ed to love as ourselves) and cutting their throats, is having pity upon their poor souls; and the acting against the dictates of nature, and precepts of the gospel, is Christianity, and doing the will of our Saviour.

Enthusiasts, fanatical, melancholy, monkish, recluse and sequestered persons, are esteemed the religious; and are supposed to know the other world, in proportion as they know little of this. Philosophers, and men of wit or sound knowledge, are generally accused of infidelity and atheism; nay, the cardinal virtues themselves cannot escape; but without the belief of certain fashionable speculations, are accounted only splendida peccata, and those who possess them are treated with ignominy; and indeed, none are thought fit for heaven by gentlemen of this cast, but such as no man of common sense would care to keep company with upon earth.

Celibacy is esteemed a virtue in some churches, and not discouraged in others; and the disobeying the great dictates of nature, and the positive command of God, to increase and multiply, is miscalled chastity; and the wasting our time in running up and down from church to chappel,, from chappel to church, to hear masses, and idle harrangues, and being perfectly useless to society, and good for no one thing in the world, is called by the popish priests devotion and godliness; as if the Almighty could be any way served but by doing good to his creatures.

Poorness and dejection of mind, is called meekness of spirit; and a readiness to submit to injuries and impositions, is Christian humility; stifling our senses, is submission and deference to authority; and our best searches, and most sincere enquiries after truth, are called the desires of novelty, and curious and forbidden studies: The doubting of any thing, which our guides think it their interest to tell us, or shewing the weakness of their arguments, is scepticism, and renouncing the faith; and a hearty concern for the honour of Almighty God, and the good of men, is often interpreted to be downright atheism; and to communicate with our Christian brethren, when we can do it with a good conscience, is hypocrisy; unless we do it too when we think it sinful.

An attempt to oblige the clergy to keep the laws which they have sworn to, and the articles which they have subscribed, is to oppose received opinions, and to disturb points already settled. An endeavour to preserve our legal constitution, is sedition, faction, and being given to change; and a generous love for all mankind, and the liberty of our country, with a noble resolution to venture life, and all which is valuable here below for that glorious cause, is rebellion, and worse than the sin of witchcraft.

Wasting, macerating, and torturing our bodies by fasting and penances, is sanctifying our souls; and to reject and throw back the benevolence and bountiful gifts of indulgent Providence, is to shew and pay our grateful acknowledgments to his goodness; as if he gave us any thing not to use and enjoy it; but we were to accept these blessings only in trust for the clergy, and so live poorly ourselves, that they may riot in luxury, profuseness and pride; which they have seldom failed to do, when they have had the means of doing it; carnal things being observed best to suit with spiritual minds.

Playing monkey tricks at church, passes among the papists for the worship of God; and they go to ghostly dancing-masters, to know how

to accost him fashionably; the failing in a ceremony, the omission of a bow; the not filing to the right or left readily, or not adjusting their motions to the tune and time of the organs; are all dangerous erreurs, and savour much of heresy; and the worshipping God in spirit and in truth only, is disobedience to the church, and little better, if not worse than atheism; the decking up, and dressing of churches, and giving the Deity fine clothes, is decency, and doing him honour.

Consecration, which is the appointment or appropriation of places, persons, or inanimate things, to be used only in the immediate service of God, (and which may be so applied indifferently with any ceremony, or with none at all) is turned by the Romish priests into a sort of incantation or spiritual juggling. By virtue of a little holy water, looking towards the east, mumbling over a few cunning words, certain motions of the band and head, and by the force of grimace and mummery the said places, persons, and things become sacred, and the holiness is transferred from the minds of the communicants to the ground, the wainscoat, and the carcass and clothes of the priest; and so the devotion due to Almighty God, is changed into a senseless idolatry to as senseless men and idols.

Prayers are turned by them into curses, and sermons into invectives and libels; benevolence and good-will towards men, and even charity itself, which is comprehensive of all the virtues, and without which faith and hope signify nothing, and which is not confined to persons, nations, or languages, to sects nor opinions, but ought to be as free as the elements, and diffusive as the animal creation, is changed into faction, partiality, and often profuseness, to support a party, and a combination against all mankind, who do not think and act as we do.

