of Monsieur Justel by which every one is left at his liberty whether he will embrace the Christian Religion or not I could also quote several Emperors For example The Emperor Constantine who had desir'd that all his Subjects might be Christians without constraining any body The Emperor Jovian who is applauded for that he gave every body leave to profess what Religion he pleas'd The Emperor Valentinian who set forth Laws by which he gave Liberty to every body to profess the Religion wherein he was bred The Emperor Marcian who in the Letter which he wrote to the Archimandrites and the Monks of Jerusalem We will not hale says he or drag any Person whoever he be into the way of Truth either by Tâ—reats or by Violence and the Emperor Constant in Pogonatus who in his Letter to the Bishop of Rome upon occasion of the Sixth Universal Council which he call'd at Constantinople expresly says We could invite and exhort all the Wâ—rld to amend themselves and unite with the Christians but we will constrain no body 'T is true that Charlemaigne us'd violence towards the Saxons but his Conduct is blam'd be Aleâ—…nâ— his Tutor as was also that of King Chilperic by Gregory the First and that of King Sisebut in Spain by the Council of Toledo Lastly I could cite the Pagans themselves who have been of the same Opinion That no body has Right over the Conscience and that the Will is not to be forc'd as appears by what was written by an Indian Philosopher to Alexander Thy Friends advise thee to offer violence to the Indian Philosophers Thou mayst remove their Bodies from one Place to another but thou canst never force their Minds c. There is no Prince or King that can make us do any thing against our Will This is a most certain Truth and they who are of another Opinion talk against the Light of their Understandings Thus M. Le Bâ—et Counsellor of State in his Treatise of the King's Sovereignty discussing the Question Whether it be Lawful sometimes to disobey the King Answers That in matters of Religion there is no wavering to be admitted between the Fear of God and Man And he also maintains That in austere and harsh Proceedings the Minister of the Prince's Cruelties participates of his Crime and that a Judge who pronounces an unjust Sentence resolving upon Injustice and condemns the Innocent upon privy Signet Letters transgresses in his Obedience because that being a Messenger of Justice he never ought to abuse it to colour over the Fury and Iniquity of a Prince who borrows the Formalities of it What think ye was the meaning of St. Paul when he teaches us that we ought to submit to Princes not only for Wrath but also for Conscience sake No other without question but that we ought to submit to the Higher Powers in things which are not forbid by the Law of God not only for Wrath that is to say because there is no resisting 'em without punishment and without incurring their Indignation but also for Conscience sake that is because the word of God binds our Consciences to it For if we allow any greater Latitude to the words it must be said that St. Paul meant that we should sacrifice to false Gods if we liv'd under a Prince that should câ—mmand it Which is that which no Man dares presume to say Since no Man can be ignorant of the Opinion of that faithful Servant of God in this particular We say no more of it here because we have already spoken concerning it CHAP. XX. Against those who believe it sufficient to live according to the Rules of Moral Honesty THere are many People who believe it to be sufficient to live well but that 't was no great matter what they believ'd that it was enough to reform their Manners but that there was no necessity of tormenting a Man's self about his Belief and that he may be Sav'd in all Sâ—cts provided he abstains from those Vices which the Law of God and right Reason condemn But they who are of this Opinion are grosly mistaken nor will it be a difficult thing to evince ' em First if it be sufficient to lead an Innocent Life without ever troubling our selves what we ought to believe 't is a wonderful thing that Faith should be so often recommended to us and that the Holy Men of God should declare that without it there is no Salvation Amend your Lives says Christ but at the same time believe in the Gospel If thou believ'st said Philip to the Eunuch and he Answer'd I believe that Jesus is the Son of God If thou confess with thy Mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God has rais'd him from the dead thou shalt be sav'd But without Faith it is impossible to please him Heb. 11.6 He that believeth in him is not condemn'd but he that believeth not is already condemn'd because he has not believ'd in the name of the only begotten of God And this Faith is distinguish'd from good Works as you may find in the Epistles to the Romanâ— the Glatians and in other Places I