_Answ._ Though your religion must not be taken upon trust, there are many controverted smaller opinions that you must take upon trust, till you are capable of discerning them in their proper evidence. Till you can reach them yourselves, you must take them on trust, or not at all. Though you must believe all things of common necessity to salvation with a divine faith; yet many subservient truths must be received first by a human faith, or not received at all, till you are more capable of them. Nay, there is a human faith necessarily subservient to the divine faith, about the substance of religion; and the officers of Christ are to be trusted in their office, as helpers of your faith. Nay, let me tell you, that while you are young and ignorant, you are not fit for controversies about the fundamentals of religion themselves. You may believe that there is a God, long before you are fit to hear an atheist proving that there is no God. You may believe the Scripture to be the word of God, and Christ to be the Saviour, and the soul to be immortal, long before you will be fit to manage or study controversies hereupon. For nothing is so false or bad, which a wanton or wicked wit may not put a plausible gloss upon; and your raw unfurnished understandings will scarce be able to see through the pretence, or escape the cheat. When you cannot answer the arguments of seducers, you will find them leave a doubting in your minds; for you know not how plain the answer of them is, to wiser men. And though you must prove all things, you must do it in due order, and as you are able; and stay till your furnished minds are capable of the trial. If you will needs read before you know your letters, or pretend to judge of Greek and Hebrew authors, before you can read English, you will but become ridiculous in your undertaking. 2. When you do come to smaller controverted points, let them have but their due proportion of your time and zeal. And that will not be one hour in many days, with the generality of private christians. By that time you have well learned the more necessary truths, and practised daily the more necessary duties, you will find that there will be but little time to spare for lesser controversies. Opinionists that spend most of their time in studying and talking of such points, do steal that time from greater matters, and therefore from God, and from themselves. Better work is undone the while. And they that here lay out their chiefest zeal, divert their zeal from things more necessary, and turn their natural heat into a fever.