ry and dismal solitude, instead of multitudes and plenty; many of her fertile plains as desert as her most barren mountains; and nothing prospering but priests, who mar and damp, and banish all prosperity, and blast all the blessings of nature, as they thwart and curse all the wisdom and virtue of man. In France, and all over Christendom, their outrages, devastations, their anti-christian spirit and boundless cruelties, are sadly remembered and felt.

As to the lewd arts and debaucheries of the Bonzes with women, and one another, their monasteries, and their tricks to maintain them; their hermitages and priestly retreats; their hard-hearted unconcern for all the rest of the world, even for parents and relations: all these, the common curses of priestcraft every where, are still more visible in the Popish countries of Europe, more prevalent and more pernicious.

The Popish missionaries in the east mention with horror the use which libertines, priests, and other fanatics, make of the doctrine of transmigration, in order to commit whoredom and self-murder. Such a one need only represent to a young nymph, tender of her person, and loth to prostitute it, that her body is hardly any part of her, at least the meanest part, a transient covering and vehicle, soon of itself to perish, the slave and off-cast of the soul, and not to be regarded: and having thus taught her to despise her person, he enjoys it. If she still refuse, he has another argument, "That in her last state she had promised him to be his, and then, by dying, deprived him of his right;" which he therefore claims, and often regains in her present

state.

No doubt such craft and lewdness are abominable, but not peculiar to the eastern Bonzes. Many debaucheries, more hideous, have been practised by our Romish Bonzes, and by artifices as impious; all under the cloke of religion: witness father Girard, confessor and spiritual director to Mademoiselle Cadiere, famous as he is for making a bawd of devotion to debauch her person, and turning her frantic spiritual raptures into raptures of real carnality. Any lewd priest having the blind guidance of a fine lady's conscience, may too easily guide her into his

own arms.

Neither were the ancient Pagan priests the only sacerdotal procurers for the god of their temple, or the only ones who gratified their own infamous passion, by pretending to carry a lovely lady to the em< braces of the idol. It is no more than what the Romish priests have done, under the name and pretended demand of some popular saint. And when a blessed saint condescended to visit a charming she-votary, long his passionate adorer, could she help being transported with so heavenly a favour, or be either incredulous or unthankful to the holy instrument who managed the amour and procured it?

Jetzer, a visionary monk in Swisserland, just before the reformation, was visited, as he for some time verily believed, by the Virgin Mary in person, in all her glory, attended by angels. The awful but fond apparition, gave him several wonderful marks of distinction, and even promised him every favour but the last. Some of these favours seemed too painful and butcherly to come from the queen of heaven, and by cruelly piercing his feet and bands with a knife (in order to honour him with our Saviour's wounds upon the cross) the poor deluded dotard, after several visits, much suffering, and long belief, was at last un

deceived, and discovered the supposed virgin speaking in the voice of the sub-prior, the contriver and chief manager of the infernal cheat, though the whole convent was engaged in it. The contrivers had all formally renounced God under their hands, in order to learn sorcery. To prevent all inquiry, they several times gave their poor victim poison, without success. The holy reprobates were soon after burned at the stake.*

It is observable, that this diabolical plot was framed out of a pious zeal to advance the glory and interest of the holy order: and the general of the order, who had laboured in vain to prevent the discovery of the sacred villainy, was supposed to have died broken hearted, or by his own hands, because the discovery was made, and the atheistical zealots executed.

As to the austerities which cost some of the crazy Bonzes and their as crazy followers their lives, for which the missionaries charge them with promoting self-murder; the charge comes with great impropriety and want of modesty from them. The Romish church has produced many such self-murders (I wish that she had never produced any other:) many of her votaries have emaciated, starved, and even destroyed themselves with the mad rigour of penance.

Her policy is such, that whilst she indulges the most voluptuous and licentious in all their excesses (for a proper consideration!) she encourages the most shocking austerities, even the incredible ones of La Trappe, where the miserable devotees daily accelerate their own death. Such saint-like men bring her credit: debauched men bring her money and whatever men suffer, however they sin, she thrives by the great blessings of wealth, and fraud, and tyranny.

NUMBER 98.

Of the many good Sermons preached and published against the Rebel lion. A sermon of singular Tendency, by an eminent Hand: The strange Doctrines advanced, and the observable Omissions, in it.

SECT. I.

