out confideration to betake themselves to the oppofite, as if that were the only remedy, which yet in the end proves as bad or worse perhaps than the disease itself.

It is evident, from those high encomiums that the difciples and followers of Epicurus give their master, for his forming an hypothefis which would free them from superstition, that they were greatly biaffed by this principle, or else they could not so easily have fallen in with fo abfurd an hypothefis, who were many of them otherwife men of better parts and more learning than Epicurus himfelf appears to have been. But the world being then greatly over-run with fuperftition, which often pafs'd in common under the Name of Religion, they would not be at the pains to examine throughly the merits of each and make a juft diftinction. A man can hardly forbear thinking that thofe, who make such horrible outcries of the heavy yoke of fuperftition, even while they feem to include all reverence for a Deity under that name, had been fome time or other of their lives greatly under the power of this evil, or that they had formerly been taught to worship fome cruel Demon, which had left fuch dreadful impreffions upon their imagination, as to make

them

them afraid of the thoughts of any invisible Bea ing; and defirous to be perfuaded, upon any terms, that there is no fuch thing: at least one cannot eafily imagine, that thofe men ever had any juft or true notion of a God, the most excellent and lovely of all Beings, who can fo eafily confound Religion and Superftition, as to think, that one of them cannot be admitted or discarded without the other. To be under the power of fuperftition is, no doubt, a very wretched state, and exposes men both to much wickedness and misery, if the mind be infected with it to any great degree: but it has its original not from Religion or a true sense of God, but from a falfe and perverfe opinion of the Deity, or from taking fomething else for God which is not fo. But it is a very uncomfortable cure for this evil to endeavour to banish the belief of the true God out of our minds. This way, in the Opinion of Plutarch (in his Treatife of Superftition) is like unwarily avoiding robbers,

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ο Φουκλέον ἦν αὐτὴν (δεισιδαιμονίαν) ἀσφαλῶς τε καὶ συμφερόντως, ἐχ ὥσπερ οἱ λητῶν ἢ θηρίων ἔφοδον ἢ πᾶς ἀπερισκέπτως και ολο γίσως περιφεύγοντες, ἐμπίπτεσιν εἰς ἀνοδίας βάραθρα και κρημνες ἐχέσας· ὅλως γὰρ ἔνιοι φεύγοντες τὴν δεισιδαιμονίαν ἐμπίπτεσιν εἰς ἀθεότελα τραχείαν καὶ ἀντίτυπον, ὑπερπηδήσαντες ἐν μέσῳ κα μήνην τὴν συσέβειαν. Plutarch. περὶ δεισιδαιμ. in fine.

or wild Beasts, or Fire, by running without confideration into a By-way full of gulfs and precipices. And yet he tells us that there were fuch men as took this extravagant courfe, and to avoid Superstition fell into obftinate Atheism, wholly paffing over Religion which lies in the middle between these extreams. And I am afraid there are ftill fuch as fplit upon the fame. rock upon the fame occafion. But I cannot fay, that this pretence can juftly have the fame force with it, or plead the fame Excuse now, that it might do under Heathen Superftition. For when there was very little true Knowledge of God among them, and much less any thing in all their worship that could plainly fignify the Unity and perfection of the Divine Nature, but very much to miflead them to Polytheism and Idolatry, so that the

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d See the note upon Mifcellaneous Reflections, p. 65. where we are told, "That if, from the Experience of many grofs delufions of a fuperftitious kind, this fear begins to turn, 'tis na"tural for it to run with equal violence a contrary way. "extream paffion for religious objects paffes into an aversion: " and a certain horror and dread of imposture causes as great a difturbance as even imposture it felf had done before. In fuch a fituation as this, the mind may be easily blinded: as well in one refpect as in the other. 'Tis plain both these disorders car"ry fomething with them which difcovers us to be in fome man"ner befide our reafon, and out of the right ufe of judgment and "underflanding.

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the greatest part of their Religion was the mere worship of Devils; it was much more difficult to spy the Truth through fuch a veil of Darknefs. But now when juster notions of the Divine Perfections and Attributes are fet before us, as it is more culpable to fall into such abfurd Superftition, so it is more inexcufable to make the weakness and folly of fuperftitious peo ple a pretence for throwing off all Religion.

Thus I have endeavoured to fhew, that there may be other grounds of mens Infidelity, befides want of evidence, in the principles of Religion: And I have infifted the longer upon this, because whatever men may pretend, I am afraid they generally take up the conclufion, before they have thoroughly examined the premiffes: that is, upon fome prejudice in themselves, or fome offence which they have taken at the weakness and folly of others, in the matter of Religion, they begin to doubt whether there be any truth at all in the matter, and then they hunt for arguments and objections to improve that doubting into a formed disbelief or settled infidelity.

II. I proceed, in the next place, to confider that the Principles of Religion are of that high nature, and univerfal concernment to mankind,

that

that we cannot answer it to our own reason, to be unconcerned about them; and therefore as Rational creatures ought to endeavour to be fatisfied about them. It cannot be a matter of indifference to us, to know whether they be true or falfe, without betraying very great folly and indifcretion. I do not as yet argue from that vaft difference in our practical conduct, which ought to be the reasonable consequence of believing those principles true, in respect of what it may be fuppofing them altogether false, as fuch conduct may arise from the confideration of what we may expect from the hand of God, fuppofing him to be what even natural Religion teaches us, for this I fhall have occafion to mention* afterwards. But I fpeak now of that use which we ought to make of our Reason and Understanding, fuppofing us left to our own conduct,and as yet knowing nothing of any fuperior Law to oblige or direct us: And even in this cafe,

It seems to be very reasonable, that every creature fhould make the beft ufe of its own powers and faculties that it can, let thofe powers and faculties come from whence they will, from Chance or Defign; and both to employ and improve them in the beft manner € 2

they

See Serm. 3: