I should (which I cannot otherwife | being an exprefs Duty to be Bap- 4. Your inordinate defire of the good Opinion of others, procecds partly from Pride, partly from Folly From the frit, becau e it feems you fo much Value your felf, that except you meet with your due Praife, you fcorn to oblige the World by acting rea-the other Duties commanded. fon bly; and from the fecond, be- Q. Whether an Infant, that is cauie a wife Man etleems things Baptifed in every thing according as they really are, and is not to to the Baptifm of the Church of be byatfed by fo empty a thing as England, only by a pretended DiPopular Applaufe: "But fince 'tis vine, fuch as has not been Ordained as it is, you must e'en like the at all, ought not upon this DiscoPhyfician make Phyfick of Poy-very to be Re-baptized? fon, and till you know how to make a better Judgment of things, let your Weaknets be as ufeful as poflible; for 'twill be much more profitable and lawtul for you to Go your Bufinefs, tho' under thefe Inconveniencies, than whelly to Neglect it, by endeavouring to remedy the former, fince that would be avoiding a lefs, to fall into a greater Evil. Q. A Neighbour of mine who is under my Care, has frequently received the Communion from me, I not doubting, but the faid Perfon was Initiated firft into Chrift's Church by Baptifm; but finding now, that the fame Perfon being born of fuck Parents as are commonly called Quakers, I perceive be never was Baptized, wherefore I deJive to know whether the Perfon ought not now (notwithstanding his having partaken of the Communon) to be Baptized? A. Yes undoubtedly, for tho' Baptifm ought to have preceded, n is no Reaton that it inould be wholly neglected, because it has for luch a time been fo: And it A. No: For tho' fuch things ought not to be, yet when they are done, they are valid. Q. If there be one Infinite Cre:tor of all things, and he perfectly good, for what Reafon did be fil the World with Monsters, Poifons, Vipers, and Beafts of Prey, which certainly Conduce not to the Happinefs, but Destruction of Mankind, and feem not at all confiftent with fo much Goodness? A. It was this Objection, as well as the Difficulty of Sins coming into the World, which threw a parcel of Foolish Hereticks of old upon the Whimsey of two Principles, one the Maker of all that's Good, and t'other of what's Deftructive and bad; or as the barbarous Indians to this Day, one the Good God, and t'other the Evil. But an indifferent Portion of common Senfe, without much Philofophy, will fatisfie a Man, that nothing can be a greater Contradiction than two Firsts, two Supreams, for fo they are fuppos'd, which must be either of Unequal Power, though that's Non Non-fenfe, both Supream, and and Violence upon it. Hence then one would deftroy the other; then 'tis that we must deduce ail or elfe of Equal, and then we the Confufion or Milery we fee, fhould not only have two actual or feel, or hear of, from our Infinites, but being Contraries, felves, not from God, all of they would both be eternally which are the Effs and I unithftruggling, and one would imme- ment of Sin. Twill go a great diately destroy thofe Worlds the way toward the Proof of this, if other had made, which he might we confider, that 'tis for the most eafily do, being of Equal Strength part a Secret implanted Averliand Power. This Moniter then on, and Enmity between Man, being Confounded, we must try if and thole Noxious Creatures that we can affign any other Caufe of makes them to Mitchievous and all the Milchiefs which we are Inconvenient to us, when they fure we feel, though we neither are not fo in their own Natures, know (without Revelation) how but might rather ferve to the Ufe,' we came by them, nor how to at leait the Ornament, of the get rid of them. And here, The Creation. Lyons and Tygers, if Creation of all things by one Su-tam'd as fome have been, may be, pream Good Being, having been granted, which can't be deny'd with any Appearance of Reaton, 'twill be very plain by the fame reason that the World came not in this manner out of God's Hand, distorted and deformed as we now behold it; for though there are many things in it, which yet retain the vifible Mark of a Divine Architect, yet there are others far Unworthy of him, and altogether unlike him, who makes nothing but what's Good, however we come to be plagu'd with fo much Evil. Thus far Reafon goes; and here how highly are we oblig'd to that Gracious Being, who has given Revelation to help us, and to ftrengthen our Sight when we could fee no further, but were loft in the dark Abyss of his Providence? And 'tis this tells us, not only that Man is fallen, but alfo how he fell, and dragg'd with him the whole Creation, which groans and travels as well as he ; for 'tis Unnatural for any pofitive Being