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The only mitigation of it that I have ever heard of on the part of consistent believers is the saying of Michael Wigglesworth, a famous alleged poet of the Puritan time in New England, when he states explicitly that none of these non-elect children can be saved, but since they are infants, and not such bad sinners as the grown up ones, their punishment shall be mitigated by their having the easiest room in hell.
Careful explanations as to why all could not be invited were made; but in spite of this, during the days preceding Christmas, the doctor was besieged by the non-elect with requests for invitations. The guests were invited for half-past seven Christmas evening, but the great majority of them were on hand at four o'clock waiting for the doors to be opened.
Did he really banish all non-elect infants into the region of penal fire and everlasting woe? If he adhered to the literal meaning of the words of revelation, as he understood them, he was certainly bound to do so; but did he really and consistently do it?
Now the reason why the church may be said to have some within her that are non-elect, and yet be counted holy still, it is because the church is to judge of persons by their words and lives; they know not the heart absolutely, and therefore if in word and life a man be as he ought, he is to be accounted a visible saint, and orderly ought to be received of the church as such.
But gradually there came upon her a feeling, springing from her imagination rather than from her judgment, that she was a thing set apart as vile and bad. There grew upon her a conviction that she was one of the non-elect, or rather, one of those who are elected to an eternity of misery.
"Perhaps an even more striking illustration of the survival of savagery may be found in men's religious beliefs say, in the conception of a God who is a cruel man endowed with omnipotence. Grave divines were telling us within a generation that a just and merciful Father, for his good pleasure, had doomed certain of the non-elect to the most hideous physical tortures for all eternity.
I am not sure that any one does." "No, but you believe that people are a are elect or non-elect; and if they be elect, they will be saved, however they live, and if they be not, they must needs be lost, however good they are. Excuse my speaking so freely." "I am very much obliged to you for it. No, Mr Catterall, I do not believe anything of the sort.
To this objection I might answer many things; but, for brevity, take this reply: That the non-elect may travel very far both in the knowledge, faith, light, and sweetness of Jesus Christ, and may also attain to the partaking of the Holy Ghost; yea, and by the very operation of these things also, escape the pollutions of the world, and become a visible saint, join in church-communion, and be as chief amongst the very elect themselves.
Now visible church-communion doth not absolutely call for only invisible saints, neither can it; for if the church were to join with none but those whom they knew to be the very elect of God-as all invisible saints are-then she must join with none at all; for it is not possible that any church should be so infallible to judge in that manner of the elect, as to discern them always, and altogether, from the non-elect, which cannot be an invisible saint.
Again, As there is present mercy and present justice, so there is eternal mercy and eternal justice: and I say, as the elect may be under present justice, when the non-elect may be under present mercy; so the elect at that time are also under eternal mercy, but the other under eternal justice.
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