The Snake in the Grass - Sect. 8.

Of the Quaker's idolatry.

AS their notion of their light within has led them from God and Christ, and their holy scriptures into a Christ and infallible rule within themselves; so have they, as a consequence of this madness, committed the wildest idolatry to one another, putting themselves in the place of God.

They think it not honour enough to stand before the throne of God, but G. Fox places them upon the throne, p. 31. The Quakers, says he, are in the power of God, and in the authority of the Lamb, above all houses, and --- are upon the throne.

And according to this high dignity in which they place themselves, they give to themselves and to one another the most peculiar titles of Christ, as that of the branch, and the star, and the son of God, which are attributed to G. F., and which he takes to himself¹. I saw the copy of a letter of his to Oliver Cromwell, transcribed by a Quaker, and preserved as a precious piece: he there calls himself the son of God, and says of himself, my kingdom is not of this world. But because some would turn it off, and pretend that he spoke these words of Christ, and not of himself, I will set down verbatim that part of the letter, and leave the reader to judge. These then are his words:

I who am of the world called George Fox do deny the carrying or drawing of any carnal sword against any, or against thee, Oliver Cromwell, or any man. In the presence of the Lord God I declare, as God is my witness, by whom I am moved to give this forth from him, whom the world calls George Fox, who is the son of God, who is sent to stand a witness against all violence—my weapons are not carnal, but spiritual, and my kingdom is not of this world; therefore with the carnal weapon I do not fight.

These are his words; and though given forth (as he pretended, and the Quakers own) as from the mouth of the Lord, yet the editors of his Journal since his death have made bold (as in many other instances hereafter mentioned) to alter his words, to leave out and put in, as they see cause, to blind the eyes of the world, and obviate the objections against their horrid blasphemies, &c. Therefore in his Journal, printed 1694, p. 137, these words of Fox's letter, my kingdom is not of this world, are left out, as likewise these, who is the son of God; instead of which is added, I set my name to it. But to go on.

In a book called, News coming out of the North, p. 15, G. Fox says, I am the door that ever was, the same Christ yesterday, to-day, and for ever. And in the introduction to his Battledoor for Teach ers and Professors, he says, All languages are to me no more than dust, who was before languages were. And in the title-page of News coming out of the North, he says, Written from the mouth of the Lord, from one who is naked, and stands naked before the Lord, clothed with righteousness, whose name is not known in the world, risen up out of the north, which was prophesied of, but now is fulfilled. And in Several Petitions Answered, &c. p. 60, My name is covered from the world, and the world knows not me, nor my name, G. F.

This Fox came out of the north of England, and thus they break forth in his praise: ² O thou north of England, who art counted as desolate and bar ren, and reckoned the least of the nations, yet out of thee did the branch spring, and the star arise, which gives light to all the regions round about: in thee the star of righteousness appeared, &c.

Jos. Coal, in his letter to G. Fox, thus adores him, ibid. p. 33³: Dear George Fox, who art the father of many nations, whose life hath reached through us thy children—whose habitation is in the power of the highest, in which thou rulest and governs in righteousness, and thy kingdom is established in peace, and the increase thereof is without end. And all this W. Penn does justify and excuse, in his Judas and the Jews, &c. p. 44.

John Audland, another Quaker preacher, offers his sacrifice and worship in the following words of his letter to G. Fox from the west of England: Dear and precious one, in whom my life is bound up, and my strength in thee stands; by thy breathings I am nourished, by thee is my strength renewed; blessed art thou for evermore, and blessed are all that enjoy thee; life and strength comes from thee, holy one Daily do I find thy pre sence with me, which doth exceedingly preserve me; for I cannot reign but in thy presence and power. Pray for me, that I may stand in thy dread for evermore I am thine, begotten and nourished by thee, and in thy power am I pre served. Glory unto thee, holy one, for ever.

I mention this ⁴letter more particularly, because I have seen the original in John Audland's own hand, and compared it with other of his letters; and as well by the character, as by some unusual spelling of some words, it is as demonstrable to be John Audland's own handwriting as can be given, except seeing of him write it. But because some of the modern Quakers would fain deny it, though they cannot, this letter was sent by some Quakers to Chippenham in Wiltshire, where John Audland used to preach; and there were many who were well acquainted with his hand, and it was returned from thence with the attestation of many Quakers, that it was certainly his own handwriting. And for further confirmation, it was sent likewise to Ken dal in Westmoreland, where John Audland was born and died; and it was certified from thence likewise by the Quakers who knew him, that it was unquestionably John Audland's own handwriting.

Solomon Eccles, in a sheet he printed the 17th of the ninth month, 1668, called, The Quaker's Challenge, p. 6, says these words of George Fox: It was said of Christ, that he was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not: so it may be said of this true prophet (George Fox) whom John said he was not. This being objected by one Jeremy Ives, in his Questions to the Quakers, George Whitehead makes this excuse for it in his Serious Search, printed 1674, p. 58; he says that these words, the world was made by him, must not be applied to G. Fox; but only these words, the world knew him not: though they are both in the same sentence, and no reason nor rule of speaking in the world can apply the one without the other. But even this arbitrary inter pretation will not do: for the following words, whom John said he was not, are, past all help of dodging, applied to George Fox. Read the sen tence: So it may be said of this true prophet, (G. Fox,) whom John said he was not. Now who was it that John said he was not? He said, he was not the Christ. He did not say, he was not G. Fox. And therefore this cannot be applied to G. Fox any otherwise than by supposing him to be the Christ; which the Quakers (by a monstrous sort of transubstantiation) think themselves to be.

