As to the eucharift, he affirms it to be a real and proper facrifice; and calls facrifice in general, the most perfect, efficacious, and

honourable fervice that we can pay to God; "and the particular facrifice of the eucharist, "the most excellent worship which God "ever prefcribed to man; which by its pur

gative and expiatory nature procures a ge"neral remiffion of fin for the whole church, "and atones likewife for the wilful tranf"greffions of particular finners." In order to give a true and full notion, as this author calls it, of the eucharift, he employs, as Dr. Middleton informs us, an hundred and fifty pages, or about eighty entire chapters of his. catechifm. Befides recommending the keeping of feafts and fafts; the latter," to punith "ourselves for our fins, by fuffering hunger "and thirst, depriving ourselves of our plea“fures, and even of a part of our neceffary "nourishment;" besides recommending these and many other fuch-like duties, he prescribes praying morning and night, and alfo every third hour of the day; and to fome to extend their devotions to every third hour of the night. But to chriftians much engaged in bufinefs, he propofes they fhould make the fign of the crofs, and ufe this form of words" In the name of the Father, and of

the Son, and of the Holy Ghoft, Amen;

as the strongest and most fignificant of "all prayers; because we confess by it the

mystery of the Trinity, and by the motion "of our hands exprefs the figure of the cross, "or the mystery of our redemption, with "that alfo of the incarnation, on which it depends."

He likewise advises "to pray ftanding on "all Sundays, and on every day, between Eafter and Whitfunday, out of respect and "remembrance of our Lord's refurrection." And adds," The pofture of kneeling is adapted only to occafions of humiliation "and penitential devotion; but that of stand-

ing is a beautiful fymbolic reprefentation of "our Lord's refurrection, proper to raise our thoughts from the earth, and to unite them

more closely with God and the things "above: and no ceremony of the church can "be more efficacious for the purpose of ele"vating the mind, and inflaming the affec"tions, and stirring up the faculties of the " foul "."

SUCH are fome mens fentiments, and thus do they differ concerning the fins for which, according to their apprehenfions, everlasting punishments are to be inflicted, and the

• Dr. Middleton's works, 4to ed. Vol. I. p. 195, 196, 199, 200, 203.

the means whereby eternal mifery may be avoided, and eternal happiness obtained.

By the different opinions entertained on thefe fubjects, and the manifeft abfurdity of many of them, it is apparent they were not revealed by the wisdom of God, but imagined by the folly, or contrived by the knavery of

men.

So far indeed are all men from knowing clearly, distinctly, and particularly, for what faults, failures, or fins they are liable to be eternally punished, that they have not so much as a knowledge in general that they shall, on any account, be subjected thus to fuffer: nay, I fee not how any one person, if immediate divine revelation is ceafed, can have this knowledge. Obferve, it is not opinion, or fancy, or fear, or what is commonly called belief, in which men are often mistaken, founded perhaps on fome of these, or on what they are told by thofe who know no more than themselves, that is here spoken of, but CERTAIN KNOWLEDGE: fuch knowledge at leaft, as every perfon, under a well-regulated government, muft or may have, that delinquents are to be punished.

UNDOUBTEDLY it will be faid, the fcriptures inform us, that finners and unbelievers are thus to fuffer. Whether they do or not, is a point much difputed. But at prefent 3

fuppofing

fuppofing they do give fuch information, this can be only to perfons who are acquainted with them, and believe their report. Pray, what evidence that finners and unbelievers are in this manner to be punished, have those who know nothing of the fcriptures, or give no credit to them? And are not men, tho entirely ignorant of thefe writings, or who have no faith in them, as liable to be fo punished as those who have this knowledge and this faith? Surely no one will fay they are not for were that the cafe, then a knowledge of, and faith in the fcriptures, would be one of the greatest misfortunes that could poffibly befal those who are acquainted with and believe in them.

WE may here be told, that people to whom the fcriptures were unknown, have believed future and everlasting punishments.

Or fome this may be true; of multitudes it is not true. But how came any, unacquainted with the bible, by this belief? Not from innate knowledge; for then it would have been an abfolute certainty, and common to all men. Reafon did not teach it them : REASON could never teach, that men fhould fuffer infinite punishments for faults committed in a finite ftate. They were not taught it by outward divine revelation; for there hath been none but our fcriptures:

nor

nor by inward divine revelation; for, we fay, they were not favoured with it. Indeed, had this faith been fo made known to them, they, who were ignorant of the bible, would have had a much more certain knowledge of future punishments than any book could convey: whereas, in reality, thofe people's opinions on this fubject were fo vague, and fuch idle dreams, that they deferve not the name of belief, much lefs of knowledge.

SINCE then thofe who knew nothing of the fcriptures, or placed no faith in them, had not an innate knowledge of future or eternal punishments, nor were taught this belief by reafon or revelation, it might proceed from mere fancy or whimfy; or, which is much more likely,it was inculcated to the common people by their leaders or governors, who taking advantage of the fear and credulity fo prevalent among mankind, invented and propagated this opinion for par ticular purposes, although they, the teachers or governors themfelves, believed nothing. of it.

But if any perfons fhould pretend, that the belief of future and everlasting punishments was conveyed by tradition to people who had it not from the fcriptures; it will then be afked, how thofe from whom the tradition was originally derived came by this knowledge?