to be Evil, and is a plain Force if not Serviceable, however Delightful. Wild Beasts have Fury, at worst that will Comfort us as much as before their Owners fear'd`us. -Not to add, that many of them will not fet on a Man unlefs in their own Defence. Nay, even Serpents, fome of them especially, are even in their prefent Eitate (pe haps as much alter'd as that of Man) very Beautiful and Lovely, and lome of them perfectly Harmlefs; and if we believe one great part of the Foreign Virtuofo, their whole Venome lies in their enraged Spirits, fince when in a good Humour there's not half lo much Milchief in their Bite, as in the Prick of a Pin or Needle: And the rankest Poisons have no effect on fome Bodies, nor wou'd on any Man's, were it not for fome accidemal Caufes, which may be even by Art provided againit; and even Scorpions and Vipers,and Mad Dogs, carry in their own Bodies Sovereign Antidotes, againit thofe Mifchiefs they caule. An Argument of Divine Wildom M m 3 and and Mercy, as well as Juftice. mean in fuch Love as is in it felf And thele Noxious Qualities may lawful, towards one particular Perbe fuipended whenever the Su-Jon? pream Being pleases, who makes ufe fometimes of fuch a Sufpenfion, or rather perhaps fortifying of the Body against their Effects, for great and wife Ends, well worthy his Interpofing, namely, to Evidence great and momentous A. Love and Poetry, as they are extreamly near a Kin, and very good Friends in other Refpecs, fo are they in this, that they hate Bonds and Shackles. Cupid as well as Apollo, is a fort of a Pindarical Gentleman; He's, you must know, Truths to Mankind; as for Ex-a God too, fuch a one as 'tis, and ample, that of our Saviour's Mif- looks as Big with his Bow and fion and Doctrine, in Confirmati- Arrows, fhall I fay as a Finsbury on whereof his Difciples had Archer? Or the fine Green OldPower over Afps and Serpents, Man that rides about like a Hej and if they drank any deadly Diana; nay, as his Uncle Jupiter thing they could not hurt them. himself with all his Thunder, tho' After all, why do we Complain Vulcan had just Hammer'd them a of those lefs and rarer Evils, when new Set of Bolts out of the Forge, at the fame time we every Day and Filed them as bright as his bring a thousand times worfe up- Mother Juno's Forehead. But on our felves, tho' free and volun- hold, if we run on any further at tary Agents.-Nay, and are very this Rate, the World will think fond of them too, and will by no We too are Still in Love, by our means part with them. We fee own Defcription; and therefore to Men are Wolves, Tygers, Serpents fay no more of these Heathen to themlelves as well as one ano- Gods, and Loves, there's no doubt ther, and one great French Bafilisk but the Love of a Wife and Goodhas its very probable, already de- man, ought (how difficult foever stroy'd more Men than all the Vi-twill be) to be confin'd within pers, Serpents or Tygers fince the Creation; and yet he, as the Old Serpent, has many hundreds of thousands, that will still fall down and Worship him. Qe have fometime fince given the World an Account of the Nature of Vertuous Love, in which I'm oblig'd to acquiefce, being not only taught by the Athenians, but by that Excellent School-Mafter, Experience it felf. All the Trouble which I fhall therefore at prefent give you, is to inform me what Bounds Religion and Reafon prefcribe to Love; and whether it be not poffible, let Women be never fo excellent, to fin in overloving 'em, I the Bounds of Religion and Rea- . any of those Objects which ought to be preferr'd before her, that Love is diforderly,and a Tranfgreffion both of the Laws of Religion and Reafon -Tho'we'd be glad to fee one who Loves in earnest, that yet has nothing to answer for on that account. Q. I have for a confiderable Time loved a very young Woman with all the Zeal and Fervency which that paffion is capable of. I have often the Happiness, if I may fo call it, to fee the Beloved Object; but the fight of what my mind foretells me I fhall never poffefs, does but the more increase the Love of my misfortune; for I forefee an Improbability of ever declaring my paffion to her; and if ever I bou'd be blefs'd with an opportunity of doing it, there's almost an utter Impofibility of obtaining what I defire above all things. She is fo charming, I'm confident I must have many Rivals, too mighty for me to ftand in Competition with, and my Mind is wholly taken up with the Thoughts of that difmal Day which must make me for ever Unhappy by another's poffefling her. Thefe Confiderations do urge me to Despair, almost unbecoming a Chriftian, in which I efteem Death my only Happiness, and I can hardly forbear imploring God to grant me that Blefing, when I forefee fo many Miferies unavoidably impending on my future Life. This