And pursuant to this blasphemous principle, they pay outward adoration to one another. And though they will not give their hat or a nod to the men of the world, yet it is their custom to bow to one an other; which some of them being taxed with, as being a giving honour to man contrary to their principle, they answered, It was not to the man they bowed, but to the light within him, which was Christ. But G. Fox had the chief of their worship: I have it from eyewitnesses, who have seen them fall down to him, and saying to him, Thou art the son of the ever-living God, the king of Israel; all nations shall worship thee, &c. And kneeling to his wife Margaret, gave her an ora pro nobis in these words: O thou my hea venly mother, pray to my heavenly Father for me. These adorations were common to George Fox; and that blasphemous Volpone took it grave ly, without any reprehension, but, on the contrary, with delectation, stroking his hand over their faces (as his custom was) who kneeled or fell prostrate before him. But because the friends call always for an instance, though the case be never so com mon, I will, to oblige them, go a great way back, and name Anne Gargill, who, when G. Fox came first to London, threw herself upon her knees be twixt his feet, and cried out to him, Thou art the son of the living God! S. B. another Quaker, now alive, was present, and confesses she was struck with that blasphemous expression.

At another time a she-preacher arose in a public meeting, and with a trembling voice and singing tone thus accosted G. Fox, then present, Thou art the king of saints! Whereat another Quaker woman being offended did expostulate with her after the meeting; and her excuse was, that it was not to G. Fox she spoke those words, but to Christ who was within him.

First, And this was the very ground and foundation of all idolatry, viz. the supposed presence or inhabitation of the Divinity in their images, or in the sun, and other creatures, whom they worship ped upon that only pretence, and as transferring the honour to God residing in them, or represented by them.

And this very excuse do the Quakers give here⁵, G. Whitehead thus answering the charge of idolatry in their adorations before mentioned, paid to G. Fox: And as to his (Fran. Bugg's) charge of idolatries, if not blasphemous names and titles, given George Fox, how proves he they gave and intended those names and titles to the person of George Fox, and not to the life of Christ in him, whereof he was a partaker? Innocency against Envy, p. 18. This, as I said before, is the same excuse that the Romans give for their idolatries.

Secondly, By this rule every Quaker may be adored with divine honour, and all the attributes of God given to him, because of his light within, or the life of Christ in him.

Thirdly, I will shew hereafter, that they allow of divine honour to that man Christ Jesus, upon no other account than as George Whitehead allows it to George Fox, that is, because of the residing of the divine Word in him. And they distinguish it from his person, as here from George Fox's; for, as they express it, they can never call the bodily garment Christ: and they do own that the name Christ does belong to every Quaker as well as to Jesus; that is, to both, only upon the account of the light within, which they call the divine word, or Christ. All which shall be proved in its place.

Let me here only observe what an uncouth and preposterous piece of humility it is to deny the title or civility of master, or of their hat, while at the same time they worship one another with divine honour, and bestow upon themselves titles far above what any angels, since Lucifer, durst pretend to, to be even equal with God, of the same substance and the same soul with him; and grudge not to apply all the attributes of God to the light within them, and to themselves for its sake; thus transferring the honour of God unto themselves.

In a book of theirs, called, The Guilty Clergymen Unveiled, by T. S., printed 1657, they make the Quakers' blood to be the blood of Christ, by which we are saved; for they tell their persecutors, (as they called them,) and who they say were guilty of their blood, p. 17, That you will by no means be thence cleansed, but by the same blood which you so cruelly shed. Yet notwithstanding of this high value they put upon themselves, arrogating not only the names and attributes, but the worship and adoration of God to belong to them; see how jealous they are of the least common respect that dare be paid to other men. In the same book, p. 22, they thus fall upon their opponents for giv ing William Thomas, a minister, the style of that reverend man. Say they, How comes W. T. to be a reverend man? Are you not ashamed to court one another with false and flattering titles Did Paul or Peter ever mention each other by the name of reverend brother? Ye shameless and presump tuous ones, who durst assume that title to your selves which the Spirit of truth in the holy scrip tures appropriateth to the Lord alone, saying by the mouth of David, holy and reverend is his name, Psal. cxi. 9. See what tender consciences are here! who at the same time wipe their mouths, and excuse all the bloody blasphemies before men tioned, and their own detestable idolatry, in assuming divine honour and worship to themselves, and paying it to one another.

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1. New Rome Arraigned, p. 33, 34.  ↩︎

2. See New Rome Arraigned p. 34.  ↩︎

3. See New Rome Unmasked, p. 43, 44; from whence to p. 50. you will find many more of the like idolatrous leeters and blasphemies.  ↩︎

4. Upon the desire of some, I have at the end of this book put the whole letter of Audland's from the original, spelt and pointed just as it is there.  ↩︎

5. Some of the Quakers' Principles, sect 32.  ↩︎