times able and willing to help us for a friend that has no changeableness nor shadow of turning in his Temper for a friend that is faithfull and true full of compassion and gret pity is to make it our hearty desire that there was a God and as heartily to bewail our want of him if there be none So that the Atheist who joyns in this common Wish with all Mankind must believe that his Faith not for his Interest but that it will be much better for him if it be false He must repent himself of his folly in arguing himself out of the belieff of an infinitely perfect Being since such a Being is so very needfull to him that he cannot but every moment be wishing for such a Being And yet if he has argued rightly if there be no God it is his unhappiness that there is no such friend as he wants and wishes for to be found And now what has this Man got by the Wisdom of his Speculations What great cause has he to triumph in having undeceived himself into so wretched a condition that he wishes was out of it He has disputed himself out of the belief of a God and yet so little can he do without one that he seeks for and desires to find one some-where else than where he is He cannot live without an infinitely good and perfect Being and yet he not willing there should be such a Being in the World And what is this but to fly to the Principle he derides and scorns as the best support and onely comfort of his life Neither do his Wants and Imperfections alone force him to wish for such a friend as we believe God to be but his Passions many times make him to desire he had a friend that would not see him wrong'd but that had both Power and Will to avenge him A friend that would stand by him and do him right when he can have Justice from no other hand And what is this but to wish there was a Being that had the Justice and Providence of a God He would it seems have a God to himself at the same time that he endeavours to laugh all the World out of conceit of such a Being A God to plague his Enemies with though it is to his Passions he is more beholding for such a Desire than as he would have us believe to any good reason he has for it 2. He is desirous likewise of an Immortal life Life is so fundamnetal a Blessing that without it we are capable of none of the comforts and enjoyments of this World The grave as the Psalmist styles it is that land of darkness where all things are forgotten The dead know not any thing saith the Wise-man neither have they any more a reward for the memory of them is forgotten Eccless 9.5 Their love and their hatred and their envy is perished i.e. They are neither capable of doing themselves or others either good or harm Neither have they any more a portion in any thing that is done under the Sun v. 6. i.e. All the Pleasures and Glories of this World are lost to them neither is there any thing here that can rejoyce them And therefore the Wise-man inferrs That all the sensible delight we are capable of is to be enjoy'd here and dedpends upon Life Go thy way eat thy bread with joy and drink thy wine with a merry heart c. What-ever thy hand findeth to do do it with all thy might i.e. Make use of Time and Opportunity while this Life lasts for there is no work nor device nor knowledged nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest v. 10. And who is he that is not wise wise enough to know the Truth of all this Who is he that is not sensible that all bodily Delights do depend upon Life and that Life is so great a Blessing that we can hardly be too tender of it Do we not all express so passiionate a desire of living and so much reluct to the Thoughts of dying that we can hardly reconcile our selves to the Thoughts of it when we see there is no avoiding it and have all the reason in the World to be cloy'd with living When we can no longer tast the pleasures of the World and stoop under the burthen of Years we are too apt to think it good for us to live still and are for trying Remedies to put off Death till a further season I know indeed that there have been a great many excellent Persons that rather than deny their Faith have laid down their Lives with a great deal of chearsulness and have rejoyced in their Sufferings when they have been haled before Tribunals and dragg'd to a Stake But this does not prove that Life is not a very valuable Blessing but that to a Religious Man the happiness of the Mind and Conscience is much greater and that of the two it is a much wiser thing to expose the Body to sufferings rather than the Mind to vexation and misery It shows that a good Man's hope is sufficient to quiet Natrue and to persuade it to submit patiently to a Dissolution and that Religion does furnish us with such a bravery of Mind as rather to chuse to die with a good Conscience than to live with a bad one But what is this to the case of the Atheist who has no such reason to despise Death And besides it is not because Men are out of Charity with Life that in any such case they so easily part with it but it is a Hope and Desire to live a Life of Immortality that prevails with them to set so little by this And this Desire is as much in the Atheist as any Man onely he would have his Immortality here He looks for nothing after Death and therefore he has nothing before him to persuade him it is good for him to die He is under a more particular Obligation than any Man to be extremely tender of this life because all that he has or hopes for lies in it It is very easie for a Man that believes Death is a passage to a much better and more durable Life than this to be willing to quit this but it is the hardest thing in the World for an Atheist to do so because there is no reason why he should and no doubt but he who values himself so much for the goodness of his Reason will yield us that it is a very hard thind for a Man to do or like of any thing without Reason The onely thing that the Atheist can comfort himself with since he must die is That Death is a starte of Annihilation and that in the Grave though he has for ever lost all the pleasures and comforts of Life he shall be no more sensible of Evil than of Good But this is no other than the sorry comfort of a dicontented Man who to ease his Mind betakes himself to any weak support when he can no longer keep the
