CHA P. II.

Concerning the Nature of Prayer.

RAYER must be an Act of the Soul, of

PRA

the fpiritual and rational Part of us: If it were otherwife, it could not be a religious Act, which fuppofes it to be an Act of the Understanding; neither, indeed, could it be a moral and human Action, for That fuppofes two Things: First, that it be known to the Agent; fecondly, that it be freely acted. The Reader, I hope, will have Patience to wait for the Ufe that I intend to make of thefe Obfervations, which, at prefent may not appear to be fo pertinent as he will find them to be. First, I fay, it must be known to the Agent, becaufe, otherwife, it cannot, in a moral Sente, be called his Action, nor does it flow from himself as a confcious Principle of Action. And, if it be not freely acted, it cannot be imputed to him, whether it be good, or bad. Prayer, therefore, must be performed by one that knows when he prays, and is confcious of what he does; without which Knowledge and Confcioufness a Parrot may pray, as well as a Man, forafmuch as the Bird may be taught to utter the Words of a Prayer. Freedom of Action is, likewife, as neceffary as Knowledge and Confciousness, becaufe, otherwife, a mufical Inftrument may be faid to pray when it is made, as it be made by a Performer, to utter articulate Sounds. It is the Soul, then, the Thought, of

may

the

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the Mind that makes our Words Prayer. If he knows what he fays, and means, and wills the doing it, this makes it an Action flowing from bimfelf, and is truly and properly Prayer. If,

2. To this Knowledge, Confcioufnefs, and Intention we add the Direction of the Mind while we speak the Words. Prayer is speaking to the Object of our Prayers, or conver/ing with him; but, unless the Mind be directed to him while the Mouth utters the Words, we cannot properly be faid to speak to him, or converse with him, the Mouth being only the Soul's INSTRUMENT in Converfation. It is the Soul, only, that converfes, and its Converfation is, its being directed to the Object with whom it converfes. David, in the Words which I have already quoted, has rightly defined the Nature of Prayer. I will DIRECT my Prayer unto thee, and will LOOK UP. And, elsewhere, he speaks of lifting up his Soul. This is what diftinguishes Prayer from Contemplation, Reading, or Hearing the Words of Prayer. Tho' this neceffary Diftinction may be quite new to a great many of my Readers, the moft ordinary Capacity may clearly understand it, if he will but obferve how his Mind, as well as his Voice, is directed to a Man when he speaks to him.

Before I proceed any farther in the Chain of my Work, I shall ftop, to apply what I have faid concerning the Nature of Prayer, to the People of the Church of England, the Diffenters, and the Papifts.

1

Who?

First, I would defire thofe of my Readers, who are of the Church of England, to recollect has pafs'd in their Minds at their Devotions, whether in publick, or in private; comparing it with what I have above faid, concerning the Nature of that Action of the Mind which is properly Prayer, left they should have miftaken bearing, or reading, of Prayers, for praying; for, it is evident that a Man may be attentive to every Part of the Service which the Minifter reads at Church, or he, himself, reads out of a Book in his Clofet; and that he may feel himself very much affected with what he hears, or reads, and, yet never pray at all. In order to illuftrate my Meaning, I fhall instance in that Part of Prayer which we call Confeffion; while the Minifter is reading it, let the Congregation have in their Minds ever fo diftinct a View of the Force of every Branch of it; let them, at that Time, be poffeffed with the strongest Sense of their Guilt, and Folly; let the Paffions of Self-indignation, Shame, and Fear, be ever fo ftrongly excited, and their Refolutions of Amendment ever fo firmly fixed, yet all this does not amount to praying, or confeffing, any more than bearing a Sermon, or reading a Difcourfe upon that Subject, with the fame Affections, does. This Act of the Mind confifts in addreffing, or Speaking, thofe Thoughts to the Object of our Worship. If this Addrefs of the Mind be accompanied with a Voice, and outward Gestures, we then, Speak to him in the fame manner that we speak to one another; but, as the Object of

our Worthp is always present to our Minds, and privy to all our Thoughts, we may speak to him by an internal Direction of our Souls, without the Help of the Organs of Speech, or of bodily Geftures; but, without this Direction, or Addrefs of the Mind, which is properly, speaking, we cannot be faid to confefs our Sins, but only to think of them. And thus it is with regard to. every other Part of Prayer. It is very difficult to make myself understood by common Readers, who are unaccustomed to Diftinctions of this kind, or, indeed of any other; but, I exprefs myself as intelligibly as I can; and the Subject is of fuch Importance that it deferves their most ferious Attention, and Confideration, in order to know whether they have really performed the Duty of Prayer, or only feemed to have done it; for, upon the Propriety of their Performance muft, in a great measure, depend the Success of it.

In answer to this, it may be objected, that the Congregation, by faying Amen, at the end of every Collect do as effectually make the whole their own; and that by directing their Minds to God while they repeat that Word, they may be as truly faid to have offered up every Part of it, as if they had offered up every Part of it along with the Minifter: But, this I must utterly deny. They do, indeed, thereby publickly declare to the People their Approbation of the whole, and offer up to God the whole Collect together; but it is not the fame thing as if they had fo joined with the Minifter in every Part of the Collect, as to have offer'd up every Part of it in their

own

own Minds (by fuch a Direction of them as I have been speaking of) at the fame Time that the Minister spoke the Words; neither can such a general Offering up the whole, after the Minifter has done, have the fame Effect upon the Minds of the People, as if they had, all along, joined with bim in a particular Direction of every Part of it to God, at the fame Time that he did. To illuftrate this, let us fuppofe the Congregation, knowing, and remembring, every Part of a Collect, not to attend to it while the Minifter is reading, but to think of fomething else till he has read the whole, and then to say Amen; I afk, would this be as truly, and effectually, offering up to God every Part of it in their own Minds, as if they had joined with him in a particular Direction of theit Minds to God; thro' every Part of it at the fame Time with him; yet, faying Amen, at the end of thofe Collects which we do not repeat after the Minifter, is neceffary in order to publish our having mentally joined in every Part of it.

2. It is poffible that this Difcourfe may chance to fall into the Hands of fome of the Diffenters; and, if it should, with the utmost Benevolence and Chriftian Affection I intreat them seriously to apply what I have faid to themselves; hoping, that they will have Integrity and Wisdom enough to lay afide all manner of Prejudice, and weigh this important Affair with the Impartiality which it deferves. It is very far from my Intention to be any ways affrontive or provoking, (and let the Reader remember this in every Part of my Book,

where