be supposed to run through a hundred dunghills, and come out pure and limpid from the last. But when they happen, as in respect to image-worship, and many other points, flatly to contradict the express appointment of God, there is then no longer room for suspicion; we are sure they could not have flowed from the Spirit of God; and we say to their vouchers, as Christ did to the Pharisees, 'Ye have made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.' We add also, you have left out the particular commandment here hinted at, in many of your manuals, published for vulgar use, and divided the tenth into two, that the ignorant may not perceive they are robbed of one. Is not this a gross and impudent cheat? What ought we to think of a church that dares to juggle thus with the commands of God,, and the souls of men?

- Let the third mark of a corrupt church be this, that she is idolatrous; that is, that she both prescribes and practices the worship of creatures. We may amuse ourselves as long as we please with idle distinctions about degrees of wor ship. The worship so severely prohibited in Scripture, and by all true religion, is prayer to, and dependance on, an absent creature. Either this is idolatry, or there can be no such thing. When either on common occasions, or in our extraordinary distresses, we kneel down, and offer up our prayers to any being, whom we believe in heaven, we attri bute to that being the omnipresence or omniscience of God; we love and trust in that being, as more ready and able to help us than any other, or why should we thus address ourselves to him? It is ridiculous to plead humility, when we thus apply to an absent creature, not only because he may happen not to hear us, but because we know God is infinitely condescending to the addresses of his creatures; or why do we ever presume to pray immediately to him? Because we know he hath commanded us to pray directly to himself; and also because we know, that, so far as we stand in need of a mediator, we have one at the right hand of God, who hath already shewn us infinitely greater marks of his condescension and readiness to help us, than that of attending to our prayers.

Having shewn that praying to absent creatures is idolatry, we ought also to observe, that idolatry is a damnable

sin, and represented to us as such, both by reason and Scripture. Does not reason and common sense tell us, that, since there is but one God, he alone ought to be worshipped, and prayed to? The love and dependance of an intelligent creature are not to be alienated from its Maker, without an infinite offence to the former, and an equal loss to the latter. But when creatures become, in any degree, the objects of our worship, in the same degree are our hearts estranged and turned aside from God; and turned aside to what? Why, to beings as little able to help themselves as we are; to beings, whose happiness, whose very subsistence, results from perpetual acts of worship paid to God, on their own account. Does not the infinitely gracious Being, in condescending to make, to teach, to redeem, to comfort us, call up our affections and dependance to himself, and sufficiently encourage our continual addresses? Nay, does he not evidently appear, by all his dealings with us, earnestly to court our love, in a manner infinitely more tender, and more engaging, than that of our fellow-creatures, who cannot be happy without it? And does he not, in his word, represent himself as a husband jealous of our affections on this very subject of his worship? How often does he peremptorily forbid us to have any other object of adoration but himself; awfully inculcating his justice, his power, his majesty, that we may fear him; pathetically pleading his mercy and bounty, that we may love him; and strongly assuring us of his truth and faithfulness, that we may depend upon him? Shall we, thus solicited by the infinite Being himself, foolishly and impiously solicit any other? No, my brethren; let us, from our very souls, detest the most distant thought of so enormous a practice; and look, with a mixture of horror and pity, on that church which prescribes it, as abandoned to a most unhappy infatuation. Fly far from her, you whom God, in mercy to your souls, hath already taught to see her danger. And you, who have been unhappily educated in her communion, hear his voice, who cries from heaven, saying, 'Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues; for her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.'

