A
VIEW
OF THE
INTERNAL EVIDENCE
OF THE
CHRISTIAN RELIGION.
MOST of the writers, who have undertaken to prove the divine origin of the
Christian Religion, have had recourse to arguments drawn from these three heads: the prophecies
still
extant in the Old Testament, the miracles recorded in the New, or the
internal evidence arising from that excellence, and those clear marks of supernatural interposition,
which are so conspicuous in the religion itself: The two former have been sufficiently
explained and inforced by the ablest pens; but the last, which seems to carry with
it the greater degree of conviction, has never, I think, been considered with that
attention, which it deserves.
I mean not here to depreciate the proofs arising from either prophecies,
or miracles: they both have or ought to have
their proper weight; prophecies are permanent miracles, whose authority is
sufficiently
confirmed by their completion,
and are therefore solid proofs of the
supernatural origin
of a religion, whose truth they were intended to testify; such are those to be found
in various parts of the scriptures relative to the coming of the Messiah,
the destruction of Jerusalem, and the unexampled state in which the Jews have ever
since continued, all so circumstantially descriptive of the events, that they
seem rather histories
of past, than predictions of future transactions; and whoever will seriously
consider the immense distance of time between some of them and the events
which they foretell, the uninterrupted chain by which they are connected for
many thousand
years, how exactly they correspond with those events, and how
totally unapplicable they are to all others in the history of mankind; I say,
whoever considers these circumstances, he will scarcely be persuaded to believe,
that they can be the productions of preceding artifice, or posterior application,
or can entertain the least doubt of their being derived from supernatural
inspiration.
The miracles recorded in the New Testament to have been performed by
Christ and his Apostles, were certainly convincing proofs of their divine
commission to those who saw them; and as they were seen by such numbers, and are as
well
attested, as other historical facts, and above all, as
they were wrought on so great and so wonderful an occasion, they must still be admitted as evidence of no inconsiderable force; but, I think,
they must now depend for much of their credibility on the truth of that religion,
whose credibility they were at first intended to support. To prove therefore the
truth of the Christian Religion, we should begin by shewing the internal marks of
Divinity, which are stamped upon it; because on this the credibility of the prophecies
and miracles in a great measure depends: for if we have once reason to be convinced,
that this religion is derived
from a supernatural origin; prophecies and miracles will
become so far from being incredible, that it will be highly probable, that a
supernatural
revelation should be foretold, and inforced by supernatural means.
What pure Christianity is, divested of all its ornaments, appendages, and corruption, I pretend not to
say; but what it is not, I will venture to affirm, which is, that it is not the offspring of fraud or fiction:
such, on a superficial view, know it must appear to every man of good sense,
whose sense has been altogether employed on other subjects; but if any one will give
himself the trouble to examine it
accuracy and candor, he will plainly
see that however fraud
and fiction may have grown up with it, yet it never could have been grafted on
the same stock, nor planted by the same hand.
To ascertain the true system, and genuine doctrines of this religion
after the undecided controversies of above seventeen centuries, and to remove all
the rubbish, which artifice and ignorance have been heaping upon it during all that
time, would indeed be an arduous talk, which I shall by no means undertake; but
to shew, that it cannot possibly be derived from human wisdom, or human imposture,
is a work, I think, attended with no great difficulty,
and requiring no extraordinary abilities, and therefore I shall attempt that, and
that alone, by stating, and then explaining the following plain, and undeniable
propositions.
First, that there is now extant a book intitled the New Testament.
Secondly, that from this book may be extracted a system of religion
intirely new, both with regard to the object and the doctrines, not only infinitely
superior to, but unlike every thing, which had ever before entered into the mind
of man.
Thirdly, that from this book may likewise be collected a
system
of ethicks, in which every moral precept founded on reason is carried to a higher
degree of purity and perfection, than in any other of the wisest philosophers of
preceding ages; every moral precept founded on false principles is totally omitted,
and many new precepts added peculiarly corresponding with the new object of this
religion.
Lastly, that such a system of religion and morality could not
possibly have been the work of any man, or set of men; much less of those
obscure, ignorant, and illiterate persons, who actually did
discover, and
publish it to the world; and that therefore it must undoubtedly have been
effected by the interposition of divine power, that is,
that it must derive its origin from God.
PROPOSITION I.
VERY little need be said, to establish my first Proposition, which is
singly this: that there is now extant a book intitled the New Testament: that is, there is a
collection of writings distinguished by that denomination, containing four
historical
accounts of the birth, life, actions, discourses and death of an extraordinary
person named
Jesus Christ, who was born in the reign of Augustus Cæsar, preached a new religion throughout the country of Judæa, and was put to a cruel and ignominious death in the reign of Tiberius.
Also one other historical
account of the travels, transactions, and orations of some mean
and illiterate men, known by the title of his apostles, whom he commissioned to
propagate his religion after his death; which he foretold them he must suffer in
confirmation of its truth. To these are added several epistolary writings,
addressed
by these persons to their fellow-labourers in this work, or to the several churches
or societies of christians, which they had established in the several cities through
which they had passed.
It would not be difficult to prove, that these books were written
soon after those extraordinary events, which are the subjects of them; as we find them quoted;
and
referred to by an uninterrupted succession of writers from
those to the present times: nor would it be less easy to shew, that the truth
of all those events, miracles only excepted, can no more be reasonably
questioned, than the truth of any other facts recorded in any history whatever: as there can be no more
reason to doubt, that there existed such a person as
Jesus Christ, speaking, acting, and suffering in such a manner as is there
described, than that there were
such men as Tiberius, Herod, or Pontius Pilate, his contemporaries, or to suspect, that Peter, Paul, and James were not the authors of those
epistles, to which their names
are affixed, than that Cicero and Pliny did not write those
which are ascribed to them. It might also be made appear, that these books having
been wrote by various persons at different times, and in distant places, could
not possibly have been the work of a single impostor, nor of a fraudulent combination,
being all stamped with the same marks of an uniform originality in their very
frame and composition.
But all these circumstances I shall pass over unobserved, as
they do not fall in with the course of my argument, nor are necessary for the
support of it. Whether
these books were wrote by the
authors whose names are prefixed to them, whether they have been enlarged, diminished,
or any way corrupted by the artifice or ignorance of translators, or transcribers;
whether in the historical parts the writers were instructed by a perpetual, a
partial, or by any inspiration at all; whether
in the religious and moral parts, they received their doctrines from a divine
influence, or from the instructions and conversation of their master; whether in
their facts or sentiments there is always the most exact agreement, or whether in
both they sometimes differ from each other; whether they are in any case
mistaken,
or always infallible;
or ever pretended to be so, I shall not here
dispute: let the Deist avail himself of all
these doubts and difficulties, and decide them
in conformity to his own opinions, I shall not contend, because they affect not
my argument: all that I assert is a plain fact, which cannot be denied, that such
writings do now exist.
PROPOSITION II.
MY second proposition is not quite so simple, but, I think, not less undeniable than the former,
and is this: that from this book may be extracted a system of religion intirely
new, both with regard to the object, and the doctrines, not only infinitely
superior
to, but totally unlike every thing, which had ever before entered into the mind
of man: I say extracted, because all the doctrines of this religion having been
delivered at various times, and on various occasions, and here only historically
recorded, no uniform or regular
system of theology is here to be found; and better perhaps it had been, if
less labour had been employed by the learned, to bend and twist these divine materials into the polished forms of human
systems, to which they never will submit, and for which they were never intended by their great author. Why he
chose not to leave any
such behind him we know not, but it might possibly be, because he knew, that the
imperfection of man was incapable of receiving
such a system, and that we are more properly, and more safely conducted by the
distant, and scattered rays, than by the too powerful sunshine of divine illumination:
“If I have told you earthly things,” says he, “and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly thingsJohn iii. 12.
?” that is, if my instructions
concerning your behaviour in the present as relative to a future life, are so difficult
to be understood, that you can scarcely believe me, how shall you believe, if
I endeavoured to explain to you the nature of celestial Beings, the designs of Providence,
and the mysteries of his dispensations; subjects which you have neither ideas
to comprehend, nor language to express?
First then, the object of this religion is intirely new, and
is this, to prepare us by a state of probation for the kingdom of heaven. This is
every where professed by Christ and his apostles to be the chief end of the
christian’s
life; the crown for which he is to contend, the goal to which he is to run, the
harvest which is to pay him for all his labors: Yet previous to their preaching
no such prize was ever hung out to mankind, nor any means prescribed for the attainment
of it.
It is indeed true, that some of the philosophers of antiquity entertained notions of a future
state, but mixed with much doubt and
uncertainty: their legislators also endeavoured to infuse into the minds of the people a belief of rewards and
punishments after death;
but by this they only intended to give a sanction to their laws, and to enforce
the practice of virtue for the benefit of mankind in the present life: this alone
seems to have been their end, and a meritorious end it was; but Christianity not
only operates more effectually to this end, but has a nobler design in view,
which is by a proper education here to render us fit members of a celestial
society
hereafter. In all former religions the good of the present life was the first object;
in the Christian it is
but the second; in those, men were incited to promote that good
by the hopes of a future reward; in this, the practice of virtue is injoined in
order to qualify them for that reward. There is great difference, I apprehend, in
these two plans, that is in adhering to Virtue from its present utility in
expectation
of future happiness, and living in such a manner as to qualify us for the acceptance,
and enjoyment of that happiness; and the conduct and dispositions of those, who
act on these different principles, must be no less different: on the first the
constant practice of justice, temperance, and sobriety, will be sufficient; but on the
latter, we must
add to these an habitual piety, faith, resignation, and contempt
of the world: the first may make us very good citizens, but will never produce a tolerable christian. Hence it is that
Christianity insists more
strongly, than any preceding institution religious or moral, on purity of heart
and a benevolent disposition; because these are absolutely necessary to its great end; but in
those whose recommendations of virtue regard the present life only, and whose
promised
rewards in another were low and sensual, no preparatory qualifications were
requisite
to enable men to practise the one, or to enjoy the other: and therefore we see
this object is peculiar
to this religion; and with it was intirely new.
But although this object, and the principle on which it is founded were new, and perhaps undiscoverable by
reason, yet when discovered, they are so consonant to it, that we cannot but readily
assent to them. For the truth of this principle, that the
present life is a state of probation, and education to prepare us for another, is confirmed by every thing which we
see around us: It is the only key which can open to us the designs of Providence in the
œconomy of human affairs, the only clue, which can guide us through that
pathless wilderness, and the
only plan on which this world could possibly have been formed, or on which the
history of it can be comprehended or explained. It could never have been formed on a plan of
happiness:
because it is every where overspread with innumerable miseries; nor of misery,
because it is interspersed with many enjoyments: it could not have been
constituted for a scene of
wisdom and virtue, because the history of mankind is little more than a detail of their follies, and wickedness: nor of vice,
because that is no plan at all, being destructive of all existence, and
consequently of its own: But on this
system all that we here meet with,
may be easily accounted for; for this mixture of
happiness
and misery, of virtue and vice, necessarily results from a state of probation and
education; as probation implies trials, sufferings, and a capacity of offending,
and education a propriety of chastisement for those offences.
