dentials of their divine miffion, as may be fufficient to convince the world that they were fent of God, and to make it reasonable for others to receive the doctrines and laws which such persons deliver in his name. And it hath been proved, with great ftrength and evidence, that this hath actually been the cafe with regard to the chriftian revelation,

There are other reflections that might be made on Lord Herbert's fyftem. But I am willing to give you and myself a little refpite, and fhall therefore reserve them to be the subject of

another letter.

LET

LETTER II.

Farther Obfervations on Lord Herbert's Scheme-The Philofophers not qualified to recover Mankind from the Darkness and Corruption into which they were fallen.-The Ufefulness of the Chriftian Revelation to that Purpose.—Its not having been univerfally promulgated in all Nations and Ages, no juft Prejudice against it—Other Objections of Lord Herbert confidered -Writers that have appeared against him.

Ν

IN

SIR,

my former letter an account was given of Lord Herbert's scheme; and it was fhewn, that, taking the state of mankind and of the Gentile world as it really was, according to his own reprefentation of the cafe, an exprefs revelation from God, confirmed by his divine authority, for clearing and enforcing those articles which his Lordship fuppofeth to be neceffary, would be of great ufe. I now add, that in fact the chriftian revelation hath been of fignal advantage to the world, for giving men a clearer knowledge and fuller certainty of those important truths than they had before. Our noble author indeed speaks with admiration of the ancient philofophers, as capable of inftructing men in a proper manner, if they would have attended to their inftructions: but then he owns, that the people had little regard to the purer doctrine of the philofophers *. And indeed I do not fee how it could be expected, that they should place any dependance upon their dictates, which were for the most part regarded only as the tenets of their feveral fchools, in which the people had little concern. They were not the minifters of religion, nor could pretend to any authority that should make them be regardcd as the guides and instructors of mankind, or cause their opinions to pass for laws. The most eminent among them were contradicted by others of great name: many of them laboured to make all things appear doubtful and uncertain; and those of them that had the nobleft notions frequently affected to conceal them, or

*

De Relig. Gentil. p. 310.

were

were afraid to divulge them. What Alcinous hath obferved concerning Plato, with respect to the inquiry concerning the chief good, might be applied to fome other matters of great importance. That which is worthy of all honour, fuch as the fu"preme Good, he conceived not eafy to be found, and, if found, "not fafe to be declared." His Lordfhip affureth us, that the philofophers were always difpleafed with the fuperftitious worship of the people. But, if this was the cafe, they seem to have been very improper perfons to reclaim them from it, fince it was an univerfal maxim among them, and particularly recommended by one of the beft of them, Epictetus, that every man ought to worship according to the laws or customs of his country: And it is well known that their eftablished worship was polytheism and idolatry. Varro, in a paffage quoted by his Lordship, divides the heathen theology into three kinds: the fabulous, which belonged to the poets; the phyfical, which was that of the philofophers; and the civil. He fpeaks with difregard of the two former, and reprefents the laft as that in which the people were concerned, and which alone could be of real use to them and this he explaineth to be that which was established by the laws, and administered by the priefts, and which fhewed what gods they were publicly to worship, what rites they were to obferve, and what facrifices it was proper for any man to offer ‡.

If a reformation of the world by the philofophers was not to be expected, for the reasons now given, his Lordship will own it was not to be hoped for from the priests, against whom he bitterly inveighs, as the authors of all fuperftition, and of the great corruption of religion in the heathen world. And as little was it to be expected from the lawgivers and great men of the ftate, who generally patronized the established fuperftition, of which they themselves had been in a great mcafure the authors or promoters, and were ready to punifh any that oppofed it. And if there were any of them who were for reforming and correcting fome abufes in the public fuperftitions, and exploding fome of the groffer fables that were received among the people, as his Lordship

* See Alcinous's Doctrine of Plato, c. 27. in Stanley's Lives of the Philofophers.

† Epic. Enchirid. c. 38.