being my Condition, I earnestly defire you Speedily to inform me whether you efteem it a Sin to implore God to end thefe Miferies and my Life together, provided I Conclude with an Entire Submiffion to the Divine Will? A, In Answer, as we really commiferate your Condition, foe'd do all that's in our Power to relieve it, and that by fomething folid, not Flattery, or falfe hopes In order to which, we'll first give you a plain Reply to your Queftion, and then fome fuch advice. We fay then, That in our Fudgments it is a Sin to pray for an End of your Miseries by that of your Life, even fuppofing, at the fame Time, a Refignation to the Divine Will. And our Reason for't is, that fuch a Wih muft certainly proceed from an Immoderate Paffion, which we have before prov'd a Sin. Our advice is, that you rather pray to God to pardon that Sin, and do what you can your felf against it. We know you'll fay, and think, 'tis impoflible for you to conquer it; and fo far we confefs you may be in the right, that it mayn't be in your Power totally to Root it out, if your firft Love. But thus much we can affure you, from the Experience of fuch as think they have known as much of Love as others, that 'tis in your Power to do much more towards it than you are, actually, ever like to do; and confequently, that your not doing it is your own fault, your Choice, and a voluntary Aion, proceeding either from a long Bent, and Habit that was difficult enough, 'tis true, though not impoffible to be furmounted; the Stream of your Thoughts having fo long hurried you one way, that 'twill require the strongest Refolu tions and efforts to row againit them. Whereas on the contrary, an Unhappy Lover, either fo ifhly refolves to Love on and be mferable, ftriking along with the Mmi Stream Stream, as if he wou'd not be carry'd fast enough without it, or elle out of a lazy Lefpair, throws himfelf into the Current, and is born away with it. This is certain, that Defpair of Poffeffion, other Objects, Abfence, Time, or even manly and Rational Endeavours (though they must be in earnest) elpecially if aflifted by Piety, have conquer'd as troublefome Pafions as yours; and therefore you may, if it ben't your own Fault, ufe the fame Methods, and obtain the fame Benefits by them. Practices not directly Criminal, and yet not Lawful, we know not what to make on't, for if unlawful, certainly they are Criminal ; unlets by directly Criminal, you mean highly Criminal, which are fufficiently different one from another. To the first Question, Temporal Judgments, we confefs are tender Points, and nothing more frequent and eafie than to over foot in difcourfing of them. However thus much is certain, that the Prothanation of the Sacrament, (join'd with that of the Holy Place, wherein 'twas receiv'd) 2. Thave been for fome time, guilty of fome Actions, which tho' I can't fay are directly Crimi-was feverely punish'd by Temporal nal, I'm yet fatisfy'd they are neither Commendable, nor Lawful, and further, that they may very probably lead to worfe. Thofe I've often, for that Keaton, refolved againft, and Seal'd thofe Refolutions with the Holy Sacrament, Lut have been as often fo Unhappy as to break 'em again when the occafion offer'd. This being my Cale, I defire you'd anfwer me thele following Quetions relating unto it. 1. Whether I am not to expect fome Temporal Judgment for the repeated Violation of thofe Vows, which I've made at the Sacrament in fo folemn a Manner? 2. Whether confidering how highly I offend God by the breach of them, I were not better forbear receiving the Sacrament any more, till I find my felf better able to perform thofe Vows I there make, than fill to make new Vows, and till break them? 3. What Method you'd Advife, in Order to perform what I've fo of ten vainly promis❜d? 4. Fint to your Suppofition of Calamities in the Apoftolical Ages; for this Cause fome were ck and Weak, and fallen asleep, as the Apoftle himself tells us. Now all thofe things were written for out Example (as well as those that went before) and if we are guilty of the fame or the like Sins, we may rationally expect the fame or the like Punishment. Tho' this is more fure, that every Sin, much more fuch Notorious and Repeated Breaches of fuch Solemn Vows, deferve Divine Vengon, not only Temporal, but Eternal, and fince they deferve it, will be punished with it, without Repentance. 2. To the Second, Whether you were not better forbear the Sacrament, than approach it again, and make new Vows, before you have better perform'd the old. We Anfwer, we think that you ought not to stay away, any more than a Sick Perfon to defift taking a most excellent Remedy' becaule he does not find it ope rate at the first taking, or the difeafe returns again, after he hat d it. Since the Sacrament is пот |