by Robert Barclay

“ Thus for a Christian man to vindicate his just liberty, with so much boldness, and yet innocency, will in due time, though through blood, purchase peace, as this age hath in some measure experienced, and many are witnesses of it; which yet shall be more apparent to the world, as truth takes place in the earth. But they, greatly sin against this excellent rule, that in time of persecution do not profess their own way so much as they would if it were otherwise ”

“ But the liberty we lay claim to is such as the primitive church justly sought under the heathen emperors, to wit, for men of sobriety, honesty, and a peaceable conversation, to enjoy the liberty and exercise of their conscience towards God and among themselves, and to admit among them such, as, by their persuasion and influence, come to be convinced of the same truth with them, without being therefore molested by the civil magistrate. ”

“ For man's understanding cannot be forced by all the bodily sufferings another man can inflict upon him, especially in matters spiritual and supernatural: 'Tis argument, and evident demonstration of reason, together with the power of God reaching the heart, that can change a man's mind from one opinion to another, and not knocks and blows, and such like things, which may well destroy the body, but never can inform the soul, which is a free agent, and must, either accept or reject matters of opinion as are borne in upon it by something proportioned to its own nature. ”

“ For the Son of Man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. Here Christ shows that such kind of zeal was no ways approved of him; and such as think to make way for Christ or his gospel by this means, do not understand what spirit they are of. But if it was not lawful to call for fire from heaven to destroy such as refused to receive Christ, it is far less lawful to kindle fire upon earth to destroy those that believe in Christ, because they will not believe, nor can believe, as the magistrates do, for conscience' sake. ”

“ But there is little reason to pity one that is but dealt by according as he would deal with others. For to say, They have no reason to persecute us, because they are in the wrong, and we in the right, is but miserably to beg the question. Doth not this doctrine strengthen the hands of the persecutors every where, and that rationally, from a principle of self-preservation: For who can blame me for destroying him that I know waits but for an occasion to destroy me, if he could? Yea, this makes all suffering for religion, which of old was the glory of Christians, to be but of pure necessity ”

“ Seeing the question will arise, Whether that is a heresy which the magistrate saith is so? and seeing it is both possible, and confessed by all to have often fallen out, that some magistrates have judged that heresy which was not, punishing men accordingly for truth, instead of error; there can be no argument drawn from the obviousness or evidence of heresy, unless we should conclude heresy could never be mistaken for truth, nor truth for heresy; whereof experience shows daily the contrary, even among Christians. ”

“ By conscience then, as in the explanation of the fifth and sixth propositions I have observed, is to be
understood that persuasion of the mind which arises [2] from the understanding's being possessed with the belief of the truth or falsity of any thing; which though it may be false or evil upon the matter, yet if a man should go against his persuasion or conscience, he would commit a sin; because what a man doth contrary to his faith, though his faith be wrong, is no ways acceptable to God. Hence the apostle saith, Whatsoever is not of faith, is sin ”

“ Every thief and murderer would be a martyr at that rate: experience hath abundantly proved this in these last centuries; for however each party talk of passively obeying the magtristrate in such cases, and that the power resides in him, yet it is apparent, that from this principle it naturally follows, that any party, supposing themselves right, should, so soon as they are able, endeavour at any rate to get uppermost, that they might bring under those of another opinion, and force the magistrate to uphold their way, to the ruin of all others. ”

“ II. But that no man, by virtue of any power or principality he hath in the government of this world, hath power over the consciences of men, is apparent, because the conscience of man is the seat [5] and throne of God in him, of which God is the alone proper and infallible judge, who by his power and Spirit can alone rectify the mistakes of conscience, and therefore hath reserved to himself the power of punishing the errors thereof as he seeth meet. Now for the magistrate to assume this, is to take upon him to meddle with things not within the compass of his jurisdiction ”

“ But on the contrary, most Protestants, when they have not the allowance and toleration of the magistrate, meet only in secret, and hide their testimony; and if they be discovered, if there be any probability of making their escape by force, (or suppose it were by cutting off those that seek them out,) they will do it; whereby they lose the glory of their sufferings, by not appearing as the innocent followers of Christ, nor having a testimony of their harmlessness in the hearts of their pursuers, their fury, by such resistance, is the more kindled against them. ”

“ To seek to force minds in any other manner, is to deal with men as if they were brutes, void of understanding; and at last is but to lose one's labour, and as the proverb is, To seek to wash the black-moor white. ”

“ This is a piece of mere unreasonable malice, and a privilege they take to judge of things to come, which they have not by immediate revelation; and surely it is the greatest height of harsh judgment to say men would do contrary to their professed
principle if they could, who have from their practice hitherto given no ground for it, and wherein they only judge others by themselves: such conjectures cannot militate against us, so long as we are innocent. ”

“ For ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the son of man be come. Now a particular practice or command for a particular time will not serve for a precedent to any at this day to shun the cross of Christ. But supposing this precept to reach farther, it must be so understood to be made use of only according as the Spirit giveth liberty, else no man that could flee might suffer persecution. How [47] then did not the apostles John and Peter flee, when they were the first time persecuted at Jerusalem? ”