confess that Faith alone without Charity is not sufficient to Save Thô I should speak with the Tongue of Men and Angels if I have not Charity I am become as sounding Brass or a Tinkling Cymbâ—l And thô I have the Gift of Prophecy and Vnderstand all Misteries and all Knowledge and thô I have all Faith that I could remove Mountains and have no Charity I am nothing 1 Cor. 13. I confess also that without Sanctification we cannot see God Heb. 12. But I averr in the First place that there is no Sanctification where there is no Faith 'T is Faith that purifies the Heart Secondly That Faith ought to have Charity for its foundation it ought to proceed saith St. Paul 1 Tim. 1.5 From a good Conscience a pure Heart and a Faith unfeigned Faith is dead without Charity but there is no true Charity without Faith II. If it be sufficient to live morally well I cannot conceive wherefore St. John 1 Epist cap. 4. would have us try the Spirits with so much care to avoid the receiving all Doctrines that are Taught us Beloved says He Believe not every Spirit but try the Spirits whether they are of God And for fear lest Men should think that examination of the Spirits was recommended to 'em only to try whether they taught a strict or loose Morality the Apostle adds That every Spirit that confesseth not that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God but this is that Spirit of Antichrist c. If no Man then can be of God unless he confess Christ come in the flesh certainly it cannot be sufficient to live morally well to be sav'd unless Men think they can obtain Salvation without being of God Moreover whence comes it that the same Apostle in his Second Epistle forbids the Faithful to receive into their Houses or
Idea of Infinity It is also as absurd to say that a Body knows as to say that a thought is Red or Green that the Act of arguing is Hot or Cold or that a Metaphisical Speculation is round or square 'T is clear then that the Soul is not Material and that by Consequence it has no parts and therefore it cannot dye No Sickness can destroy it because it has no blood nor humour that can feed it Neither Sword nor Fire can kill it because it has no parts that Iron can divide or Fire consume 2. Neither can the Soul be said to destroy it self for Right Reason teaches us that nothing tends of it self to its own Destruction and Ruin that every Being is desirous of it self to remain in the same Condition wherein it is and that every Change that happens to any subject proceeds from an Exterior Cause besides that it can never be conceiv'd how a Soul should destroy it self 3. It cannot be said that the Soul can be deâ—troy'd by other Created Substances because we ought not to assure our selves of what we â—annot conceive unless God reveals it to us Now it is impossible to comprehend that a Creaâ—ed and finite Substance can destroy a Spiritual Nature nor do we know it to be otherwise by Revelation 4. It cannot be said that God destroys and annihilates our Souls For besides that the Annihilation of a Being is one of those things of which there is not any example in Nature we have no Revelation that God designs the Annihilation of Souls On the contrary if they with whom we contend would acknowledge the Divinity of Scripture it would be easie for me to produce 'em proofs which invincibly make out this immortality which we assert This First Argument may be supported by a Second which is this That if the Soul be not immortal and that there be no other Life after this we must then conclude that it was only given to Man to render him more miserable then the Beasts and to be a torment to him For if Man had not a Rational Soul the Remembrance of what is pass'd the Consideration of the Present and the Apprehension of Futurity would never afflict his Mind but he would be like the Beasts which if we may believe the new Philosophers feel no pain or if they do feel any 't is only a present pain If then the Soul be not immortal it would have been better that God had made us walking Machines then to give us a Soul only to make us Suffer 'T is said that Man being so like to Beasts all dies with him as it is with other Creatures But this Objection is unworthy a Rational Man 'T is true that there is some Conformity between a Man and a Beast A Man is Born and is subject to Death he preserves his Life by nourishment and his Kind by Generation and he is subject to the irregularities of Humors All this is common with the Beasts I confess likewise that there is a Conformity which is disgraceful to Man and this is that which consists in the disorders of the Body and Sences and the Predominancy of the Passions 'T is a shame to Man that his Passions over-rule him where Reason ought to Command and that he is not the Master of his own Body nor of all the Motions of it Nevertheless all that can be concluded from hence is that Man is Mortal so far as he has any thing of Conformity with Beasts But we must renounce our Reason if we deny that Man has not an infinite number of things that exalt him above Brutes and in that respect it is that Man is Immortal Althô they who believe the Soul to be Mortal laugh at the Revelation yet there are some who make use of a Passage in Ecclesiastes to confirm their Opinion 'T is in the Chap. 13.19 20 21. The same thing befalls both Man and Beasts the death of the One is like the death of the other both the one and the other breathe the same Breath and Man has no advantage above a Beast for all is vanity All goes the same way All was dust and to dust they shall return Who knows whether the breath of Man mounts upward or whether the breath of a Beast descends downward But if these People who borrow the Authority of Salomon to support their Error had read the Book from which they-fetcht their Argument they would have seen that that same Great and Wise Prince was far from believing the Soul to be Mortal His aim is there only to withdraw the hearts of Men from the Love of the World from their extraordinary Propensity to the Creatures and all things that fall under the Senses On purpose to incline and persuade 'em to Love to Fear and Serve the Lord only And this is the conclusion which he draws at the end of his Book from all the Arguments which he produc'd before The scope of the whole Discourse is Fear God and keep his Commandments for this is the whole Duty of Man Now I leave it to Judgment Whether if Salomon had thought that the Soul did not subsist after death he would have taken so much pains to excite Men to the exercises of Piety for which there was no reward to be expected since the Belief of the Immortality of the Soul is the Foundation of Piety and Religion But for an absolute Conviction that this Great King did not believe the Soul to be mortal there needs no more then to read his Tenth Chapter From the very beginning he threatens Men with a Judgment to come and exhorts 'em to remember God in the days of their youth and not to delay their Turning to God till the last years of their Lives A needless Exhortation if the Soul were to dye For what reason is there that Man should fear any thing after death if All were to dye with him Afterwards in the 9th Verse he tells us in express terms That the dust returns to the earth from whence it was taken but that the Spirit returns to God that gave it Is not this an invincible Proof that he believed the Immortality of our Souls For how could it be said that our Spirit should return to God that gave it if it subsisted no longer after it was departed from the Body which it enlivened Is it possible that a nothing of Soul and Spirit should return to the Bosom of God The wise Salomon so little believ'd our Soul to be Mortal that in the same Chapter ver 17. he says God shall judge the Just and the Vnjust and then shall be the time for all things and over all his Works which he would never have said had he had the least Thought that our Soul died with the Body So that by the Passage which they alledge he meant no other thing but that in respect of the Body the condition of the Beasts was equal to that of Men that the same thing befals him and
Sisters yea and his own Life also he cannot be my Disciple And v. 33. So likewise whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all he hath he cannot be my Disciple VI. Wherefore St. Paul calls those Idolaters who committed any one of those Acts which the Pagans practis'd 1. Corinth 10. VII If it be sufficient for a Man to believe in his Heart without making open Profession of the Truth how comes it that the same Apostle Commands us to believe in our Hearts and make Confession with our Mouths unto Salvation Rom. 10.9 10. And that St. Peter would have us Be ready always to give an Answer to every Man that asks ye a Reason of the Hope that is in you 1. Pet. 3.15 VIII If it be true that Man may be faithful and practise a False worship and observe the Ceremonies of a Corrupt Religion then might He Drink the Cup of the Lord and the Cup of Devills contrary to the saying of St. Paul 1. Cor. 10. and have Communion with God yet walk in Darkness contrary to the Precepts of St. John 1 Epist C. 1. v. 6. And a Man may have received the Good Seed of God into his Heart and withdraw himself in time of Persecution contrary to the Doctrine of Christ Mat. 13. IX A Man might be an Idolater and yet be Saved contrary to what the Apostle determins 1 Cor. 6. that Idolaters shall not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven X. He may be register'd in the Book of Life of the Lamb and adore the Beast contrary to what is written by St. John Apoc. 13.8 And all that shall Worship the Beast whose Names are not written in the Book of Life of the Lamb. XI If the Opinion of those against whom we Combat