peals to the General Affembly, and Mr. Wifhart having made his explications, and given in a subscribed declaration of his adhering to the Confeffion of Faith, and the particular articles of it which his propofitions feemed to oppofe, and alfo of his difclaiming all errors whatfomever (whether charged upon him in the prefbytery's articles or not) that are contrary to the Confeffion of Faith, or any article of it; the Affembly thereupon affoilzied Mr Wifhart from the process against him, and alfo they fustained his call to be one of the ministers of Edinburgh, and appointed the prefbytery to admit him as fuch.

Here we cannot but teftify against fuch foft proceedings, whether in the cafe of Profeffor Campbell, Doctor Wifhart, or others proceffed for error; feeing we judge it far from being fufficient to terminate a procefs for error, or to vindicate perfons accused of it, that they explain their words into a found and orthodox fenfe, though perhaps contrary to the obvious meaning of them, according to the plain and ordinary acceptation of words; or that they profess their adherence to our Confeffion of Faith, and its articles, which their tenets are thought to contradict. For a heretic, when in hazard of cenfure, may make a fhift to put an orthodox fenfe upon his words, if that will fave him, though it should be quite contrary to the common fenfe and meaning of them; and he may declare his owning the words of our Confeffion of Faith, and yet affix a fenfe and meaning to them directly oppofite to the known fentiments and doctrine of this church: fo that it is plain, fuch a loofe fuperficial way of managing a process for error, is not an effectual way to fupprefs it.. Wherefore we

think it further neceffary for that end, that those who are proceffed for venting error or unfound propofitions, fhould particularly and directly renounce the erroneous tenets and principles charged upon them, upon account of their words, and the unfound fenfe which they naturally convey; and that they be at least rebuked for departing from the form of found words contained in the word of God, and our ftandards, which are framed agreeable thereunto. We fee it is God's exprefs com3L 2

mand

mand concerning fuch men, Titus i. 13. "Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be found in the faith." Sharp rebukes preserve soundness, but eafy abfolutions encourage error. No fooner is Dr Wishart affoilzied, but he falls a recommending and prefacing books of bad character, fuch as Dr Whitchcot's fermons, that favour of Socinianifm, as the Reverend Mr Biffet of Aberdeen makes appear in a letter he hath lately publifhed. Ah! how low muft the case of this poor church be, when the head of the most frequented college in Scotland recommends fuch books impunè for college students and preachers to form upon!

THESE and other proceedings of our Affemblies were very grievous to many worthy minifters and others in this church; and the four feceding brethren before mentioned, with other four, viz. Meffrs Nairn, R. Erfkine, Mair, and Thomfon, who afterwards joined them, took occafion from fuch actings, to carry their ferethon and feparation to very great heights, by licen fing preachers, invading parishes, and preaching up feparation every where, not fparing their best friends, nor those who diffented from the evils of the time, and tock all regular methods to teftify against them; but charging the whole miniftry with very black things. They alfo framed an Act and Testimony of many fheets, with very much of church authority in it, which they required all their followers to adhere to. Though we own there were many good things in it, yet there were also many mistakes in it, and mifreprefentation of facts, very harth and unfuitable expreffions, and alfo bitter reflections against their brethren, and even our worthy forefathers, &c. Thefe things being laid before the Affembly, they appointed the minifters of the presbyteries and fynods where the faid brethren refide, to be at all pains, by conference, and other gentle means of perfuafion, to reclaim them; and to report their diligence to the commiffion, whom they impowered, if they should fee caufe, to take all proper fteps to fift the faid eight brethren before the Affembly 1739. Accordingly, thefe eight brethren were libelled and cited to the faid Affembly, who all compeared before them in

the

the capacity of a conftitute judicatory; and, inftead of anfwering to their libel, they by their Moderator read an act of their court, condemning the judicatories of the national church as not being lawful courts of Christ, and declining all their authority and jurisdiction over them. Upon which they withdrew, and attended the Affembly no more. Whereupon the Affembly paft an act concerning them, declaring, "That for their declinature, contempt, and fchifmatical courfes, contrary to their vows, and for the many groundless and calumnious reflections which they have cast on the church and her judicatories, they deserve deposition: but that they refolved to forbear them another year, to give them further time to bethink themselves, and return to their duty; and they appointed them to be cited to the next Affembly 1740."