“ For it answers very well, That as the Jews were to cut off their enemies outwardly, in order to establish their kingdom and outward worship, so they were to uphold it the same way: but as the kingdom and gospel of Christ was not to be established or propagated by cutting off or destroying the Gentiles, but by persuading them, so neither is it to be upheld otherwise.
But Secondly, they urge Rom. xiii. where the [16] magistrate is said not to bear the sword in vain, because he is the minister of God, to execute wrath upon such as do evil. ”

“ And if it was not according to the wisdom of Christ, who was and is King of kings, by outward force to constrain others to believe him or receive him, as being a thing inconsistent with the nature of his ministry and spiritual government, do not they grossly offend him, who will needs be wiser than he, and think to force men against their persuasion to conform to their doctrine and worship? The word of the Lord said, Not by power and by might, but by the Spirit of the Lord, Zech. ”

“ But he abundantly hath shown by his example, whom we are chiefly to imitate in matters of that nature, that it is by persuasion and the power of God, not by whips, imprisonments, banishments, and murderings, that the gospel is to be propagated; and that those that are the propagators of it are often to suffer by the wicked, but never to cause the wicked to suffer. When he sends forth his disciples, he tells them, he sends them forth as lambs [6] among wolves, to be willing to be devoured, not to devour: he tells them of their being whipped, imprisoned, and killed for their conscience ”

“ For so long as any party is persuaded, that it is both lawful for them, and their duty, if in power, to destroy those that differ from them, it naturally follows they ought to use all means possible to get that power, whereby they may secure themselves in the ruin of their adversaries. ”

“ So that they who will notwithstanding be pulling up that which they judge is tares, do openly declare, that they make no scruple to break the commands of Christ. Miserable is that evasion which some of our adversaries use here, in alleging these tares are meant of hypocrites, and not of heretics! But how to evince that, seeing heretics, as well as hypocrites, are children of the wicked one, they have not any thing but their own bare affirmation, which is therefore justly rejected. ”

“ And if the dissenters prove resolute, and suffer boldly for the opinions they esteem right, experience showeth that such sufferings often tend to the commendation of the sufferers, but never of the persecutors. For such suffering ordinarily breeds compassion, and begets a curiosity in others to inquire the more diligently into the things for which they see men suffer such great losses so boldly; and is also able to beget an opinion, that it is for some good they do so suffer: it being no ways probable that men will venture all merely to acquire fame ”

“ Lastly, as to that of Paul's being conveyed out of Damascus, the case was singular, and is not to be doubted but it was done by a special allowance from God, who having designed him to be a principal minister of his gospel, saw meet in his wisdom to disappoint the wicked counsel of the Jews. But our adversaries have no such pretext for fleeing, whose fleeing proceeds from self-preservation, not from immediate revelation. ”

“ But that the magistrate, as a magistrate, is neither proper judge in these cases, nor yet that the capacity so to be is requisite in him as a magistrate, our adversaries cannot deny; or else they must say, That all the heathen magistrates were either no lawful magistrates, as wanting something essential to magistracy, and this were contrary to the express doctrine of the apostle, Rom. xiii. or else (which is more absurd) that those heathen magistrates were proper judges in matters of conscience among Christians. ”

“ And if it was not lawful for the apostles, who had so large a measure of the Spirit, and were so little liable to mistake, to force others to their judgment, it can be far less lawful now for men, who as experience declareth, and many of themselves confess, are fallible, and often mistaken, to kill and destroy all such as cannot. ”

“ Thirdly, Though we would not have men hurt in their temporals, nor robbed of their privileges as men and members of the commonwealth, because of their inward persuasion; yet we are far from judging that in the church of God there should not be censures exercised against such as fall into error, as well as such as commit open evils ”

“ And since both the Lutherans and Calvinists not admitting one another to worship in those respective dominions, showeth how little better they are than either Papists or Arians in this particular. And yet Calvin saith, That the [40] conscience is free from the power of all men: if so, why then did he cause Castellio to be banished because he could not, for conscience' sake, believe as he did, That God had ordained man to be damned? ”

“ As this patient but yet courageous way of suffering made the persecutors' work very heavy and wearisome unto them, so the courage and patience of the sufferers, using no resistance, nor bringing any weapons to defend themselves, nor seeking any ways revenge upon such occasions, did secretly smite the hearts of the persecutors, and made their chariot wheels go on heavily. ”

“ And also saith, Unto such as are otherwise minded, God shall reveal it, Phil. iii. 15.not that by beatings and banishments it must be knocked into them.
§. VI. Now the ground of persecution, as hath [42] been above shown, is an unwillingness to suffer; for no man, that will persecute another for his conscience, would suffer for his own, if he could avoid it, seeing his principle obliges him, if he had power, by force to establish that which he judges is the truth, and so to force others to it. ”

“ Now it cannot be denied but heretics are here included; and although these servants saw the tares, and had a certain discerning of them; yet Christ would not they should meddle, lest they should hurt the wheat: thereby intimating, that that capacity in man to be mistaken, ought to be a bridle upon him, to make him wary in such matters ”