In the next place the doctrines of this religion are equally new with the object; and contain ideas of God, and of man, of the
present, and of a future life; and of the relations which all
these bear to each other totally unheard of, and quite dissimilar from any which had ever been thought on, previous to its publication. No
other ever drew so
just a portrait of the worthlessness of this
world, and all its pursuits, nor exhibited such distinct, lively and exquisite
pictures
of the joys of another; of the resurrection of the dead, the last judgment, and the
triumphs of the righteous in that tremendous day, “when this corruptible shall
put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality1 Cor. xv. 53.
.” No other has
ever represented the supreme Being in the character of three persons united in one
GodThat there subsists some such union in the divine nature, the whole tenour of he New
Testament
seems to express, and it was so understood in the earliest ages: but whether this
union does, or does not imply equality, or whether it subsists in general, or only
in particular circumstances, we are not informed, and therefore on there questions
it is not only unnecessary, but improper for us to decide.
. No other
has attempted to reconcile those
seeming contradictory but
both true propositions, the contingency of future events, and the foreknowledge
of God, or the free will of the creature with the overruling grace of the Creator.
No other has so fully declared the necessity of wickedness and punishment, yet
so effectually instructed individuals to resist the one, and to escape the other:
no other has ever pretended to give
any account of the depravity of man, or to point out any remedy
for it: no other has ventured to declare the unpardonable nature of sin without
the influence of a mediatorial interposition, and a vicarious atonement from the
sufferings of a superior BeingThat Christ suffered and died as an atonement for the
sins of
mankind, is a doctrine so constantly and so strongly enforced through every part
of the New Testament, that whoever will seriously peruse those writings, and deny
that it is there, may, with as much reason and truth, after reading the works of
Thucydides and Livy, assert, that in them no mention is made of any facts relative
to the histories of Greece and Rome.
. Whether these wonderful doctrines
are worthy of our belief must depend on the opinion, which we
entertain of the authority of those, who published them to the world; but certain
it is, that they are all so far removed from every tract of the human imagination,
that it seems equally impossible, that they should ever have been derived from the
knowledge, or the artifice of man.
Some indeed there are, who, by perverting the established
signification
of words, (which they call explaining) have ventured to expunge all there
doctrines
out of the scriptures, for no other reason than that they are not able to comprehend
them; and argue thus:—
The scriptures are the word of God; in his
word no propositions contradictory to reason can have a place; these propositions are
contradictory to
reason, and therefore they are not there: But if these bold assertors would claim any regard, they
should reverse their argument, and say,— These doctrines make a part, and a material part of the scriptures, they are contradictory to
reason; no propositions contradictory to reason can be a part of the word of God, and therefore neither the
scriptures, nor the pretended revelation contained in them, can be derived from him: This would be an argument worthy of rational and candid Deists,
and demand a respectful attention; but when men pretend to
disprove
facts by reasoning, they have no right to expect an answer.
And here I cannot omit observing, that the personal character
of the author of this religion is no less new, and extraordinary, than the religion
itself, who “spake as never man spakeJohn vii. 46.
,” and lived as never man lived: in
proof of this, I do not mean to alledge, that he was born of a virgin, that he
fasted forty days, that he performed a variety of miracles, and after being
buried three days, that he arose from the dead; because these accounts will have but little
effect on the minds of unbelievers, who, if they believe not the
religion, will give no credit to the relation of these facts; but I will prove it
from facts, which cannot be disputed; for instance, he is the only founder of a
religion in the history of mankind, which is totally unconnected with all human
policy and government, and therefore totally unconducive to any worldly purpose
whatever: all others, Mahomet, Numa, and even Moses himself, blended their religious
institutions with their civil, and by them obtained dominion over their
respective
people; but Christ neither aimed at, nor would accept of any such power; he rejected
every object, which all other, men
pursue, and made choice
of all those which others fly from, and are afraid of: he refused power, riches,
honours, and pleasure, and courted poverty, ignominy, tortures, and death. Many
have been the enthusiasts, and impostors, who have endeavoured to impose on the
world pretended revelations, and fame of them from pride, obstinacy, or principle,
have gone so far, as to lay down their lives, rather than retract; but I defy
history
to shew one, who ever made his own sufferings and death a necessary part of his
original plan, and essential to his mission; this Christ actually did, he
foresaw,
foretold, declared, their necessity, and voluntarily endured
them. If we seriously contemplate the divine lessons, the perfect precepts, the
beautiful discourses, and the consistent conduct of this wonderful, person, we cannot
possibly imagine, that he could have been either an idiot or a madman; and
yet, if he was not what he pretended to be, he can be considered in no other
light; and even under this character he would deserve some attention, because
of so sublime and rational an infinity there is no other instance in the history
of mankind.
If any one can doubt of the superior excellence of this religion
above all which preceded it, let him but peruse with attention
those unparalleled writings in which it is transmitted to the present times, and compare them with the
most celebrated productions of the pagan world; and if he is not sensible of their
superior beauty, simplicity, and originality, I will venture to pronounce, that he is as deficient in Taste as in Faith, and that he is as bad a Critic as a
Christian: for in what school of ancient philosophy can he find a lesson of morality
so perfect as Christ’s sermon on the mount? From which of them can he collect an
address to the Deity
so concise, and yet so comprehensive, so expressive
of all that we want, and all that we could deprecate,
as that short prayer, which he formed for, and recommended to his disciples? From
the works of what sage of antiquity can he produce so pathetic a recommendation
of benevolence to the distressed, and enforced by such assurances of a reward, as
in those words of Christ? “Come, ye blessed of my Father! inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungred, and
ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in; I was naked, and ye clothed me;
I was sick, and ye visited me;
I was in prison, and ye came unto to
me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying;— Lord,
when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee, or thirsty, and gave thee drink? when
saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in, or naked, and clothed thee? or when saw we thee
sick and in prison,
and came unto thee? Then shall I answer and say unto them;— Verily I
say
unto you, inasmuch as you have done it to the least of these my brethren,
ye have done it unto meMatt. xxv. 34.
.” Where is there so just, and so elegant a reproof of
eagerness and anxiety in
worldly pursuits, closed with so forcible an exhortation to
confidence in the goodness of our Creator, as in these words?—“Behold the fowls
of the air; for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns,
yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
Consider the lillies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they
spin; and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these: wherefore, if God so clothe
the grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe
you?
O ye of little faithMatt. vi. 26. 28.
!” By which of their
most
celebrated poets are the joys reserved for the righteous in a future state, so sublimely described, as by this
short declaration, that they are
superior to all description? “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things, which God hath prepared for them
that love him1 Cor. ii. 9.
.” Where amidst the dark clouds of pagan
philosophy can he
shew
us such a clear prospect of a future state, the immortality of the soul, the
resurrection
of the dead, and the general judgment, as in St. Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians? Or
from whence can he produce such cogent exhortations to the
practice of every virtue,
such ardent incitements to piety and devotion, and such assistances to attain them, as
those which are to be met with throughout every page of these inimitable writings? To quote all the passages in them relative to
these subjects, would be almost to transcribe the whole; it is sufficient to
observe, that they are every where stamped with such apparent marks of
supernatural assistance, as render them indisputably
superior to, and totally unlike all human compositions whatever; and this
superiority and dissimilarity is still more
strongly
marked by one remarkable circumstance peculiar to
themselves,
which is, that whilst the moral parts, being of the most general use, are intelligible
to the meanest capacities, the learned and inquisitive throughout all ages, perpetually
find in them inexhaustible discoveries, concerning the nature, attributes, and
dispensations
of Providence.
To say the truth, before the appearance of Christianity there
existed nothing like religion on the face of the earth; the Jewish only excepted: all other nations were
immersed in the grossest idolatry, which had little or no connection with morality, except to corrupt it
by the infamous examples of their imaginary deities: they all worshipped a multiplicity of gods and dæmons,
whose favour they courted by impious, obscene, and ridiculous ceremonies, and
whose anger they endeavoured to appease by the most abominable cruelties. In the politest ages of the politest nations in the world, at a time when Greece and Rome had carried the arts of oratory, poetry, architecture and
sculpture to the highest perfection, and made no inconsiderable advances in
those of mathematics, natural, and even moral philosophy, in religious knowledge they had made none at
all; a strong presumption, that the
noblest efforts of the mind of man
unassisted by revelation were unequal to the talk. Some few indeed of their
philosophers were wise enough to reject these general absurdities, and dared to attempt a loftier flight: Plato introduced many
sublime ideas of nature, and its
first cause, and of the immortality of the soul, which being above his own and all human
discovery, he probably acquired from the books of Moses or the
conversation of
some Jewish rabbies, which he might have met with in Egypt, where he resided, and
studied for
several years: from him Aristotle, and from both Cicero and
some few others drew most
amazing stores of philosophical science, and carried their researches into divine truths as far as human genius alone could penetrate. But
these were bright constellations, which appeared singly in several centuries, and even
these with all. this knowledge were very deficient in true theology. From the
visible works of the Creation they traced the being and principal attributes of the Creator; but the relation which his being and attributes bear to man they little
understood; of piety and devotion they had
scarce any sense, nor could they form any mode of worship worthy of the purity and
perfection of the divine nature: they occasionally
flung out many elegant encomiums on the native beauty, and excellence
of virtue: but they founded it not on the commands of God, nor connected it with
a holy life, nor hung out the happiness of heaven as its reward, or its object.
They sometimes talked of virtue carrying men to heaven, and placing them amongst
the gods; but by this virtue they meant only the invention of arts, or feats of
arms: for with them heaven was open only to legislators, and conquerors, the civilizers,
or destroyers of mankind. This was then the summit of religion in the most polished
nations in the world, and even this was confined to a
few philosophers, prodigies of genius and literature, who were
little attended to, and less understood by the generality of mankind in their
own countries; whilst all the rest were involved in one common cloud of ignorance
and superstition.
At this time Christianity broke forth from the east like a
rising sun, and dispelled this universal darkness, which obscured every part of
the globe, and even at this day prevails in all those remoter regions, to which
its salutary influence has not as yet extended. From all those which it has
reached, it has, notwithstanding its corruptions, banished all those enormities,
and introduced a more rational devotion, and purer morals: It has taught men the unity, and attributes of the
supreme Being, the remission
of sins, the resurrection of the dead, life everlasting, and the kingdom of heaven;
doctrines as inconceivable to the
wisest of mankind antecedent to its appearance,
as the Newtonian system is at this day to the most ignorant tribes of savages in
the wilds of America; doctrines, which human reason never could have discovered,
but which when discovered, coincide with, and are confirmed by it; and which, though
beyond the reach of all the learning and penetration
of Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero, are now clearly laid open to
the eye of every peasant and mechanic with the Bible in his hand. These are all
plain facts too glaring to be contradicted, and therefore, whatever we may think
of the authority of these books, the relations which they contain, or the
inspiration
of their authors, of these facts no man, who has eyes to read, or ears to hear, can
entertain a doubt; because there are the books, and in them is this religion.
PROPOSITION III.
MY third proposition is this; that from this book called the New Testament, may be
collected
a system of ethics, in which every moral precept founded on reason is carried to
a higher degree of purity and perfection, than in any other of the antient
philosophers
of preceding ages; every moral precept founded on false principles is entirely omitted,
and many new precepts added, peculiarly corresponding with the new object of this
religion.
By moral precepts founded on reason, I mean all those, which enforce
the practice of such duties as reason informs us must improve
our natures, and conduce to the happiness of mankind: such are piety to God, benevolence
to men, justice, charity, temperance, and sobriety, with all those, which prohibit
the commission of the contrary vices, all which debase our natures, and, by mutual
injuries, introduce universal disorder, and consequently universal misery. By precepts
founded on false principles, I mean those which recommend fictitious virtues productive
of none of these salutary effects, and therefore, however celebrated and admired,
are in fact no virtues
at all; such are valour, and friendship.
That virtues of the first kind are carried to a higher degree
of purity and perfection by the christian religion than by any other, it is here
unnecessary to prove, because this is a truth, which has been so frequently
demonstrated
by her friends, and never once denied by the most determined of her adversaries; but it will be proper to
shew, that those of the latter sort are most judiciously
omitted; because they have really no intrinsic merit in them, and are totally incompatible
with the genius and spirit of this institution.
Valour, for instance, or active courage, is for the most part
constitutional, and therefore can have no more claim to moral merit, than wit,
beauty, health, strength, or any other endowment of the mind or body; and so far
is it from producing any salutary effects by introducing peace, order, or happiness into
society, that it is the usual perpetrator of all the violences, which from
retaliated injuries distract the world with blood-shed and devastation. It
is the engine by which the strong are enabled to plunder the weak, the proud to trample upon the humble, and the guilty
to oppress the innocent; it is the chief instrument
which Ambition employs in her
unjust pursuits of wealth and power, and is therefore
so much extolled by her votaries: it was indeed congenial with the religion of pagans, whose gods were for the
most part made out of deceased heroes, exalted to heaven as a reward for the
mischiefs which they had perpetrated upon earth, and therefore with them this was the
first of virtues, and had even engroffed that denomination to itself; but whatever merit it may have assumed among pagans, with christians it can pretend to none, and few or none are the
occasions in which they are permitted to exert it: they are
so far from being allowed to inflict
evil, that they are forbid even to resist it; they are so far
from being encouraged to revenge injuries, that one of their first duties is to
forgive them; so far from being incited to destroy their enemies, that they are
commanded to love them, and to serve them to the utmost of their power. If
christian
nations therefore were nations of christians, all war would be impossible and unknown
amongst them, and valour could be neither of use or estimation, and therefore could
never have a place in the catalogue of christian virtues, being irreconcileable
with all its precepts. I object not to the praise and honours bestowed on the
valiant, they are the least tribute which can be paid them by
those who enjoy
safety and affluence the intervention of dangers and sufferings; I assert only that
active courage can never be a christian virtue,
because a christian can have nothing to do with it. Passive courage is indeed
frequently, and properly inculcated by this meek and suffering religion, under
the titles of patience and resignation: a real and substantial virtue this, and
a direct contrast to the former; for passive courage arises
from the noblest dispositions of the human mind, from a contempt of misfortunes,
pain, and death, and a confidence in the protection of
the Almighty; active from the meanest: from
passion, vanity, and self-dependence: passive courage is derived from a zeal for truth, and a
perseverance in duty; active is the offspring of pride and revenge, and the
parent of cruelty and injustice: in short passive courage is the resolution of a philosopher, active the ferocity of a
savage. Nor is this more incompatible with the
precepts, than with the object of this religion, which is the attainment of the
kingdom of heaven; for valour is not that sort of violence, by which that
kingdom is to be taken; nor are the turbulent spirits of heroes and
conquerors admissible into those
regions of peace, subordination, and tranquillity.
Patriotism also, that celebrated` virtue so much practised in ancient, and
so much professed in modern times, that virtue, which so long preserved the liberties of Greece, and exalted Rome to the empire of the world: this celebrated virtue, I
say, must also be excluded; because it not only falls short of, but directly counteracts, the
extensive Benevolence of this religion. A
christian is of no country, he is a citizen of the world; and his neighbours and countrymen are the inhabitants of the remotest regions, whenever their distresses demand his friendly assistance:
Christianity commands
us to love all mankind, Patriotism to oppress all other countries
to advance the imaginary prosperity of our own:
Christianity enjoins us to imitate the universal benevolence of our Creator, who pours forth his
blessings on every nation upon earth; Patriotism to copy the mean partiality of an
English pariah officer, who thinks injustice and cruelty meritorious, whenever they promote the
interests of his own inconsiderable village. This has ever been a favourite virtue with mankind,
because it conceals self-interest under the mask of public spirit, not only from others, but even from
themselves, and gives a licence to inflict
wrongs and injuries not only with impunity, but with applause;
but it is so diametrically opposite to the great characteristic of this institution, that it never
could have been admitted into the lift of christian virtues.
Friendship likewise, although more congenial to the principles
of Christianity arising from more tender and amiable
dispositions, could never gain admittance amongst her benevolent precepts for
the same reason; because it is too narrow and confined, and appropriates that benevolence to
a single object, which is here commanded to be extended over all: Where friendships
arise similarity of
sentiments, and
disinterested affections, they are advantageous, agreeable, and innocent, but have little pretensions to merit; for it is
justly observed, “If ye love them, which love you, what thanks have ye? for
sinners
also love
those, that love themLuke vi. 32.
.” But if they are formed from alliances in parties, factions, and
interests, or from a participation of vices, the usual parents of what
are called friendships among mankind, they are then both mischievous and criminal, and
consequently forbidden, but in their utmost purity deserve no recommendation from
this religion.
To the judicious omission these false virtues we may add that remarkable
silence,
which the Christian Legislator every where preserves on subjects esteemed by all
others of the highest importance, civil government, national policy, and the rights
of war and. peace; of these he has not taken the least notice, probably for this
plain reason, because it would have been impossible to have formed any explicit
regulations concerning them, which must not have been incontinent with the purity
of his religion, or with the practical observance of such imperfect creatures as
men ruling over, and contending with each other: For instance,
had he absolutely forbid all resistance to the reigning powers,
he had constituted a plan of despotism, and made men slaves; had he allowed it,
he must have authorised disobedience and made them rebels: had he in direct terms
prohibited all war, he must have left his followers for ever an easy prey to every
infidel invader; had he permitted it, he must have licensed all that rapine and
murder, with which it is unavoidably attended.
Let us now examine what are those new precepts in this religion
peculiarly corresponding with the new object of it, that is preparing us for the
kingdom of heaven: Of these the chief are poorness of spirit,
forgiveness of injuries, and charity to all men; to these we may add repentance, faith,
self-abasement,
and a detachment from the world, all moral duties peculiar to this religion, and
absolutely necessary to the attainment of its end.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of
heavenMatt. v. 3.
:” By which poorness of spirit is to be understood a
disposition
of mind, meek, humble, submissive to power, void of ambition, patient of
injuries, and free from all resentment: This was so new; and so opposite to the ideas
of all Pagan moralists, that they thought
this temper of mind a criminal and contemptible meanness, which
must induce men to sacrifice the glory of their country, and their own honour, to
a shameful pusillanimity; and such it appears to almost all who are called
Christians
even at this day, who not only reject it in practice, but disavow it in principle,
notwithstanding this explicit declaration of their Master. We see them revenging
the smallest affronts by premeditated murder, as individuals, on principles of honour;
and, in their national capacities, destroying each other with fire and sword, for
the low considerations of commercial interests, the balance
of rival powers, or the
ambition of princes: We see them with their last breath
animating each other to a savage revenge, and, in the agonies of death, plunging
with feeble arms their daggers into the hearts of their opponents: and, what is
worse, we hear all these barbarisms celebrated by historians, flattered by poets,
applauded in theatres, approved in senates, and even sanctified in pulpits. But
universal practice cannot alter the nature of things, nor universal error change
the nature of truth: Pride was not made for man, but humility, meekness, and
resignation,
that is poorness of spirit, was made for man, and properly belongs to his dependent
and
precarious situation; and is the only disposition of mind,
which can enable him to enjoy ease and quiet here, and happiness hereafter: Yet
was this important precept intirely unknown until it was promulgated by him, who
said, “Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not; for
of such is the kingdom of heaven: Verily I say unto you, whoever shall not
receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter thereinMatt. x. 14.
.”
Another precept, equally new and no less excellent, is forgiveness of injuries: “Ye have heard,”
says Christ to his
disciples,
“Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy; but
I say unto you, love your enemies; bless them that curse you, do good to
them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute youMatt. v. 43.
.” This was a
lesson so new, and so utterly unknown, ’till taught by his
doctrines, and enforced by his example, that the
wisest moralists
of the wisest nations and ages represented the desire of revenge as a mark of a
noble mind, and the accomplishment of it as one of the chief felicities attendant
on a fortunate man. But how much more magnanimous,
how much more beneficial to mankind, is forgiveness!
it is more magnanimous, because every generous and exalted disposition of the human
mind is requisite to the practice of it: for these alone can enable us to bear the
wrongs and insults of wickedness and folly with patience, and to look down on the
perpetrators of them with pity, rather than indignation; these alone can teach us,
that such are but a part of those sufferings allotted to us in this state of probation,
and to know, that to overcome evil with good, is the most glorious of all victories:
it is the most beneficial, because this amiable conduct alone
can
put an end to an eternal succession of injuries and retaliations; for every retaliation, becomes a new injury, and requires another
act of revenge for satisfaction. But would we observe this salutary precept, to love our enemies, and to do good to
those who despitefully use us, this obstinate benevolence would at last conquer the
most inveterate hearts, and we
should have no enemies to forgive. “How much more exalted a character therefore is a
Christian martyr, suffering with resignation, and praying for the guilty, than that of a Pagan hero, breathing revenge, and
destroying the innocent! Yet noble, and useful as
this virtue is, before the appearance of this religion it was not only unpractised,
but decried in principle as mean and ignominious, though so obvious a
remedy for most of the miseries of this life, and so necessary a qualification
for the happiness of another.
A third precept, first noticed and first injoined by this institution, is charity to all men. What this is,
we may best learn from this admirable description, painted in the following words; “Charity
suffereth
long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth, not itself; is not puffed up; doth not behave
itself
unseemly;
seeketh not her own; is not easily provoked; thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not
in iniquity, but rejoiceth in truth; feareth all things; believeth all things; hopeth
all things; endureth all things1 Cor. xiii. 4.
.” Here we have an accurate delineation
of this bright constellation of all virtues, which consists not, as many imagine,
in the building of monasteries, endowment of hospitals, or the distribution of
alms, but in such an amiable disposition of mind, as exercises itself every hour
in acts of kindness, patience, complacency, and benevolence to all around us, and
which alone is
able to promote happiness in the present life, or render us capable
of receiving it in another: and yet this is totally new, and so it is declared
to be by the author of it; “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love
one another; as I have loved you, that ye love one another; by this shall
all men know, that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to anotherJohn xiii. 34.
.” This
benevolent disposition is made the great characteristic of a christian, the test
of his obedience, and the mark by which he is to be distinguished. This love for
each other is that charity just now described, and
contains all those qualities, which are there attributed to
it; humility, patience, meekness, and beneficence: without which we must live in
perpetual discord, and. consequently cannot pay obedience to this commandment by
loving one another; a commandment so sublime, so rational, and so beneficial,
so wisely calculated to correct the depravity, diminish the wickedness, and abate
the miseries of human nature, that, did we universally comply with
it, we should soon be relieved from all the inquietudes arising from our own unruly
passions, anger, envy, revenge, malice, and ambition, as well as from all those injuries,
to
which we are perpetually exposed from the indulgence of the
same passions in others. It would also preserve our minds in such a state of tranquillity, and
so prepare them for the kingdom of heaven, that we should slide out of a life of peace, love and benevolence, into that
celestial society, by an almost imperceptible transition. Yet was this commandment intirely new, when given by him, who
so intitles it, and has made it the capital duty of his religion, because the
most indispensably
necessary to the attainment, of its great, object, the kingdom of heaven; into which if proud, turbulent and vindictive
spirits
were permitted to enter, they must unavoidably destroy the
happiness
of that state by the operations of the same passions and vices, by which they disturb
the present, and therefore all such must be eternally excluded, not only as a
punishment,
but also from incapacity.
Repentance, by this we plainly see, is another new moral duty
strenuously insisted on by this religion, and by no other,
because absolutely necessary to the accomplishment of its end; for this alone can purge us from
those transgressions, from which we cannot be totally exempted in this state of trial and temptation, and purify us from
that depravity in our nature, which renders us incapable of attaining
this end. Hence also we may learn, that no repentance can remove this incapacity,
but such as intirely changes the nature and disposition of the offender; which in
the language of Scripture is called “being born again.” Mere contrition for past
crimes, nor even the pardon of them, cannot effect this, unless it operates to this
intire conversion or new birth, as it is properly and emphatically named: for sorrow
can no more purify a mind corrupted by a long continuance in vicious habits, than
it can restore health to a body distempered
by a long course of vice and intemperance. Hence
also every
one, who is in the least acquainted with himself, may judge of the reasonableness of the hope that is in him, and of his
situation in a future state by that of his
present. If he feels in himself a temper proud, turbulent, vindictive, and malevolent,
and a violent attachment to the pleasures or business of the world, he may be assured,
that he must be excluded from the kingdom of heaven; not only because his conduct
can merit no such reward, but because, if admitted, he would find there no objects
satisfactory to his passions, inclinations, and pursuits,
and therefore could only
disturb the happiness of others without
enjoying any share of it himself.
Faith is another moral duty injoined by this institution, of a
species so new, that the philosophers of antiquity had no word expressive of
this idea, nor any such idea to be expressed; for the word
πιστις or fides, which we translate faith,
was never used by any pagan writer in a sense the least similar to that, to
which it is applied in the New Testament: where in general it signifies an
humble, teachable, and candid disposition, a trust in God, and confidence in his
promises; when applied particularly to christianity,
it means no
more than a belief of this single proposition, that Christ was the son of God;
that is, in the language of those writings, the Messiah, who was foretold by the
prophets, and expected by the Jews; who was sent by God into the world to preach
righteousness, judgment, and everlasting life, and to die as an atonement for
the sins .of mankind. This was all that Christ required to be believed by those
who were willing to become his disciples: he, who does not believe this, is not
a Christian, and he who does, believes the whole that is essential to his
profession, and all that is properly comprehended under the name of faith.
This unfortunate word has indeed been so tortured and so misapplied
to mean every absurdity, which artifice could impose upon ignorance, that it has
lost all pretensions to the title of virtue; but if brought back to the simplicity
of its original signification, it well deserves that name, because it usually
arises
from the most amiable dispositions, and is always a direct contrast to pride, obstinacy,
and self-conceit. If taken in the extensive sense of an assent to the evidence
of things not seen, it comprehends the existence of a God, and a future state, and
is therefore not only itself a moral virtue, but the source from whence
all others must proceed; for on the belief of these all religion and
morality
must intirely depend. It cannot be altogether void of moral merit, (as some would represent it)
because it is in a degree voluntary; for daily experience shews us, that men not only pretend to, but actually do believe, and disbelieve
almost any
propositions, which best suit their interests, or inclinations, and unfeignedly change their
sincere opinions with their situations and
circumstances. For we have power over the mind’s eye, as well as over the body’s, to
shut it against the
strongest rays of truth and religion, whenever they become painful to us, and to open
it again to the faint glimmerings of scepticism and infidelity
when we “love darkness rather than light, because our deeds are evilJohn
iii. 19.
.” And
this, I think, sufficiently refutes all objections to the moral nature of faith,
drawn from the supposition of its being quite involuntary, and necessarily dependent
on the degree of evidence, which is offered to our understandings.
Self-abasement is another moral duty inculcated by this
religion only; which requires us to impute even our own virtues to the grace and
favour of our Creator, and to acknowledge, that we can do nothing good by our
own powers, unless
assisted by his over-ruling influence: This doctrine
seems at first sight to infringe on our free-will; and to deprive us of all merit; but, on a closer examination, the truth of it may be
demonstrated both by
reason and experience; and that in fact it does not impair the one, or depreciate the other: and that it is productive of
so much humility, resignation, and dependance on God, that it justly claims a place amongst the
most illustrious moral virtues. Yet was this duty utterly repugnant to the proud and
self-sufficient principles of the antient
philosophers as well as modern Deists, and therefore before the publication of the
gospel
totally unknown and uncomprehended.
Detachment from, the world is another moral virtue constituted
by this religion alone: so new, that even at this day few of its professors can
be persuaded, that it is required, or that it is any virtue at all. By this detachment
from the world is not to be understood a seclusion from society, abstraction from
all business, or retirement to a gloomy cloyster. Industry and labour, chearfulness
and hospitality are frequently recommended: nor is the acquisition of wealth and
honours prohibited, if they can be obtained by honest means, and a moderate degree
of attention and care: but such an unremitted anxiety, and perpetual application as engrosses our whole time and thoughts, are forbid,
because they are incompatible with the spirit of this religion, and must utterly disqualify us for the attainment of its great end. We toil on in the vain
pursuits and frivolous occupations of the world, die in our harness, and then
expect, if no gigantic crime stands in the way, to step immediately into the kingdom of heaven: but this is
impossible; for without a previous detachment from the business of this world, we cannot be prepared for the
happiness of another. Yet this could make no part
of the morality of pagans, because their virtues were altogether connected with this
business, and consisted chiefly in concluding it with honour to themselves, and
benefit to the public: But Christianity has a nobler object
in view, which, if not attended to, must be lost for ever. This object is that celestial
mansion of which we should never lose sight, and to which we should be ever advancing
during our journey thro’ life: but this by no means precludes us from performing
the business, or enjoying the amusements of travellers, provided they detain us
not too long, or lead us too far out of our way.
It cannot be denied, that the great author of the christian institution,
first and singly ventured to oppose all the chief principles of pagan virtue, and
to introduce a religion direly opposite to those erroneous though long-established
opinions, both in its duties and in its object. The most celebrated virtues of the
ancients were high spirit, intrepid courage, and implacable resentment.
Impiger, iracundus, inexorabilis, acer,
was the portrait of the most illustrious Hero, drawn by one of the first poets of antiquity: To all
these admired qualities, those of a true Christian are an exact contrast; for this religion constantly
injoins poorness of spirit, meekness, patience, and forgiveness of injuries. “But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil; but whoever
shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other alsoMatt. v. 39.
.” The favourite characters among the Pagans were
the turbulent, ambitious, and intrepid, who through toils and dangers acquired
wealth, and spent it in luxury, magnificence, and corruption; but both these are
equally adverse to the Christian system, which forbids all extraordinary efforts to obtain wealth, care to
secure, or thought concerning the enjoyment of it.
“Lay
not up for yourselves treasures on earth, &c.” “Take no thought, saying, what than we eat,
or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be cloathed? for after all
these
things do the Gentiles seekMatt. vi. 31.
.” The chief object of the Pagans was immortal
fame: for this their poets sang, their heroes fought, and. their patriots died;
and this was hung out by their philosophers and legislators, as the great incitement
to all noble and virtuous deeds. But what says the Christian Legislator to his
disciples on this subject? “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and
shall
say all manner of evil against you for my sake; rejoice, and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heavenMatt. v.
11.
.” So widely different is the genius of
the Pagan and Christian morality, that I will venture to affirm, that the most
celebrated virtues of the former are more opposite to the spirit, and more inconsistent
with the end of the latter, than even their most infamous vices; and that a Brutus
wrenching vengeance out of his hands to whom alone it belongs, by murdering the oppressor
of his country, or a Cato murdering himself from an impatience of controul,
leaves the world more
unqualified for, and more inadmissible into the kingdom of heaven,
than even a Messalina, or an Heliogabalus, with all their profligacy about them.
Nothing, I believe, has so much contributed to corrupt
the true spirit of the Christian institution, as that partiality, which we contract from our earliest education for the manners of Pagan antiquity: from whence we learn to adopt every moral idea, which is repugnant to it; to applaud
false virtues, which that disavows; to be guided by laws of honour, which that abhors; to imitate characters, which that detests; and to behold .heroes, patriots, conquerors, and
suicides with admiration, whose conduct that utterly condemns.
From a coalition of these opposite principles was generated that monstrous system
of cruelty and benevolence, of barbarism and civility, of rapine and justice,
of fighting and devotion, of revenge and generosity, which harrassed the world
for several centuries with crusades, holy wars, knight-errantry; and single combats,
and even still retains influence enough, under the name of honour, to defeat the
most beneficent ends of this holy institution. I mean not by this to pass any censure on the principles of valour, patriotism, or honour: they may be
useful,
and
perhaps necessary, in the commerce and business of the present turbulent and imperfect
state; and those who are actuated by them may be virtuous,
honest, and even religious men: all that I assert is, that they cannot be
Christians:
A profligate may be a Christian, though a bad one, because he may be overpowered
by passions and temptations, and his actions may contradict his principles; but
a man, whose ruling principle is honour, however virtuous he may be, cannot
be a Christian, because he erects a standard of duty, and deliberately adheres to
it, diametrically opposite to the whole tenour of that religion.
The contrast between the Christian, and all other institutions
religious or moral previous to its appearance, is sufficiently evident, and
surely
the superiority of the former is as little to be disputed; unless any one
shall undertake to prove, that humility, patience, forgiveness, and benevolence
are less amiable, and less beneficial qualities, than pride, turbulence, revenge,
and malignity: that the contempt of riches is less noble, than the acquisition
by fraud and villainy, or the distribution of them to the poor, less commendable
than avarice or profusion; or that a real immortality in the kingdom of heaven
is an object less exalted,
less rational, and less worthy of pursuit, than an imaginary immortality
in the applause of men: that worthless tribute, which the folly of one part of
mankind pays to the wickedness of the other; a tribute, which a wise man ought
always to despise, because a good man can scarce ever obtain.
CONCLUSION.
IF I mistake not, I have now fully established the truth of my three
propositions.
First, That there is now extant a book intitled the New Testament.
Secondly, That from this book may be extracted a system of religion
intirely new; both in its object, and its doctrines, not only superior to, but totally
unlike every thing, which had ever before entered into the mind of man.
