in the leaft degree credulous, they would not affuredly have had the leaft hesitation in believing it: but they ri diculed it as an idle tale". St. Peter nevertheless, inftigated by curiosity, runs to the place, and finds the report perfectly true; the grave is open and empty; he wonders and departs". After fome timé Jefus comes into their affembly, where ten of the Apostles are prefent: and now they can doubt no longer. But St. Thomas, who was abfent, thinks them all deceived, and will not believe before he has accurately infpected the body of this perfon, and difcovered on it the marks of his crucifixion, and the wound in his fide. And how violently was St. Paul prepoffeffed againft the truth of this hiftory? How active in difcovering those who confeffed it, and in procuring their death? Can we believe that

m Luke xxiv. 1-11.
Luke xxiv. 12.

John xx. 24, 25.
Acts viii. ix.

fuch

fuch people were credulous, and suppofe that they received their history as true on the first vague report, without further examination?-Had Cromwell, in the presence of the Lords and Commons, afferted that he had feen the unfortunate King Charles a few weeks after his execution, firft in Westminster Abbey, and afterwards many times in, St. James's palace, and converfed with him frequently for feveral hours together; had the Ufurper, in confequence of this, refigned the Protectorate, and made preparations for bringing back the exiled Queen and family; we should have conceived, perhaps, that he had experienced an extraordinarily violent fit of Fanaticism; but it would have occurred to no one, to accufe him on this account of Credulity; and to affert, that he had blindly received this relation as true only on the information of an old folT4 dier,

dier, or a woman that was perfectly

unknown to him.

SECT. IV. BEZɔ T

Neither were they Fanatics.

SOME may perhaps be inclined to adduce the above example against the truth of the Gofpel-history. The Strangeness and wonderfulness of fuch a relation, it may be faid, would have inclined every reafonable man to have conceived that the Protector was rather a fanatic than that his narration was true. This I fhall hereafter examine. And here, where we are not treating of the miracles, but merely of the common and cuftomary events, of the apoftolical hiftory, we muft firft examine this question,-whether the writers of the New Teftament can rea fonably be confidered as fanatics; or whether we cannot discover évident

traces,

traces, that they were not in the leaft infected with this dangerous poifon of the human understanding? An inquiry. which will conduct us into one of the moft interefting and inftructive parts of the hiftory of the human understanding; and is abfolutely effential for the conviction of Chriftians, on account of the frequent accufation of fanaticifm which is made by the enemies of the New Teftament. To. examine this fubje&t therefore more accurately will amply repay our trouble.

I will, in the first place, endeavour to collect from history the different features in the character of this aftonifhing phenomenon, a fanatic;-and then compare the picture with our fcriptural writers.-A fanatic thinks himself al

ways

Fanatic, fanaticus, xrari, paurasın, is one who acts only according to his fenfations, and not according to the reflections of his reafon. And this is the cafe, even when his fenfations are true, agreeable to their objects: but ftill more fo, when they are merely

1

ways the chief favourite of heaven. And truly a perfon in whom the Divinity immediately dwells, with whom He deigns daily to hold immediate converfe, and makes a living oracle; fuch a perfón moft affuredly has reafon to believe, that he is extraordinarily favoured by God. This fanatical pride is often carried to fuch an extent in men, that they convince themselves God fhould do every thing which they defire; and if He does it not, think themselves offended, break out into acrimonious complaints against Him, or uncharitable accufations of ungodliness in other men, which they fancy

merely imaginary. A man may act fanatically in a variety of ways: for. inftance, if he be guided in his conduct by mere antipathies, or fympathies; perform any thing only because he feels an internal excitement to it; imagine that he has seen angels, hears difcourfes from heaven, &c.-But we must be very careful not to confound the fanatic with the fentimentalift, the man of feeling (bass): the latter is a praiseworthy quality, the former a blameable.

to