single Perfon,in their firft Separation from the commom Sinners of their Times.

Though I thus apologize for the plain Scripture Language, yet in Relpect of Faith or Grace, and Principles to be believed, which are abfolutely neceffary to Salvation, I call thefe but fmall Things; but we are not to delpife the Day of fmall Things, if we are faithful in the little, or lefs, we have the Promife of more or greater Things, Luke xix. 17.

I pray thee excufe this long Letter or Epiftle; for it feems to me but meet, that we should render a Reafon for our Disuse of thofe Things used by fome (of moft Societies) profeffing the Chriftian Faith.

And in Respect of Water Baptifm, and the Bread and Wine ift, As to Water-baptifm, I have this to answer, the which I hope thou wilt charitably conftrue.

The firft Account that we have of it, is from John the Baptift, who first practised it, according to the Account the Evangelifts give concerning it, and he said, I indeed baptize with Water, but he (Chrift) fall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with Fire; plainly diftin guishing between the two Baptifms, and the two Natures of them; adding I fhall decrease, but he shall increafe: He spoke not of their Perfons; but of their Difpenfations.

William Dell, a bright and learned Man in his Day (and, as I take it, when he flourished moft in Divine Religion) wrote an excellent Piece on the Subject of Baptifm, which be pleased to perufe; it is very evangelical, and well worth reading; I fhall take Care to procure thee one of his Books; I am the more concerned about this Subject, because thou art pofitive about our coming to it, if we improve in Wifdom:

P

But

1726. But I would hope to be in fome Measure inftrumental to convince thee that there is no abfolute Need (in order to Salvation) to go into or unto the Water or Element; but that it is abfolutely neceffary for us to go unto and into Chrift, that being the Way to be new Creatures, as it written, He that is in Chrift, is a new Creature, 2 Cor. v. 17.

Our dear Lord on this Subject lays, John truly bap tized with Water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghoft: Here our Saviour, as well as John, difinguifheth between the two Difpenfations: John's was indeed a glorious Difpenfation in its Time; but Chrift's far exceedeth it in Glory, and is to endure for

ever..

The Apostle Peter remembred this Doctrine of Christ, when the Holy Spirit's Baptifm-was come, Then, fays he, I remembred the Word of the Lord, John baptized with Water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghoft, Acts xi. 16. The Apoftle Paul, the great A poftle of the Gentiles, fays, He was not fent to baptize, but to preach the Gofpel; which, when truly preached, hath a fpiritual baptizing Power attending it; and if we come rightly to be baptized with the Holy Spirit, and Fire of the Divine Word, we shall witness a Renovation, and the Work of Reformation and Regeneration will go forward more and more, both without and within, in the Body and in Spirit, for which every true Christian and Minister of Chrift longs and prays with fervent Defires; the Apostle fays (and pray be pleafed to judge for what Reafon) That the Kingdom of Heaven is not Meat or Drink, but Righteoufnefs, Peace, and Joy, in the Holy Ghost. Oh! may the Moft High infpire thy Soul when thou reads thefe Lines is my tender Defire.

I know I am writing to one who in many Things is far before me; fo that I write in a Fear, mixed with Chriftian Love; and if it meet with the fame Love in thee, that will cover a Multitude of Faults.

And

And as to the Supper or Ceremony of Bread and 1726. Wine (which is called a Sacrament, which Word we find not in the Bible) we do not understand that our Lord laid it as an Injunction on his Followers to observe or practice to Perpetuity; or that the Obfervation thereof is abfolutely neceffary to Salvation, and that his Church fhould be in the Practice of the Elements of either Water to dip in, or fprinkle with, or Bread and Wine to eat or drink, as a lafting Ordinance, to be obferved by his Believers in an outward Way for ever.

Chrift faid, This do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in Remem brance of me; which to me feems to leave it indifferently: Alfo from the Debates and Contentions of Chriftians about it, and the Blood that hath been spilt and fhed in this Controverfy, and the many Doubts arifing concerning it, I think it is evident, that Chrift was not pofitive that his Followers fhould be found to Perpetuity therein; and where he fays, Take, eat, this is my Body which is broken for you, or for many; and drink, this is my Blood which is fhed for many; I believe it is not to be doubted but that he pointed at his Flesh and Blood, rather than the Bread and Wine (as in a Figure) and that alfo he had an Eye to his fpiritual Flesh and Blood or Body, as where he fays, Except ye eat my Flesh and drink my Blood, ye have no Life in you the which every true Chriftian fhould daily feed upon, and without which we have no Divine Life in us; and as himself alfo faid, My Flesh is Meat indeed, and my Blood is Drink indeed.

And it is worthy of note, that much of his Holy Words, and heavenly Doctrine, was fpiritually to be understood; My Words, fays he, are Spirit and Life ; a glorious Speech to fuch as truly witnefs and understand it, which is much better felt by a true believing Chriftian than expreffed: Oh may we fo open our Hearts to our beloved Jefus, that he may come in unto us, and that we may fup with him, and he with us, and that