Thirdly, That from this book may likewise be collected a system
of
ethics, in which every moral precept founded on reason is carried to a higher degree of purity and perfection, than in any other of the
wisest philosophers of preceding ages; every moral precept founded on false principles
totally omitted, and many new precepts added, peculiarly corresponding with the
new object of this religion.
Every one of these propositions, I am persuaded, is incontrovertibly true; and if true, this
short, but certain conclusion must inevitably follow; That
such a system of religion and morality could not possibly have been the work of any man, or
set of men, much
less of those obscure, ignorant, and illiterate persons who
actually
did discover, and publish it to the world; and that therefore it must have been
effected by the supernatural interposition of divine power and wisdom; that is, that
it must derive its origin from God.
This argument seems to me little short of demonstration, and
is indeed founded on the very same reasoning, by which the material world is proved
to be the work of his invisible hand. We view with admiration the heavens and the
earth, and all therein contained; we contemplate with amazement the minute bodies
of animals too
small for perception, and the immense planetary
orbs too vast for imagination: We are certain that these cannot be the works of
man; and therefore we conclude with reason, that they must be the productions of
an omnipotent Creator. In the same manner we see here a scheme of religion and morality
unlike
and
superior to all ideas of the human mind, equally impossible to have been
discovered by the knowledge, as invented by the artifice of man; and therefore
by the same mode of reasoning, and with the same justice, we conclude, that it
must derive its origin from the same omnipotent and omnifcient Being.
Nor was the propagation of this religion less extraordinary than the religion itself, or less above
the reach of all human power, than
the discovery of it was above that of all human understanding. It is well known,
that in the course of a very few years it was spread over all the principal
parts of Asia and of Europe, and this by the ministry only of an inconsiderable
number of the most inconsiderable persons; that at this time Paganism was in the
highest repute, believed universally by the vulgar, and patronised by the great;
that the wisest men of the wisest nations assisted at its sacrifices, and
consulted its oracles on the most
important occasions: Whether these were the tricks of the priests
or of the devil, is of no consequence, as they were both equally unlikely to be
converted, or overcome; the fact is certain, that on the preaching of a few
fishermen, their altars were deserted, and their deities were dumb. This miracle
they undoubtedly performed, whatever we may think of the rest: and this is
surely
sufficient to prove the authority of their commission; and to convince us, that
neither their undertaking nor the execution of it could possibly be their own.
How much this divine institution has been corrupted, or how
soon these corruptions began, how far it has been discoloured
by the false notions of illiterate ages, or blended with fictions by pious frauds,
or how early these notions and fictions were introduced, no learning or sagacity,
is now able precisely to ascertain; but surely no man, who seriously considers the
excellence and novelty of its doctrines, the manner in which it was at first propagated
through the world, the persons who achieved that wonderful work, and the originality
of those writings in which it is still recorded, can possibly believe that it could
ever have been the production of imposture, or chance; or that from
an
imposture the most wicked and blasphemous, (for if an imposture, such it is,)
all the religion and virtue now existing on earth can derive their source.
But notwithstanding what has been here urged, if any man can believe, that at a time when the
literature of Greece and Rome, then in their meridian lustre, were insufficient for the
talk, the son
of a carpenter, together with twelve of the meanest and most illiterate mechanics, his associates,
unassisted by any
supernatural power, should be able to discover or invent a system of theology
the most sublime, and of ethics the most perfect, which had escaped the penetration
and learning
of Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero; and that from this
system, by their own sagacity, they had excluded every false virtue, though
universally admired, and admitted every true virtue, though despised and ridiculed by all the
rest of the world: If any one can believe that
these men could become impostors, for no other purpose than the propagation of truth, villains for no end
but to teach honesty, and martyrs without the
least prospect of honour or advantage; or that, if all this should have been
possible, these few inconsiderable
persons should have been able, in the course of a few years, to have spread this
their religion over most parts of the then known world, in opposition to the interests,
pleasures, ambition, prejudices, and even
reason of mankind; to have triumphed over the power of princes, the intrigues of
states, the force of custom, the blindness of zeal, the influence of priests, the arguments of orators, and the
philosophy of the world, without any
supernatural assistance; if any one can believe all these miraculous events, contradictory to the constant experience of the powers and
dispositions of human nature, he
must be possessed of much more faith than is necessary to make him a Christian, and remain
an unbeliever from mere credulity.
But should these credulous infidels after all be in the right, and this pretended revelation be all a fable; from believing it what harm could ensue? Would it render princes more tyrannical, or
subjects more ungovernable? the rich more insolent, or the poor more disorderly? Would it make
worse parents or children, husbands or wives, masters or servants, friends or neighbours? Or would it not make men more virtuous, and
consequently more happy in every situation? It could not be criminal; it could not be detrimental.
It could not be criminal,
because
it cannot be a crime to assent to such evidence, as has been able
to convince the best and wisest of mankind; by which, if false, Providence must
have permitted men to deceive each other, for the most beneficial ends, and
which therefore it would be surely more meritorious to believe, from a
disposition of faith and charity, which believeth all things, than to reject
with scorn from obstinacy and self-conceit: It cannot be detrimental,
because if Christianity is a fable, it is a fable, the belief of which is the only
principle
which can retain men in a steady and uniform course of virtue, piety, and devotion, or can
support them
in the hour of distress, of sickness, and of death. Whatever might
be the operations of true deism on the minds of pagan philosophers, that can
now avail us nothing: for that light which once lightened the gentiles, is now
absorbed
in the brighter illumination of the gospel; we can now form no rational system
of deism, but what must
be borrowed from that source, and, at far as it reaches towards perfection, must
be exactly the same; and therefore if we will not accept of Christianity, we can
have no religion at all. Accordingly we see, that those who fly from this, scarce
ever stop at deism; but hasten on with great alacrity to a total rejection
of all religious and moral principles whatever.
If I have here demonstrated the divine origin of the christian
religion by an argument which cannot be confuted; no others, however plausible
or numerous, founded on probabilities, doubts, and conjectures, can ever
disprove
it, because if it is once shewn to be true, it cannot be false. But as many arguments
of this kind have bewildered some candid and ingenuous minds, I shall here bestow
a few lines on those which have the most weight, in order to wipe out, or at
least
to diminish their perplexing influence.
But here I must previously observe,
that the most unsurmountable, as well as the most usual obstacle to our belief,
arises from our passions, appetites, and
interests; for faith being an
act of the will as much as of the understanding, we oftener disbelieve for want of inclination, than want of evidence. The
first step towards thinking this revelation true, is our hopes that it is so; for whenever we much wish any
proposition to be true, we are not far from believing it. It is certainly for the
interest of all good men, that its authority should be well founded; and still more beneficial to the bad, if ever they intend to be better:
because it is the only
system either of reason or religion which can give them any
assurance of pardon. The punishment of vice is a debt due to justice, which
cannot be remitted without compensation: repentance can be no compensation; it
may change a wicked man’s dispositions, and, prevent his offending for the future,
but can lay no claim to pardon for what is past. If any one by profligacy and extravagance
contracts a debt, repentance may make him wiser, and hinder him from running
into further distresses, but can never pay off his old bonds; for which he must
be ever accountable, unless they are discharged by himself, or some
other in his stead: this very
discharge Christianity alone holds
forth on our repentance, and, if true, will certainly perform: the truth of it
therefore must ardently be wished for by all, except the wicked, who are determined
neither to repent or reform. It is well worth every man’s while, who either is,
or intends to be virtuous, to believe Christianity, if he can; because he will find
it the surest preservative against all vitious habits and their attendant evils, the best resource
under distresses and disappointments, ill health and ill fortune, and the firmest basis on which contemplation can rest; and without
some, the
human mind is never perfectly at ease. But if any one is attached
to a favourite pleasure, or eagerly engaged in worldly pursuits incompatible with
the precepts of this religion, and he believes it, he must either relinquish
those
pursuits with uneasiness, or persist in them with remorse and dissatisfaction,
and therefore must commence unbeliever in his own defence. With such I shall not
dispute, nor pretend to persuade men by arguments to make themselves miserable: but to those, who, not afraid that this religion may be true, are really affected
by such objections, I will offer the following answers,
which, though short, will, I doubt not, be sufficient to
shew
them their weakness and futility.
In the first place, then, some have been so bold as to strike
at the root of all revelation from God, by asserting, that it is incredible,
because unnecessary, and unnecessary, because the reason which he has
bestowed
on mankind is sufficiently able to discover all the religious and moral duties
which he requires of them, if they would but attend to her precepts, and be
guided by her friendly admonitions. Mankind have undoubtedly at various times
from the remotest ages received so much knowledge by divine communications, and
have ever been so much inclined to impute it all to their own
sufficiency, that it is now difficult to determine what human reason unassisted
can effect: But to form a true judgment on this subject, let us turn our eyes to
those remote regions of the globe, to which this supernatural assistance has never
yet extended, and we shall there see men endued with sense and reason not inferior
to our own, so far from being capable of forming systems of religion and morality,
that they are at this day totally unable to make a nail or a hatchet: from whence
we may surely be convinced, that reason alone is so far from being sufficient to offer
to mankind a perfect religion, that it has never yet been able
to lead them to any degree of culture, or civilization whatever. These have uniformly
flowed from that great fountain of divine communication opened in the east, in the
earliest ages, and thence been gradually diffused in salubrious streams, throughout
the various regions of the earth. Their rise and progress, by surveying the
history
of the world, may early be traced backwards to their source; and wherever
these
have not as yet been able to penetrate, we there find the human species not only
void of all true religious and moral sentiments, but not the least emerged
from their original ignorance and barbarity; which seems a demonstration,
that although human reason is capable of progression in science, yet the first
foundations must be laid by supernatural instructions: for surely no other probable
cause can be assigned, why one part of mankind should have made such an amazing
progress in religious, moral, metaphysical, and philosophical enquiries; such wonderful
improvements in policy, legislation, commerce, and manufactures, while the other
part, formed with the same natural capacities, and divided only by seas and mountains, should remain, during the same number of ages, in
a state little superior to brutes,
without government, without
laws or letters, and even without clothes and habitations; murdering each other
to satiate their revenge, and devouring each other to appease their hunger: I
say
no cause can be assigned for this amazing difference, except that the first have
received information from those divine communications recorded in the scriptures,
and the latter have never yet been favoured with such assistance. This remarkable
contrast seems an unanswerable, though perhaps a new proof of the necessity of revelation,
and a solid refutation of all arguments against it, drawn from the sufficiency of
human reason. And as reason in her natural state is thus incapable of making any
progress in knowledge; so when furnished with materials by supernatural aid, if
left to the guidance of her own wild imaginations, she falls into more
numerous, and more gross errors, than her own native ignorance could ever have suggested.
There is then no absurdity so extravagant, which she is not ready to adopt: she
has persuaded some, that there is no God; others, that there can be no future state:
she has taught some, that there is no difference between vice and virtue,
and that to cut a man’s throat and to relieve his necessities are actions equally
meritorious:
she has convinced many, that they have no free-will in opposition to their own experience;
some, that there can be no
such thing as soul, or spirit, contrary to their own perceptions; and others, no
such thing as matter or body, in contradiction to their senses. By analysing all things
she can
shew, that there is nothing in any thing; by perpetual sifting she can reduce all existence to the
invisible dust of scepticism; and by recurring to
first principles, prove to the satisfaction of her followers, that there are no principles at all. How far
such a guide is to be depended on in the important concerns of religion, and morals, I leave to the judgment of
every considerate man to determine. This is certain, that human
reason in its highest state of cultivation amongst the philosophers of Greece and
Rome, was never able to form a religion comparable to Christianity; nor have all
those sources of moral virtue, such as truth, beauty, and the fitness of things,
which modern philosophers have endeavoured to substitute in its stead, ever been effectual to produce good men, and have themselves often been the productions
of some of the worst.