But now let a Man believe that his shame and guilt will follow him into another World where he is like to suffer among cursed Spirits for ever nd he has so much reason against a profligate life as no Temporal consideration can out-weigh This is so very plain that the Atheist makes no exception to the power that these Terrors have to persuade Men but onely to the Truth of them And it is strange he should when it is so visible that it is so much his and every man's Interest they should be true and that it is not possible Man should be kept in awe without them CHAP. III. From the Desires of all Men that there should be such a thing as Religion in the World NOthing I presume can be more obvious than this Truth That if all Mankind be desirous that the Principles which Religion teaches and the Duties it requires should be true we have a great deal of reason to believe it is highly agreeable to our Nature For why should all Men agree in such a desire if there be not something in us that tells us it is of extraordinary advantage to us and that takes a secret pleasure and delight in it Such a Universal Desire cannot be of the nature of those suddain Pasions which owe their Birth to humour or fansie but must spring from some certain and fixed Reason which it is impossible for us to withstand Our Desires 't is true are sometimes so unaccountable that when we come to reflect upon them with seriousness we see a great deal of reason to be ashamed of them But a Desire in which all Mankind agrees can never be lookt upon as a hearty Transport but must arise from the Reasonableness of the thing that is desired and be the Effect of a Cause that has its foundation in our Nature Now that there is such a Desire will easily be granted if I can make good these Two things 1. That we naturally desire all that is implied in the fundamental Principles of Religion 2. All that Vertue that it teaches 1. We naturally desire all that is implied in the fundamental Principles of Religion We love and take pleasure to think of all the Perfections that Religion teaches us do belong to the Notion and Nature of a Deity and are very desirous to find them some-where that we may rest upon them We are so extremely affected with Life that we would never lose it if we could possibly prevent such a loss And since this is not possible Nature startles at and abhorrs the Thoughts of Death as is most formidable Enemy And as it is an Immortal life we are desirous of we would live such a Life as Religion describes that which is to come to be Neither is this a fansifull Wish of some particular Persons onely but the natural Desire of all Mankind It is not a Desire that sticks to the Minds of such onely as have been educated in the Principles of Religion but which the most Prophane and Atheistical person as well as the most Religious does allow to be reasonable Though he would have us to believe that he sees no reason to believe there is a God or a furture state of Immortality and Glory yethe is too great a friend o himself to think that Death is as desirable as Life and Misery as gratefull as Happiness Though he loves not to think there is a God yet he cannot but wish that there was someghing that was as wise and powerfull as good and comapssionate as we believe God to be And though he be an Enemy to the Notion of another life yet he seels himself strongly inclined to approve of the Immortality and to wish for as quiet and easie a life as belongs to that state The truth on 't is he is no enemy to the Wisdom and Goodness that is in God or to such uninterrupted Joys and Pleasures and such lasting Enjoyments as Religion teaches us to look for hereafter but he does not love to think that there is a God that is thus perfect or to be put off to a future state where we are taught That Immortality and Life will be disposed of as we qulifie our selves for them in this life The Enmity then that he bears to Religion is not because he believes the Principles thereof to be unreasonable but because he can find nothing in this World that he loves and doats on so much to contain all that Excellency and Good that Religion informs us of For was this World as glorious and happy a place as Heaven is represented to us to be or was there any thing that he loves in it as great and perfect as God is he would have no quarrel at all with these things But his great spight to Religion is That when it acquaints with things so desirable as Immortality and Life the Wisdom and Goodness and other Perfections of a Deity it puts him upon a contempt of those Enjoyments he loves here for the better qualifying himself for those hereafter But as to the Things themselves 1. He is desirous as well as other Men are of a friend who is every way qulified to be helpfull to him As confident as he appears that there is no God and as much sport as he makes himself with our belief that there is he as much as any other Man feels the imperfection of humane Nature and a necessity of having a recourse to something without him for relief and refreshment He thinks himself wise in disowning a God and yet he is sensible that no less Wisdom and Power and Goodness than that which is in God is sufficient to his happiness And therefore he does not think it fit at all times to rely upon the Abilities of his own Nature as if he was an independant Being but like all other Men is desirous of a friend that will be kind and helpfull to him A friend that has Wisdom enough to know how to advise and direct him and so to order his affairs that he need not doubt of a good issue to them That has power sufficient to relieve him when he is press'd with any difficulties and who above all has so much goodness and compassion in his Nature as assures him of a favourable reception when-ever he makes his address to him Now to desier such a friend is to wish that there was a God to govern and order all Events and to preside ove and be a ready help to us in all our Exigencies So that let us suppose that this wise discoverer was really right in his belief concerning this Principle of Religion yet when ever he reflects upon his own Wants he will not have much cause to rejoyce in his discovery but every moment furnishes him with fresh Reasons to wish he was mistakenl and all the World will consess that he is much in the right when he wishes for such a friend as we believe God to be For to wish for a friend that is at all