De Relig. Gent. p. 306, 307.

VOL. I.

C

obferves

obferves Mutius Scævola the chief pontiff, and Varro, were for doing, he owns that the attempts were vain and ineffectual, be-` caufe the errors and fuperftitions were become inveterate*. This being the true ftate of the cafe, it is hard to fee what other method could be taken, that would prove fo effectual to recover mankind from their fuperftition and idolatry, as the giving an extraordinary revelation, attended with fufficient credentials, to inftruct men in the name of God, concerning the nature of true religion, to affure them of the certainty of its great principles, and to enforce the practice of its important duties by the strongest and most prevailing motives.

And accordingly, when Christianity appeared with the most illuftrious atteftations of a divine miffion and revelation from heaven, it effected what no precepts or doctrines of the philofophers had been able to do. The pagan polytheifm and fuperstition fell before it and it hath actually produced this great advantage, that the principles upon which our author layeth fo much firefs have been better known and understood, and more univerfally acknowledged, than they were before. It is inconteftable, that Chriftians are more generally agreed in thofe great principles, than ever men were in the pagan world. They are fet in a clearer light, and men come to a greater certainty about them. That they are fo far preferved among the Mahometans, was alfo originally owing to the light of the Jewifh and Chriftian revelation. And it is very probable that his Lordship himself is very much obliged to Christianity, though he doth not acknowledge it, for the full perfuafion he every where expreffeth as to thefe important articles; feveral of which were denied by fome, and doubted by others of the ancient philofophers.

Though therefore it is not to be wondered at, that thofe among the deifts who have an averfion to thefe principles, when taken in their juft extent, fhould be againft Chriflianity, yet Lord Herbert, who afferteth them to be of fuch vaft confequence, ought, one should think, to have been very thankful to God for having enforced them by an exprefs and well-attefted revelation, and given them a divine fanction. And if he were fincere in the acknowledgment he fometimes makes, that the explaining and en

Dc Relig. Gen. p. 311.

forcing

forcing thofe great principles is the ultimate defign of the holy fcripture, to which all its doctrines, and even its rites and facraments tend, he ought certainly to have entertained very favourable thoughts of Chriftianity, of its doctrines as well as precepts, and even of its rites and pofitive inftitutions.

But that which feemcth principally to have prejudiced his Lordship againft Chriflianity is, that it is what he calleth a particular religion; whereas the true religion must be univerfal, and promulgated to all mankind. He frequently urgeth, that nothing less than fuch an univerfal religion as he pleadeth for can fupport the honour of God's univerfal providence, and the care he exercifeth towards the whole human race; which no particular religion can do; and that otherwife the Gentiles must be fuppofed to be univerfally loft and damned, which it were cruel and injuricus to God to imagine. This is what hath been often urged and repeated by the deifts fince.

To this it may be justly answered, that those who maintain the Christian revelation may think as honourably as any others confiftently can, of the univerfal care and providence of God towards mankind. No where is this more clearly afferted than in the facred writings, which declare God's univerfal goodnefs and benignity towards the human race in ftrong terms; and that he hath been continually doing them good, and hath never left himself without witnefs among them. We must not indeed carry this fo far as to affert, that all men have an actual knowledge of the great principles of religion, and of their duty, becaufe we may imagine that the universal care of providence towards mankind requireth that it should be fo; which feems to be the courfe of his Lordship's reasoning; for this is contrary to evident and undeniable fact and experience. But we acknowledge that God hath given to all men the principle of reafon, together with a natural fenfe of right and wrong, which would be of great ufe to aflift them in the knowledge of religion, and to direct them in the practice of their duty, Lif duly cultivated and improved to the utmost that it is naturally capable of.) But befides this, Chriftians generally maintain, and the holy fcriptures lead us to think, that God hath from time to time made extraordinary difcoveries of his will to mankind; that fome fuch discoveries were made to the firft ancestors of the human race, who were bound by all obligations to tranfmit them to