Others there are, who allow, that a revelation from God may be both
necessary, and credible; but alledge, that the
scriptures, that is
books of the Old and New Testament, cannot be that Revelation;
because in them are to be found errors and inconsistencies, fabulous stories,
false facts, and false philosophy; which can never be derived from the fountain of all
wisdom and truth. To this I reply, that I readily acknowledge, that the
scriptures are not revelations from God, but the history of them: The revelation
itself is derived from God; but the history of it is the production of men, and therefore the truth of it is not in the
least affected by their fallibility, but depends on the internal evidence of its own
supernatural excellence. If in these books such a
religion, as has been here described, actually exists, no
seeming,
or even real defects to be found in them can disprove the divine origin of this religion,
or invalidate my argument. Let us, for instance, grant that the Mosaic history of
the creation was founded on the erroneous but popular principles of those early
ages, who imagined the earth to be a vast plain, and the celestial bodies no more
than luminaries hung up in the concave firmament to enlighten it; will it from
thence follow, that Moses could not be a proper instrument in the hands of Providence,
to impart to the Jews a divine law, because he was not inspired with a
fore-knowledge of the Copernican and Newtonian
systems? or that
Christ must be an impostor, because Moses was not an astronomer? Let us also
suppose, that the accounts of
Christ’s temptation in the wilderness, the devil’s taking refuge in the herd of
swine, with several other narrations in the New
Testament, frequently ridiculed by unbelievers, were all but stories accommodated to the ignorance and
superstitions of the times and countries in which they were written, or pious
frauds intended to impress on vulgar minds a higher reverence of the power and
sanctity of
Christ; will this in the least impeach the excellence of his religion,
or the authority of its founder? or is Christianity
answerable for all the fables of which it may have been the innocent occasion? The want of this obvious distinction has much injured the
Christian
cause; because on this ground it has ever been most successfully attacked, and on
this ground it is not easily to be defended: for if the records of this revelation
are supposed to be the revelation itself, the least defect discovered in them
must
be fatal to the whole. What has led many to overlook this distinction, is that
common phrase, that the scriptures are the word of God; and in one sense they certainly
are; that is, they are the
sacred repository of all the revelations, dispensations,
promises, and precepts, which God has vouchsafed to communicate to mankind; but by this expression
we are not to understand, that every part of this voluminous collection of
historical, poetical, prophetical, theological, and moral writings, which we call the Bible, was dictated by the immediate influence of divine
inspiration: The authors of these books pretend to no such infallibility, and if they claim it not for
themselves, who has authority to claim it for them?
Christ required no such belief from those who were willing to be his disciples. He
says, “He that believeth on me, hath everlasting
lifeJohn vi. 47.
;” but where does he say, He that believeth
not every word contained in the Old. Testament, which was then extant, or every
word in the New Testament, which was to be wrote for the instruction of future generations,
hath not everlasting life? There are innumerable occurrences related in the
scriptures,
some of greater, some of less, and some of no importance at all; the truth of which
we can have no reason to question, but the belief of them is surely not
essential
to the faith of a Christian: I have no doubt but that St. Paul was shipwrecked, and
that he left his cloak
and his parchments at Troas; but the belief of
these facts makes no part of
Christianity, nor is the truth of them any proof of its authority. It proves only that this
apostle could not in common life be under the perpetual influence of infallible
inspiration; for, had he been so, he would not have put to sea before a storm, nor have forgot his cloak.
These writers were undoubtedly directed by
supernatural influence in all things necessary to the great work, which they were appointed to perform: At particular times, and on particular
occasions, they were enabled to utter prophecies, to speak languages, and to work miracles; but in all other
circumstances, they seem to have been left to the direction of their own understandings, like other men. In the
sciences of history, geography, astronomy, and philosophy, they appear to have been no better instructed than others, and therefore were not
less liable to be misled by the errors and prejudices of the times and countries in which they lived. They related
facts like honest men, to the best of their knowledge or information, and they recorded the divine
lessons of their
master with the utmost fidelity; but they pretended to no infallibility, for they
sometimes differed in their relations, and they sometimes disagreed
in their
sentiments. All which proves only, that they did
not act, or write, in a combination to deceive, but not in the least impeaches the
truth of the revelation which they published; which depends not on any external
evidence whatever: For I will venture to affirm, that if any one could prove, what
is impossible to be proved, because it is not true, that there are errors in geography,
chronology, and philosophy, in every page of the Bible; that the prophecies therein
delivered are all but fortunate guesses, or artful applications, and the miracles
there recorded no better than legendary tales: if any one could shew, that
these books were never written by their pretended authors, but
were posterior impositions on illiterate and credulous ages: all these wonderful
discoveries would prove no more than this, that God, for reasons to us unknown,
had thought proper to permit a revelation by him communicated to mankind, to be
mixed with their ignorance, and corrupted by their frauds from its earliest infancy,
in the same manner in which he has visibly permitted it to be mixed, and corrupted
from that period to the present hour. If in these books a religion superior to all
human imagination actually exists, it is of no consequence to the proof of
its divine origin, by what means it was there introduced, or
with what human errors and. imperfections it is blended. A diamond, though found
in a bed of mud, is still a diamond, nor can the dirt, which surrounds it, depreciate
its value or destroy its lustre.
To some speculative and refined observers, it has appeared incredible,
that a wife and benevolent Creator should have constituted a world upon one plan,
and a religion for it on another; that is, that he should have revealed a religion
to mankind, which not only contradicts the principal passions and inclinations which
he has implanted in their natures, but
is incompatible with the whole
œconomy of that world which he has created, and in which he has thought proper to place them. This,
say they, with regard to the Christian is apparently the case: the love of power, riches, honour, and fame, are the great incitements to generous and magnanimous actions; yet by this
institution are all
these depreciated and discouraged. Government is essential to the nature of man, and cannot be managed without certain degrees of violence, corruption, and imposition; yet are all
these strictly forbid. Nations cannot subsist without wars, nor war be carried on without rapine,
desolation, and
murder; yet are these prohibited under
the severest threats. The non-resistance of evil must subject individuals to continual
oppressions, and leave nations a defenceless prey to their enemies; yet is this
recommended. Perpetual patience under insults and injuries must every day provoke
new insults and new injuries; yet is this injoined. A neglect of all we eat and
drink and wear, must put an end to all commerce, manufactures, and industry; yet
is this required. In short were these precepts universally obeyed, the
disposition
of all human affairs must be intirely changed, and the business of the
world, constituted as it now is, could
not go on. To all this I
answer,
that such indeed is the christian revelation, though some of its advocates may
perhaps be unwilling to own it, and such it is constantly declared to be by him
who gave it, as well as by those, who published it under his immediate direction: To
these he says, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own;
but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world,
therefore the world hateth youJohn xv. 19.
.” To the Jews he declares, “Ye are of this world;
I am not of this worldJohn viii. 23.
.” St. Paul writes to the Romans,
“Be not conformed to this worldRom. xii.
2.
;” and to the Corinthians, “We speak not the wisdom of this worldCor. ii. 6.
.” St. James
says, “Know ye not, that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of GodJam. iv. 4.
.” This irreconcileable
disagreement between christianity and the world is announced in numberless other
places in the New Testament, and indeed by the whole tenour of those writings.
These
are plain declarations, which, in spite of all the evasions of those good managers,
who choose to take a little
of this world in their way to heaven,
stand fixed and immoveable
against all their arguments drawn from public benefit and pretended
necessity, and must ever forbid any reconciliation between the pursuits of this world and the christian institution: But they who reject it on this account, enter not into the
sublime
spirit of this religion, which is not a code of precise laws designed for the well-ordering
society, adapted to the ends of worldly convenience, and amenable to the tribunal of human prudence; but a divine
lesson of purity and perfection,
so far superior to the low considerations of conquest, government, and commerce,
that it takes no more notice of them, than of the battles
of game-cocks, the policy of bees, or the industry of ants: they recollect not what
is the first and principal object of this institution; that this is not, as has been
often repeated, to make us happy, or even virtuous in the present life, for the
sake of augmenting our happiness here, but to conduct us through a state of dangers
and sufferings, of sin and temptation, in such a manner as to qualify us for the
enjoyment of happiness hereafter. All other institutions of religion and morals
were made for the world, but the characteristic of this is to be against it; and
therefore the merits of christian doctrines are not to be weighed
in the scales of public utility, like those of moral precepts, because worldly
utility is not their end. If Christ and his apostles had pretended, that the religion which
they preached would advance the power, wealth, and prosperity of nations, or of
men, they would have deserved but little credit; but they constantly profess the
contrary, and every where declare, that their religion is adverse to the world,
and all its pursuits. Christ says, speaking of his disciples, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the worldJohn xvii. 16.
.”
It
can therefore be no imputation on this religion, or on any of its precepts, that they tend not to an end which their author professedly
disclaims: nor can it
surely be deemed a defect, that it is adverse to the vain
pursuits of this world; for
so are reason, wisdom, and experience; they all teach us the same lesson, they all demonstrate to us every day, that
these are begun on false hopes, carried on with disquietude, and end in disappointment. This
professed incompatibility with the little, wretched, and iniquitous business of the world, is therefore
so far from being a defect in this religion, that, was there no other proof of
its divine origin, this alone, I think, would be abundantly
sufficient.
The great plan and benevolent design of this dispensation is plainly this; to enlighten the minds, purify the religion,
and amend the morals of mankind in general, and to select the most meritorious of
them to be successively transplanted into the kingdom of heaven: Which gracious
offer is impartially tendered to all, who by perseverance in meekness, patience,
piety, charity, and a detachment from the world, are willing to qualify
themselves
for this holy and happy society. Was this universally accepted, and did every man
observe strictly every precept
of the gospel, the face of human affairs and the
œconomy of the world would indeed be greatly changed; but
surely they would be changed for the better; and we should enjoy much more
happiness, even here, than at
present: For we
must not forget, that evils are by it forbid as well as resistance; injuries, as well as revenge; all unwillingness to diffuse the enjoyments of life, as well as
sollicitude to acquire them; all obstacles to ambition, as well as ambition
itself; and therefore all contentions for power and interest would be at an end; and the world would go on much more happily than it now does. But
this universal acceptance of such an offer was never expected
from so depraved and imperfect a creature as man, and therefore could never have
been any part of the design: For it was foreknown and foretold by him who made
it; that few, very few would accept it on these terms. He says, “Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth into life,
and few there be that find itMatt. vii. 4.
