A Vindication of the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven into the Hands of the Right Owners

Dr. Edmund Calamy called Daniel Cawdrey, “a man of great consideration, eminently learned, and a noted member of the assembly of divines.” Over 10,000 documents on the subject of church government during the time of the Westminster Assembly were written and published. Daniel Cawdrey was among the most able writers in defense of Presbyterial Government. In this work Cawdrey deals with the issue of authority, power, rule, ordination, church planting and lawful preaching. He writes against the prolific writer and minister of New England congregationalism, John Cotton. Cotton had written a number of tracts, and Cawdrey answers them ably. In Cawdrey’s lucid arguments, one must take notice of the quandary that John Cotton falls quickly into; contradiction and confusion. Cawdrey's desire is to unite the churches of Jesus Christ, not separate them. He is writing against schism, with a desire for people to think rightly about the topic, to see Christ’s church united, not ripped apart.