But no parts of speech have had so ill fortune, as Scripture language, and even amongst some protestants; appellatives, and the names of complex ideas, are often left untranslated, that they may pass for real beings, and signify whatever the priests have occasion for; and sometimes, where they have been translated, false or unfair meanings have been assigned to them, and they have been made to convey a quite different sense from what they import in scripture. The word ecclesia or assembly is translated church, which there always signifies the Christian people, and in our articles, is defined to be the congregation of the faithful, but is now generally used only for the clergy and the word episcopos (which in English is overseer) is englished bishop; so that women, and the ignorant croud, are fully satisfied that they have found in scripture, a lord of Parliament, and a diocesan prelate, with a mitre upon his head, and a crosier in his hand; and whenever they hear or read the word presbyter, they fancy they see a parson beating his cushion in a pulpit, and believe him to be jure divino; instances of this kind are endless.

Even literature itself is perverted, and instead of being made to improve men's natural faculties, is used to extinguish or stifle the first principles of knowledge. Seminaries have been erected and endowed to teach men backward. The youth at a very great expense,learn to be blockheads, and accomplished dunces; and spend the first and most improvable part of their manhood to be finished in folly. The discovery of printing, which brought about the reformation, is used to de

stroy it; and like the Scotchman's monkey, is made to bite every one but him who has the sole custody of the machine.

Of all or most of these heads, I shall treat separately, in order to undeceive mankind, and to manumit them from the frauds and tyranny of popish and popishly-affected clergymen; by shewing that they now do, and ever did, make use of all their influence over the stupid and unhappy laity, and of all the power and riches which they have been ever trusted with, to drive religion and virtue from the face of the earth, and therefore have always endeavoured to turn the worst things into the best, and the best into the worst.

One drop of priest-craft is enough to contaminate the ocean.

T.

NUMBER 23.

Of Zeal.

I Do not know any word, in any language, which, next to the word church, has so much wickedness and roguery to answer for, as the word zeal. It is indeed an important and dreadful monosyllable, which, when used with proper gestures and emphasis, can turn a cut throat into a saint, and a mad man into a martyr. It can commit bloodshed and butchery, with innocent hands; destroy life and property with a good conscience; and dispeople nations with applause.

True zeal is a sincere and warm concern for the glory of God, and the spiritual welfare of mankind. This definition seems to me to take in every idea which ought to be annexed to the word zeal; and shews it to be a virtue full of affection, meekness, humanity and benevolence, and void of all choler, bitterness, ill-will, and severity. This is its character; and whatever contradicts it, is not zeal, but rage.

Especial care ought therefore to be taken, effectually to distinguish true zeal from false, and the thing from the pretence of it. For if it be not well grounded, it falls under the apostle's censure of a zeal, which is not according to knowledge. Of the latter sort, is that with which crafty men infatuate the credulous multitude, who take their religion upon trust, and their faith and zeal at second hand. Their godliness consists in prejudices and a set of names. They hate dissenters, because they do not come to church, and because they are strict observers of the Lord's day, and seek God without book. And they are zealous for the church; but if you ask them what they mean by it, you will find it to be either the organs, the ring of bells, or the parson. They have a zealous antipathy to a black cloak, which is a certain sign of a wrong religion; and they have a doating fondness for a black gown, which is an infallible mark of the true church. They therefore abhor and insult the former, and honour and bow down to the latter. This temper and behaviour in them are wonderful demonstra

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tions of the spirit of the gospel; and entitle them to the highest favour and approbation of their spiritual governours. At the time when Dr. Sacheverel was suffering the law for sedition, I asked one of his mob, who was straggling at some distance from the rest, in Lincoln's-innfields, (as they were proceeding to demolish Daniel Burgess' meetinghouse) what provoked him to so much outrage against Daniel and his congregation? He answered; because they had murdered king Charles the first. I then asked him what he knew concerning king Charles the first? Why, quoth he, he was one of the twelve apostles; and Dr. Sacheverel is the best friend he has in the world. Here he swore a great oath, and left me to pity the ignorance and phrenzy of the enchanted croud.

Ignorance is the mother of this sort of zeal, and craft its father: and as its pedigree is vile, so is its behaviour brutal and abominable. It is the tool of knavery and design, and operates by folly, wickedness and force. It is a mastiff uncoupled, and hallooed at conscience, sobriety and peace; and set on to devour every good quality, itself possessing none. It is roused by lies, and animated by liquor. It combats truth with curses, and moderation with blows. Its courage is madness, and it is bold through blindness. It has never any mercy upon others, and seldom upon itself. It takes the word of its driver; and mistakes mischief for merit, and his word for God's. It is the most miserable of all slaves; it is blind, and it is distracted; and its only freedom is to act outrages, and shed blood. It is neither blessed with enjoyment nor rest. It boils with anger; it burns with envy; it is tortured with hatred; it is hurried headlong by all the worst passions. It is incapable of happiness; and either deaf to instruction, or undone by it; for the moment it grows wiser, it dies.