:” Accordingly we see, that very few are prevailed
on by the hopes of future happiness, to relinquish the pursuits of present
pleasures
or interests, and therefore these pursuits are little interrupted by the secession
of so inconsiderable a number: As the natural world
subsists by the struggles of the same elements, so does the moral by the contentions
of the same passions, as from the beginning: The generality of mankind are actuated
by the same motives, fight, scuffle, and scramble for power, riches, and
pleasures
with the same eagerness: all occupations and professions are exercised with the
same alacrity, and there are soldiers, lawyers, statesmen, patriots, and politicians,
just as if Christianity had never existed. Thus, we see this wonderful dispensation
has answered all the purposes for which it was intended: It has enlightened the
minds, purified the religion, and amended the morals of mankind; and, without
subverting the constitution, policy, or
business of the world, opened
a gate, though a strait one, through which all, who are wise enough to choose it,
and good enough to be fit for it, may find an entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
Others have said, that if this revelation had really been from God, his infinite power and goodness could never have
suffered it to have been so soon perverted from its original purity, to have continued in a
state of corruption through the
course of
so many ages, and at last to have proved so ineffectual to the
reformation of mankind. To these I answer, that all this, on
examination, will be found inevitable, from the nature of all revelations communicated
to so imperfect a creature as man, and from circumstances peculiar to the rise and
progress of the Christian in particular: for when this was first preached to the
gentile nations, though they were not able to with-land the force of its evidence,
and therefore received it; yet they could not be prevailed on to relinquish their
old superstitions, and former opinions, but chose rather to incorporate them with
it: By which means it was necessarily mixed with their ignorance, and their
learning; by both which it was equally injured. The people defaced its worship by blending it with their idolatrous ceremonies, and the
philosophers corrupted its doctrines by weaving them up with the notions of the Gnostics, Mystics, and Manichæans, the prevailing
systems of
those times. By degrees its irresistible excellence gained over princes, potentates, and conquerors to its
interests, and it was supported by their patronage: but that patronage soon engaged it in their policies and contests, and destroyed that excellence by which it had been acquired. At length the meek and humble professors of the
gospel
inslaved these princes, and conquered these conquerors their
patrons, and erected for themselves such a stupendous fabric of wealth and power,
as the world had never seen: they then propagated their religion by the same methods,
by which it had been persecuted; nations were converted by fire and sword, and
the vanquished were baptized with daggers at their throats. All these events we
see proceed from a chain of causes and consequences, which could not have been broken
without changing the established course of things by a constant series of miracles,
or a total alteration of human nature: whilst that continues as it is, the purest
religion must be corrupted by a conjunction with power and riches,
and it will also then appear to be much more corrupted than it really is:
because
many are inclined to think, that every deviation from its primitive state is a
corruption: Christianity was at first preached by the poor and mean, in holes
and caverns, under the iron rod of persecution, and therefore many absurdly conclude,
that any degree of wealth or power in its ministers, or of magnificence in its
worship,
are corruptions inconsistent with. the genuine simplicity of its original state:
they are offended, that modern bishops should possess titles, palaces, revenues,
and coaches,
when it is notorious, that their predecessors the apostles were
despicable wanderers, without houses, or money, and walked on foot. The apostles
indeed lived in a state of poverty and persecution attendant on their particular
situation, and the work which they had undertaken: this was their misfortune,
but no part of their religion, and therefore it can be no more incumbent on their
successors to imitate their poverty and meanness, than to be whipped, imprisoned, and put to death, in compliance with their example.
These are all but the suggestions of envy and malevolence, but no objections to
these fortunate alterations
in Christianity and its professors; which, if not abused to the purposes of tyranny and
superstition, are in
fact no more than the necessary and proper effects of its more prosperous situation. When a poor man grows rich, or a
servant becomes a
master, they should take care that their exaltation prompts them not to be
unjust or insolent; but surely it is not
requisite or right, that their behaviour and mode of living should be exactly
the same, when their situation is altered. How far this institution has been effectual to the reformation of mankind, it is not
easy now to
ascertain, because the enormities which prevailed
before the appearance of it are by time so far removed from our
sight, that they are
scarcely visible; but those of the most gigantic size still remain in the records of
history, as monuments of the rest: Wars in
those ages were carried on with a ferocity and cruelty unknown to the present: whole cities and nations were extirpated by fire and
sword; and thousands of the vanquished were crucified and impaled for having endeavoured only to defend
themselves and their country. The lives of new-born infants were then intirely at the
disposal of their parents, who were at liberty to bring them up, or to expose them to perish by cold and hunger, or to
be devoured by birds and beasts; and this was frequently practised without punishment, and even without censure. Gladiators were employed by hundreds to cut one another to pieces in public theatres for the diversion of the
most polite assemblies; and though
these combatants at first consisted of criminals only, by degrees men of the
highest rank, and even ladies of the
most illustrious families, enrolled themselves in this honourable list. On many
occasions human sacrifices were ordained; and at the funerals of rich and eminent
persons, great numbers of their slaves were murdered as victims pleasing to their departed
spirits. The most infamous obscenities were made part of their religious
worship, and the most unnatural lusts publickly avowed, and celebrated by their
most admired poets. At the approach of
Christianity all these horrid abominations vanished; and amongst those who first embraced it,
scarce a single vice was to be found: to such an amazing degree of piety, charity, temperance, patience, and
resignation were the primitive converts exalted, that they
seem literally to have been regenerated, and purified from all the imperfections of human nature; and to have
pursued
such a constant and uniform course of devotion, innocence,
and virtue, as, in the present times, it is almost as
difficult for us to conceive as to imitate. If it is asked, why should not the belief
of the same religion now produce the same effects? the answer is short, because
it is not believed: The most sovereign medicine can perform no cure, if the patient
will not be persuaded to take it. Yet notwithstanding all impediments, it has certainly
done a great deal towards diminishing the vices and correcting the dispositions of mankind; and was it
universally adopted in belief and practice, would totally eradicate both sin and
punishment. But this was never expected, or designed, or
possible, because, if their existence
did not arise from some necessity to us unknown, they never would have been permitted to
exist at all; and therefore they can no more be extirpated, than they could have been prevented: for this would certainly be incompatible with the frame and constitution of this, world, and in all probability with that of another. And this, I think, well accounts for that reserve
and obscurity with which this religion was at
first promulgated, and that. want of irresistible evidence of its truth, by which it might
possibly have been enforced. Christ says to his disciples, “To you it is given to know the mystery of
the kingdom of God; but unto them that are without, all
these things are done in parables; that seeing they may see, and not perceive, and hearing they
may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted,
and their sins should be forgiven themMark iv. 11, 12.
.” That is, to you by peculiar favour
it is given to know and understand the doctrines of my religion, and by that means
to qualify yourselves for the kingdom of heaven; but to the multitude without,
that is to all mankind in general, this indulgence cannot be extended; because that
all men should be exempted
from sin and punishment is utterly repugnant to the universal
system, And that constitution of things, which infinite wisdom has thought proper
to adopt.
Objections have likewise been raised to the divine authority
of this religion from the incredibility of some of its doctrines, particularly
of those concerning the Trinity, and atonement for sin by the sufferings and death of
Christ; the one contradicting all the principles of human
reason, and the other all our ideas of divine justice. To these objections I
shall only
say, that no arguments founded on principles, which we cannot comprehend, can
possibly disprove a proposition
already proved on principles which we do understand; and therefore that on this
subject they ought not to be attended to: That three Beings should be one Being, is a
proposition which certainly contradicts reason, that is, our reason; but it does not from thence follow, that it cannot be true: for there are many
propositions which contradict our reason, and yet are demonstrably true: one is the very
first principle of all religion, the being of a God; for that any thing should
exist without a cause, or that any thing
should be the cause of its own existence, are propositions equally contradictory to our
reason; yet one of them must be
true or nothing could ever have existed: in like manner the overruling
grace of the Creator, and the free-will of his creatures, his certain fore-knowledge
of future events, and the uncertain contingency of those events, are to our apprehensions
absolute contradictions to each other; and yet the truth of every one of these
is demonstrable from Scripture, reason, and experience: All these difficulties
arise from our imagining, that the mode of existence of all Beings must be similar to our own; that is, that they
must all exist in time, and
space; and
hence proceeds our embarrassment on this subject. We know, that no two
Beings, with whose
mode of existence we are acquainted, can exist in the same point of time in the same point of space, and that therefore they cannot
be one: but how far Beings, whose mode of existence bears no relation to time
or space, may be united, we cannot comprehend: and therefore the possibility of
such an union we cannot positively deny. In like manner our reason informs us, that
the punishment of the innocent, instead of the guilty, is diametrically opposite
to justice, rectitude, and all pretensions to utility; but we should also remember,
that the short line of our reason cannot reach to the bottom of this question: it
cannot inform us, by what
means either guilt or punishment ever gained a place in the works
of a Creator infinitely good and powerful, whose goodness must have induced him,
and whose power must have enabled him to exclude them: It cannot assure us, that
some sufferings of individuals are not necessary to the happiness and well-being
of the whole: It cannot convince us, that they do not actually arise from this
necessity,
or that, for this cause, they may not be required of us, and levied like a tax for
the public benefit; or that this tax may not be paid by one Being, as well as another;
and therefore, if voluntarily offered, be justly accepted
from the innocent instead of the guilty. Of all these
circumstances we are totally ignorant; nor can our
reason afford us any information, and therefore we are not able to assert, that this
measure is contrary to justice, or void of utility for, unless we could first resolve that great question, whence came evil? we can decide nothing on the
dispensations of Providence;
because they must necessarily be connected with that undiscoverable principle; and, as we know not the root of the disease, we cannot judge of what is, or is not, a proper and effectual remedy. It is remarkable, that,
notwithstanding all the seeming absurdities of this
doctrine, there is one circumstance much in its favour; which
is, that it has been universally adopted in all ages, as far as history can carry
us back in our inquiries to the earliest times; in which we find all nations civilized
and barbarous, however differing in all other religious opinions, agreeing alone
in the expediency of appealing their offended Deities by sacrifices, that is, by
the vicarious sufferings of men or other animals. This notion could never have been
derived from reason, because it directly contradicts it; nor from ignorance,
because
ignorance could never have contrived so unaccountable an expedient, nor have been
uniform in
all ages and countries in any opinion whatsoever; nor from the artifice of kings or
priests, in order to acquire dominion over the people,
because it seems not adapted to this end, and we find it implanted in the minds of the
most remote savages at this day discovered, who have neither kings or priests artifice, or dominion amongst them. It
must therefore be derived from natural instinct, or supernatural revelation, both which are equally the operations of divine power. If it is further urged, that however true
these doctrines may be, yet it must be inconsistent with the justice and goodness of the Creator, to require from his creatures
the belief of propositions which contradict, or are above
the reach of that reason, which he has thought proper to bestow upon them. To this
I answer, that genuine Christianity requires no such belief: It has discovered to us many important truths, with
which we were before intirely unacquainted, and
amongst them are these, that three Beings are someway united in the divine essence,
and that God will accept of the sufferings of Christ as an atonement for the sins of mankind.
