To his Grace

WILLIAM Wake

By Divine Providence,

Archbishop of Canterbury, and Metropolitan of all England.

Moft Reverend Father in Chrift,

ERMIT me to

shelter my self

under the Wings

of your Fatherly Goodness, from the Violence of unreasonable and

unrighteous Men, who purfue me, for no other Reason, that I know of, but because I have left the Synagogue, and profefs my self a Servant of your Meffia, and a Member of your Church. I am fenfible, the following Narrative of the Grounds of my Converfion, runs in fo mean a Stile, and upon fuch trite Obfervations, that I cannot, in Modefty, expect any Father of the Christian Church, should throw away an Hour or two in the Perufal of it.

But

But let me be confidered, as what I really am, of fmall Age and Experience in the World, and a very late and new born Babe in Christ, who has fcarce learn'd to fpeak the Words and Phrafes of Religion, and from whom manly Reasons are not yet to be expected.

But, my Lord, however weak my Arguments may appear to others, they proved too strong for all the Objections which I could oppose, or ever heard oppofed against them. They have convinced A 4

me,

me, not only of the Probability, but the Certainty, that Jefus of Nazareth is the Meffia, fpoken of in the Law and the Prophets.

And that I am very fincere and unfeigned in this Profeffion; I hope your Grace, and the whole World will have the Goodness to believe, when I declare, and can bring many Witnesses to confirm what I fay, that by joyning my felf to the fpiritual Family of Chrift, I am banished from that of my natural Parents, once most

most endearing and indulgent Parents, who fpared for nothing of their preci ous Treasures, wherewith they abound, to make me Great and Happy in this World; but have now conceived a mortal Hatred to me, upon the Account of this religious Difference; and deny me Bread to eat, and Raiment to put on. By whom being rejected, I quickly found my self like a fhipwrack'd Man, plunged in an Ocean of Hardfhips, under which, in all human