Nevin’s intro to Shaff’s The Principle of Protestantism
But after all, the work stands in no special need of apology in this direction. It is more likely to be met with distrust, in certain quarters, under a different view. It may seem to occupy suspicious ground with regard to the church question. With the argument for Protestantism, in the first part, in its positive, separate character, even the most rigid in their zeal for this interest can hardly fail to be generally satisfied. But some may not like the relations in which it is mad to stand, nor the consequences it is made to involve. And then they are still less likely of course to be pleased with the formal development of these consequences in the par that follows. They may thing that too much is surrendered in the controversy with Oxford and Rome. They may not be willing to endure that the nakedness of Protestantism, in its modern position, should be so freely exposed. It is always difficult in the case of earnest, violent controversy to have an eye for anything less than extremes. All must be right in one direction, and all must be wrong in the other; although in fact, no great controversy in the church is ever precisely of this character. So at this time, the excitement which prevails on the subject of popery and Pusyism, and for which undoubtedly there is good reason, must naturally render it hard for many to exercise any moderat judgment upon questions that lie in this direction. In such circumstances then particularly, there is some danger that this book may not escape censure in the view already mentioned.