Let the fourth mark of a corrupt church be this, that she

still pretends to the power of working miracles, in confirmation of such doctrines and practices as those I have mentioned, although every rational creature sees she is wholly destitute of that power, and, instead of miracles, only palms on the undiscerning a miserable legerdemain of pranks, so impudent in the performance, and so impious in the application, that she is in the right to extinguish the sense and reason of her votaries, before she attempts to feed their credulity with such a juggle. God was pleased to make use of miracles, truly such, as the best, or, I should rather say, as the only satisfactory proofs of divine revelation. But as real miracles give the highest attestation to the mission of the worker, so, of all things, a pretended miracle detected, is the most apt to throw the imputation of falsity on the cause that employs it; first, Because it amounts, in fact, to a confession, that the want of other proofs makes this necessary; and, secondly, Because there is no believing men, who presume to deal between God and the world, by a method so impiously disingenuous. He that offers any other kind of proof may think it valid, and therefore, it is not demonstration that he intends to deceive; but, in this kind, every man must know, before he begins, whether he is going to work a real miracle, or to belie the source of all wisdom and power, by a detestable piece of villany, than which, if he should chance to be found out, no one thing in the world can more effectually bring suspicion on real miracles, or so deeply wound the true religion. It follows, therefore, that the worker of a pretended miracle must be considered as a man of no religion, as a most atheistical deceiver. It is true, indeed, that a very wrong-headed man, through an unaccountable species of zeal, or a wrong-hearted one, for some by-ends of his own, may attempt to impose on the superstitious by such a practice, even in favour of the truth. But we are not here speaking of madmen; neither is it our intention to represent any church or cause, as responsible for the unauthorized conduct of fools and knaves. But we insist, that every church, setting herself forth as empowered to work miracles, when she knows she is not, is a fallacious church, and must be held responsible for all the juggling pranks of her party. Now, the heads of a church cannot possibly be ignorant, whether they are intrusted with the

miraculous powers or not; and therefore, if, knowing their own inability herein, they actually set up for these powers, they are infinitely worse than a gang of banditti; because they attempt to spoil us of somewhat, in comparison of which our worldly possessions are nothing, and that not without a design on our purses, as well as our minds; they rob on the road to heaven, and commit the vilest sort of crime in the name of God. A sanctified impostor, a holy villain, are, of all others, the most detestable appellations; and he that deserves them may dispute precedency with the grand deceiver.

But can it be possible that this most enormous crime is chargeable on any church presuming to call itself by the name of Christ? Yes; the church of Rome universally lays claim to the power of working miracles; and cardinal Bellarmine makes it the eleventh note, whereby that church may be proved to be the true church. But the frequent detection of her miracles, in almost every country of Europe, hath thoroughly exposed her claim to the ridicule even of the more rational Papists, if such men may be called ra tional, who can continue to communicate with a church so palpably convinced of this impious fraud. If these miracles are real, why are they wrought only in popish countries, and before a mob of bigots, who do not need such food for their credulity? Why not here among us heretics, who cannot be converted to popery, without more and greater miracles, than were exhibited in proof of Christianity? But, I suppose, our adherence to sense and reason hath rendered us unworthy of this glorious dispensation. Well, if it is so, we even put up with it; and, having the use of our senses, must be contented without the Virgin's milk, and of our reason, without the blood of Januarius. Besides, we have the less reason to regret the want of these modern miracles, since we took the liberty to read the Scriptures; for there we find our blessed Saviour, and his apostles, made these very miracles the signs of heresy and imposture. False Christs,' says our Saviour, and false prophets, shall arise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.' Then,' that is, in the latter times, saith St. Paul, shall that wicked one be revealed-even he whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power

and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceiveableness of unrighteousness, in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.' And who prompts these false teachers to recommend their pernicious doctrines with pretended miracles? St. John tells us, he saw these prompters; namely, 'three unclean spirits, like frogs, coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet; for they are the spirits of devils, working miracles.' Thus we see what epithet is due to that church, which, pretending to miracles, hath been publicly convicted of imposture, in numberless instances.

Let the fifth mark of a corrupt church be this, that, either by her principles or ordinances, she encourages her members to sin. It is the grand end of true religion, to reform the lives of men, in order to their happiness, both temporal and eternal. The religion that, inculcates such principles and motives, as strongly tend to this blessed effect, gives the highest proof of its truth that can be possibly proposed within the verge of nature. On the other hand, that church or religion, which gives men hopes of compounding with God for happiness, on any other conditions than those of real piety and goodness, gives as clear proofs of her own falsity, as can be drawn from the nature of things, in any branch of knowledge. Was it not the main end of our religion, to call us to repentance, and newness of life?' Can he enter into the kingdom of God, who is not reduced to true Christian simplicity, and the harmless disposition of a child? Our religion was not given us to licence sin, but, so far as human infirmity will permit, wholly to remove it. And so far as sinless perfection is impossible, to provide an atonement for the effects of those weaknesses we cannot entirely get the better of; and this only on the terms of sincere repentance, and the utmost endeavours to amend. Christ our Saviour 'gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. We are therefore not to walk after the flesh, but the Spirit. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders,