ligion, there being no Religion where there is no Conscience, and confequently no real Church, He who prays without Book, does not break the Peace of the Church, provided he forces nobody to pray as he prays: But he who would compel others to pray by his Pattern, against their own Liking, does not only break the Peace of the Church, but deftroys, as far as he can, its very Effence; because a Church is conftituted by the voluntary Devotion performed by two or three met together in Chrift's Name. If it be not voluntary, it is no Devotion; God will be worshipped in Spirit and in Truth: And if it be voluntary, no Man can controul it. HITHERTO, for the most part, the Peace of the Church has been unnaturally made to fignify a blind Submiffion to the Dictates of Priests in Matters of Devotion; and a blind Acceptance of all their Schemes, Dreams and Forgeries in Matters of Faith. Now here is no Church at all, but, on one hand, the Invention and Impofition of deceitful and tyrannical Men, defacing and mifreprefenting Religion, and wrefting it to serve their own wicked Purposes; and, on the other hand, a Tribe of Fools and Slaves, facrificing their Senfes, their Freedom, and their Confciences, to Antichrift, and wor fhipping shipping him, and not God. If one of thefegroveling Bigots resume his Eyes, and break his Fetters, he forfooth is a Schifmatick, he breaks the Peace of the Church. WHY will these Men, fo famed for being. clofe and crafty, be fo plainly fhewing us, that by the Church they mean only Themfelves: and by the Worship of God they mean only the Worship of their own Perfons and Authority? But they make this manifeft, as by a Thousand Inftances, fo particularly by this; namely, that the greatest Rebel to God fhall find good Quarter, provided he be but a good Subject to them; and the most confcientious Servant of the Living God fhall find no Mercy, if he difpute to bend to their Ufurpations, and to fwallow their Inventions for Divine Oracles It is no matter whether you live like a Christian › or no, provided you do not break the Peace of the Church, but if you do, your being a Saint will not atone for it, nor ftand you in the leaft Stead. IF I do all I can to please God, I fhall certainly please him. Now if the Clergy had the fame View and Defign, my pleafing God would also please them. In confequence of this, if I thought my Abode and Communion with them a Sin, it is their Duty to encourage and exhort: me me to leave them, and to obey God rather than Men. But far from this, the Plea of pleafing God is often no way of pleafing them; and they feldom fail to damn a. Man for those very Actions, by which, through Chrift, he shall be faved; namely, deserting Authority for Confcience, and finding out the Truth for himself. A STUPID Servitude to unbounded Domi nion, fupports the Peace of the Church in fome Countries, juft as Ignorance, Poverty, and many Dragoons, do the Peace. of the State in. others. THE breaking of the Peace of the Church, as the fame is generally understood by the ignorant People, and always by the ambitious Clergy, is both a rational and a religious Duty, and the. best Action which a Man can perform. That Man must be as void of Reason as of Religion, who quarrels with me for having different Faculties from him, and a different Way of conceiving Things. He might with as much Propriety quarrel with me for having a different Complexion, and a different Palate, neither of which is in my own Power. IF I chriften my Child without the Sign of the Cross, or a buman Form of Words; how do I, by this, break the Peace of the Church, or of good good Neighbourhood? But he, who oppreffes or calumniates me for thus doing my Duty, by difcharging my Confcience, commits an Outrage: toth upon Humanity and Confcience; and not only breaks the Peace of the Church, and of Society, but by his Want of Charity declares his Want of Chriftianity. IF I follow the best Light which I can get; I do my Duty; and if I do my Duty, I please God. And who fhall dare to tell me, that though I please God, yet I break the Peace of the Church? Would not this be to own, that the Will of God, and the Will of the Church; are oppofite Things? I do not believe, that there are upon Earth Two Men who think exactly alike upon every Subject; and yet our different Taftes in Meat, Drink, Building, and Drefs, make not the leaft Difference in human Society; nor is it likely, that they ever will, unless we establish by Law, and tack Preferments to one particular Mode of Eating, Drinking, Building, and Dreffing; then indeed we may foon expect to fee the eftablished and orthodox Mafon, Cook and Taylor, very zealous and loud for Conformity and Penalties. But at prefent, Ten Men, in Ten different Suits, can dine together upon Ten different Dishes, and give Ten different Opinions upon One Piece of Painting or Architecture, without without breaking Friendship or good Humour. If indeed they be drunk either with Wine or Zeal, they will be apt to fight about the Church or fomething elfe: But why Men in their Senfes should clamour and quarrel at their Neighbour's particular Conscience, any more than at his particular Palate, no Reason can be affigned, but the Delufions of Prieftcraft operating upon its genuine Iffue, Bigotry. Is not Conscience dearer to a Man, than his Palate, or his Fancy in Cloaths? God can receive no Worfhip that comes not from the Confcience; and be who commands you to follow him against your Confcience, commands you in Effect to provoke God out of Complaifance to Men; and rather than do this, I hope it is lawful to break the Peace of the Church. Where the Church quadrates with a Man's Conscience, he will of course comply with the Church; but where it does not, he is in Conscience. bound to defert it; otherwise, to be a Conformift, he must be a Hypocrite. CAN these Men be Chriftians, who demand Submiffion to their Dictates, in Oppofition to the Dictates of Confcience, and at the Peril of Salvation; and who, provided you obey them, care not though you mock God? But if they will allow every Man to be fully perfuaded in his own Mind, which is the Apoftle's Rule and Precept, |