were true would St. John threaten Eternal Torments to the Adorers of the Beast Apoc. 14. v. 9 10 11. If any Man worship the Beast and his Image and receive his mark in his Forehead or in his hand the same shall drink the Wine of the wrath of God which is poured out without mixture into the Cup of his indignation and be shall be tormented with Fire and Brimstone in the Presence of the Holy Angels and in the Presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever c. XII The same beloved Disciple would have placed the Fearful at the head of those for whom the Lake of Fire and Brimstone is reserved Apoc. 21.8 Would Jesus Christ threaten to spue the Lukewarm out of his Mouth Apoc. 3.16 For who are the Fearful and Lukewarm but they who understand the Truth yet fearing the Hatred and Cruelty of the World compose their outward Behaviour in such a manner that they make a shew of approving a Religion of which they acknowledge the Falshood Such as have an Orthodox Soul and Lips of Infidels who will neither be altogether for Jesus Christ not altogether for the World who divide themselves between the One and the Other and would fain be reconcil'd to Both In a word who do that which our Indifferent Men believe may be done without a Crime XIII Whence comes it to pass that the Holy Ghost condemns those that halt on both sides 1 Kings 18.21 Zephan 1.5 and those that worship and swear by the Lord yet swear by Maloham also XIV Wherefore is it that the Two Apostles St. Paul and St. John of which the one had been taken up into Heaven the Other had seen in the Spirit the Heavenly Jerusalem Commands us to come out from among the Unfaithful and from Babylon Apoc. 18.4 Long out of her my People says the Lord by St. John that ye be not partakers of her sins and that we receive not of her Plagues and 2 Cor. 6.14 15 16 17. Be ye not unequally yoak'd with Vnbelievers for what fellowship hath Righteousness with Vnrighteousness and what Communion hath Light with Darkness What Concord hath Christ with Behal or what part hath he that believes with an Infidel What Agreement has the Temple of God with Idols For ye are the Temple of the Living God c. Wherefore come out from among 'em and be ye separate says the Lord and touch not the Vnclean thing and I will receive ye XV. Lastly Wherefore is it that we are commanded to suffer for Righteousness sake and that the Spirit of God makes such large Promises to those that suffer Persecution Matth. 5.10 Heb. 12. James 5.10.11 Phil. 1.29 2 Tim. 2.11 12. I add to all these Proofs those Passages of Scripture where the Apostles command us to offer to God not only our Souls but our Bodies also and to Glorifie him in our Bodies and our Spirit Rom. 12.1 I beseech you therefore Brethren that ye present your Bodies a living sacrifice holy acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service and 1 Cor. 6.20 For ye are bought with price therefore Glorifis God in your Body and in your Spirit which are Gods Is it not a great piece of Sacriledge to refuse the giving of that to God which belongs to him He created both our Bodies and Souls he has redeem'd 'em both the one in the other Is it not then just that we should consecrate both to him Wherefore should we separate what God has joyn'd and what he has given us to the end we should employ it to his Glory How great a sin it is how great a piece of Impiety to divide our selves between God to whom we owe all things and the World to which we owe nothing To deny our Tongues to God to whom we owe our Lives and to be asham'd of calling our selves the Servants and Disciples of Christ who was not asham'd to call us his Brethren and who for our sakes has suffer'd a most cruel and ignominious death To demonstrate yet more clearly the Falshood of this Opinion which I labour to destroy I think it convenient to make these few Reflexions The First is That it is a strange thing that there should be so many People that make no scruple of Lying in Religion which is a thing of the greatest Importance and the most Sacred in the World in regard that Lying is a Vice unworthy a Man of Honour The greatest Debauchees become sensible of the things of Conscience if they happen to swear a Falshood before a Judge So true it is that we have a natural Aversion against telling a Lye Who would not wonder then that Men who are desirous of Reputation should not be asham'd to lye in a thing that is most grave and serious in the World the Concern of God himself of Truth and our own Salvation If a Subject who gives but the least suspition of an Intention to Revolt from his Prince and who only lets fall some words that will admit of a bad Construction is handl'd with so much severity in regard that Royal Majesty is so Sacred that it is not to be injur'd in any manner whatever without incurring the guilt of
to bid good speed to those that bring not the Doctrine of Christ for it appears that he speaks of the same Seducers who confess'd not that Jesus Christ was come in the Flesh Wherefore is it that he would have us stand so strictly upon our Guards when the business in Dispute is about the receiving a Doctrine or not receiving it if it were sufficient for a Man to correct his Manners to be Sav'd III. I draw a Third Argument from hence that the Doctor of the Gentiles thunders out Anathema's against those that press the observation of the Mosaic Ceremonies thô they carefully enjoyn'd the practise of the Moral Law If it were sufficient to observe the Decalogue would Christian Charity have allow'd St. Paul to Anathematize People who believ'd in Christ only that they were zealous of the Law Acts 21.20 and who were only for joyning Moses to Jesus Christ the Ceremonies of the one to the Gospel of the other IV. If this Opinion which we oppose were true whence comes it that the Scripture condemns the Unbelievers to Eternal Pains Apoc. 21.8 and that it excludes Idolaters out of the Kingdom of Heaven 1 Cor. 6.10 There can be no other Reason given but only because that living Morally well is not sufficient for the obtaining of Eternal Salvation but that it behoves us to believe those Truths which are Taught us Fifthly If Living according to the Rules of Moral Honesty were sufficient to bring a Man to Heaven I would fain know the Reason why the Apostles take so much pains to instruct People in the Truths of the Gospel why do they keep such a stir to prove that Christ is the Promised Messiah that they speak of his Divinity and his Cross two things that equally stumbled both the Jews and the Gentiles Had it not been sufficient to have taught 'em Good Morality Sixthly Whence comes in to pass that Christ and his Apostles so frequently exhort us to suffer for their Truth and that so many persons have suffered Martyrdom in Defence of the Truth of which they might have been ignorant if we may believe our Antagonists without being deprived of Salvation There would have been but very few Confessors and Martyrs had Moral Honesty been sufficient to bring us to Eternal Felicity To all these Proofs I add this Important Reflexion that we draw from the Truths of the Gospel which are propos'd to us to the end we should believe 'em the most powerful Morives that are able to engage us to Holiness There is nothing more prevalent to incline Men to Sanctification then to make known to 'em a God that loves Men to that Degree as to give 'em his only begotten Son a God that abhors and detests Sin to that degree that he rather chose to expose to Death his only Son in whom he is well pleased then to leave Sin Unpunished A God that takes upon him Human Nature and under that Nature suffers a most Cruel Death to make an Atonement for the Sin of Men and to satisfie Divine Vengeance justly provoked against ' em Lastly A God that penetrates into the most secret Folds and Concealments of the Heart who is to raise the Dead and bring 'em to appear before his Throne to give an Account of all their Actions It behoves us therefore to believe if we will live well and to believe and live well if we intend to be Sav'd CHAP. XXI That the Opinion of Indifferenay in Religions has displeased almost all People THere remains nothing more for me but only to Answer an Argument which is attributed to the King of Siam and which we have cited already in the Third Chapter The True God said he who Created the Heaven and the Earth and all the Creatures therein contained and who has given 'em Natures and Inclinations so different had he so pleased by giving Bodies and Souls alike to Men could have inspir'd into 'em the same Sentiments as to what Religion it behov'd 'em to follow and have caused all Nations to agree and unire under one and the same Law But it seems that Providence permits diversity of Sects because God takes as much delight to be honoured with different sorts of Worship and various Ceremonies as to be glorify'd by a Prodigious Number of Creatures the variety of whose Beauty 's set forth and Magnifies his Infinite Power There are some People who suffer themselves to be dazled with this Argument but I beseech 'em to consider that it may be prov'd as well that God takes pleasure in the Sins which Men Commit For it might be said that had God so pleased by giving to Men Bodies and Souls alike he might have infused into 'em the same Sentiments for Virtue but that it seems as if he permitted the one to be Wise and Virtuous the other to be very Vicious because he takes delight in the variety of Humours and Inclinations Now I am apt to believe there are very few that would approve such a Method of Arguing To this first Answer I may add two more The first is That there might be something Plausible in this first Argument of the King of Siam if God had not really made known to Men