ABSTRACT
In the person of the patriotic Philopatris, Blount even adopts the familiar Miltonic language of Protestant millenarianism in his opening claim that the 'Angel of Darkness' and his chief affliction, the 'Plurisie of Poperie', will never be banished from England until censorship ceases. The case for both ecumenicity and civil toleration or comprehension was therefore left to the Latitudinarians and their friends, the Dutch Arminians, Milton, and Locke. Williams is thus generally considered a more ideal example of Nonconformity, since he in fact went far beyond Milton and the Latitudinarians in arguing for the toleration not just for all Christians, including Roman Catholics 'upon good assurance given of civill obedience to the civill state', but also of Turks and Jews. Unlike the Deists but like Milton and Locke, the Latitudinarians lessened or rationalized Christian mystery wherever possible, but accepted core Christian beliefs such as original sin, the Incarnation, and the Atonement.
