QUA
QUA
They own the Scriptures to be given by divine Infpiration, and allow 'em the Appellation of the Form of found Words ; but refufe to call 'cm the Word of God, as being a Deno- mination propetly attributed to Chrifl alone — They add, that what makes 'em more fcrupulous in this refpecr, is, that People are apt to be hereby led to think that if they have the Scriptures, they have all 5 and fo look for no tuttlier Word or Light.
They acknowledge the Holy Three that bear Record in Heaven, Father, Word, and Spirit ; butrejea the School- Terms, Trinity, diltinft, Perfons, Hypoiial'cs, S£c. as not Scriptural, and as apt to convey too grofs Ideas.
They have been even charg'd with denying the Incar- nation, our Saviout's Humanity, Divinity, plenary Satis- faftion, and the Refurreaion of the Dead: hut this is injurious to 'em ; and all that can be juftly laid, is, that they don't allow of 'em in the fame Senfe, or freak of em in
the fame Terms, as is commonly done among others.
They allow the Incarnation, and that the Godhead dwelt bodily in Jefus ; and yet many of 'em fay, there is no Chrifl but what is within 'em : Whence it fhould fcem their Notion of the Incarnation only imply'd this, that the Light, which they call the Chrifl within, dwelt in the Man
Jefus Chrift fully Their Reafoning, here, is, that Chrill,
as God, not being divifible, the Meafure or Manifeflation of the Spirit of Chrill in us, is a Manifeflation of the fame Chrifl which dwelt bodily and fully in the Man Jefus Chrift. They are filent as to the Hypoftatical Union ; and fome of
- em are charged with allegorizing away the whole Hiflory
of the Crucifixion, the Refurreflion, and Afcenfion ; tho' their beftand moft approved Writers have been very explicit in their Acknowledgment of the Reality of the Hiflory.
They decline the Ufe of Modes or Forms of Civility; cxpreffing their Refpecl to their Superiors no other way bur by obeying all juft Laws under their Government.
The Syftem of gudkerifm is laid down in fifteen Thefes, by Robert Barclay, in a well writ Apology addrefs'd to King Charles II. Their Hiflory, writ in LowDutch by William Seivel, and fince translated into EagHJb, traces 'em from the
beginning to the Tear 171 7 A Hiilory of this People was
alfo published An. 1*95, by Gerard Croefei but the Author is by them accufed as having mifreprefented Facts, and in many refpects done them injuflice.
As to Difcipline and Polity ; theAffairs of the Community are all managed under a Democratical Government, by Ruleseflablilhed by common Confent ; and this principally at their Meetings, whereof they have many kinds ; viz. Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, Second Day's Meetings, Meetings of bufferings, i£c.
Their Monthly and Quarterly Meetings are held in their refpeftive Counties To thefe Deputies are fent from
the feveral particular Meetings Here Enquiry is made
into the State of each Meeting ; who Hand fall to the Rules and Orders, and who backilide ; who pay Tythes, and Church Rates, and who fuffer for non-payment of either ; who are married by Priefls, iSc. and accordingly they pro- ceed toCenfure, or Encourage Here too they Excom- municate, and here receive again into Communion j of all which things exact Regiflers are kept.
From thefe Meetings Appeals lie to their Tearly ones, which are always held in London, and confift of three Or- ders or Clafles ; viz. Reprefentatives fent from the Quar- terly Meeings; Correfpondents for the feveral Counties,
and. foreign Countries ; and Miniflers, or Preachers..
Hither are tranfmitted Accounts of what has been tranfacted in all the Monthly and Quarterly Meetings over the World- Here are Meafurcs concerted, and Directions given as to Be- haviour about Tithes, and Rates, providing for the Poor,
compoling differences, &c. Here public Accounts are
audited, and proper Inflructions given to the Deputies to|be obferved at their Return, and a yearly Epiftle of Admoni- tions difpatch'dto be read in all the Monthly and Quarterly Meetings throughout theW T otld.
The Second Say's Meeting, is a Handing Committee con- fiding of the principal Preachers in and about the City, who meet every Monday, to concert particular Cafes, and Exigencies relating to the Body happening between the yearly Meetings; particularly to examine, approve, licenfe, £S?e. all Books printed in their behalf. The Meeting of Sufferings is held every Week, and
confifts of the Correfpondents for each County :
Its bufinefs is to receive Complaints from fuch as have fuf- fer'd for non-payment of Tithes and Rates, and to procure 'em Relief, either by fending 'em Money, for which they have a fettled Fund, or by folliciting their Caufes above, or both.
QJJALI Jits, was an antient Writ Judicial, that lay where a religious Perfon had Judgment to recover Land ; before Execution was made of the Judgment.
This Writ was iffued forth to the Efcheator between Judgment and Execution, to enquire whether the religious Perfon had Right to recover, or whether the Judgment were
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obtained by collufion between the Demandant anil Tenant to the intent that the true Lord were not defrauded.
