Benjamin Cox (minister)
Benjamin Cox, sometimes Coxe or Cockes (fl. 1646), was an English
Baptist
minister.
Life
Born in Oxfordshire about 1595, he was probably a member of the family of
jure divino, but according to Thomas Brooks made "a handsome retractation". Although a puritan and an enemy to episcopacy, Cox in his earlier days may have upheld the sacramental system as warmly as many other presbyterians did. After the outbreak of the English Civil War
in 1642, he ventured to express opinions that he had thought it prudent to conceal up to that time.
He later became a minister at Bedford, and openly preached the invalidity of infant baptism. In 1643 he was invited to form a congregation at Coventry. On his arrival
Presbyterian divine Edmund Calamy on the other had to be cancelled when it was rumoured that the Baptists "planned to bring 'swords, clubs and staves' to ensure that their view prevailed."[2]
He was one of the managers of a public dispute that was to be held at Aldermanbury on 3 December 1645, and, when it was forbidden, joined in writing a declaration on the subject. He signed his name as Benjamin Cockes to the second edition of the Declaration of Faith of the Seven Congregations in London, published in 1647. He conformed in 1662, but afterwards renounced his living, and continued a baptist until his death at an advanced age.
Works
- A treatise answered by The great question … touching scandalous Christians, as yet not legally convicted, whether or no they may be admitted … at the Lord's Table, by M. Blake, B.D., 1645.
- According to Wood, a treatise on Infant Baptism.
- Also according to Wood, A True and Sober Answer.
- With Hanserd Knollys and others, A Declaration concerning the Publicke Dispute which should have been in the Meeting House of Aldermanbury, Dec. 3 [1645], concerning Infant Baptism.
- An Appendix to a Confession of Faith. … Occasioned by the inquiry of persons in the County, 1646; republished by the Hansard Knollys Society in Confessions of Faith, 49.
- God's Ordinance … the Saint's Priviledge, 1646.
- Benjamin Cox (1646). Some Mistaken Scriptures sincerely explained. In answer to one infected with some Pelagian errours, etc. London: Tho. Paine.
References
- ^ Transactions of the Baptist Historical Society. Baptist Union Publication Department. 1921. p. 194.
- ISBN 978-0-85773-203-3.
- Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Stephen, Leslie, ed. (1887). "Cox, Benjamin". Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 12. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 403–404.
External links
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