How often do ambition and design work their own impious ends, under the plausible disguise of sanctified zeal Men are never weary of being deluded with sounds; and a pious word, artfully prostituted, and devoutly pronounced, will at any time lure them into the grossest impostures, and push them on to commit the most inhuman barbarities. Thus the papists are first taught that the pope is a vice-god, and the representative of Jesus Christ; and that his zeal for his own revenues and dominions, is zeal for Christ and his church; and then it is an easy matter to persuade these poor slaves and bubbles, to adopt such a portion of the same zeal, as will prompt them to poison, and murder, and plunder, and burn, all those unhappy schismaticks, who continue so, rather than abandon their senses, their humanity, their charity, and the fear of God; all which are destructive of the character of a zealot. And thus both papists and protestants, being persuaded by their priests, that all who, either through reason or grace, think differently from the said priests, are in a state of damnation; become further persuaded, that because they are to be damned, therefore, they are to be undone; and so anticipate the labour of the devils, and add misery to the miserable. By this means as satan is the Almigh ty's executioner, they make themselves satan's; and such zeal is at once the instrument and qualification of a demon.

When I see a grave doctor proudly urging upon his hearers the di-, vine right of episcopacy, which is just of as much importance to mankind as the divine right of geography; I see presently into the heart

of the the man, and would lay any wager that he has a burning zeal to succeed St. Peter, in the divine revenue and lordship of some human diocese; or else courts some bishop with great zeal for his lordship's niece, or for a fat benefice. And I cannot but own, that a Christian zeal for a thousand pounds a year, or even for two hundred pounds a year, or even for a rich wife, gifted with a good apostolick fortune, is a very commendable and very prevailing sort of zeal; but I cannot see that it equally affects the whole congregation. Pray of what moment is it to a harmless, well-meaning flock of sheep, whether their shepherd be called pastor or overseer? Or, whether he have twenty pounds a year wages, or twenty times as much? Or whether he be hired by the whole village, or only the chief man of the village? Or, whether he wear a plain hat, or a high crowned cap? Or, whether he wear linen or woollen? But it is of great moment to them, whether he feed them or starve them; or whether he defend or plunder them; or whether he utterly neglect them himself, or only leave them to the care and command of his dog; or whether he seek their safety and happiness, or only their flesh and their fleeces.

But further; the tempers of men, being either naturally warm, or quickly made so, it is easy to mistake a hot head for a devout heart, and an angry heart for a devout zeal. But, alas, how different is the meek spirit of the gospel, from that fury which is raised by strong beer, or passionate sermons! How little do men consider, that the same arteries do often beat with the same vigour for a punk as for the church, and occasion broken heads for the one as soon as for the other! True Christian divine zeal is inspired by God Almighty, and comes attended with every other Christian virtue, and subdues every unruly passion. It is inseparable from charity, the highest Christian grace, and the chief characteristick of a Christian; that charity which wisheth all things, hopeth all things; which forgives all men, but hurts none. It neither burus nor imprisons mens bodies; nor plunders their goods, nor rails at their persons, nor stirs up mischief against them, nor marks them out for damnation. It is not raised by cruel language, nor encreased by bottles of brandy; it is modest, it is merciful, it is temperate, it is discerning.

On the other hand, there is not in the world a more cruel, debauched, or more ignorant passion, than false zeal. It is void of pity, of grace, of knowledge, and of charity; it is outrageous; it delights in blood; it commits massacres, and murders innocents; it dispeoples nations. Nothing can restrain it, neither kindred nor good qualities, nor pity nor tears. It usurps the name of religion, and destroys all religion; it commits abomination in a style of devotion, and talks blasphemy in the name of the Lord. It prostitutes God's authority to destroy God's works; and, in the name of Christ, damns and destroys those whom Christ died to save.

If people would but look a little into their own hearts and constitutions, they would too often find that their zeal is only anger, and that this hot devotion resides altogether in the blood. I have long observed that your cholerick fellows are your most zealous fellows, and are always the warmest churchmen; and that, amongst the ladies, the most amorous are ever the greatest bigots. He who is peevish at his table, will be peevish in his pulpit; and as highly offended at an ill