QUALIFICATOR, in the Canon-Law,aDivine appointed to qualify , or declare the Quality of a Propofition brought before an Ecclcfiaftical Tribunal ; chiefly before the ln- quilition.
The Quatifcators of the Office are not Judges ; they only give their Sentiments on the Propositions prefentcd to 'em 'Tis the Inquifitors that judge. See Inquisi- tion.
QUALITY, Qualit as, that Affeclion of a thing whence ft is denominated Such ; or that which occafions a thing to affect ourSenfes, in this or that manner, and gives it this or that Denomination.
Thus, that Virtue in Fire, whatever it be, whereby it ex- cites in us the Senfation of Heat, fince it is that whence the Fire is denominated hot, is the call'd Quality of Fire.
The word Quality, Qiialitas, is faid to have been firft introduced into the Latin by Cicero. Till his time the Romans ftudioufly avoided the ufing a Term which denoted an Abftraclion ; and in lieu thereof, only confider'd the Concrete, fignify'd by Quale The like is obferved of
the antient Greeks, who did not ufe woioln^u, but cre/ec See Abstraction.
The Term Quality, it is to be obferved, is very ambigu- ous ; and has been apply'd to fome things, which ought rather to have been look'd upon as States of Matter, or Complexions of feveral Qualities j as Life, Health Beauty, &c.
There are, alfo, other Attributes, as Size, Shape, Mo- tion, and the reft, ufually reckon'd among Qualities, which might more conveniently be eiteem'd the primary Modes of the Parts of Matter ; fince from thefe fimple Attributes all the Qualities are derived. See Mode.
The antient School Philofophers foiYmgulfh Quality in the general, which they call Metaphyseal and Predicament al
Qvality •■> into F.ffential, and Accidental -The Moderns,
more ufually, into Spiritual, and Corporeal.
Spiritual Qualities, or Qualities of the Soul, are Affections of the Mind, confider'd as it is in this, or that
Habitude or Difpofition Of thefe, they make two Kinds j
the one belonging to the Underftanding, the other to the Will : Of theformer kind are Knowledge, Opinion, Cer- tainty, Doubting, &c. Of the latter, are all the Moral Virtuesand Vices. See Understanding, Will,Know- i.edge, Ignorance, Opinion,££c. Seealfo Virtue, ££?r. Corporeal or Thyfical Qualities, are what we chiefly coniider under this denomination, and to which the Defini- tion above laid down is accommodated.
Philofophers are divided as to the Nature of thefe Qua- lities, or what they are in the Body The general Lan- guage of the Peripatetic School, is, that they are things diftinct. from the Bodies themfelves j are fuperadded to 'em or flow from their fubftantial Forms : On which Principle* they hold Qualities to be real, and denominate 'em Acci- dents j fuppofing 'em to be inherent in Subflances, tho* not in the relation of Parts, but to be fuftain'd thereby as in a
Subject, and incapable of fubfifting without 'em In effecl
the'TfromiJls define Qualities to be Accidents following or arifing from the Form ; in the fame Manner as Quantity is an Accident following or arifing from the Subftance. See Form, Accident, Quantity.
The Moderns abfolutely explode theNotion of Qualities diftincl from the Body $ and infift, that the Powers whereby Bodies excite in us the Ideas of fuch Qualities are no other than the mechanical Afteclions of the Bodies themfelves viz. the Figure, Magnitude, Motion, &c. of the Parts whereof they confift. See Mechanical.
The principal Confiderations infilled on by the Retainers to real Qualities, are, That thefe Powers may be actually fepaiated from the Subftances they inhere in; as we fee in
Light, Heat, &c. That from thefe very Qualities confi- der'd as fo many Determinations, arifes a very great diver- fity in Bodies : And that Bodies, according to'the diverfity of their Qualities, affect ourSenfes differently.
The Adherents to the Experimental way, on the con- trary, account for all the Qualities of Bodies from mecha- nical Caufes.
Thus all the Pha:nomena of a Clock, the Motion of its Wheels, its Hands, &c. whereby itftrikes the Hour, points the Minute, Day, Moon's Age, &c, do all evidently arifc from the fingle Spring; which we never imagine to have any particular Powers whereby it fliould be enabled to make fuch Difcoven'es ; nor any other Principle but that one of
Elafticity -Again, when the Smith who firft invented!
Locks and Keys, had made his firft Lock, it was only 1 piece of Iron, contrived into a particular Shape ; and when, afterwards, he made a Key to it, that alfo, confider'd in itfelf, was nothing but a piece of Iron of a determinate Figure ; but as thefe two pieces of Iron might now be apply'd to one another, after a certain manner, and, as there was a congruity betwixt the Wards of the Leek, and
thofe