These, considered as declarations of facts only, neither contradict, or are above the reach of human reason: The
first is a proposition as
plain, as that three equilateral lines compose one triangle; the other is as intelligible, as that one man
should discharge the debts of another. In what manner this union is formed, or why God accepts
these vicarious punishments, or to what purposes they may be subservient, it informs us not,
because no information could enable us to comprehend these mysteries, and therefore it does not require that we
should know or believe any thing about them. The truth of these doctrines must rest intirely on the authority of
those who taught them; but then we should reflect that those were the same
persons who taught us a
system of religion more sublime, and of ethics more perfect, than any which our faculties were ever able to
discover, but which when discovered are exactly consonant to our
reason, and that therefore we should not hastily reject those informations which they have vouchsafed to give us, of which our
reason is not a competent judge. If an able mathematician proves to us the truth of
several propositions by demonstrations which we understand, we hesitate not on his authority to assent to others, the process of
whose proofs we are not able to follow: why therefore should we refuse that credit to Christ and his
Apostles, which we
think reasonable to give to one another?
Many have objected to the whole scheme of this revelation as
partial, fluctuating, indeterminate, unjust, and unworthy of an omniscient and omnipotent
author, who cannot be supposed to have favoured particular persons, countries,
and times, with this divine-communication, while others no less meritorious have been
altogether excluded from its benefits; nor to have changed and counteracted his
own designs; that is, to have formed mankind able and disposed to render
themselves
miserable by their own wickedness, and then to have contrived so
strange an expedient to restore them to that happiness, which they
need never have been permitted to forfeit; and this to be brought about by the
unnecessary interposition of a mediator. To all this I shall only say, that however
unaccountable this may appear to us, who see but as small a part of the
Christian,
as of the universal plan of creation, they are both in regard to all these
circumstances exactly analogous to each other. In all the dispensations of Providence, with which
we are acquainted, benefits are distributed in a similar manner; health and strength,
sense and science, wealth and power, are all bestowed on
individuals and communities in different degrees and at different times. The whole
œconomy of this world consists of evils and remedies; and
these for the most part administered by the instrumentality of intermediate agents. God has permitted us to plunge ourselves into poverty,
distress, and
misery, by our own vices, and has afforded us the advice, instructions, and examples of others, to deter or extricate us from
these calamities. He has formed us subject to innumerable diseases, and he has bestowed on us a variety of remedies. He has made us liable to hunger, thirst, and nakedness, and he
supplies us with
food, drink, and cloathing, usually by the administration of
others. He has created poisons, and he has provided antidotes. He has ordained
the winter’s cold to cure the pestilential heats of the summer, and the summer’s
sunshine to dry up the inundations of the winter. Why the constitution of nature
is so formed, why all the visible dispensations of Providence are such, and why
such is the Christian dispensation also, we know not, nor have faculties to comprehend. God might certainly have made the material world a
system of perfect beauty and regularity, without evils, and without remedies; and the
Christian dispensation a scheme
only of moral virtue productive of happiness, without the intervention
of any atonement or mediation. He might have exempted our bodies from all diseases,
and our minds from all depravity, and we should then have stood in no need of medicines
to restore us to health, or expedients to reconcile us to his favour. It seems indeed
to our ignorance, that this would have been more consistent with justice and
reason; but his infinite wisdom has decided in another manner, and formed the
systems both of Nature and Christianity on other principles, and these so exactly
similar, that we have
cause to conclude that they both must
proceed from the same source
of divine power and wisdom, however inconsistent with our
reason they may appear. Reason is undoubtedly our surest guide
in all matters, which lie within the narrow circle of her intelligence: On the
subject of revelation her province is only to examine into its authority, and when
that is once proved, she has no more to do, but to acquiesce in its doctrines, and
therefore is never so ill employed, as when she pretends to accommodate them to
her own ideas of rectitude and truth. God, says this self-sufficient teacher, is
perfectly wise, just, and good; and what is the inference? That all his dispensations
must be
conformable to our notions or perfect wisdom, justice, and goodness: but it
should first be proved, that man is as perfect, and as wise as his Creator, or this consequence will by no means follow; but rather the reverse, that is, that the dispensations of a perfect and all-wise Being must probably appear unreasonable, and perhaps
unjust, to a Being imperfect and ignorant; and therefore their seeming impossibility may be a mark of their truth, and in
some measure justify that pious rant of a mad enthusiast, “Credo, quia impossibile.” Nor is it the
least surprising, that we are not able to understand the spiritual dispensations of the Almighty,
when his material works are to us no less incomprehensible,
our reason can afford us no insight into those great properties of matter, gravitation,
attraction, elasticity, and electricity, nor even into the essence of matter
itself:
Can reason teach us how the sun’s luminous orb can fill a circle, whose diameter
contains many millions of miles, with a constant inundation of successive rays during
thousands of years, without any perceivable diminution of that body, from whence
they are continually poured, or any augmentation of those bodies on which they fall,
and by which they are constantly absorbed? Can
reason tell us how those rays, darted with a velocity greater than that of a cannon ball, can
strike the tenderest organs of the human frame without inflicting any degree of pain, or by what means this percussion only can convey the forms of
distant
objects to an immaterial mind? or how any union can be formed between material and immaterial essences, or how the wounds of the body can give pain to the
soul, or the anxiety of the soul can emaciate and destroy the body? That all
these things are so, we have visible and indisputable demonstration; but how they can be
so, is to us as incomprehensible, as the most
abstruse mysteries of Revelation can possibly be. In short, we
see so small a part of the great Whole, we know so little of the relation, which
the present life bears to pre-existent and future states; we can conceive so little
of the nature of God, and his attributes, or mode of existence; we can comprehend
so little of the material, and so much less of the moral plan on which the universe
is constituted, or on what principle it proceeds, that, if a revelation from
such
a Being, on such subjects, was in every part familiar to our understandings, and
consonant to our reason; we should have great cause to suspect its divine authority; and therefore, had this
revelation been less incomprehensible, it would certainly have
been more incredible.
But I shall not enter further into the confederation of there abstruse and difficult
speculations,
because the discussion of them would render this short essay too tedious and laborious a talk for the perusal of them, for whom it was principally intended; which are all
those busy or idle
persons, whose time and thoughts are wholly engrossed by the pursuits of
business, or
pleasure, ambition, or luxury, who know nothing of this religion, except what they have accidentally picked up by desultory
conversation or
superficial reading, and
have thence determined with themselves, that a pretended revelation
founded on so strange and improbable a story, so contradictory to reason, so adverse
to the world and all its occupations, so incredible in its doctrines, and in its
precepts so impracticable, can be nothing more than the imposition of priestcraft
upon ignorant and illiterate ages, and artfully continued as an engine well-adapted
to awe and govern the superstitious vulgar. To talk to such about the Christian
religion, is to converse with the deaf concerning music, or with the blind on the
beauties of painting: They want all ideas relative to the subject,
and therefore can never be made to comprehend it: to enable them to do this, their minds
must be formed for these conceptions by contemplation, retirement, and abstraction from
business and dissipation, by ill-health, disappointments, and distresses; and
possibly by divine
interposition, or by enthusiasm, which is usually mistaken for it. Without some of
these preparatory aids, together with a competent degree of learning and application, it is
impossible that they can think or know, understand or believe, any thing about it. If they profess to believe, they deceive others; if they fancy that they believe, they deceive
themselves.
I am ready to acknowledge, that these gentlemen, as far
as their information reaches, are perfectly in the right; and if they are endued
with good understandings, which have been intirely devoted to the business or amusements
of the world, they can pass no other judgment, and must revolt from the history
and doctrines of this religion. “The preaching Christ crucified was to the Jews
a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks foolishness1 Cor. i. 26.
; and so it
must appear
to all, who, like them, judge from established prejudices, false learning, and
superficial
knowledge; for those who are
quite unable to follow the chain of its prophecy, to see the
beauty and justness of its moral precepts, and to enter into the wonders of its
dispensations, can form no other idea of this revelation, but that of a confused
rhapsody of fictions and absurdities.
If it is asked, Was Christianity then intended only for
learned divines and profound philosophers? I answer, No: it was at first
preached by the illiterate, and received by the ignorant; and to such are the
practical, which are the most necessary parts of it sufficiently
intelligible: but the proofs of its authority undoubtedly are not, because these
must be chiefly drawn
from other parts, of a speculative nature, opening to our inquiries inexhaustible
discoveries concerning the nature, attributes, and dispensations of God, which cannot be
understood without some learning and much attention. From
these the generality of mankind must necessarily be excluded, and must therefore milt to others for the grounds of their belief, if they believe at all. And hence perhaps it is, that faith, or easiness of belief, is
so frequently and so strongly recommended in the gospel; because if men require proofs, of which they
themselves are incapable, and
those who have no knowledge on this important subject
will not place some confidence in those who have; the illiterate and unattentive
must ever continue in a state of unbelief: but then all
such should remember, that in all sciences, even in mathematics themselves, there are many
propositions, which on a cursory view appear to the most acute understandings uninstructed in that
science, to be impossible to be true, which yet on a clover examination are found to be truths capable of the
strictest demonstration; and that therefore in disquisitions on which we cannot determine without much learned investigation,
reason uninformed is by no means to be depended on;
and from hence they ought surely to conclude, that it may be at
least as possible for them to be mistaken in disbelieving this revelation, who know nothing of the matter, as for
those great masters of reason and erudition Grotius, Bacon, Newton, Boyle, Locke, Addison, and Lyttelton, to be deceived in their belief: a belief, to which they firmly adhered after the
most diligent and learned researches into the authenticity of its records, the completion of the prophecies, the
sublimity of its doctrines, the purity of in precepts, and the arguments of its
adversaries; a belief, which they have testified to the world by their writings, without
any other motive, than their regard for truth and the benefit of mankind. Should the few foregoing pages add but one mite to the treasures with which
these learned writers have enriched the world; if they should be so fortunate as to
persuade any of these minute philosophers to place some confidence in these great opinions, and to
distrust their own; if they
should be able to convince them, that notwithstanding all unfavourable appearances,
Christianity may not be altogether artifice and error; if they should prevail on them to examine it with
some attention, or, if that is too much trouble, not to reject it without any examination
at all; the purpose of this little work will be
sufficiently answered. Had the arguments herein used, and the new hints here flung out, been
more largely discussed, it might easily have been extended to a more considerable
bulk; but then the busy would not have had leisure, nor the idle inclination to
have read it. Should it ever have the honour to be admitted into such good company,
they will immediately, I know, determine, that it must be the work of some enthusiast
or methodist, some beggar or some madman. I shall therefore beg leave to assure them, that the author is very far removed from all
these characters: that
he once perhaps believed as little as themselves; but having
some leisure and more curiosity, he employed them both in resolving a question which
seemed to him of some importance,— Whether Christianity was really an imposture founded
on an absurd, incredible, and obsolete fable, as many suppose it? Or whether it
is, what it pretends to be, a revelation communicated to mankind by the
interposition
of supernatural power? On a candid enquiry, he soon found, that the first was an
absolute impossibility, and that its pretensions to the latter were founded on the
most solid grounds: In the further pursuit of his examination,
he perceived, at every step, new lights arising, and
some of the brightest from parts of it the most obscure, but productive of the clearest
proofs, because equally beyond the power of human artifice to invent, and human
reason to discover. These arguments, which have convinced him of the divine origin
of this religion, he has here put together in as clear and concise a manner as he
was able, thinking they might have the same effect upon others, and being of opinion,
that if there were a few more true Christians in the world, it would be beneficial
to themselves, and by no means detrimental to the public.
F I N I S.