lish and unlearned questions avoid;" The word Avoid in this place,
and Reject in the former, is the same in the Originall, paraitou: but
Foolish questions may bee set by without Excommunication. And again,
(Tit. 3.93) "Avoid Foolish questions," where the Originall, periistaso,
(set them by) is equivalent to the former word Reject. There is no
other place that can so much as colourably be drawn, to countenance
the Casting out of the Church faithfull men, such as beleeved the
foundation, onely for a singular superstructure of their own, proceeding
perhaps from a good & pious conscience. But on the contrary, all such
places as command avoiding such disputes, are written for a Lesson to
Pastors, (such as Timothy and Titus were) not to make new Articles of
Faith, by determining every small controversie, which oblige men to a
needlesse burthen of Conscience, or provoke them to break the union of
the Church. Which Lesson the Apostles themselves observed well. S. Peter
and S. Paul, though their controversie were great, (as we may read
in Gal. 2.11.) yet they did not cast one another out of the Church.
Neverthelesse, during the Apostles time, there were other Pastors that
observed it not; As Diotrephes (3 John 9. &c.) who cast out of the
Church, such as S. John himself thought fit to be received into it, out
of a pride he took in Praeeminence; so early it was, that Vainglory, and
Ambition had found entrance into the Church of Christ.

Of Persons Liable To Excommunication

That a man be liable to Excommunication, there be many conditions
requisite; as First, that he be a member of some Commonalty, that is to
say, of some lawfull Assembly, that is to say, of some Christian
Church, that hath power to judge of the cause for which hee is to
bee Excommunicated. For where there is no community, there can bee no
Excommunication; nor where there is no power to Judge, can there bee any
power to give Sentence. From hence it followeth, that one Church cannot
be Excommunicated by another: For either they have equall power
to Excommunicate each other, in which case Excommunication is not
Discipline, nor an act of Authority, but Schisme, and Dissolution of
charity; or one is so subordinate to the other, as that they both
have but one voice, and then they be but one Church; and the part
Excommunicated, is no more a Church, but a dissolute number of
individuall persons.

And because the sentence of Excommunication, importeth an advice, n