"and perfect Scheme of moral Truth and Righteouf"nefs, which was firft preach'd to the World by "Chrift and his Apoftles, and from them conveyed "down to us under its own Evidence of immutable "Rectitude, Wisdom and Reafon." This Definition, as he imagines, takes in all that is effential to Christianity. The Notion of Miracles being Evidences of it he explodes, and looks upon them as no other way serviceable thereto," than as Means of "awakening the Attention of the People to confider "its Doctrines when they are propofed, and as mo"ral Proofs (when of a useful and beneficent Kind) "that the Performers can have no Defigns against "them, but muft upon the whole intend their real "Intereft and Welfare."

.

Our Author afterwards proceeds to abolish the false Opinions, which even the Proteftant Clergy, as he fays, have propagated for their own peculiar Advantage, concerning the two Sacraments, and the Death of Chrift, as a Propitiation or vicarious Sacrifice for the Sins of the World. He allows there is nothing in thefe Doctrines as contained and taught in the New Teftament, but what may be admitted as reasonable, when they are once rightly understood; but ther he infinuates that when they are, their Appearance will be very different from the Drefs impofed upon them by the Ecclefiafticks. He maintains, "That the Sa"craments were only temporary or occafional things, "and never intended as ftanding, immutable Laws of "Chriftianity. That Chrift never made any Satif"faction to God on our Account at all. That those "Paffages in the New Teftament whereon this Do

trine has been built, are only figurative, metapho"rical and allegorical Expreffions, made ufe of by "St. Paul in his Epiftles, in compliance with his "Countrymen the Jews Prejudices in favour of their "Law, and their Attachment to the Terms and

Phrafes of it; hoping, by cloathing the Gospel ❝Scheme and Doctrines therewith, and accommoda"ting them as far as poffible to their Levitical Sy

ftem,

❝ftem, he should more eafily win them to a Compliance with the Chriftian Inftitution."

“

The whole Train of our Author's Argument upon thefe Heads is thoroughly feafoned with Invective a-, gainst the Clergy, at whofe Door is laid all that grofs Corruption of Chriftianity, in these momentous Ar-. ticles, all that wicked Myftery, which he is here with. fo much Care and Industry endeavouring to purge out and get rid of: in the Place of which he fubftitutes, fuch a pure and eafy Account of them as muft happi-, ly remove all the Difficulties and Prejudices they have. heretofore been clog'd with, or liable to. I can't fo well. exemplify this in the Cafe of the Satisfaction of Christ, which he has protracted a confiderable Length, comprifing in his Differtation thereupon the whole Do&trine of the Jewish Law concerning Sacrifices, and Atonement by Blood, as likewife what different Parties of Chriftians teach of our Redemption, or Deliverance from the Power of Sin and Satan by the Death of Chrift, (the genuine Ends and Purposes of which amazing Catastrophe he alfo infifts on); but it will be evident by a few Sketches of what he says regarding Baptifm and the Lord's Supper, which he handles more briefly: " It must be observed then, "that both the Sacraments, as we now call them, “ were civil Ufages or national Customs among the Jews in our Saviour's Time, and all along for many Ages before. So that Chrift did not herein in "ftitute any new Ritual or Ceremony, but thought "fit to apply two of their ancient national Customs "to a religious Ufe, which might be more agreeable to the Nature and Conftitution of his new Reli gion; and as it is plain that our Saviour made no "Change or Alteration in these national Customs, "but took them as they were, in order to our un"derstanding them aright, we are to confider what "the national Ufage of the Jews with respect to them "then was. Now it is certain, as to Baptifm, that "that People baptized every Profelyte, with his "whole Family; but they never baptized the Iffue

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"or Pofterity of fuch, while they were born under "the fame Difpenfation, and continued in the fame "Faith and Profeffion. And likewife it is true, that

in this fort of Baptifm, the Priefts or Clergy had "nothing at all to do with the Matter; but it was "always done by the Mafter or Head of the Family,

or by any one elfe under his Authority and Dire"tion. Baptifin, therefore, as grounded upon the ancient Custom and Ufage of the Jews, can only concern those who are profelyted to Chriftianity at first, and not their Pofterity, born under the "fame Difpenfation, and continuing in the fame Pro"feffion. Nor have the Clergy any thing to do with it.

"And as Baptifm was not originally a Church Or"dinance, or any fpecial Work of the Clergy; fo "the fame thing will be evident of the other Sacra"ment, or Eucharift, upon a little Confideration of

the Nature, Original and Defign of it. It was a na"tional Ufage among the Jews, after Supper, which "was their fet Meal, to break Bifcuit round the Ta"ble, with which every one prefent had his Cup of "Wine; and as this concluded the Supper or Enter"tainment, it was attended with a Grace, or fhort "Form of Thanksgiving to God.