what it was that he requir'd 'em to believe and what they were to do But we have proved that he has reveal'd it to 'em and that they need no more then read the Scripture with attention and without prejudice to understand which is the True Religion The Second Answer is That this Argument is grounded upon a false Principle that God might have inspired into all Men the same Sentiments of Religion had he not taken delight in Variety For God is not bound to make himself known alike to all Men. He is absolutely at his own Liberty in all his Works They to whom he has reveal'd himself have no more cause to magnifie themselves then others and they from whom he conceals himself have no cause to complain Moreover it is not to be imagined from the Opinion which the King of Siam seems to have concerning Indifferency in Religions that this Sentiment derives it self naturally into the Thoughts of all Men. On the other side it would be easie to prove that the greatest part of Religions have condemned it The thing is clear in respect of the Christian Religion nor is there any need of bringing farther Proofs The Pagans were so fixed to their Old Opinions that one of the most Learned Interpreters of Virgil observes that great Care was taken both among the Athenians and the Romans that no body introduced New Religions For that Reason it was that Socrates was condemned at Athens that the Jews were expell'd Rome and that the Books of Numa were burnt Josephus reports that the Athenians inflicted grievous punishments upon those that introduc'd new Deities and durst presume so much as to speak against their Law Dionisius of Halicarnassus asserts that not only the Greeks but also the Barbarians carefully preserv'd the Religion of their Ancestors and the same thing is reported of the Scythians and Persians Nevertheless we will not deny what Socrates said that it was lawful for every Body to serve the Deity according to the Custom of the Country and that Foreign Gods were often transported to Rome and Athens But give us leave to make these Three Remarks 1. That the Testimony of Socrates is of no Weight because he was Condemned at Athens 2. That the greatest Part of those Deities which were transported to Rome were remov'd out of the Cities which the Romans had Besieg'd and were by the Priest Invited before the whole Army to the Capital of all Italy where they should have as they said more Temples more Sacrifices and more Adorers To which we may add that they were therefore removed because it was an Opinion among 'em that all Places had their Tutelar Deities and that they could not take Cities till after they had removed the Gods that protected ' em 3. That those Gods which were carried to Rome Athens and other Places and those that were there Worshiped under the Character of unknown Gods are sufficient proofs that some Accident fell out of which they believed some Deity that was unknown to 'em to be the Author and make it appear that the Romans were of Opinion that the more Gods they had in their Cities the more Protectors they had But from thence it does not follow that the Athenians and Romans believ'd that all Religions were Indifferent For had they so thought why did they persecute so Cruelly the Christians and the Jews It is certain also that they derided those New Gods that were introduced as appears by the Comedies of Aristophanes To which I may add that the Bramiry among the Indians who are the Ancient Brachmans believe that every Body may be saved in his own Religion provided he follow exactly the way that God has shewed him but that he shall be Damn'd if he pursues any other As for the Mahometans 't is very true that Mahomet seems to favour Indifferency in Religions while he says in his Alcoran that every Man who lives well who Worships the true God and does good Works whether Christian or Jew obtains the Favour of his God Nevertheless 't is certain that in another place he asserts that the Law is the only way of Salvation and ordains his Religion to be established in the World by force of Arms. Indeed it would be a kind of Wonder that the Mahometans should think that the Christians could be Saved seeing that the Christians aver Mahomet to be an Impostor and daily beg of God that that same false Prophet may have no more followers but that his Religion may be rooted from the Earth Moreover 't is well known that the Turks openly condemn the Persians Which they would never do if ' they thought all Religions were Indifferent As for the Jews the Thing is so certain that he who questions it must never have read their Writings For they continually curse the Christians and are so obstinately persuaded of the Truth of their Religion nay more That it is the only True Religion in the World that there have been several who have rather chosen to die then Violate the meanest precept of their Law THE END