England, obtained epifcopal ordination, and the benefit of miffionaries; their godlinefs was great gain.

*

· ANABAPTISTS. See vol. I. p. 445. Their effential and diftinguishing doctrine is with relation to baptism; they baptize adults only, and that by immerfion or dipping. This formerly was a very wild fectary, and therefore run into many fubdivifions scarce to be enumerated; I am well informed, that at prefent in Penfylvania there are 16 or 17 different forts of anabaptifts English and German. I fhall inftance fome of their subdivifions. 1. English, a fober and generally good people; German anabaptifts, a turbulent people: the German anabaptifts have no meetings or publick places of worfhip in Philadelphia, but many in the country, and generally refuse the qualification oath; one of their branchings are called menifts, they have no meeting in Philadelphia, but are a numerous and wealthy people in the country, and follow farming; their diftinction is wearing long beards, and refufing government oaths. The dumplers are a finall body of Germans, about 50 miles from Philadelphia, men and women profeffing continency, live in feparate apartments. The men wear a monkish habit, without breeches like capuchins, but lighter cloth, as to oaths they are the fame with the quakers and moravians; though an illiterate people, they have a very decent chapel, and as craftfmen, they are very ingenious; upon a fine ftream they have a grift mill, a faw-mill, a paper mill, an oil mill, and a mill for pearl barley, all under one roof, which brings them in confiderable profit. There is one English anabaptist meeting in Philadelphia, and fome in the country. First day baptifts, their weekly holy day is the Sunday, as in ufe with all other chriftians; feventh day baptifts, on the feventh day or jewish fabbath they meet for

2.

Not long fince the vagrant Mr. W- d occafioned a feparation in the Boston anabaptift church; the feparatifts are under the cure or care of a leather breeches maker; they are antimoralifts, and therefore pernicious in fociety.

publick

publick worship, and abstain from common labour, but labour, &c. on the Sunday or first day of the week; of those there is a congregation in Newport and in Wefterly of Rhode-Inland colony, and feveral in the country of Penfylvania. 3. The first day baptifts are fubdivided into those who use finging in their publick worship as the generality of chriftians do; and baptifts who do not admit of finging in publick worship; they alledge that there must be a great deal of hypocrify in promifcuous finging, as it cannot be imagined that every one of the congregation is in the humour of finging at the fame

time.

QUAKERS, fee vol. I. p. 447. As they are not under the confinement of creeds, confeffions of faith, platforms, canons, articles, formulas, and the like, they cannot poffibly break loofe into fectary * fubdivifions their principal doctrines are to be inveftigated from their practice, (it is to be wished that it were fo in all profeffions of religion) their induftry, frugality, mutual benevolence or friendship. The external part of a

quaker's

The quakers, and not finging baptifts, are defervedly faulted, because finging of pfalms incites and heightens devotion.

;

*Anno 1642 or 1644, in time of the civil wars in England, George Fox of Leicestershire, æt 25, fet up for a religionary exhorter or teacher; he exclaimed against the established clergy, fome of Cromwell's foldiers became his profelytes and would not fight, in course the prifons were crouded. In K. Charles II. administration they were frequently prefented for refufing to pay tythes, and for not taking government oaths. Robert Barclay of Scotland wrote an Apology for the quakers 1575, and dedicated it to the king, which abated that perfecution. William Penn, fon of vice-admiral Penn, became a quaker, æt. 22, and with Fox went upon a miffion into foreign countries, but from Holland they foon returned home; this Penn was proprietary and governor of Penfylvania; he wrote two folio volumes in favour of the quakers.

Benjamin Holmes lately wrote in favour of quakerifm; his book was first published in Amfterdam 1723.

I know of no differences among them, only fome are more demure, fome lefs demure or precife in the antiquated habit and mode of speech, that is, more jovial and debonnaire.

L 4

Not

quaker's religion confifts only in trivial matters, the antiquated modes of fpeech, thee, thou, thy, &c; and an antiquated dress of a plain coat without plaits, or buttons on the pockets and fleeves, beaver like hats with horizontal brims as is generally wore by the church of England clergy: the pufillanimous doctrine of not defending themselves by force against an invading enemy is very abfurd: PRO PATRIA is not only a law of nations, but of nature. They fay that a regular clergy with be-nefices are hirelings, and, like mercenary troops, do duty only for fake of their pay, and not to be fo much depended upon as the militia or voluntary confcientious

exhorters.

Quakers hold all fwearing and paying tythes unlawful; they do not find fault with the various forms of civil government, but give obedience to any established government; all who have the gift of the light within them, men or women, are fufficiently ordained to preach the gospel without any commiffion from a church, or affiftance from human learning; all praying and preaching premeditated or extempore without the fpirit, are fuperftitious will-worship and idolatry; they ufe neither baptifm nor the Lord's fupper.

