positive duties, gamed himself, and made his servants work on Sundays; and that he, believing the gentleman, who was very sharp-sighted and judicious, knew more of that matter than the parson, or plain folks, could be supposed to do, never troubled himself about going to church, or reading, meditating, and praying, on Sundays; that, by these means, he lost all the opportunities of being instructed, like other people, in his duty, and of being either exhorted to what was good, or dissuaded from what was evil; and so betook himself, first, to an idle, and then to a vicious course of life; which, as he had no lands to rack, nor tenants to oppress, he was forced to cater for upon the high road. This, perhaps, would shock your soul, conscious to itself, that your declamations against positive duties might possibly have given occasion to the like enormities.

Dech. People of good manners always reason without shocking; and that argument, which is disagreeably introduced to the mind, being heard with aversion and reluctance, seldom convinces.

Shep. Truth, it seems, is shocking to some people, if it comes naked to them; and men may be allowed to settle such modes of behaviour, and ceremonies of conversation, as shall be prejudicial to truth, though God shall not be permitted to establish ceremonies of religion, that may be highly serviceable to it. Men, who are, in a great measure, ignorant both of themselves, and the tendency of many actions, know how to make great use of resolutions and vows to do, or abstain from, certain actions, in themselves indifferent. For example; a man resolves, and solemnly promises his wife, never to keep company with a certain neighbour: now although keeping company with this or that person is, in itself, a thing indifferent; yet, as long as the aforesaid man keeps his promise, which is purely positive, he avoids a strong temptation to drunkenness, which the conversation of his neighbour threw in his way. If, therefore, a man can see so far, and turn a perfectly indifferent action so greatly to his own advantage, we may be sure an all-knowing God, who adds divine authority to whatsoever he orders, can better choose and enforce such means. Iron is, by its own nature, no way qualified to cure the toothache; but, when made into a pullikin, becomes an instru

ment of great efficacy against that violent pain. A shrewd old farmer left his lands to his eldest son, on this condition, that the young man should every day of his life say his prayers, a little before sunrising, at a certain bush, that grew on the top of a high hill near his house; and in case he should once fail of so doing, he willed his farm to a younger son.

Dech. A wise sort of a will, no doubt!

Shep. This injunction, however, of the old farmer, was purely positive. It could, in itself, neither gratify the old man, nor serve his son. But, then, you must understand, the farmer knew his eldest son to be a little indolent in his temper, a lover of sleep, and fond of his bed in the morning: he knew, also, that from the bush, on the top of the hill, he could have a prospect of his whole concern; and could from thence examine, whether all things were as they should be; whether his cattle were grazing in their proper pastures, or had broken into his corn; whether his fences were in good order, and his servants and labourers preparing for the business of the day. This apologue may serve to shew, that actions, indifferent in themselves, can be applied to good purpose, in reminding us of, or prompting us to others, productive, by their own nature, of our real good. The happiness of ourselves and others, and the glory of God, constitute the great end, at which all our actions ought to be aimed, as the means of attaining that end; and as soon as any action appears conducive thereunto, whether by nature or institution, it becomes our duty or interest to perform it. Let me now, sir, put you in mind, at the close of our reasonings on this head, that all those nations, to whom the light of true revelation did not extend, have, instead of contenting themselves with what you call the perfect law of nature, contrived, or, at least, admitted, an endless variety of positive rites and ceremonies, all of them absurd, and superstitious to the last degree, and most of them shockingly corrupt and wicked; tending to authorize, by the supposition of a divine authority, the vilest and most abominable practices, tending to debauch the minds of men, and discipline them to vices of the grossest nature: witness those of Bacchus, Venus, Adonis, &c. The experience of all ages since the creation shews us, that reason, with all

the refinements of philosophy, was unable to reform these horrible abuses: as it is also plain, from experience, that mankind must have outward rites, of some sort or other, to fix their attention, and give, as it were, a visible body to religion, I think those of God's appointment are the only preservatives against such as the superstition, or corruption, or craft of man may contrive, and find means to establish in the world. Thus, sir, having, I think, clearly made out, that positive institutions may be of great use, as means and helps towards the increase of necessary knowledge, and the performance of duties in themselves expedient; and that the positive duties of the Christian religion are apparently conducive, in a high degree, towards those ends; since the general doctrine, on this head, is sufficiently established, I hope I need not lose time in shewing, that the prohibition given to our first parents, in respect to the eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge, together with the positive injunctions of the Jewish law, may be easily accounted for by the same principles and reasonings. God hath certainly a right to lay on his creatures and subjects what commands he pleases; his infinite wisdom can go much farther, in contriving expedients and helps to duty, than human penetration can follow in accounting for them; and his goodness is such, that we have as great reason to resign ourselves cheerfully to the dispensations of that attribute, as dutifully to those of his justice and power.

