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Principles, to difprove that Affertion, and shew that Meditation, under any poffible Circumftances, cannot be fo effectual a Means as Prayer may be made. In my Reply I attempted to prove This, and had the good Luck to do it to his Satisfaction; and I make no doubt of doing it here to the Satisfaction of every impartial Reader. But, before I enter upon the Argument, I must observe, that the Deifts, when they would feem to substitute regular Contemplation in the room of Prayer, are not fincere, neither would it anfwer their Purpose, because fuch frequent Returns of ferious Contemplation would keep their Confciences too often awake, and be too great a Check to the Indulgence of their Vices; which, I dare fay, is their real Objection against Prayer. This Obfervation I thought proper, by way of Caution to unwary Chriftians, against the deceitful Artifices of the Deifts.

All Deists, who profefs to believe the Principles of natural Religion, must allow, that all Men are obliged to use the most effectual Means that our Reafon is capable of fhewing us, for the promoting of Religion and Virtue. The Paffions of Fear and Love are the great Springs of human Actions: All Religion and Virtue confift in our Obedience to the Will of God, and in the Imitation of his imitable Perfections: Our Fear and Love of him are the strongest Incitements to fuch an Obedience and Imitation. The Question, then, between us and the Deifts is, what appears to our Reafon, from the Nature of Things,

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Things, the moft effectual Means of cultivating and improving those two ruling Paffions. We fay, that a conftant and regular Intercourfe between our Maker and us, by Prayer, is the moft effectual Means; and that it appears from hence to be the Will of God that we should pray to him. They fay, that it will be fufficient for the Purposes of Religion and Virtue, because fufficent towards the Cultivation and Improvement of the Fear and the Love of God, if we accuftom ourselves conftantly and regularly to think upon God and ourselves, and the Relation that we ftand in towards him; and, confequently, that we cannot prove Prayer to be a reasonable Act, much less to be a Duty, or that the Honour of Speaking to the fupreme Being is fo much as permitted us. This, I think, is a fair State of the Question between us; and without the leaft Diftruft of the Iffue, I fhall attempt as fairly to determine it; which I fhall do by confidering the natural Confequences of each Scheme. But, before I come to the main Argument,-a Comparison of the natural Effects of Meditation, and That Act of the Mind which we call Prayer, I fhall make a short Obfervation, not impertinent to the Point in Difpute.—If This Bufinefs were left to be done by Meditation, very few, even of those who are capable of it, would ever give themselves the Trouble of meditating fo feriously. It requires a Habit of thinking regularly, to be able to range their Thoughts in fuch an orderly Manner, as may imprint them. fo ftrongly upon their Minds, as may give them.

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a proper Influence upon their Conduct. If it be faid that This Infufficiency may be supplied by a written Abftract, upon thofe Subjects for their conftant Ufe; I anfwer, that This would not fix the Attention so much as directing our Thoughts to fome Object is able to do; which naturally leads me to fhew that Praying, that is, Speaking, to God, is a stronger, and more influencial Act of the Mind, than barely thinking of him; and, confequently, better fitted to promote Religion and Virtue than Contemplation, confidered under all poffible Circumstances of Advantage. Speaking, or addreffing ourselves to one another, is an habitual and familiar Act of the Mind, the Method of preferving an Intercourse between one another; the ufual and most effectual Means of exciting the feveral Paffions of Anger and Love, Defire and Hatred; by the Means of which babitual Practice, the Fear and the Love of God, a lively Senfe of his Prefence and Attributes, will be more ftrongly preferved by speaking, or addressing our Minds to him after the ufual manner, in which we have been accustomed to speak to each other, than by bare Contemplation, the former Action of the Mind receiving a particular Force from Habit and Familiarity. Neither can Contemplation be made fo habitual, and familiar, and eafy to the Generality of Mankind, as the Action of Speaking to another Being; because the Occafions of Speaking to one another are frequent and unavoidable, which makes That Action of the Mind habitual and familiar; whereas we are E 3

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fo far from being under the Neceffity of acquiring a Habit of serious and close Meditation, that moft People find it a very difficult Thing, because the Attention is diverted by external Objects, or by Ideas before received into the Mind from fuch Objects. But Prayer, that is, fpeaking, or directing, our Minds to God, does, as it were, make the Divine Being present to our very Senfes; forafmuch as the fame Action of the Mind, has been ufually accompanied with fome external Object vifible to the Senfes: Befides, the Actions of the Body concurring with that of the Mind, muft alfo, by the Force of Habit, help to fix the Attention, and make the Effects the ftronger. I verily think This Argument can never be answered without denying human Nature, and the Power of Habit, to be what we daily fee and feel them to be; infomuch, that if the Duty of Prayer were to be wholly omitted, the very Notion of a God and his Providence would be quite loft among the Generality of Mankind, as to any religious Effects upon their Minds. This is not an abstracted metaphyfical Argument, calculated only for the learned Philofopher who has been accustom❜d to nice Speculation, but it is an Argument drawn from known Facts and Experience, and fuch a one as any Perfon who will be at the Trouble of attending to it may understand. By the way of Illustration, let us suppose that we had offended one of our Fellow-creatures, no doubt can be made but that if we were seriously to reflect upon it, it would affect every honeft and generous Mind;

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but if, instead of barely thinking upon it, we were to come into his Prefence, fall upon our Knees before him, and in a most fubmiffive Manner afk his Pardon; This would have a much greater Effect, help more to increase the Senfe of our Guilt, and to form a Refolution to behave better for the future. Thus it is with regard to our Addreffes to God. By using the fame Actions, both of Body and Mind, by which we constantly converse with one another, we shall make him more immediately present to our Thoughts, which will have a much greater Influence upon us than barely thinking of him could have.

If This Argument be conclusive with regard to private Prayer, (and I may safely defy the whole Body of the Deifts to difprove it) it will hold much stronger, and more apparently, for publick and joint Prayer, tho' the latter has generally been thought lefs capable of being proved from natural Principles. In the Performance of publick and joint Prayer, the Looks and Gestures and Voices of the Congregation will help to kindle and inflame in each other religious Affections and Difpofitions. For inftance, the united Voice of a Number of People confeffing their Sins, with a proper Tone of Voice, accompanied with fuitable Looks and Geftures, expreffive of Sorrow, and Shame, and Fear; I fay, their united Voices, and Looks, and Behaviour, muft in the very nature of Things, be more effectual towards promoting the proper ends of Confeffion, than any private Acknowledgement of our Sins can poffibly

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