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exift together, may preferve the fame Uniformity in point of Succeffion too; may follow upon each other, in no lefs regular Progrefs, in a growing Happiness, through all Eternity; and thus the whole Creation be every way for ever beautifying in its Maker's Eye, and drawing nearer to him by Degrees of Refemblance; as is fuggefted by an elegant Writer *;

To these Deductions of Reason, Revelation adds new Light, and Confirmation; (as it is in like manner itself illuftrated, and established by them;) it carries on, and compleats the Notices of Natural Religion, and improves the Profpect, by exprefs Declarations of the unlimited Goodnefs of our Creator, towards all his Works; by giving us in particular, a pofitive Affurance, that we fhall be exactly difpofed of in another State, according to our respective Deferts, and Qualifications: fixing and afcertaining our Hopes of arriving at those bleffed Manfions, where we shall find room for the free exercife, and full enjoyment, of each good Moral Habit, and intellectual Accomplishment: furnishing ample Motives for our Perfeverance in this Courfe, and guarding against every Deviation from it; especially against that very dangerous Attendant on the nobleft Difpofitions, Pride, and Self-fufficiency: keeping us in a ftrict Dependence on that God who is to be both our Guide thither, and our great Reward there; in whofe Hands we always are, and ought to wish ourfelves; and to whofe Bounty alone we owe,

Spectator, No.11I.

and

and should be always very fenfible that we do owe, every good and every perfect Gift*.

vince us,

Laftly, the more we trace the Ways. of Providence in the Moral World, as also the Manner of conducting every Difpenfation of Revealed Religion; (and we have had much better Means of tracing each of them;) we fee more of the Defigns, and Purposes of each, than thofe before us could; and from the Manner in which this Profpect has already open'd, have Ground to think it will still more and more enlarge; and though we are yet far from being able to comprehend the whole Scheme, (which is not to be wonder'd at in Beings which fo lately fprung from Nothing;) yet we do comprehend enough already, to conthat there is a wife and good one, laid from the Beginning, and executed in a regular Gradation; and from thence alfo can infer, that it will ftill be farther anfwering its feveral Ends, and ftill appearing more to do fo: that the Manner how this is to receive its Completion will unfold itfelf, as we proceed in the Study of it; adding our own Obfervations to thofe of Times paft, and comparing Spiritual things with Spiritual: as we do thofe of the Natural World with one another; whereby we have difcover'd feveral of its general Laws, unknown to former Ages, and probably by them judg'd undifcoverable: and from fome others, just beginning to difcover themselves, find more room daily to believe, that the Cafe will be the fame with thofe who fhall come after us.

And thus it may be made appear, that the Means of Knowledge natural, moral, and revealed,

James 1. 17.

have been imparted in a much more ample Manner than ever to us, on whom the Ends of the World are come. Why a more proper Application of them does not follow; why a proportional Improvement of these fame Advantages is not at all times made; as this feems not to have a neceffary Connection with the former, it must be accounted for on other Principles. Whether by

a The fame grand Principle of Human Liberty, which renders it morally impoffible for any thing relating to the Minds or Circumftances of Mankind, to remain long in a State of perfect Uniformity, as obferv'd above [Part 1. p. 13. Note d.] may go a good way towards accounting for that partial and unequal manner of implanting, propagating, and preferving any religious Notices among Mankind, from the Beginning of the World to this Day; as well as for their various Degrees of either improving under, or neglecting and abufing thefe, together with all the other Gifts of Providence, and thereby making way for farther Difpenfations in fucceeding Ages, fuitable thereto: And though I am fenfible that what has been advanc'd with regard to the Suitableness of every Difpenfation to the Exigences of the World, and fo as to effect a gradual Improvement, in the most general Senfe, may feem at firft fight to require a great many Qualifications, from the long Reign of Idolatry before, and during the Jewish Eftablishment, and from the like lamentable State of Paganism ftill, together with that of Popery and Mohammedifm, under the Gospel: yet even granting this in its full Force, allowing both for every general Corruption of Religion through moft of the Climes and Ages of the World, and the particular Degeneracy thereof in feveral Parts and Periods of the fame:-yet if we judge of its State, [as we ufe to form a Standard for Human Nature] not from the yery worst and moft brutal parts thereof, or from Places where it lies under the moft unnatural Reftraints; but rather from the beft point of Light, in which it may be plac ed among the wifer and more fober part of its Profeflors in each Sect; and meafure its proficiency in fome of those Nations where common Senfe has had room to exert itself, and common Honefty and Ingenuity been fuffer'd to mix with it in any Degree: where the free Ufe of the Understanding

