1678                       173       (107

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Church with the unanimous result of the councills advise & determination to be

considered of by your self & the church, in order to your seasonable answer to that

result of the councill, & therfore did not dissolve the council, & have waighted for

your churches Answer now 5 or 6 weeks, we thought meet to signify to you that if there be not a speedy & satisfactory Answer to the say^d advise & determination of y^e

council, ther must be eer long another Meeting of the say^d council to advise what

we have farther to doe in this case, Though we would yet hope, that upon second

and more serious thoughts you will Speedily prepare & send us such a satisfactory

Answer of your church to that advise, as may prevent any further trouble of a 2^d meet

ing of the council, soe we take leave resting

 

     Ipswich this 3^d of 12 (78)   Your Loving Brethren & freinds

                                              Tho: Cobbett

     I conceive noe less then the substance

       of the above written & that it is Incumbent

     on the Church, after soe long time of deliberation

      To give a positive Answer to the advise of the

       council

                       Daniel Denison.

 

 Two Brethren were sent to M^r Cobbet to give an answer to the forgoing letter

by word of mouth (it being my lecture week) in sume they gave this account that

we had had a Church Meeting to consider of what y^e councill left with us & y^e rest

of the church did Express their dissatisfaction as to sitting down with the councills ad

=vise and that we had given an account of y^e grounds of our dissent to y^e Revered

moderator M^r Ward wherin we conceived that we attended due order, though we

sent not our Answer to y^e councills advise to y^e Revered M^r Cobbett &c.

The council conveening again ffeb 25 we presented to them the following lines

 

     The Reasons why the church of X^st at Rowley viz the major part of them could

not sit down with, nor act according to y^e advise of the first Council met of Rowley

at the desire, & upon y^e complaint of M^r Philip Nelson Decemb 11 1678 presented to

them at their 2^d meeting at Rowley ffeb 25 1678

     Honoured Reverend & beloved in our Lord Jesus X^st

At your first meeting and at your first appearance in publick y^r was a long paper

read composed by M^r Nelson to his councellors, which the church heard not off till

then, and therfore did Express greif & cannot but doe soe still, that a paper contain

ing soe many falshoods & unjust reflections upon the church, should be published before

Town & Countrey, as if it had bin fully considered off by the Council, and the accu

sations searched into as to the truth of them, & soe judged meet to be published &

that before had opportunity to answer for our selves & to evince the groundlessness

of these reflections, This gratified the offendour, but was a greif to the hearts of

many of many of Gods servants in this place : Yea after the publication of this

reproachfull paper, we requested that we might have it, or a coppy of it, that we

might answer it, & we are misinformed if it was not promised us that it should

be sent to us, but upon farther thoughts it was determined we should not have it

And yet were advised to receive in the offendour and that before he had made

good His charges, or Els acknowledg his sin in soe accusing, This is a strang way

of seeking peace when instead of giving satisfaction to the Church for his offences

he should falsly accuse the Church, And how he can purely and sincerly desire

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