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have wholly laid afide thofe egregious follies, abfurdities, and unfcriptural practices, because they must otherwife appear manifeftly inconfiftent with themselves. Befides, it will give Infidels too much cause to reproach them with being infincere, either in what they do, or in what they fay; and whether that will be any credit or service to themselves, or the chriftian religion, it behoves them ferioufly to confider. For, fays Mr. Mole, where shall we find in the word of God any mention of deputies, ⚫ or bondsmen, or proxies, in the matters of falvation?" Certainly none at all. No, nor yet of infants being clad with pureness and perfection in baptifm, or of their being Chriftians, and federally holy before baptifm, intitling them to baptifm. On the contrary, we are therein affured, that even the righteoufnefs of Noah, Daniel, and Job, would avail fo little for any befides themfelves, that they should deliver neither fon nor daughter, fo much as from temporal evils, and much less from those which are future; becaufe God affirms, Ezek. xiv. 12-20, they shall but deliver their own fouls by their righteousness. And how then can any Chriftians fo vainly pretend, that the faith, obedience, and holinefs of parents, fhall be imputed to their defcendants through all generations; fo as to juftify them in the neglect of the pofitive appointments of God, as much defigned, and according to the nature and reafon of their inftitution, equally as neceffary for them all, as for their parents at firft? And moreover, what fignifies all their pretended federal holiness, and faith derived from parents, conftituting them holy Chriftians, and intitling them to baptifm, or that purity and perfection, which they fuppofe to be conferred in baptifm? We have no fuch ridiculous and abfurd notions in fcripture; and, as Mr. Mole fays, if they are not there, what have we to do with them? Or how can they be faid to belong to Chriftianity? And as this Infidel's objection, defigned by him to expofe Chriftianity, is entirely founded upon thofe opinions and practices amongft Chriftians, which are no part of the chriftian religion; fo it must afford the Baptift churches no small fatisfaction to find, that they are no ways concerned in it. For, as Mr. Mole further obferves; We fhould be apt to form an advantage< ous opinion of the beauty of a perfon, when we find that thofe, who have endeavoured to decry it, have done it by keeping us from the fight of the original, and prefenting us only with falfe copies. It may be fome decree of credit to the chriftian religion to obferve the • moft

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moft wily of its enemies oppofe it, by falfly afcribing to it, what it never taught, and feigning abfurdities, which are no where to be found in it. Men never more 'fhew the weakness, or that themfelves feel the weakness of the caufe, which they efpoufe, than when they are reduced to the method of mifreprefenting what they oppofe. Our author has gathered a heap of abfurdities, as it is very eafy to do, from fome modern formula's of religious doctrines, or the modern practice of fome reli6 gious focieties, which are for the moft part full of them; and falfly charged them upon Chriftianity. But whatever he is for looking to, I own, I am for looking to the law and to the teftimony, and letting life and practice alone upon this occafion; as knowing it to be a common thing with those who look to them, to take the precept or practice of man for the pleasure and ordinance of God himself in any point.'

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Sad and difmal indeed is the defection from real Chriftianity, and there is too much truth in this conclufion; for which reafon Mr. Mole ought to think, that looking to the law and to the testimony in relation to baptifm, without a ftrict conformity in practice, will avail nothing. And therefore till our Pædobaptift brethren fhall think fit to lay afide thofe human appointments, and reform their practice; they make it abfolutely neceflary for fome to hold out a light of warning, and direction upon every fuitable occafion, as I have now once more endeavoured to do, that perfons may not mistake the precepts and practice of men for the pleasure and ordinance of God himself in this point.

As Mr. Mole's Reply to this Infidel's objection ends here, I fhall follow him no farther than just to transcribe fome part of his introduction. And if the rules there laid down had always been carefully attended to by Chriftians, and they had governed themselves accordingly, we fhould have been fo far from having any controverfy about infant-baptifm, that we fhould never once have heard the name of it. He begins his anfwer thus:

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It is much to be wifhed, that, in all inquiries about the chriftian religion, that only fhould be confidered as fuch, and come into the queftion, which lies originally in the facred writings of the New Teftament. For Chriftianity as it is there laid down, and as it has been fince eftablifhed in the various writings and laws of men, are different things, and very wide of one another:

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< To intereft Chriftianity, not in what Chrift, but in what men have made it, and to direct our inquiries, and determine our fentiments about it from thefe later gloffes, is much the fame thing; as if we were to judge of the nature and meaning of the law of Mofes from the falfe interpretations and fpurious additions, with which the Pharifees had corrupted it: which, however they went under the name of the Jewish religion, very widely differed from it; as what the fyftems and formula's of many modern churches fet forth for the chriftian religion, does differ from what is truly fuch.

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Nothing fhews more weakness than to receive things. fo different as one and the fame, or wickedness than knowing that difference to reprefent them as the fame. For whatever is called Chriftianity, that only is deferv< edly efteemed fo, which lies in the fcriptures; and that is a very vain objection against the true doctrine of Chrift, which is drawn from it, as it lies in the most authorifed fyftems and compofitions of men.

And in ftating the doctrine of Chriftianity, it is fcarcely confiftent with the juftice that is due to it, or the fincerity with which our inquiries about it ought to be conducted, to felect a few fcattered fentences from the fcriptures, and confider them as intire and independent propofitions: fince fo detached they may be eafily made to exprefs a meaning different from the true one, or even quite contrary to it; which can only be learnt by viewing them in the connection with those difcourfes, from which they are taken, and confidering the purpose, to which the fpeaker or writer applies ⚫ them.

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Nor is it the likelieft way to give a fair account of the doctrine of the fcriptures, if leaving the places, in which it is moft fully and plainly declared, we form a fyftem founded on obfcure and difficult paffages; and prefume to determine the fenfe and meaning of them arbitrarily and at pleasure, without any regard to the view of the fpeaker, or to the argument of his difcourfe, or to any other places, wherein his meaning is more plainly expreffed by himself, and more eafily to be difcovered by us.

In interpreting the words, or reprefenting the sentiments of any other writers, we never make use of fuch ⚫ methods as thefe; or think, we have any right to use them; and if we did, whatever we might efteem our• felves,

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felves, we fhould hardly with others pafs for fair interpreters. And why fhould fuch methods be taken, or allowed, in reprefenting the fenfe of the facred writings; which are efteemed mifreprefentations in the cafe of all other writings, and reckoned highly injurious to • them?"

SECT. V.

Remarks on Dr. Doddridge's Letters.

ICOME now to examine Dr. Doddridge's Anfier to the fame objection, and fhall alfo therein apply many pallages of his letters to the fubject in debate. He begins after this manner :

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9 There yet remains to be confidered the argument draw from infant-baptifm, which you apprehend would be very abfurd, if it were not fuppofed to be attended with fuch a communication of the fpirit, as that which is now in debate between us,' which he thus expreffes as the fenfe of his author. And finally, that if

faith were built upon any other foundation, it would be utterly abfurd to pray for its increafe; (page 10) and that infant baptifm, here taken for granted to be a divine inftitution, would on any other scheme be unjustifiable and unintelligible. (page 69) Thefe, Sir, are (fo far as I can find) the grand foundations, on which you build the doctrine I am now oppofing.'

But whether upon the doctor's own, and the common principles of his party, at whofe requeft this third letter was written, there be not too much ground given for the enemies of revelation to make fuch fuppofitions, and propound fuch queftions, it behoves them all ferioufly to confider; tho', even without thofe fuppofitions, I have clearly enough fhewn, that infant-baptifm, as their fprinkling is falfly called, is a very abfurd thing: and moreover, it is it feems the grand foundation which gives Infidels a handle to fcoff and deride it, and to caft the greatest reproach and contempt upon the chriftian name. And of this, by the following words, the doctor himself appears to be fufficiently fenfible. "Can a man, fay you, be "baptized

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9 Third Letter, P. 54. Ibid. p. 30.

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"baptized into a rational religion?" (by which I fuppofe you mean, can that religion be rational, of which infant-baptifm is a part?') This thought, and the very words alfo, the doctor feems to have taken from the ingenious Oxford Reply; and they as plainly fhew, that in the doctor's apprehenfion, Infidels may take occafion from thence, to reprefent Chriftianity, as a childish irrational thing, which is indeed what the author endeavours to evince, by looking a little into life and practice upon the occafion, by tracing this faith to its known original, and pointing directly to the great root whence,' be fays, all our religious impreffions notorioufly fpring.' And will help us to a juft and uniform account of its whole nature, whilft it points readily back to its fource of baptifm.' And hence, in agreement with his title, he feems fully perfuaded, that the judging at all of religious matters is not the proper province of reafon, or indeed an affair where fhe has any concern...... Your boafted rational faith, fays be, is what I would fain fhew you to be a falfe, unwarranted notion of your own, and without the leaft ground to fupport it, either in nature or revelation. I mean, that your aflent to revealed truths fhould be founded upon the conviction of your understanding.' And therefore he adds, It is impoffible, furely, when we confider to whom we must ascribe them, that any fuch abfurd fchemes can any longer be fuppofed, that we can ever imagine, that the great author and finisher of our faith fhould have contrived us an irrational one, to be afterwards fuperfeded, or ⚫ even confirmed by a rational one.'

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The reafoning of this writer in thefe paffages is agreeable to what Dr. Doddridge fays, as follows, For the illuftration of this, you must give me leave to remind you, that both the mofaic and chriftian difpenfations have been much mifreprefented, in confequence of mens taking their notions of them, rather from the conduct of their profeffors, than from the inftitutes of their refpective founders.' And according to our Lord's own metaphors, Mat. vii. 16-20. Da men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? How can we expect it thould be otherwife? But is it not greatly to be lamented, that the best, moft holy, mof excellent, and moit perfect religion,

2 Chriftianity not founded, &c. p. 9. 5 p. 15. Fint Letter, p. 13.

3 Ibid. p. 10. 4 p. 7.

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