Now,

it is plain, that Chrift here when he had fup"ped upon the Pafcha with his Difciples, diftri"buted the Bifcuit and Wine exactly according to "the common Cuftom of the Jews, which he

"made no Alteration in, but this, that the Thing "fhould for the future be done in his Name, i. e. in "the Faith and Profeffion of his Doctrine, as his Fol"lowers were to do every thing elfe; and particularહૃદ ly, that they should do it in Remembrance of him "who had died a Martyr in this Caufe, as a Seal and "Confirmation of the Truth of it, and of his Love

to Mankind." This, our Author fays, was the plain Matter of Fact: And he asks, Is there any thing here of a Church Inftitution? Any Work cut out for the Clergy? Or any peculiar Action or Office referv'd

to

to them? Chrift did this as the Mafter of the Family, or Founder of the Feaft; but not as a Bishop, Prieft or Clergyman. "The external, elementary Parts of "either of the Sacraments were not, cannot there"fore, according to the foregoing Account, be, "properly speaking, Chriftian Inftitutions." Our Author is express that nothing can be fo, but what is efficient of moral Rectitude, and makes a Part of the great Rule or Law of moral Truth and Righteousnefs, which is of eternal, unchangeable Force and Obligation to all rational intelligent Beings alike.

Towards the Clofe of his Harangue on the Topic of Sacrifices, intended for fettling a true Notion of the Satisfaction of Chrift, we have a moft amusing Episode, containing a Representation of fome great and weighty Events and Tranfactions, whereof the facred Writings (where they are recorded) exhibit very different Ideas. According to this, one must suppose, that a Race of Men exifted here, before that Apoftafy from God which we call the Fall, and, as if the Writer himself had been one of thofe Pre-Adamites, he very diftinctly fhews, what the State of Philofophy and Religion was amongst them. Next he gives us a Profpect of the divine Go vernment, as exercifed over the angelic Hierarchy, before the Revolt of any of those Spirits; and then, as particular and confident a Relation of the Rebellion of Lucifer, Satan, and their Adherents, as if he had. been one of the chief of the Party, and admitted into their moft fecret Confultations. After this he tells us of an eternal immutable Law, which was enacted in Heaven immediately upon the Defeat of those celeftial Rebels," That no Petition fhould ever be "heard or accepted for the future, but what should "come immediately from the Petitioner himself." Then, the conquered and ejected Angels being detruded, and doomed to live as Exiles upon this wretched Earth, he fets forth their Behaviour, the Converfation they had with Men, their vain and arrogant Pretenfions, and falfe Infinuations, whereby they fatally deceived our Species, and feduced them to join in

B 4

their

their Sedition, and to receive and obey them as Gods, in the Place of their undoubted Lord and rightful Sovereign. This brings us to the Origin of Idolatry, and we are made to fee how Mankind came by the Notion of Mediatorial Worship, and how they contracted fuch a Fondness of Interceffors as hath continued ever fince.

This fine Episode being finifhed, (which our Author might borrow fome Hints of from Milton, as indeed it is not improbable that he has gathered all the Principles of his Work, from Hobbes, Spinoza, Toland, Tindal, and other fuch Worthies) he retumes the Subject of Sacrifices, which leads him to confider the primitive Condition of those whofe Business it was in the earliest Times to offer them, and by what Steps they raised themselves to that State of Independency on the Regal Authority which they have ufurp'd. The firft Inftance we have now extant of any fuch independent Priesthood is, as he tells us, that which Jofeph fettled and established in Egypt. I prefume he has been furnished with fome choice Anecdotes relating to this Affair, or he could hardly have given us fo minute and exact Account of that Patriarch's Proceedings in it as he has here done: They are an indelible Blot in his Character, for, if we regard our Author, they were bafe and wicked in themfelves, and yet worse in their Confequences; for thereby, as he fays, that Country became "the Mother "of Superftition, the Parent and Patronefs of new "Gods, and the Miftrefs of Idolatry throughout the "World. A Land of Miracles and Prodigies; which had fuch an Effect upon the Ifraelites, " in the Course of two hundred and ten Years, while "they continued there, that nothing could influence "them but Miracles; fo that they would never "have taken any notice of Mofes, if he could not "have outdone the Egyptian Sorcerers."

We fhall fee the Purpose of these last Sentences prefently; in the mean time our Author acquaints us with the generous End he proposed in the Account

he