Generall Consideracons for ye plantacon in New England, wth an aunswere to seuerall objections[1]
FIRST it will be a service to ye Church of great consequence, to carry ye gospell into those parts of ye world, & to raise a bulwarke agt ye kingdos of Antichrist wch ye Jesuits labour to reare vp in all places of ye world.
Secondly all other churches of Europe are brought to desolacon, & it may be justly feared yt ye like judgmt is coming vpon vs: & who knowes but yt God hath provided this place to be a refuge for many whom hee meanes to saue out of ye generall destruction.
Thirdly the land growes weary of her inhabitants, so that man wch is ye most precious of all creatures is here more vyle & base then ye earth they tread upon; so as children neighbours & friends especially of ye poore, are counted ye greatest burdens, wch if things were right would be ye highest earthly blessings.
Wee are growen to yt excesse & intemperaunce in all excesse of riot as no meane estate almost will suffice to keepe saile wth his equalls & hee yt fayles in it must [live] in scorne & contempt. Hence it comes to passe yt all arts & trades are carried in yt deceitfull maner & vnrighteous course, as it is almost impossible for a good upright man to maintayne his chardge & liue cofortably in any of ym.
Fiftly ye Schooles of learning & religion are so corrupted, as (besides ye unsupportable chardge of this educacon) most children, (euen ye best wittiest & of fayrest hopes) are perverted, corrupted & utterly ouerpowered by ye multitude of evill examples & licentious governors of those seminaries.
Sixtly ye whole earth is ye Lords garden & hee hath giuen it to ye sons of Adam to bee tilled & improoued by ym why then should we stand starving here for places of habitacon (many men spending as much labour & cost to recouer or keepe soetymes an acre or two of lands, as would procure him many hundreths of acres, as good or better in another place) & in ye meane tyme suffer whole countreyes as profitable for ye use of man, to lye wast wthout any improouement.
Seaventhly, what can bee a better worke and more noble & worthy a Christian, then to helpe to raise & support a particular church while it is in it infancy, & to [join] or forces wth such a copany of faithfull people, as by a tymely assistaunce may grow stronger & prosper, & for want of it may be put to great hazzard if not wholly ruinated?
Eightly if any such as are knowne to bee godly & liue in wealth & prosperity here, shall forsake all this to joyne ymselves wth this church, & runne in hazard wth ym of hard & meane condicon, it will be an example of great vse both for ye remooving of Scandall & sinister & worldly respects, to giue more lyfe to ye faith of Gods people in their prayers for ye plantacon, & also to encourage others to joyne ye more willingly in it.
Objections:
Obj. 1. It will bee a great wrong to or owne church & countrey to take away the best people; & we still lay it more open to ye judgmts feared.
Aunsw. 1. The number will be nothing in respect of those yt are left. 2ly many yt liue to no vse here, more then for their owne priuate familyes may bee employed to a more como good in another place. 3ly such as are of good vse here may yett be so employed as ye church shall receiue no losse. and since Christs coming ye church is to be conceiued as universal wthout distinctio of countryes, so as hee yt doth good in any one place serves ye church in all places, in regard of ye vnitye. 4thly it is ye revealed will of God yt ye gospell should be preached to all nations, and though we know not whether ye Indians will receiue it or not, yet it is a good worke to observe Gods will in offering it to ym, for God shall haue glory by it though yy refuse it.
Object. 2. wee haue feared a judgemt a long tyme, but yet we are safe; therefore it were better to stay till it come, & either we may flie then, or if we be ouertaken in it wee may well bee content to suffer wth such a church as ours is.
Aunsw. It is likely yt this consideracon made ye churches beyond ye seas as ye Palatinate & Rochel &c to sit still at home, & not looke out for shelter while yy might haue found it. but ye wofull spectacle of their ruine may teach us more wisdome to avoid ye plague while it is foreseene, & not to tarry as yy did till it ouertooke ym. If they were now at their former liberty, wee may be sure yy would take other courses for their safety. And though most of ym had miscarried in their escape, yet it had not bene halfe so miserable to thmselves, or scandalous to religion, as this desperate backsliding and abjuring ye truth, wch many of ye auntient professours among ym, & ye whole posterity that remayne are plunged into.
