rit, as opposite to the Spirit of Chrift, as was the Spirit of Mahomet to that of Moses. G. I NUMBER XXXIV. Wednesday, September 7. 1720. Of FASTING. Part 2. N my 27th Paper, I have made a Differtation upon Fafting: In this I fhall continue it. MONSIEUR de Fontenelle, in his Hiftory of Oracles, tells us, from Philoftratus, that the Oracle of Amphiaraus in Attica delivered is Answers in Dreams; and that those who confulted it, must first faft well in order to dream well: But when Fafting failed to produce a Frenfy of Brain, and by it the Meaning of the God, who had no other way of afcending into the Head, but upon the Fumes arifing from empty Bowels; then the Priest helped his Master to bring forth a Dream, by wrapping up the devout Querift in the Skins of Victims, which being rubbed and impregnated with intoxicating Drugs, disposed him to dream most divinely, and filled his Noddle with very hopeful Prophecy. This fatisfied the believing Querist, faved the Credit of the God, and brought pretty Offerings to his Vicar. SUCH Ufe did the Pagan Priests make of the Duty of Fafting; and that the Romish Priests have perverted it to as wicked and deceitful Purposes, I have fhewn in another Paper. It is agreeable to their Cunning, and their Avarice, to make the People poor and mad; and it must be owned a pretty priestly Art, that of driving Men out of their Eftates, and their Understandings, with their own Confent; and leading them into a Belief, that Starving is a Duty, and Lunacy is Grace. By the Law of Nature, we are not obliged to faft at all, unless in the way of Phyfic, when we are ill, through an Over-fulness of the Veffels, or any other Disorder, which may be removed or leffened by Abftinence. In this Cafe, we ought to faft for our Health-fake; and whatever is neceffary for Self-relief, or Self-prefervation, becomes alfo a Duty, and a Piece of Natural Religion, when it does not con 5 contradict a pofitive Law of God. But to abstain, upon certain Days, from the comfortable Ufe of God's good Creatures, which ought to be received with Thankfulness, out of a vain Pretence to please him, or to promote our own Salvation, is a strange and barbarous. Chimera, which the Law of Nature abhors; and can be the Effect of nothing but Distraction in the People, or Craft in the Priests. We might as rationally imagine, that going naked at certain fevere Seafons of the Year, would draw us nearer Heaven; and that the afflicting our Skins with Froft and Snow would do great Service to our fhivering Souls; and that though Self-prefervation be an effential Law of Nature, yet Self-deftruction is also an effential Law of Nature. FASTING, therefore, being no Part of the Law of Nature, the Jewish Law of Ceremonies, which is abolished, cannot make it a Duty: And for the Examples of Fafting, taken from the Prophet Daniel, and other holy Men of the Old Teftament; they were either yoluntary, fuch as any one may perform when he is in a fafting Humour, which nobody pretends to reftrain; or they were the Effect of Sorrow, when Grief had deftroyed Appetite, and then there was no Devotion in them; or they were extraordinary and fupernatural, and contradict a pofitive Law of God. But to abftain, upon certain Days, from the comfortable Ufe of God's good Creatures, which ought to be received with Thankfulness, out of a vain Pretence to please him, or to promote our own Salvation, is a ftrange and barbarous. Chimera, which the Law of Nature abhors; and can be the Effect of nothing but Distraction in the People, or Craft in the Priests. We might as rationally imagine, that going naked at certain fevere Seafons of the Year, would draw us nearer Heaven; and that the afflicting our Skins with Froft and Snow would do great Service to our fhivering Souls; and that though Self-prefervation be an effential Law of Nature, yet Self-deftruction is also an effential Law of Nature. FASTING, therefore, being no Part of the Law of Nature, the Jewish Law of Ceremonies, which is abolished, cannot make it a Duty And for the Examples of Fafting, taken from the Prophet Daniel, and other holy Men of the Old Teftament; they were either. yoluntary, fuch as any one may perform when he is in a fafting Humour, which nobody pretends to reftrain; or they were the Effect of Sorrow, when Grief had deftroyed Appetite, and then there was no Devotion in them; or: they were extraordinary and fupernatural, and |