all these Means the World might, and ought to have more true Religion, and found Morals, now

derstanding has been once admitted in religious Matters: →→→ [and where this is not the cafe with any people, Religion is quite out of the question, being no more concern'd in their Affairs than as mere Matter of Form, or fome political Machine]-If we take fuch a View of Religion, and put the beft Sense on each point which it feems capable of, and which the ableft of its Advocates admit or have advanc'd in its Defence [without which we are only going to delude ourfelves]-If we allow their due Weight to those different Gloffes, put upon fome of its oddeft Points of Doctrine and Discipline, its feemingly unaccountable Rites and Ceremonies; and to the feveral fpecious Motives for eithbi tolerating or establishing fuch among a People ftupid enoug to approve them, and scatee capable of relishing better: we make our Enquiry into the State and Progrefs of Religion through the World in this, fair and free Manner, and take care to fet out low enough at firft, much lower I conceive than has been commonly imagin'd, [I mean not fo much in respect of the Divine Revelations themfelves, as Mens Capacity of reasoning upon them, and their Difpofition to apply them] if we reflect on the fame flow gradual Increase of Corruptions in this and ever her point, and their as flow and gradual Remedy:-if we confider the many difficulties that attend the raifing and keeping up a tolerable Spirit of Liberty and Ingenuity in any People for any time:-the many dangerous Abufes to which Liberty itself lies conftantly expofed: the difficulty of preferving proper Care and Induftry, a right Senfe of and Attention to their Interefts; -a Purity of Morals and Integrity of Heart; or of reftoring thefe in any Country where they have begun to decline; if we reflect upon the World's continual proneness and propenfity to a decline in thefe refpects, together with the Caufes of all this; we shall not, I believe, be much furprized at the fame happening in Religion; or imagine its Course to be either unconformable to, or altogether unconnected with that of all common Things about us. Again, as its evident Connection with some of the things above mention'd muft oblige us to allow of frequent Lets, and long Retrogradations in the Courfe of religious Knowledge, in moft parts of the World; fo the Relation which it bears, and the Advantage it receives from others, may perhaps autho

than formerly, will scarcely admit a Doubt: but whether it actually has or not, becomes a very

rife us to fuppofe that this Courfe, like to that of theirs, will notwithstanding fuch ftill be in the main, and at the longrun appear to have been, really progreffive. Thus from the very Nature and Importance of the foremention'd Benefits, it feems, that when thefe once get footing any where, they will gain ground, and propagate themselves to other places, and draw along with them every thing of Confequence that has a near relation to them; and when Religious Knowledge ftands in this relation, as it does often unavoidably, it must even in the common courfe of things [contrary to the Nature of mere Ignorance, or Matters of empty Speculation and He Curiofity] it will fupport and spread its main and moft important Branches, [fuch as the Supremacy and SuperintenTence of fome one God, and a Se of final Retribution, &c. which have been, and are eve" where preferv'd among the Heathen. See Part I. p. 32. an rot. de V. R. C. lib. 4. c.12.] and thereby both promote and itfelf promoted by the general Advances of the World, and fynchronize with most of its more valuable Improvements.fee Dr. Hartley's Obferv. V.1. p.366.] That this must be the Cafe in fome degree, we seem to have fufficient grounds for proving à priori: and from a true State of the Fact, wito y its Circumftances, 'tis probable, that this would not appear, even now, to be so very repugnant to it on the whole. However, that fome time or other poffibly we may difcover things to ftand thus, or at least have room to fuppofe that they appear fo in the Eye of the great Governour of the Univerfe, who feeth not in this refpect as Man feeth. 'Tis plain, all Times and Places are not equally adapted to the introduction of Discoveries either in common Science or Religion and it seems no lefs clear from what we now know of the whole Jewish Difpenfation, and the frequent Revelations that accompanied it; [which were at first all put under a carnal Cover, in order to engage the warmest of their Affections, and induce them to take that care, which other wife they would not have taken in the keeping of them; (See Lowth's Directions, p. 161, &c.) and afterwards thefe were unfolded by degrees, and illuftrated as the Day-Star began to arife in their Hearts;] and from what has been obferv'd of the Age wherein Chriftianity itself was published, [Confiderations, p. 142-6. 148-9. 173.] that Men have not

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