be fit that we be under restraints why does he find fault with Religion upon that account But if it be not why is he a friend to Government Either he is very resh in condemning Religion or he has not well weigh'd the Nature of Humane Liberty when he lays us under the Yoke Humane Laws For the same argument whereby he would set us at liberty from the one ought to destroy the other But if it be not fit that we should have the liberty he contends for it is highly reasonalbe that we should be under the restraints that he is an enemy to because they take the fastest hold upon us and are the surest means to make Society usefull to and Governement to have its proper effect upon us And this I shall more particularly endeavour to make appear 4. By considering how well Religion does provide for the Well-being of the World And none I am confident that knows either what it commands or how powerfully it persuades can make any doubt of its sufficiency to this purpose 1. If we consider what it commands For it favours every man's true Interest secures every man's Right and makes it penal to invade any man's Property It is the best Patron and Protector of the Poor for it preservs their Persons from contempt and provides a good relief for their necessities For it requires all Men to be kindly affectioned one to another with Brotherly love in Honour preferring one another and not to mind high Things but to condescend to Men of low Estate It is the surest defence to every man's Estate the best preservative of their Honours and Privileges and is a much better guard to their Persons and Possessions than all the weapons of defence they can make use of For it takes care of their Honours by requiring Inferiours to give honour to whom honour is due and of their Fortunes by obliging all Men to abstain from Violence and Wrong and to live by Principles of Conscience and Integrity And there is this further to be said in the behalf of the Commands of Religion That all Men do acknowledge the Reasonableness of them It s very Enemies confess that the Restraints it lays upon us and the Duties it obliges us to are for the good of Mankind nd necessary to the Well-being of the World They know that Sobriety is more for the Health of the Body than Intemperance and that Justice and Integrity conduce more to the preservation of Peace and Order in Societies than Craft and Knavery And however they are not willing that we should practise these things as Religious Duties yet they insist upon a necessity of practising them The meaning of which is nothing less than this They would not have us believe we are obliged in Conscience to do them though they have all the reason of the World on their side They would have us live as Religion directs though they would not have us believe there is any They do not think it reasonable that we should break its Commands though they think it very reasonable we should pay no respect to it So that with the same breath they both commend the observing the Duties thereof and ridicule the belief of it However when they confess That Conversation cannot be maintain'd without Uprightness and Simplicity nor Society stand without Faith and Truth nor Mankind be govern'd wighout a respect to Justice and Honesty 't is such a Concession as will easily persuade any Man to believe that they have such a secret sense of the Truth and Reasonableness of Religion and such an inward veneration for its Excellency that nothing but their Lusts do hinder them from being its greatest Patrons But there is one thing farther in which the Excellency of the Commands of Religion does consist and which above all other things does tend to preserve the World in a peacealbe and flourishing condition And that lies in its speaking to our Minds and obliging us not to harbour any ill thought or indulge any extravagant humour or yield to the motions of any violent passion For by requiring us to lay aside all Malice and Guile and Hypocrisies and Envy not to give way to Anger and Wrath or to suffer a revengefull Thought to live in our Hearts it strikes at the root of that wickedness that is vexatious and troublesome to the World And in this respect Religion is a much better foundation of Peace than the best Government in the World can possibly be It builds our Peace and Happiness upon an honest Mind and a vertuous Disposition whereas Humane Laws can take no cognizance of any thing that is within nor lay any restraints upon the malice of an ill-disposed Mind Upon which account the severest Proclamations and Edicts of the Civil Magistrate without Religion would be too weak to keep the World in order For Men may be as malicious and spightfull as envious and ill-natur'd as they please in spight of any Civil Sanctions and so long as these Passions are suffer'd to dwell quietly within us they will be corrupting our Actions and frequently compell us to let them loose to save our selves from their rage But further 2. Let us consider the Motives where with it persuades For to such a perverseness is our Nature depraved that unless we be awed and influenced by something that is very considerable no Command can be sufficient to oblige us to do our Duty This all Governments are aware of and therefore those in Authority do not content themselves with prescribing Rules of Life and telling us That such and such Actions are not for the good of Socieyt or not convenient for our Interests but enforce their Commands with Threats of punishment in case of disobedience And when the Atheist does allow of the Reasonableness of these Restraints he must grant That the more powerfully we are Aw'd the better it is for Society and that he has no reason to quarrel with Religion for obliging us to do our Duty to one another by setting Everlasting Considerations before us For these are Motives that he will acknowledge we ought not to despise till we are convinced that they are false which is an acknowledgment that Religion does take the most essectual course to keep us within bounds if the Considerations it makes use of be but true For doubtless the Rewards and Punishments it sets before us are of much greater force to encourage Obedience and discourage Disobedience than those that the Civil Magistrate can make use of The utmost punishment he can inflict is Death But who will much stand in awe of that when any considerable advantage tempts him if there be nothing to be fear'd afterwards Or what is there that is terrible in such a punishment to awe a desperate Mind The pain is but short and the shame is not like to sollow him and when this is put in the Scale with forty or fifty years pleasure how easie is it to despise the one for the other