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of the Community, of which he is a Member, because he can give no Security to it for his good Behaviour, as having no Principles, no Confcience to bind him to it. If there be any Perfons among us fo unhappy in their Education, fo aukward in their Way of Thinking, that they cannot fee fufficient Évidence for the Truth of Revelation after the most diligent and impartial Enquiry [which, however, cannot well be fuppos'd] we will believe them to be in Earneft, when we fee them seriously applying to Parliament, as all other Diffenters from the establish'd Religion have done, for the Liberty of worshipping God in their own Way. But, while they worship no God at all, we are to confider them as perfect Infidels, who deny his Exiftence, or, at beft, as Epicureans, who deny his Providence, both which Notions are equally abfurd in themselves and equally detrimental to Society. And, yet, in Oppofition to the Sentiments of St. Paul, to the Reproach of Common Senfe, to the great Scandal and Prejudice of our Country, Men, who make no Manner of Profeffion of any Religion, nay, and who openly profess that they have none, and make a Jeft of all that have any, are not only permitted to call themselves by the honourable Name of Chriftians, not only to enjoy the common Privileges of a Chriftian Community, but are admitted, frequently, into the moft reputable Situations, into Places of Truft

and

and Power, into the Familiarity and Intimacy of the most respected, best beloved Friends.* Thus we fee that the Affembling of ourfelves together for publick Worship is fo effential to Religion, that a total, or general, Abftinence from them, (for an occafional Attendance may be refolv'd into Curiofity, or temporal Interest, and fo confequently can be no Argument of our Faith) is to be understood as a Renunciation of it; which, I think, is a very fufficient Proof of the great Importance of the Duty.

But, as it is in its own Nature fo much of the Effence of Religion, that we cannot rea

* These Infidels generally affect to pafs under the Denomination of Deifts; but upon an Acquaintance with Them, (as I have had with feveral; and, having been faithful in not betraying the Confidence which They placed in Me, They spoke their Sentiments without any Referve) They always profefs'd Themselves Infidels at large, who believ'd no Religious Truths at all. EvenThefe Atheifts, tho' They cannot be oblig'd in Confcience, (there being no fuch Thing as Confcience without a God) if there could be fuch a Thing as a Tie, or OBLIGATION, upon Them, would be oblig'd, to encourage fome Sort of publick Worship, because it has been, from Experience, the Opinion of All Ages and Nations, that Society cannot fubfift without Virtue, nor Virtue without Religious WORSHIP. The publick Good requires This from Them; and, if there be no Being that fees into their Hearts, and can call Them to an Account for it, They cannot have any reasonable Scruples about Acting an Hypocritical Part. It must be to Them as indifferent a Thing as taking a Walk, or fpending an Hour in any other Way, whether of Bufinefs, or Amusement. I have been credibly inform'd that, upon This Perfuafion, Collins went to Church very regularly, for the Sake of fetting an Example, tho' his Vanity made Him fpoil all by Employing himself in Reading fomething else, instead of Appearing to join in the Service.

fonably

fonably pretend to any Religion without it; fo is it, likewife, a neceffary Means of Religion; neceffary in Order to preferve in our Minds a true Senfe of it, and to enable us to perform the Duties of it-And it is a Means of Religion both in a natural, and preternatural Way.

Firft, It is in itself a natural Means of improving our religious Sentiments and Difpofitions. For, what can more naturally tend to give us an awful Senfe of God, a Love and Fear of him, than our Affembling together to acknowledge him with united Voices, to be the common Parent and Support of the whole World? To celebrate his adorable Perfections? And to pay our joint Tribute of Thanksgiving for the many Inftances of his Goodness to us? The very Exercise of these religious Acts will help to increase the religious Thoughts from whence they flow. They act upon each other like the Soul and the Body; and, by the Help of the Senfes, will produce much stranger Effects than any private Meditations, or Addreffes to God. In the Performance of publick, or joint, Prayer, the Looks, and Geftures, and Voices of the Congregation will excite and inflame in each other pious Affections. For Inftance, The united Voice of a Number of People, confeffing their Sins to God with a proper Tone of Voice, accompanied with fuitable Looks and Geftures, expreffive of Sorrow, and Shame, and Fear; This, I fay, will have a much

a much greater Effect towards anfwering the proper Ends of Confeffion than a private Acknowledgment of their Sins is naturally fitted to produce, because the Condition of the Mind, during its Union with the Body, is fuch, that it neceffarily receives ftrong Impreffions from external Objects. In like Manner the Voice of Joy and Gratitude, in our Songs of Praife and Thanksgiving, will help to produce, or increase, thofe Emotions and Affections of which they are naturally expreffive. I am not now ufing any abstracted, or difficult Arguments, but only fpeaking what every one of you knows, and feels to be

true.

Tho' thefe be natural Means, which, affifted by the fupernatural Influence of God's holy Spirit, will produce their genuine Effects of Piety, and Virtue; yet, they will not, alone, answer thofe great Ends. Grace affifts natural Means, and does not operate without them, tho' it cou'd act as inftantaneously, as when the Word of God's Power fpake the World into Being. But, fecond Caufes in religious Matters will do nothing without the Concurrence of God, the First Caufe of all Things. If a Perfon, without any Devotion were to be present in a Congregation, where the most ardent Piety was exprefs'd in their Looks, their Voices, and their Geftures, he wou'd as naturally and neceffarily find himself affected, as a Man is mov'd by a fine Picture,

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a mufical Voice, or a good Inftrument: but, they wou'd not produce any permanent Effects towards making him a better Christian, without the fecret Operation of the original Fountain of all divine, as well as natural Life. The fame Spirit which first mov'd upon the Face of the Waters, muft move upon our Hearts. The natural Means are to our Souls, like the Wood upon the Altar, which was lighted by the Fire that defcended from above. The Neceffity of God's preventing and affifting Grace, towards an acceptable Performance of our Duty, is plainly afferted in the tenth Article of our Church, in these Words: "The "Condition of Man after the Fall of Adam is "fuch, that he cannot turn and prepare him"felf, by his own natural Strength, and good "Works, to Faith and Calling upon God. "Wherefore, we have no Power to do good "Works pleasant and acceptable to God "without the Grace of God preventing us, "that we may have a good Will, and work

ing with us when we have That good "Will." The fame Notion runs through our whole Liturgy. I make no Doubt but that thofe Heathens, who made fuch confiderable Advances in the Knowledge of God, and Improvements in moral Virtues, had fome extraordinary Affiftances, tho' in a much lower Degree than good Chriftians enjoy that heavenly Gift. When Tully, one of the moft eminent of them fays, every extraordinary Genius had

the