AMONGST the many good sermons (some of them excellent ones) published upon the present conjuncture, I have seen one from an eminent hand, which would serve upon any public conjuncture, and expose the author to no hazard, whatsover the issue happened to be. He leaves others to rouse and alarm, to inflame the heart, to paint the horrors of Popery and tyranny, and to defy all the patrons and powers of either. He deals chiefly in generals, about the vices and apostacy

* The whole story is well told by bishop Burnet in his travels. He extracted it from the record of the process, still kept at Bern, and signed by the notaries of the delegates appointed by the Pope to try the friars,

Ff

of the Jews, the calamities following the same, and the warning we should take from thence.

He likewise enters into our own bistory; gives us examples of our own happy escapes by the kind interpositions of Providence, in the midst of surrounding dangers; and says as much of our present danger as became a prudent preacher, unwilling to lose old friends, or to make new enemies. Perhaps his performance might have been stronger and less guarded, had he postponed it till the rebellion had been extinguished a precaution which a renowned doctor took during the former rebellion thirty years ago. After the rebellion was over he published a good Sermon against rebellion, and by it merited his first dignity in the church.

He calls upon us to bear our testimony against prevailing corruptions. —— But if we grow careless and indifferent, and suffer a spirit of irreligion to prevail over the nation, we forfeit our title to God's protection. He mentions with detestation the blasphemy, which, he says, has swarmed from the press, and names a burlesque upon the Christian hymn, called the Te Deum. It was, indeed, a licentious and scurrilous libel. But as it was a weak and wild production. I think it below the dignity of the pulpit to mention it, especially with such pompous abhorrence. Are all men to expect divine judgments for what all men condemn? Is the wise God to afflict a whole people, because a libertine poet writes a licentious ode ?

When he represents blasphemy as swarming from the press, and only quotes a rash rhapsody, universally condemned, as much as the writer of it was pitied; the terrors which be had raised, vanish in consolation from the probable hopes that he can quote no more, or none so terrible.

What other productions from the press he means, I know not. Sure he is too candid to mean all that offend the hot men and bigots amongst the clergy, who are apt to blacken the best, when the best thwart them. I have seen bitter invectives from many of thein, some of them of name and distinction, against the fairest reasoning, against Christian charity and moderation; against all men who differed from them in their most narrow conceits, and most interested schemes. Locke has been reviled as a Socinian, for his noble attempts to improve human reason, and even for shewing the reasonableness of Christianity; Tillotson as an atheist, for his rational divinity; Hoadly as a Presbyterian, for supporting the established Episcopal church upon the principles of the constitution. All these, and many more, have been mercilessly used only for their eminent merit, for their calm tempers, their charitable principles, and their invincible reasoning.

The preacher knew, that the most opprobrious names, even those of atheist and blasphemer, are often no more than names of abuse, scolding terms, thrown at random, often falsely, by angry bigots, sometimes by grave impostors, upon men who love truth, and therefore seek it and defend it, for its own sake only, without other view, claim or reward. By-words and prejudices govern the many of all conditions. Credulity passes for conformity, antipathy for zeal. The fox hunter (a high churchman) in one of Mr. Addison's freeholders, boasts how happy they were in the country, for that they had not a Presbyterian in it, except the bishop: and how popular, a keen span

vel of his was amongst the country gentlemen, for having once almost worried a dissenting teacher.

Never was man more scurrilously and more bitterly treated by passionate divines, than that great ornament to his profession, that divine reasoner, Mr. Chillingworth. His arguments were stiled subtle atheism; his defence of reasou declared worse than Popery, at least as bad; For what advantage would it be to the Protestant cause, were the Pope deposed from his infallible chair, if reason be inthroned in it?" says Dr. Cheynell: "This, said he, will only serve to advance Socinianism."

Cullingworth had other revilers without number: but Cheynell was the most remarkable. He was personally kind to him, yet refused to bury him, but eagerly buried his book.

When the preacher quotes one blasphemous performance, yet talks of others, he leaves his hearers and readers to guess what they are ; and they who have heard very good ones, nay the best railed at by men whom they implicitly believe, will fix the imputation there. Books that expose ecclesiastical craft and encroachment, which are surely as mischievous weeds as ever choaked the field of the gospel, are vehemently decried by weak or designing men, and treated as furiously as ever Chillingworth's books were treated. And as men have been often reviled as atheists for defending God's truth against impostors; the nation has been threatened with God's wrath for encouraging such truth.

