discoveries we find still more beauty and more uniformity of contrivance whereas if we survey the most curious piece of humane ingenuity by that glass it will discover to us numerous flaws deformities and imperfections in our most elegant mechanicks Hence I gather That the study of God's works shewing us more of the riches of nature opens there by a fairer prospect of those treasures of wisdom that are lodged within it and so furnisheth us with deeper sences and more arguments and clearer convictions of the existence of an infinitely intelligent being that contrived it in so harmonious and astonishing an order So that if any are so brutish as not to acknowledge him upon the view of the meer external frame of the Universe they must yet fall down before the evidence when Philosophy hath opened the cabinet and led them into the Jewel-house and shewn them the splendid and artful variety that is there Thus though the obvious Firmament and the motions of the Sun and Stars the ordinary vicissitudes of seasons and productions of things the visible beauty of the great world and the appearing variety and fitness of those parts that make up the little one our selves could scarce secure Galen â—…rom the danger of being an Aâ—…st Yet when he pryed further by â—…mical enquiries and saâ—… the wonderful diversity apâ—…ness and order of the minutest strings pipes and passages that are in the inward fabrick He could not abâ—…ain from the devoutness of an anthem of acknowledgment And that the real knowledge of nature leads us by the hand to the consâ—… of its Author is taught us by the Holy Pen-man who saith that the visillâ—… things of the Creation declare him The plebeian and obvious world no doubt doth but the Philosophical much more So that whosoever saith that inquiry into nature and Gods works leads to any degree of Atheism gives great ground of suspicion that himself is an Atheist or that he is that other thing that the Royal Psalmist calls him that saith in his heart there is no God For either he acknowledgeth the art and exactness of the works of nature or he doth not if not he disparageth the divine Architect and disables the chief argument of his existence If he doth and yet assirms that the knowledge of it leads to Atheism he saith he knows not what and in â—…ct this That the sight of the order and method of a regular and beautiful contrivance tends to perswade that chance and fortune was the Author SECT II. BUt I remember I have discours'd of this elsewhere and what I have said for Philosophy in general from it's tendency to devout acknowledgments is not so true of any as of the experimental and mechanick For the Physiology of the modern peripatetick schools creates notions and turns nature into words of second intention but discovers little of its real beauty and harmonious contrivance so that God hath no Glory from it nor men any argument of his wisdom or existence And for the Metaphysical proofs they are for the most part deep and nice subject to evasions and turns of wit and not so generally perswasive as those drawn from the plain and sensible Topicks which the experimental Philosophy inlargeth and illustrates This then gives the grand and most convictive assurance of the being of God and acquaintance with this kind of learning furnishetâ—… us with the best weapons todefend it For the modern Atheists are pretenders to the mechanick principles and their pretensions cannot be shamed or defeated by any so well as by those who throughly understand them These indeed perceive sometimes that there is only nature in some things that are taken to be supernatural and miraculous and the shallow naturalist sees no further and therefore rests in nature But the deep Philosopher shews the vanity and unreasonableness of taking up so short and discovers infinite wisdom at the end of the chain of causes I say if we know no further then occult Qualities Elements Heavenly Influences and Forms we shall never be able to disprove a Mechanick Atheist but the more we understand of the Laws of matter and motion the more shall we discern the necessity of a wise mind to order the blind and insensible matter and to direct the original motions without the conduct of which the universe could have been nothing but a mighty Chaos and misâ—…n mass of everlasting confusions and disorders This of the FIRST viz. That the knowledge of nature serves Religion against Atheism and that it doth also CHAP. III. Philosophy Helps Religion against Sadducism in both its branches viz. As it denies the existence of spirits and immortality of humane souls None so well able to disprove the Sadduce as those that understand the Philosophy of Matter and motion The Hypothesis of substantial Forms prejudicial to the Doctrine of the Immortality of the soul. SECT I. II. AGainst Sadducism 'T is well known that the Sadduces denyed the existence of Spirits and Immortality of souls And the Heresie is sadly receiv'd in our days What a Spirit is and whether there be Spirits or not are questions that appertain to the disquisition of Philosophy The Holy Scripture that condescends to the plain capacities of men useth the word spirit commonly for the more subtile and invisible bodies and 't wil be difficult from thence to fetch a demonstrative proof of Spirits in the strict notion That there are Angels and Souls which are purer then these gross bodies may no doubt be concluded from thence But whether these are only a finer sort of matter or a different kind of beings cannot I think be determin'd by any thing deliver'd in the divine Oracles The Inquiry therefore belongs to Philosophy which from divers operations in our own Souls concludes That there is a sort of beings which are not matter or body viz. being self-motive penetrable and indivisible Attributes directly contrary to those of matter which is impenetrable divisible and void of self-motion By these properties respectively the distinct nature of spirit and body is known and by the same that there are spirits in the strictest sâ—…nce as well as corporal beings Now by stating the nature and proving the existence of spirits a very considerable service is done to Religion For hereby our notion of the adorable Deity is freed from all material grosness in which way those must conceive him that acknowledge nothing but body in the world which certainly is a very great dis-interest to his Glory and suggests very unbecoming thoughts of him And by the due stating of the Notion of a spirit that silly conceit of the Souls Traduction is overâ—…hrown which either ariseth from direct Sadducism or a defect in Philosophy Hereby our Immortality is undermined and dangerously exposed But due Philosophical disquisition will set us â—…ight in the Theory For the former of the mention'd errours the Anthropomorphite doctrines that make God himself a corporeal substance they cannot be disproved but by the use of the
principles of Philosophy since let us bring what Arguments we can from the Scriptures which speak of the Perfection Infinity Immensity Wisdom and other Attributes of God all these no doubt will be granted but the Quaery will be whether all may not belong to a material Being a question which Philosophy resolves and there is no other way to search deep into this matter but by it's aids So likewise as to the Traduction of the Soul The Arguments from Scripture against it are very general yea many expâ—…ions there 〈◊〉 at â—…irst â—…ght to look that way And therefore this other help Philosophy must be used here also and by the distinct representation which it gives of the nature of spirit and matter and of the operations that appertain to each this errour is effectually confuted which it cannot be by any other course of procedure This Philosophy befriends us against Sadducism in the first branch of it as it explodes the being of Spirits SECT II. THE other is the denyal of the Immortality of our Souls The establishment of this likewise the Students of Philosophy and Gods Works in all Ages have attempted and they have prov'd it by the Philosophical considerations of the nature of sense the quickness of imagination the spirituality of the understanding the fredom of the will from these they infer that the Soul is immaterial and from thence that it is immortal which Arguments are some of the most demonstrative and cogent that thâ—… meer reasons of men can use but cannot be manag'd nor understood but by those that are instructed in Philosophy and Nature I confess there are other demonstrations of our Immortality for the plain understandings that cannot reach those heights The Scripture gives clear evidence and that of the resurrection of the holy Jesus is palpable But yet the Philosophical proofs are of great use and serve for the conviction of the Infidel with whom the other inducements are nothing and the deeper knowledge of things is necessary to defend this great Article of Religion against these since they alledge a sort of reason to prove the soul to be mortal that cannot be confuted but by a reason instructed in the Observations of nature For the modern Sadduce pretends that all things we do are performed by meer matter and motion and consâ—…quently that there is no such thing as an immaterial being and therefore that when our bodies are dissolv'd the man is lost and our Souls are nothing which dismal conclusion is true and certain if there be nothing in us but matter and the results of motion and those that converse but little with nature understand little what may be done by these and so cannot be so well assured that the elevations mixtures and combinations of them cannot be at last improv'd so far as to make a sensible reasoning being nor are they well able to disprove one that affirms that they actually are so whereas be that hath much inquired into the works of God and nature gains a clear sight of what matter can perform and gets more and stronger Arguments to convince him that it's modifications and changes cannot amount to perception and sense since in all it's varieties and highest exaltations he â—…inds no specimens of such powers And though I confess that all Mechanick inquirers make not this use of their inquisitions and discoveries yet that is not the fault of the method but of the men and those that have gone to the greatest height in that way have receded furthest from the Sadducean Principles Among such I suppose I may be allowed to reckon the noble Renatus Des-Cartes And his Metaphysicks and notions of Immaterial beings are removed at the greatest distance from all Corporeal affections which I mention not to signiâ—…ie my adherence to those Principles but for an Instance to shew how that deep converse with matter and knowledge of its operations removes the mind far off from the belief of those high effects which some ascribe to Corporeal motions and from all suppositions of the Souls being bodily and material SECT III. THus Philosophy is an excellent Antidote against Sadducism in both the main branches of it But then I must confess also that the Philosophy of the late Peripatetick Writers doth rather contribute assistance to it then overthrow this dangerous Insidelity I mean in what it teacheth concerning substantial Forms which I fear tends to the dis-abling all Philosophical evidence of the Immortality of our Souls For these Peripateticks make their Forms a kind of medium between Body and Spirit Beings that depend upon matter are educed from it and perish when they cease to inform it But yet â—…rm that they are not material in their constitution and Essence Such Forms those Philosophers assign to all bodies and teach that the noblest sort of them are sensitive and perceptive which are the Souls of Brutes If this be so that Beings which are not spirits but corruptible dependants upon matter may be endowed with animadversion and sence what Arguments then have we to shew that they may not have Reason also which is but an improvement and higher degree of simple perception 'T is as hard to be apprehended how any of the reâ—…s of matter should perceive as how they should joyn their perceptions into reasonings and the same Propositions that prove the possibility of one prove both so thâ—…t those who aâ—…rm that beasts also are in a degree reasonable speak very consonantly to those Principles If then such material corruptible Forms as the Peripateticks describe are sufficient for all the actions and perceptions of beasts I know not which way to go about to demonstrate that a more elevated sort of them may not suffice for the reasonings of men To urge the Topicks of proof I mention'd from Notions Compositions Deductions and the like which are alledged to prove our Souls Immaterial I say to plead these will signiâ—…e nothing but this That humane Souls are no portions of matter nor corporeal in their make and formal Essence But how will they evince that they are not educed from it depend not on matter and shall not perish in the ruines of their bodies Certainly all those Arguments that are brought for our Immortality are in this way perfectly disabled For all that we can say will prove but this That the Soul is no body or part of mâ—… but this will amount to no evidence if there are a middle kind of Essences that are not corporeal and yet mortal So that when I say that Philosophy serves Religion against Sadducism I would not be understood to mean the Peripatetick â—…ypotheseis but that Philosophy which is grounded upon acquaintance with real Nature 〈◊〉 â—…y leaving this whole 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of beings out of it s accounts 〈◊〉 â—…ings for which there is no shadow of ground from Reason or Nature but plentiful evidence of their non-existence from both disappoints the Sadduce of the advantage he hath from this needless and precarious principle And
by dividing all substances into body and spirit without the admission of middle natures the Real Philosophy gives demonstrative force to those Arguments for our Immortality that prove our souls are not bodys and so Sadducism is ruined by it These things I have thought fit to advertise not out of design to carp at any particular way of Philosophy but for the security of my discourse And though I have made a little bold with the Peripateticks here yet the great name of Aristotle to which they pretend is not concerned for I am convinc'd that he taught no such doctrine of substantial Forms as his later Sectators and Interpreters have put upon him who indeed have depraved and corrupted his sense almost in the whole body of his Principles and have presented the world with their own fancies instead of the genuine doctrines of that Philosopher But I proceed CHAP. IV. Philosophy assists Religion against Superstition both as it expresseth it self in fond over-value of things in which there is no good and panick fear of those in which there is no hurt It inlargeth the mind and so cures Superstition by bett'ring the intellectual Crasis It removes the causless fears of some extraordinary effects in nature or accident It is an Antidote against the Superstition of vain Prodigies It 's Antipathy to Superstition one cause of the charge of Atheism against it SECT I. III. THE Real Philosophy that inquires into Gods Works assists Religion against Superstition another of its mortal Enemies That I may prove this it must be premised That Superstition consists either in bestowing Religious valuation on things in which there is no good or fearing those in which there is no hurt So that this Folly expresseth it self one