Men with their own Orthodox Sentiments. How can we distinguish Religion from Enthufiafm, Grace from Superftition, Faith from Credulity, the Love of the Church from the Love of Power, and the Authority of God from the Impofitions of Men; but by Reason, or by the Scripture, interpreted by Reason?

IN fhort, all who are Friends to TRUTH, are Friends to REASON, the Discoverer and Champion of TRUTH; and none are Foes to Reason, but those who have Truth and Reason for their Foes. He, who has dark Purposes to serve, must ufe dark Means: Light would difcover him, and Reason expofe him: He muft endeavour to shut out both; and make them look frightful, by giving them ill Names; for farther than Names the Vulgar inquire not.

FROM this Caufe, Religion and Liberty flourish, where Reafon and Knowledge are encouraged; and where-ever the latter are ftifled, the former are extinguished. In Turky, Printing is forbid, Inquiry, is dangerous, and FreeSpeaking is CAPITAL; because they are all inconfiftent with the MAHOME TANISM by Law eftablished. Hence it comes to pass, that the wretched Turks are all ftupidly ignorant, are all Slaves, all Intidels. Nor have the Papifts much Advantage to boast above the Mahometans. B 4

Their

Their Guides and Governors lock up from them the Scripture, which is the Book of Knowledge: They teach them, that Ignorance is the Mother of Devotion: They banish Liberty, they brow-beat Reason, they perfecute Truth. In confequence of all which, the deluded Votaries of the Romish Church are as ignorant as the Mahometans, as great Slaves, greater Idolaters, and greater Perfecutors; that is, in Barbarity they exceed the Turks, who in Barbarity exceed

most others.

HERE, in England, why are we free, why Proteftants; but because we are guided by Reafon, and judge for ourselves? And none amongst us complain of the Liberty of the Prefs, or the Growth of Free-Thinking, but those who would found a Dominion upon Stupidity and Perfecution. Vile and woeful is that Caufe, which must be fupported by Ignorance and Misery! And yet there are thofe in Great Britain, who, though they wear a holy and venerabie Livery, yet have the Boldness and Blafphemy to chriften that impious Caufe, the Caufe of God, and of his Church.

To conclude, Scripture, and Reason, without which Scripture can have no Effect, are the only Tefts of every Falfhood and Imposture, and every Superftition. Suppose, for Example,

a

a Reverend Doctor is touch'd with an odd Zeal for Bowing to the Eaft; he ought to convince my Reafon, that Bowing to the Eaft is injoined in Scripture, before he injoins me to bow alfo. If he fay, that it is injoined by the Authority of the Church, he then must satisfy my Reason, that the Scripture teaches the Church to teach her Members to make Bows. If he anfwer,, that neither does the Scripture teach to bow to the East, but that the Church thinks Bowing de-cent and edifying; he must then prove, by rational Evidence, that what every Church thinks de-cent is a Duty. If he reply, that this is only true of the one Orthodox Church; then he must prove, that his Church is the fole: Orthodox Church, according to the Rules of the Gofpel. And if the Doctor cannot do this to my Satiffaction, then there will be an End of his Argument for his Ecclefiaftical Bowings.

As we judge from Scripture, what is Orthodoxy; so we must judge from Reason, what is Scripture,

NUMBER XXXVI.

Wednesday, September 21. 1720.

Of the Peace of the Church.

T is a shameful Infult upon our Understandings, that of fanctifying the moft wicked Purposes, and most cruel Actions, with the most honeft and innocent Names; and yet no

thing is more frequently practifed. Thus the worthy Name of RULER fhall be prostituted and pronounced aloud, to palliate, and even to juftify, the Barbarities of a TYRANT; and that peaceable Word Obedience fhall be forced to fignify an unmanly and unnatural Patience of Servitude. LAWS, which were intended to protect and encourage good Men, and to restrain and punish ill ones, are often perverted into deadly Inftruments in the Hands of Robbers and Ufurpers, against the Virtuous and the Harm

lefs;

lefs; and the Means of Prefervation are turned into Engines of Destruction. The Lord's Anointed, a Phrafe which at firft fignified only a Man approved and chofen by God himself to be the Ruler of his People, has been fince wrefted to mean an over-grown Plunderer, who chose himself to be a Destroyer of God's People.

THESE are fome Inftances of the Abuse of Words in civil Life. In Religion, the Abuse has been, if poffible, ftill greater; of which I have given already many Proofs, and shall continue to give more in the Course of these Papers. I fhall at prefent confine myself to a Phrafe, which is indeed a very good one, but which I have never known applied to a good Purpose in my Time, nor at any Time before; I mean that of the Peace of the Church.

By the Peace of the Church, when it is taken in a rational and warrantable Senfe, I take to be meant no more than this, namely, That any Number of People, who have agreed among themselves upon Terms of religious Communion, fhall quietly enjoy the facred Privilege of meeting together to worship God; and whoever difturbs them, let his Title or Pretenfions be what they will, is a Breaker of the Peace of the Church. Or if any other Society

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