Wesley Corpus

6. Thirdly, As to the way to faith, here are many among us, whom some of your brethren have advised (what it is not to be spposed they would as yet speak to me, or in their public preaching)|| »ut to use those * The brethren answer to this, ‘‘ We-believe it much better to discourse out of the newspapers, than to chatter about holy things to no purpose.” Perhaps so. But what is this to the point? I believe both the one and the other to be useless, and therefore an abomination to the Lord. ‘This objection then stands in full force, the fact alleged being rather defended than denied. ‘The joining in worldly diversions in order to do good, (another charge which cannot be denied,) I think would admit of the same defence, viz. “‘ That there are other things as bad.” { ““We wear,” say the brethren, “neither gold nor silver.” You forget. I have seen it with my eyes. “But we judge no body that does.” How! Then you must judge both St. Peter and Paul false witnesses before God. “‘ And because those professions that minister thereto [to sin, to what God has flatly forbidden] relate to trade, and trade is a thing relating to the magistrate, we, therefore let all these things alone, entirely suspending our judgment concerning them.” What miserable work is here! Because trade relates to the magistrate, am I not to consider whether my trade be innocent or sinful? Then, the keeper of a Venetian brothel is clear. The magistrate shall answer for him to God! ¢ { This fact also you grant, and defend thus :--“ The power of reproving relates either to outward things, ur to the heart. Nobody has any right to the former, but the magistrate.” (Alas! alas! what casuistry is “his?) “ And if one will speak to the heart, he must be first sure that the Saviour has already got hold of it.” What then must become of all other men? O how pleasing is all this to flesh and blood! § In the pretace to the second Journal, the Moravian Church is cleared from this mistake. ;