Liberty will always be abused most, where it abounds most. But no abuse of it can atone for its loss. Reason and true religion will always gain by liberty, and be able to defend themselves against all attacks: folly, virulence and scurrility, when discharged against them, will only serve to shew their strength and beauty even blasphemy will appear more detestable, when examined by reason. They who admire the Te Deum most, saw the burlesque of it with the most indignition; and any one will see, by comparing them, the impotence as well as impiety of the attempt.

Are we to bear our testimony against prevailing corruptions, and to see none amongst the clergy? The preacher is silent upon this head. Is it not a great corruption, this which I have mentioned, the virulent behaviour of some of them (I fear I might say many of them) towards such as differ from them, even in matters of conscience, and such as blame and would amend the most unwarrantable parts of their conduct? How barbarously have they used the advocates for toleration and diffusive Christian charity? Strange unchristian proceedings! By defending the most indefensible things, persecution, secular pride and power in spiritual hands (the constant curse and bane of religion in all ages, the parent of the inquisition, and even of Popery) they forfeited the character of Christian teachers; and by debasing religion into party, were justly considered, not as preachers of Christ, but of faction. Could there be a worse spirit, or greater corruption? And could the preacher inadvertently omit them? Could he conceive them to be the less provoking to God, because they came from the clergy?

Was it not natural, at least was it not just, in the preacher, when he was complaining of public corruptions, to have inquired into those of his own order, whether many of them be not slack in the performance of

their duty; many too indifferent about it; many of them performing none; yet all zealous to claim dignity from their cloth, and divine respect to their persons, though nothing divine appear in their practice? Not a word of non-residence! Is not non-residence a very crying corruption, yet what more common; to undertake the care, that is, the salvation of souls, to be paid for it, often greatly paid, to answer to God for it; yet transfer that interesting, that awful trust to another, discouraged by small wages not to perform it ?

Is this a way to prevent the growth of Popery (of which the preacher complains) or to procure reverence to Churchmen? Is this an expedient to prevent the growth of irreligion, if there be any teachers of religion, who convert religion into commerce, and prostitute a sacred trust to worldly ends, to voluptuousness, avarice, strife? These are they who make unbelievers. The want of respect to such irreligious teachers will never pass for irreligion with any man, who has religion or common sense. And it is too common a practice' for clergymen, who exercise the least religion, to complain loudest of the want of it in others. Or, is it not rather artifice, to hide such want in themselves?

I dwell no longer here upon the great corruption of non-residence, so introductive to all other corruptions, especially to all corruptions in religion and good morals, and consequently the greatest that affect and ruin human society. Let me observe to the cardid Christian reader, that our preacher, who puts on such concern for religion, and against irreligion, says not a syllable about this prevailing, this irreligious custom, much less against it. So far is he from raising any alarm, or apprehending divine judgments for such unhallowed neglect of divine duties, neglect so affrontful to God, and pernicious to man.

Ilis censure of the errors and faults of the clergy would have ap peared candid, after he had been praising them for their defence of the doctrines of the reformation in king James' time. And it would have looked equally candid in him, had he owned the heat and persecuting spirit of the clergy before and after the revolution, with their mad partiality to a Popish successor, and their having helped him to destroy the nation and themselves. As it did the clergy honour at home and abroad to have behaved like Englishmen in king James' time, it would have been for the credit of the preacher, had he owned their great weakness and iniquity in having flattered that king and his brother, in their worst and most unprotestant measures, and sanctified all their lawless, ungodly doings. Threatening and godless flattery! Big with terrible consequences, almost fatal to the nation, surely more interesting to us, in this generation, than the backsliding of the Jews some thousand years ago!

What he says about the Jews is as foreign to us as their constitution and government were to ours. They worshipped idols, graven images, and strange gods, and thus provoked the true God. These are not the sins of Englishmen, at least of those who adhere to our pres. ent English government; and I hope the nation in general will not be doomed to the heavy judgments of a just God, for the idolatry of Papists, and the rebellion of apostate Protestants.

The preacher therefore in vain rouses terror from false objects. An honest and well-affected citizen of London, of Edinburgh, of Carlisle, or of Sarum, or any where, I hope, is not threatened with divine judgment, because the ruffians in the Highlands have renounced God and