Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	age_n	write_v	year_n	1,957	5	4.7409	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A28430	Anima mundi, or, An historical narration of the opinions of the ancients concerning man's soul after this life according to unenlight[e]ned nature / by Charles Blount, Gent.	Blount, Charles, 1654-1693.	1679 (1679)	Wing B3298A; ESTC R18935	47,250	120

ANIMA MUNDI OR AN Historical Narration OF THE Opinions of the Ancients Concerning MAN'S SOUL After this Life According to unenlightned Nature By CHARLES BLOUNT Gent. Qui Iovem principem volunt falluntur nomine sed de unâ potestate consentiunt Min. Fel. London Printed and are to be sold by Will. Cademan at the Pope's Head in the Lower-walk of the New-Exchange in the Strand 1679. To the Reader MEthinks I already behold some haughty Pedant strutting and looking down from himself as from the Devils Mountain upon the Universe where amongst several other inferiour objects he happens at last to cast his eye upon this Treatise when after a quibble or two upon the Title he falls foul upon the Book it self damning it by the name of an Atheistical Heretical Pamphlet and to glorifie his own Zeal under the pretence of becoming a Champion for Truth summons Ignorance and Malice for his Seconds But such a Person understands not wherein the Nature of Atheism consists how conversant soever he may otherwise be in the Practice of it It were Atheism to say there is no God and so it were though less directly to deny his Providence or restrain it to some particulars and exclude it in reference to others Such are Atheists who maintain such Opinions as these and so are those Hereticks who erre in Fundamentals and continue obstinately in such errour 's But the ignorant Vulgar people whose Superstition is grounded upon the assimulating God with themselves are apt to think that every one they Hate are God Almighty's Enemies and that whosoever differs from them in Opinion though in never so trivial a matter are Atheists or Hereticks at least Not rightly considering the words of St. Peter That in every Nation he who feareth the Lord and worketh Righteousness is accepted with him And Minucius Felix says well to the same purpose He is the best Christian who makes the honestest man Heresie is an act of the Will rather than Understanding a Lye rather than a Mistake and thus St. Austin expresses it saying Errare possum Haereticus esse nolo Heresie and Schism says the ingenious Mr. Hales as commonly now used are two Theological Scare-Crows with which they who uphold a Party in Religion used to fright away such as making an enquiry into it are ready to relinquish and oppose it if it appear either erroneous or suspicious For as Plutarch reports of a Painter who having unskilfully painted a Cock drave away all the Cocks and Hens he could find that so the imperfection of his own Art might not appear by comparing it with Nature so Men for some ends not willing to admit of any fancy but their own endeavour to hinder all enquiries by way of Comparison that so their own deformity may not appear Therefore if any man blames me for comparing Christianity with Paganism it shews nothing but his unworthy distrust of the sufficiency of that Religion he professes There are two sorts of Iudges unto whom all Writers are obnoxious viz. the Ignorant and the Iudicious As for the Ignorant they are such men as I before was speaking of than whose Approbation I dread nothing more Simili simile gaudet is a maxim that holds true as well in all other things as Physick and there is nothing would make me have so ill an opinion of my self as to hear one of them commend me But the other Iudge viz. the man of Learning and Iudgment is the He I fear and before him only will I arraign my self Non-age is the general Plea for the First-fruits of Young men but that I disown for he that thinks himself old enough to write a Book can hardly excuse the folly that is in it by calling himself Child Nor have I ever seen a Piece that was written by one of 16 years of age which was fitting for one of 17 to read such Writings being commonly like Poems that were made by men when they were half drunk unintelligible to any persons but such as are in the same condition Therefore waving all such frivolous excuses I shall first disclose those things which are most liable to censure and then clear my self as well as I am able Perhaps there may be these three Exceptions taken against this Treatise viz. my numerous Quotations or Latine Sentences my rambling from my Subject and my uneloquent Stile First then as for my many Quotations whether in Latine or English the Nature of the discourse requires it Were it a bare Moral Essay wherein I made use of none but my own Fancy there to come in with a dixit autem Dominus or other such scraps of Latine were to render my self ridiculous But this being a discourse of other mens Opinions they would be thought my own though father'd upon the Ancient Heathens did I not cite my Authorities from the Authors themselves so that I am enforced to play the Pedant even in my own defence And yet notwithstanding I have had some Enemies who were so disingenuous as to cast that Reproach upon me when they saw this discourse but in Embryo so ridiculous as well as uncharitable were their Censures A man that with diligent search and care should collect together the Statues or Pictures of divers eminent Persons and expose them in some publick place to the view of all Spectators would not thereby procure to himself the repute of a good Painter or Statuary and yet certainly this Act of his were laudable and in some measure obliging but it would render him most immodestly arrogant if among the Pourtraictures of those eminent men he should erect his own Now this would be my case if while I present you with the conceptions of great Philosophers concerning the Infinite Being I should vent any part of my own inconsiderable fancy among theirs Wherefore expect it not for I neither have vanity nor ability sufficient to erect an Opinion of my own but acknowledge my self totally subdued under the commands of that Government whereto Providence hath assign d my Life Besides in this Tract is comprehended a Relation of various Sects contradictory the one to the other so as I cannot be said to hold them all Neither as I know of have I any where shew'd my self the least partial but if one had stronger Arguments to justifie their Opinion than the other blame not me who deliver them but recitativé and am as it were their Amanuensis without ever concerning my self with the intrinsick value of their Doctrines As to the second exception that charges me with rambling from my Subject if this be an errour it is an errour on the right hand wherein I am but better than my word Constancy is not so absolutely necessary in Authors as in Husbands And for my own part when I have my Pen in my hand and Subject in my head I look upon my self as mounted my Horse to ride a Iourney wherein although I design to reach such a Town by Night yet will I not deny my self