Object. 3. wee haue here a fruitfull Land wth peace & plenty of all things.
Aunsw: wee are like to haue as good condicons there in tyme; but yet we must leaue all this abundance, if it bee not taken fro vs. When we are in or graues, it will bee all one whether we haue liued in plenty or in penury, whether we haue dyed in a bed of downe or lockes of straw. Onely this is ye advantage of ye meane condicon, yt it is a more freedoe to dye. And ye lesse cofort any haue in ye things of this world, ye more liberty yy haue to lay vp treasure in heauen.
Obj. 4. wee may perish by ye way or when we coe there, having hunger or ye sword &c and how vncofortable will it bee to see or wives & children & friends come to such miserie by or occasion?
Aunsw. Such objections savour too much of ye flesh. Who can secure himselfe or his fro ye like calamities here? If this course bee warrantable, we may trust Gods providence for these things. Either hee will keepe those evills fro vs, or will dispose ym for or good & enable vs to beare ym.
Obj. 5. But what warrant haue we to take yt land, wch is & hath bene of long tyme possessed of others ye sons of Adam?
Aunsw. That wch is como to all is proper to none. This Savage people ruleth ouer many lands wthout title or property: for yy inclose no ground, neither haue yy cattell to maintayne it, but remooue their dwellings as yy haue occasion, or as yy can prevaile agt their neighbours. And why may not Christians haue liberty to go & dwell amongst ym in their wast lands & woodds (leaving ym such places as yy haue manured for their corne) as lawfully, as Abraham did amongst ye Sodomites? For God hath giuen to ye sons of men a 2 fould right to ye earth: there is a naturall right & a civill right. The first right was naturall when men held ye earth in como, every man sowing & seeding where hee pleased: then, as men and cattell increased, yy appropriated some parcells of ground by enclosing & peculiar manurance, & this in tyme got ym a civill right. Such was ye right wch Ephron ye Hittite had in ye field of Machpelah, wherein Abraham could not bury a dead corps wthout leaue, though for ye outparts of ye countrey wch lay comon, hee dwelt vpo ym & tooke ye fruit of ym at his pleasure. This appeares also in Jacob & his sons who fedd their flocks as bouldly in ye Canaanites Land for hee is said to bee Lord of ye countrey; & at Dotham and all other places men accounted nothing their owne, but yt wch yy had appropriated by their owne industry, as appeares plainly by Abimelechs servaunts, who in their owne countrey did often contend wth Isaacks servaunts about wells wch yy had digged; but neuer about ye lands wch yy occupied. So likewise betweene Jacob & Laban: hee would not take a kidd of Labans wthout speciall contract; but hee makes no bargaine wth him for ye land where yy fedd. And it is probable yt if ye countrey had not bene as free for Jacob as for Laban, yt covetous wretch would haue made his advantage of him, & haue vpbraided Jacob wth it as hee did wth ye rest. 2dly there is more then enough for ym & vs. 3dly God hath consumed ye natives wth a miraculous plague, whereby ye greater part of ye countrey is left void of inhabitants. 4ly, we shall coe in wth good leaue of ye natiues.
Obj. 6. we shall send or young ones & such as may best bee spared, & not of ye best of or ministers & magistrates.
Aunsw. It is a great worke & requires more skilfull Artisans to lay ye foundacon of a new building, then to uphoald & repayre one yt is already built. If great things bee attempted by weake instrumts, ye effects will bee aunswerable.
Obj. 7. Wee see yt those plantacons yt haue bene formerly made, succeeded ill.
Aunsw. 1 The fruit of any publique designe is not to bee discerned by ye imediat successe: it may appeare in tyme, yt yy were all to good vse. 2dly, there were great fundamentall errours in others wch are like to bee avoided in this: for 1 their mayne end & purpose was carnall & not religious. 2 yy aymed chiefely at profitt & not at ye propagacon of religion. 3 yy vsed too vnfitt instrumts, a multitude of rude vngoverned persons, ye very scums of ye Land. 4 yy did not stablish a right fourme of gouernmt.