given authority unto his church, as that which is necessary unto its edification, with its preservation in honour, purity, and order. There have been many disputes about it, as unto its order and kinds. Some suppose that there are two sorts of excommunication,—the one they call the “lesser,” and the other the “greater;” some, three sorts, as it is supposed there were among the Jews. There is no mention in the Scripture of any more sorts but one, or of any degrees herein. A segregation from all participation
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