while in doting upon opinions as Fundamentals of Faith and Idolizing the little models of fancy for divine institutions And then it runs away afraid of harmless indiâ—…erent appointments and looks pale upon the appearance of any unusual effect of nature It tells ominous stories of every meteor of the night and makes sad interpretations of each unwonted accident All which are the products of ignorance and a narrow mind which defeat the design of Religion that would make us of a free manly and generous spirit and indeed represent Christianity as if it were a fond sneaking weak peevish thing that emasculates mens understandings makes them amorous of toys keeps them under the servility of childish â—…ars so that hereby it is exposed to the distrust of larger minds and to the scorn of Atheists These and many more are the mischiess of Superstition as we have sadly seen Now against this evil Spirit and its Influences the Real experimental Philosophy is one of the beâ—… securities in the world For by a generous and open inquiry in the great Field of nature mens minds are enlarged and taken off from all fond adherences to thâ—…ir private sentiments They are taught by it that certainty is not in many things and that the most valuable knowledge is the practical By which means they will find themselves disposed to more indifferency towards those petty notions in which they were before apt to place a great deal of Religion and so to reckon that that which will signifie lies in the few certain operative principles of the Gospel and a life suitable to such a Faith not in doting upon questions and speculations that engender strife and thus the Modern experimental Philosophy of Gods Works is a remedy against â—…he notional superstition as I may call it which hath been and is so fatal to Religion and the peace of mankind Besides which by making the mind great this knowledge delivers it from fondness on small circumstances and imaginary models and from little scrupulosities about things indifferent which usually disquiet in narrow and contracted minds And I have known divers whom Philosophy and not disputes hath cured of this malady And indeed that remedy is the best and most effectual that alters the Crasis and disposition of the mind For 't is suteableness to that which makes the way to mens judgments and setles them in their perswasions There are few that hold their opinions by Arguments and dry reasonings but by congruâ—…y to the understanding and consequently by relish in the aâ—…ctions so that seldom any thing 〈◊〉 our intellectual diseases throughly but what changes these This I dare affirm that the Free experimental Philosophy will do to purpose by giving the mind another tincture and introducing a sounder habit which by degrees will at last absolutely repel all the little malignities and setle it in a strong and manly temperament that will master and cast out idle dotages and effeminate Fears The Truth is This world is a very Bedlam and he that would cure Madmen must not attempt it by reasoning or indeavour to shew the absurdity of their conceits but such a course must be taken as may restore the mind to a right Crasis and that when 't is essected will reduce and rectisie the extravagances of the distemper'd brain which disputes and oppositions will but inslame and make worse Thus for instance when frantick persons are fond of Feathers and mightily taken with the employment of picking Straws 't would signisie very little to represent to them the vanity of the objects of their delights and when the Melancholido was afraid to sit down for fear of being broken supposing himself made of Glass it had been to little purpose to have declared to him the ridiculousness of his fears the disposition of the head was to be alter'd before the particular phrensie could be cured 'T is too evident how just this is in the application to the present Age Superstitions fondness and fears are a real degree of madness And though I cannot say that Philosophy must be the only Catholick way of cure for of this the far greatest part of men is absolutely incapable yet this I do that 't is a remedy for those that are strong enough to take it And the rest must be helped by that which changeth the genius which cannot ordinarily be done by any thing that opposeth the particular fancy SECT II. HOwever I must say that the sort of Superstition which is yet behind in my account and consists in the causless fear of some extraordinaries in accident or nature is directly cured by that Philosophy which gives fair likely-hoods of their causes and clearly shews that there is nothing in them supernatural the light of the day drives away the Mormo's and vain images that fancy forms in obscure shades and darkness Thus particularly the modern doctrine of Comets which have been always great bugs to the guilty and timorous world hath rescued Philosophers from the trouble of dreadful presages and the mischievous consequences that arise from those superstitious abodings For whatever the casual coincidencies may be between those Phaenomena and the direful events that are sometimes observed closely to attend them which as my Lord Bacon truly notes