with his own Eyes; That the Teftimony of Sight is by its Nature an Evidence not to be communicated. And that the Light of Conviction which is thus received can extend no farther than to the Eye-witness himself, loft and extinguished the firft Moment it is offered to be imparted; p. 52, 53. A way of talking completely ridiculous, and these Gentlemen themselves would esteem it fo, if applied to any other Subject. And the Reason he gives for it is no lefs ridiculous; that all the Afurance in the World of another's feeing can never have an equal Effect upon my Senfes, or make me fee a Thing where I was not actually prefent. But tho' no Affurance of another Man's feeing a thing can make me fee it, and who ever was so abfurd as to pretend it could have that Effect? yet it may lay a juft Foundation for my believing it, and in fome Cafes the Affurance may be fo ftrong, that I can no more reasonably doubt of it than if I had seen it my felf.

In oppofition to all this loose Harangue, it is fufficient to obferve, that if the Miracles originally wrought in Atteftation of Christianity were Proofs to those that actually faw them, then they are Proofs to us too, provided we have Evidence reasonably fufficient to convince us, that thefe extraordinary Facts were really done. So that ftill the Question returns to this, whether we have fufficient reafon to think, that the Accounts given us of those Facts are to be depended upon, and that thofe Facts were really per‹ Lett. II. formed.

H

formed. For if fo, they are as truly Evidences to us of the Truth and Divinity of that Revelation, in Atteftation of which they were wrought, as they were to those that faw them, or lived in the Age in which they were performed. If it be faid, none that live in fucceeding Ages can have the fame Evidence that thofe of the first had; I answer, they cannot have ocular Evidence, and fo it must be faid of all paft Facts, or all Facts done at a diftance from us; but yet they may have Evidence fufficient to convince any confidering Person that they were done; and an Evidence fo ftrongly cricumftanced, that no Man can reasonably deny it, without going upon the above-mentioned Principle, that he cannot fafely believe any paft Facts at all, or any thing but what he fees with his own Eyes. And the Man that is obliged to take refuge here, is driven to as great an Abfurdity as can well be fuppofed; and plainly fhews, that he has nothing reasonable to fay against the Credit of those Facts. And yet this is the Shift this Writer is plainly reduced to. And this feems to be the Principle on which his Infidelity rests; a manifeft Proof that it is not founded on Reason or Argument.

It is on this Principle that he tells us, p. 52. That" that Divine Demonftration to By"ftanders, the Voice of God himfelf, This is

my beloved Son, has been by one intervening. "Age dwindled long fince to human Tradition. God no longer bears witness to his

ci

"Son,

"Son, but Men only bear witnefs to God." This may pafs for a pretty Jingle. The Antithefis founds well enough, between Men's bearing witness, and God's bearing witness; but the Reasoning is poor, and the Sentiment falfe. For if the wonderful Glory of Christ at his Transfiguration, and the Voice that then came to him was to be regarded as the Testimony of God to his Son in that Age, it is to be regarded as such ftill, provided we have fufficient Evidence of the Reality of the Fact; and tho' we ourselves did not fee the Glory, nor hear the Voice, yet if we have good reason to believe that the Account of those, who themselves faw and heard it, is to be depended on, it ought in all reason to have an Influence upon us as really as if we had been prefent ourselves. For the manner in which we come to know a thing does not alter the cafe; it is fufficient, if we know it in fuch a way as to have a reasonable Conviction that it is true. And it is certain that in many cafes we can no more reasonably doubt of things which we have by Information from others who faw and heard them, than if we faw and heard them ourselves. And particularly it may be shewn, and often has been fhewn with great Strength and Clearness, that there never was a Teftimony more to be depended on than that of the Apoftles, and firft Witneffes of Chriftianity.

I need not take much notice of what he urges, p. 52. and which he backs with the Authority of the Romish Church, that if Miracles H 2

were

were neceffary at firft in the Infancy of the Go Spel, they are fo ftill, and ought to be continued in the Church. For fuppofing the Authority of a divine Revelation fufficiently confirmed by a Series of the most extraordinary divine Atteftations at its first Establishment, it would be an idle thing to expect that there fhould be new Atteftations and Miracles in every Age. It is fufficient, that the Accounts of those first original Atteftations are tranfmitted to us in a manner that may be fafely depended upon. To demand new Signs and Wonders to be continually done before our Eyes, would be perfectly unreafonable. As juftly might it be demanded, that all the extraordinary Facts that were done in the firft Age, in Atteftation of the Gospel, should be done over again in every Age. And as one Man, in one Age, and in one Country, hath as much right to expect and demand it as another, all these things must be repeated in the View, and for the Satisfaction of every fingle Perfon in every Age, and in every Country. And what a ftrange Scene of things this would introduce, how unfit and unbecoming the divine Wisdom, very evident! At that rate, nothing were to be feen but Signs and Wonders; and, by being fo common, they would cease to be extraordinary, and this very thing would hinder the Effect.

is

Our Author having endeavoured to fhew, that our Saviour never appealed to the Understandings of Men, or laid before them any Evi

dence

dence to convince them of his Divine Miffion; that his Miracles were no Proofs of this at all, nor were ever intended by him as fuch; and that the Accounts of them that are transmitted to us are not to be depended upon; that is, having endeavoured to remove every thing that could be fuppofed to lay a rational Foundation for believing, proceeds, p. 56, &c. to fhew what it is that is defigned in the Gospel as the true Principle of our Faith; and this he refolves entirely into the immediate Revelation of the Holy Ghost imparted feparately and fupernaturally to every Individual, as he expreffes it, p. 112. which irradiates the Souls of Believers at once, with an irrefiftible Light from Heaven, that flashes Conviction in a Moment; and thus our Faith is compleated in an inftant, and the most perfect and finished Creed produced at once, without any tedious Progress in Deductions of our own; p. 59. This he reprefents as of fuch a nature, as to render all outward Inftructions entirely needlefs; fo that we must not be left to take any the leaft Part of our Inftructions from one another. Nor need we have recourfe to the holy Scriptures, which he calls Manuscript Authorities and Paper Revelations, or concern our felves at all about the Credit of ancient Miracles, or other Facts there recorded *. The Spirit alone is to do all without our own Reafon, or

the

* See the feveral Paffages relating to this laid together in my former Letter, p. 11, &c. which therefore I need not particu larly repeat here.