Being cited accordingly, and not compearing, the Affembly 1740 proceeded to depofe the whole eight brethren. But there having been debates about wording the fentence, and different fenfes put on it, we must look to the words themselves, which are," They depose them from the office of the holy ministry, prohibiting them to exercife the fame within this church.” And we must fay, we are forry to see a sentence of this fort fo ambiguous. If thefe words, Within this Church, be connected with the word Depofe, as well as with the word Prohibite, they mean no more but that they depofe them from being minifters of this church; and many who voted it fay they meant no more; fo that, in this fenfe, the fentence is only a loofing of their relation from the national church; which the brethren themselves had done in effect, by their feceffion from her, by their renouncing all her authority and jurifdiction, and refufing all communion with any of her minifters. But, on the other hand, if the words, Within this Church, be not connected with the word Depofe, then the Affembly meant to depofe them fimpliciter from the office of the miniftry itfelf: and in this fense many members understood the fentence; and therefore good many voted against it, and diffented from it. For though they did not approve of their wild divifive practices,

practices, yet they had not freedom to unminifter them, feeing they looked upon them as pious orthodox Prefbyterian miniflers, who had been useful in the church, and might ftill be ufeful in preaching Chrift to loft perishing finners. And, if the fentence be taken up in this fenfe, we join with those who testified against it; in regard we think the world cannot eafily fpare any of thofe minifters who are upright and zealous in preaching a crucified Jefus to fallen men, especially at a time when Deifm and dry moral difcourfes are like to thrust out true Chriftianity. Neither do we think it was time for the church to proceed to cenfure the brethren, till once they had done all they could to remove the evils and redrefs the grievances which were the grounds of their feparation, and thereby had made them inexcufable in their fchifm; which, alas! is far from being done. And as for the brethrens licenfing of preachers, which is one article of their libel, the Affembly and commiflion might prevent that, if they pleafed to obferve our good rules, and particularly the 14th act of Aflembly 1736 against intrufions; feeing it is manifeft, that, by every new intrufion and forced fettlement which they make, they give encouragement to the brethren to erect a new tent, and licenfe a new preacher; and, till such time as they fhall ceafe from the one, they cannot well expect the brethren will cease from the other. And, with refpect to feveral other parts and articles of their libel, we think them too general, and no ways fo particular, nor duly laid, as ought to have been in a procefs of this kind; and fome of the most material things charged against the brethren are left out.

But as we cannot juftify the Affembly in their conduct, so neither can we vindicate the brethren in theirs. And feeing we proposed in this performance to give a fair and impartial teftimony against the defections and evils of the time, whether upon one fide or another, we fhall briefly mention fome of our feceding brethrens defections and ftrayings from the good old paths; which they have been led into, partly by their own precipi

tancy

tancy and misguided zeal, and partly by the headstrong humours of their followers: Such as,

1. Their unprecedented feceffion which they have made from their mother church, and the lamentable fchifm they have begun and carried on with fo much heat and uncharitableness, when they were under no neceffity of going into any finful terms of communion, and when they were joined with a body of faithful minifters who witnessed against the evils complained of, as well as they. Our hiftories affure us, that such a fchifmatical courfe is contrary to what was the the approven judgment and practice of our reforming anceftors for above an hundred years after our reformation from Popery, though fometimes they had greater provocation to it than our feceding brethren had.

2. They both feceded, and conftituted themselves into a prefbytery for the exercife of difcipline and government through the whole national church, without ever confulting with their brethren and fathers in it, whom they then owned to be a numerous body of faithful ministers though they could not but foresee that the faid body of minifters, with their flocks, would be much affected, nay diftreffed, fhaken, perplexed, and rent, by fuch fingular and extraordinary fteps as they were tak ing.

3. Their irreverend and disrespectful carriage towards their mother church, to whom they had folemnly vowed fubmillion; as appears in their Declinature, wherein they difown all her authority and jurifdiction over them, and pronounced judicially a fentence of their newly erected prefbytery against the General Aeffmbly, and all the other judicatories of the church, FINDING and DECLARING that they are not lawful courts of Chrift; which fentence they prefumed formally to intimate in face of the General Affembly by their moderator, before many witneffes, May 17th 1739. They ought to have remembered, that the laws both of God and man do highly refent childrens beating, curfing or maltreating their mother, even when the is somewhat; fevere and out of her duty to them; and that it is neceffary that zeal thould be attended with

meeknefs,