Unjustly they are faid not to regard the fcriptures, whereas in their exhortations, writings, and defences of their orthodoxy, no fect ufe fcripture phrafes and quotations more than they do. Their affirmation instead

of

Not only in the neighbourhood, but by annual or periodical itine rancies of their speakers or exhorters, and alfo of their most noted

men.

+ Ifhall here give a few inftances of their establishing fome of their tenets by fcripture. 1. They feem to be generally arminian, James ii.

20.

"But wilt thou know O vain man! that faith without works is "dead." Acts x. 34. God is no refpecter of perfons, he that fears "God and works righteoufnefs is accepted of him." 1 John ii. 2. "And "he is the propitiation for our fins, and not for us only, but for the fins of "the WHOLE world." They cannot believe that God has fore-ordained a certain part of mankind to perish, and a certain part to be faved; because

of an oath, is not to be faulted, because it is equally binding, and falfifying is fubjected to the fame penalty as perjury; government oaths are become fo common, they have almost loft their folemnity. They use the fame fubterfuge with our more illiterate teachers and exhorters, 1 Corinth. i. 26. &c. "Not many wife after "the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called; “but God hath chofen the foolish things of the world, to "confound the wife," &c. Their filent waiting upon the Lord in their publick places of devotion, is faulted by many, but they fay, at that time, they have a divine teacher in their own heart. They believe a refurrection of the just and unjuft, and that God will give a reward to every man according to his works, whether they be good or evil ; but as to the nature and manner of the refurrection they are filent, they only fay, that it is not fafe

66

66.

because in fuch a belief there is no need to take care of falvation or good morals; this is execrably pernicious, and voids all doctrines, religious or moral. 2. All mankind have an innate divine light, which if attended to, directs them into a good and holy life, and averts them from fin and paffions; "this is the light, (John i. 9.) "which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." 3.Water baptifm is not effential to christianity, it must be of the fpirit, Acts xi. 16. John indeed baptized with water, but ye fhall be baptized with the holy ghoft;" as Chrift was born under the law, he fulfilled the law, and was circumcifed: " in Chrift Jefus, neither circumcifion nor "uncircumfion availeth any thing, but a new creature:" as they have charity for those who uie water baptifm confcientiously, and who use bread and wine, so they ought to have charity for us if we difuse them, because we believe they are ceafed in point of obligation. 4. In anfwer to 1 Tim. ii. 12. "But fuffer not a woman to teach, nor to ufurp "authority over the man, but to be in filence;" they adduce the apostle Paul, Rom. xvi. who advises to help thefe women which laboured with him in the gospel in our bible we are told of many women that did prophefy, Acts ii. 18. "And on my fervants, and on my handmaidens, I will pour out in thefe days of my spirit, and "they fhall prophefy." 5. As to their not bearing of arms, Mat. v. 44. "Love your enemies, blefs them that curfe you, do good to "them that hate you." 6. Their refufing of government oaths, James V. 12. "But above all things my brethren, fwear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath, but let "your yea be yea, and your nay nay, left you fall into condemnation,"

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:

to

to be too inquifitive, how the dead fhall be raised, and with what bodies. 1 Corinth. xv. 44. "There is a na

tural body, and there is a fpiritual body;" the apostle Paul faith, "Flesh and blood cannot inherit the king"dom of God, neither doth corruption inherit incorrup❝tion."

MORAVIANS. Some have transported themselves to Penfylvania. In a late act of the British parliament, 1749, in favour of their affirmation inftead of an oath, they are called an ancient proteftant episcopal church; they call themselves unitas fratrum or united brethren, as the quakers with very good propriety call themfelves friends.

The moravians publish no creed or confeffion of faith, and can be characterised only from their manners and preaching in a whining canting enthufiaftical strain; in church government they are epifcopal, but refuse taking of oaths as do the menenifts in Holland, and the English quakers; they refufe carrying of arms, but willingly contribute towards the pecuniary charge of a war, which quakers refufe; they ufe inftrumental mufick in their worship; in Philadelphia they have a cha-` pel with a fmall organ, and in the country at Bethlehem their grand fettlement about 50 or 60 miles from Philadelphia, at their folemn feftivals, befides the organ they ufe violins, hautbois, and French horns; they poffefs 7000 or 8000 acres of land, and make confiderable fettlements; they are very zealous towards converting the Indians, fome Indians have joined their fociety and live with them; they fend miffionaries abroad almost every where, even to Greenland, or Davis's ftraits; beginning of June, 1749, there arrived in Philadelphia three natives of Greenland, two young men and a young woman converted in their own country by moravian miffionaries; they came in a fhip belonging to the fociety which had carried thither two years fince a ready framed church †

Thefe high latitudes produce no timler or other wood.

to