ration was brought; and that, as it
was not to the business in hand, so it might rather serve for impairing
his credit than for anything else. But seeing himself thinks it more for
his credit to tell the world of his saying and unsaying, declaring and
undeclaring, let him be doing.

In the next place, Will you see how much violence he offereth to divines
whom he citeth? I had cited plain and full testimonies of the Zurich
divines, showing that Gualther expounds 1 Cor. v. all along of
excommunication; that Bullinger holds excommunication to be instituted by
Christ, Matt. xviii.; that Aretius saith God was the author of
excommunication in the Old Testament, and Christ in the New, all which see
in _Nihil Respondes_, p. 32.

The reverend brother, notwithstanding of their plain testimonies, speaking
for me and against him in the main controversy between him and me, doth
still allege that they are for him, not for me, _Male Dicis_, p. 23, yet
he doth not so much as offer any answer to their testimonies by me cited,
only he bringeth three other passages of theirs, intimating that there may
be a true church without excommunication; that they thought it not
necessary where they lived; that they thought it hard, yea
impossible--_arduum nec non impossible_--to introduce excommunication in
those parts, by which citations the brother hath proved nothing against
me, but confirmed what I said. Let him remember first, he himself makes
the main controversy between him and me about the scriptural warrants of
church censures, now in that they are clearly against him. Next Aretius,
who thought it hard, yea impossible, to bring in excommunication at that
time, saith also, _Dabit posterior aetas tractabiliores forte
animas_,--peradventure the following age shall bring forth more tractable
souls; and thereupon he adviseth not to despair of the restitution of
excommunication. I cited also other testimonies to show that the Zurich
divines did endeavour and long for the discipline of excommunication,
though as things stood then and there, they did prudentially supersede the
restoring of it where they lived, because of the difficulty and
apprehended impossibility of the thing. If Mr Coleman will follow the
Zurich divines he must change his tone, and quite alter the state of the
question, and make it thus: Whether, as things now stand, it be expedient
to settle excommunication in the church of England. Now if he makes this
the state of the questi