Temp. An examination into the positive duties, given to mankind before our Saviour's coming, would draw us out into too great a length, and hinder an inquiry concerning points more within the power of reason to account for, and, perhaps, more necessary to be known. In the mean time, as my conviction is, perhaps, in a good measure, kindly intended by you both, in the management of this debate; I think I ought to declare my sentiments between you, as often as I find them settled to my entire satisfaction. As to the subject, then, of our last inquiry, I believe God to be an absolute, but not, in the common acceptation of the word, an arbitrary being: I believe he hath a right to deal by all his creatures as he thinks proper; and herein does his goodness, in my opinion, manifest itself towards us, that while he is compelled by no superior power, nor obliged

by a coercive or penal law, to give us either being, or the means of happiness, he is graciously pleased to bestow both upon us. In consequence of this, mankind must be highly impious and foolish, if they presume to arraign the justice of his injunctions. He hath, certainly, a most absolute and plenary right to prescribe the rules of our duty; and therefore every command, whether natural or positive, nay, although it should be directly against nature, which we know or believe to proceed from him, we are bound in conscience, to obey. If he reverses, or repeals, or dispenses with, his own commands; as he is supremely wise and powerful, an entire resignation of our wills to his is undoubtedly due, on our part and how far the prodigious changes (to which an empire, consisting of free and fallible beings, may be subject) shall at any time render a reversal or dispensation of God's laws, or an addition to them, expedient, we are utterly unable to determine; and therefore must leave that matter to the incomprehensible schemes of divine wisdom. Should God, on any occasion, change his commands, which he must surely have a more unquestionable right to do than any earthly legislator; it would not argue arbitrariness nor fickleness in him, according to the mere assertion of Lord Shaftsbury, echoed by Dr. Tindal : because, even upon the principles of the Deists themselves, he is esteemed a foolish or bad man, who does not act according to the circumstances he is in, and change his conduct as his situation varies. So God, if he were obliged to act by the same law as they say he is, would most grossly transgress that law, did he persevere precisely in the same measures with an innocent, a sinful, and a repenting world.

Dech. Pr'ythee, Templeton, consider, that if you leap so plump into all the parson's sentiments, he will believe you are only bantering him. He heard, before he saw you, that you were beginning to think freely and now that he finds you suffer him to slip the bridle so quietly over your ears, and mount you, he will be apprehensive it is only in order to take some freakish fling, and throw him in the dirt. He may assure himself, I know well enough how to make you do it; and I give him fair warning to hold fast, and keep himself firm in his new seat, or the affair of mysteries,

which I am going to touch on, will turn his tame ambler into a very resty jade.

Temp. If thinking freely, and closing with reason, whenever I am so happy as to get a sight on't, which you have often recommended to me in the strongest terms, should open my mind to truth, though in the mouth of a parson, I hope you will not endeavour to frustrate the ingenuous effects of your own repeated advice, by turning me into ridicule merely for reducing it to practice.

Shep. You need not fear it. Mr. Dechaine is fond of humour, and he does not intend to use his raillery, which flows merely from his particular turn of mind, as an obstruction to your freedom of thought. Neither he, nor his cause, stand in need of jests or artifice, or any aids, foreign to reason. Besides, a little humour now and then helps to enliven a conversation of this kind, and hinders it from degenerating into a dry dispute; to which, from the nature of the subject, it is perhaps a little too inclinable. But I long to enter upon the subject of mysteries, because the gentleman seems to promise something uncommon upon that topic.

Dech. A religion, as we have already observed, that really comes from God, can never be supposed to enjoin the belief of absurdities, impossibilities, or contradictions. If we know any thing of God, we must know, that nothing but truth and reason can proceed from a Being infinitely wise; and that he is too good to put the salvation of his creatures on a faith in such doctrines, as shock that reason which he hath implanted in the minds of men, to be their monitor and adviser, in respect to every thing that is proposed to their understandings. Were a proposition ever so true, or consistent in itself, if, however, it were such, as must appear absurd or contradictory to the reason of all men, God would never require the belief of it from any person, much less from all the world. But that which is highly derogatory to God, and utterly impossible in itself, it is downright blasphemy to say, God could ever affirm it, or ever require the belief of it. To reveal, is the same thing as to explain, or discover; but to reveal a mystery, so as to leave it still a mystery, is a flat contradiction in