A letter to the author of a book, entituled, An answer to W.P.'s key, about the Quakers light within, &c. by Edmund Elys ... Elys, Edmund, ca. 1634-ca. 1707. 1695 Approx. 9 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 3 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2007-01 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A39355 Wing E677 ESTC R41117 19637098 ocm 19637098 109233 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A39355) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 109233) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1685:39) A letter to the author of a book, entituled, An answer to W.P.'s key, about the Quakers light within, &c. by Edmund Elys ... Elys, Edmund, ca. 1634-ca. 1707. 4 p. Printed for Thomas Northcott ..., London : MDCXCV [1695] Caption title. Imprint from colophon. Text in double columns. Reproduction of original in the Bodleian Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Inner Light. Society of Friends -- Doctrines. 2005-11 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2006-03 SPi Global Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2006-05 Mona Logarbo Sampled and proofread 2006-05 Mona Logarbo Text and markup reviewed and edited 2006-09 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A LETTER TO THE Author of a Book , ENTITULED , An Answer to W. P's KEY , About the Quakers LIGHT WITHIN , &c. By Edmund Elys , a Servant of Jesus Christ . SIR , I Consider that the Controversie that you and I are ingaged in , is of infinitely greater concern to all Men than all the Contests of all the Kings , and other Potentates in the World about Temporal Power and Dominion : For the Nations are as a drop of a Bucket , and are counted as the small Dust of the Balance : But THE TRUE LIGHT , concerning whose Influence upon the Souls of Men , we are now to Dispute , is , The High , and Lofty One that inhabiteth Eternity , Lord of Lords , and King of Kings . I beseech you therefore to consider that you must give account at the Day of Judgment of every word you shall return in Answer , to what I shall here say in vindication of the Truth concerning The Light within , Asserted by W. P. in his small Treatise , Entituled , The Key , &c. You say , p. 12. Never was any Nation , or any Generation , or any one Man instructed by that Light that is in the Conscience of every Man , that there ever was such a one as Jesus of Nazareth , much less , that he was the Lord , and least of all what he required of his Servants and Attendants : Therefore no light within common to all Mankind , can be the Rule of the Christian Religion . So that the notorious Experience of all Men confutes the pretence of the Quakers , since it was never possible for any Man to learn , the least part of the Christian Religion by the Light within that is in every Man's Conscience . Answ . Whoever did not Rebel against the Light , which is in the Conscience of every Man , did believe that there was such a one as Jesus of Nazareth , as soon as this Truth was Declar'd unto him by Christ , or His Apostles , or any other that had receiv'd Authority from CHRIST to Preach the Gospel . In a sincere Conformity to the Law of GOD written in the Heart , is implyed a Virtual Assent to all Truth . You say , ( p. 26. ) That , Our Conscience is an inward Sense perceiving immediately nothing but our own Thoughts , which thoughts are therefore its Notices ; and the Minds perceptive , Power presenting these in it self , is the Light in the Conscience of every Man. Answ . CONSCIENCE is the KNOWLEDGE of the Law of God in Conjunction with the KNOWLEDGE of the Conformity , or Difformity of our own Actions , or Omissions thereunto : By Knowledge here I mean the Inward Man , or the Heart consider'd , as Knowing the Law of God , &c. The Truth of what I say is evident from these Texts of Scripture , Rom. 2.15 . 1 John 3.20 , 21. This is a gross Falshood that Conscience perceives nothing immediately but our own Thoughts : For it immediately perceives the Law of God , viz. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Heart , and with all thy Soul , and thy Neighbour as thy self ; after that it perceives the Conformity , or Difformity of our own Actions , or Omissions thereunto . In the Law of God written in the Heart , is manifestly imployed the Idea of God ; for we cannot have any Perception of the Law of God without some Perception , Notion , or Idea of His Existence . This Innate Idea , Notion , or Perception of the Divine Being , the one being absolutely infinite , is that peculiar Participation of Eternal REASON , The WORD , which was in the beginning with God , and which was God , with which our Blessed Creator , the Fountain of all Goodness has endued all Rational Souls . This I suppose is that which W. P. means by His own Light , viz. the immediate Emanation of the WORD , or REASON ESSENTIAL upon All Rational Souls . 'T is excellently observ'd by W. P. Key . p. 2. that , This Light is something else than the bare Vnderstanding Man hath as a Rational Creature : For as such , Man cannot be a Light to himself ; but has only a capacity of seeing by means of the Light , with which Christ , the Word , enlighteneth him . The Humane Intellect , or Vnderstanding is called Reason , because it is the power or faculty of perceiving the Emanations of the Essential Reason , the Fountain of all Truth , and Goodness . You tell us that The Mind 's perceptive Power presenting these ( our Thoughts ) in it self is the Light in the Conscience of every Man. I suppose upon second thoughts you will retract this : What! is the Power , or Faculty perceptive of Light or Truth , the Light it self ? I 'le grant that the Humane Understanding , or Intellectual preceptive Faculty , being the Eye of the Soul , may be called the Light that is in us ; not because we are conscious of our Thoughts , but because we are capable of perceiving the TRUE LIGHT in our own Souls . You say , This light is the Deity it self , and then the Soul of every Man will be Deified thereby . Answ . Not so but the Soul of every Man that Walks in this Light , that adheres to it , as the Principle of all his Actions , may truly be said to be made Partaker of the Divine Nature , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 .. It is a most horrid Error ( if not plain Blasphemy , ) to say as you do , that It was never possible to learn the least part of the Christian Religion by the Light within , that is in every Man's Conscience : For by the Light within we understand CHRIST himself , and that Light which immediately Flows from Him , the Fountain of Light , the Sun of Righteousness , which we are called to Reflect upon , and Conform our Will , and Affections thereunto , by all the Notices that GOD gives of himself by any of his WORDS , or WORKS . Whatever knowledge a Man can have of the sense or signification of any Texts of Scripture , without this Reflexion or immediate Application of the Will and Vnderstanding to Christ himself , the Fountain of Light in his own Soul , such Knowledge is rather the Picture , Form , or Image of Knowledge , than True Divine Knowledge : 'T is that Knowledge which puffeth up , and renders Men more like the Devil , the Father of Lies . 'T is only by obeying the Light within , or by our adherence to the Spirit of Truth in our own Hearts , that we can ever attain to the knowledge of the Truth , as it is in JESVS ; that is , as it saves those that have any apprehension of it , from their Sins . p. 21. you have these words : God is Light , and God is within other things , as well as Men ; is then God a Light within to every Tree , or Beast , or Star ? Answ . GOD , being the ONE absolutely infinite , is in every Creature ; but He is a Light only to those Creatures , which he has endued with a Capacity of having some sight , or perceivance of Him. I desire you wou'd Peruse all those Papers which have been or shall be Publisht for Me , by Thomas Northcott , in George-Yard in Lumbard-street . If you shall attempt the Confutation of this Paper , or of any thing else that I have Publisht , I desire you wou'd not write one Line without this Consideration ▪ That we shall all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ , and that our Life is but a Vapour , &c. Totness in Devon , July 12. ●●95 . I am , Your Servant in the Love of the Truth . Edmund Elys . LONDON , Printed for Thomas Northcott , in George-Yard in Lombard-street , MDCXCV .