"[2] But Rationalists, in fact if not in name, existed on
the Continent long anterior to this date. The Anti-Trinitarians, and
Bodin, and Pucci were rigid disciples of Reason; and their tenets
harmonize with those of a later day.[3]
In order to arrive at a proper definition of Rationalism we should
consult those authors who have given no little attention to this
department of theological inquiry. Nor would we be impartial if we
adduced the language of one class to the exclusion of the other. We
shall hear alike from the friends and adversaries of the whole movement,
and endeavor to draw a proper conclusion from their united testimony. It
was Selden's advice to the students of ecclesiastical history, "to study
the exaggerated statements of Baronius on the one side, and of the
Magdeburg Centuriators on the other, and be their own judges."
Fortunately enough for a proper understanding of Rationalism, there is
no such diversity of statement presented by our authorities. On the
contrary, we shall perceive an unexpected and gratifying harmony.
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