gainer; and, if he neglects it, no man is a lofer thereby. If he worships God this way or that way, whilft no man is injured in his fo doing, he cannot, in the nature of the thing, be the proper object of publick refentment or correction. The ground and foundation of fociety, and confequently of government, I take to be this: man is a dependent creature, who in a fingle capacity is not qualified to procure the comforts, nor guard against the evils of life; fo that he is not only from the reason of the thing, and from his focial affections, led into fociety, but also from his natural indigent condition in life, is under a kind of neceffity to fall into it, or of conftituting a publick intereft; by which means every individual is, or at least ought to be obliged to perform his part towards the support of the whole, and confequently of each individual, which they, in their fingle capacity, were not capable of doing for themselves. And likewife by this means all proper meafures are, or ought to be taken to guard and fecure each individual from that injury and harm, which they, in their fingle capacity, are not qualified to fecure themfelves from. And as governours are no other than the minifters and reprefentatives of society, who act for them, and in their place and ftead, fo they cannot, in the nature of the thing, have any just demand upon an individual, except in those cafes in which it is for the publick good neither can they justly lay a restraint upon an individual, but in thofe cafes in which the publick is injur'd; and confequently they can have no right, as governours, to demand the ufe of thofe modes of worship which they provide, nor to punish men for diffenting from them, because the publick is not benefited by the former, nor injured by the latter. And,

Whereas it is urged, that diffent from the forms of worship, which the government has appointed, introduces diforder, and is injurious to fociety: it must be granted, that there has been difference of opinions, with refpect to the forms of worship among chriftians; men have likewife diffented from thofe forms. which the government has appointed; much diforder has followed, and much injury has been done to fociety hereby. But then it is to be remembered, that fuch diforder, &c. did not fpring from a liberty of diffent, but from a refraint of that liberty. If men were left perfectly at liberty to worship God in the way which every man judged beft, no diforder or injury to fociety could poffibly attend it, provided there was nothing in the act of worship injurious to others. If every particular family had a particular mode of worship, no one could be a fufferer hereby, and confequently no injury is done to jociety. But, if governours reftrain that liberty, by punishing diffenters, then every evil follows. Men are then afflicted and grieved without any juft caufe; they are tempted to be hypocrites, to violate their natural confciences; their refentment is raised, and they are by this means drawn into faults, which otherwise they would not be guilty of. It likewife gives evil-minded men an opportunity of infulting and triumphing over their perfecuted neighbours, of loading them with reproach, and taking every opportunity of adding to their burden. It would be endless to enumerate all the evils which attend the restraint of liberty in this cafe. Add to this, that the disorders and injuries done to fociety, here referr'd to, did not, ftrictly speaking, fpring from men's different religious opini

ons,

ons, or modes of worship, but from that worldly wealth, and authority to direct the understandings and confciences of men, which have been tacked to them, and which the leaders of each party have been too apt to affume to themselves. If no worldly advantage or disadvantage had attended men's religious opinions, or modes of worship, which in reafon ought not, then, I imagine, the difputes about epifcopacy and presbytery, about forms and extemporary prayer, and the like, would not have been injurious or hurtful to mankind: but when honours, large poffeffions, and authority are tacked to this or that fet of opinions, or this or that mode of worship, this has proved a powerful temptation to each party to make ufe of all methods, how unjustifiable foever, to gain or fecure them; and this has introduced a world of evils and mifery upon mankind. It is not enough to fay, in this cafe, that it were better if all men did worship God in the fame way, because then there would be no place for contention upon this foot. For admitting this to be true, yet it is what is not to be expected; and to attempt to procure it by perfecution is to make use of a defperate remedy, indeed, a remedy a thousand times worse than the disease; a remedy, which has already done fo much mischief in the world, that one would think every good man fhould tremble at the thoughts of it. But farther, If there fhould be urged, in favour of perfecution, fuch texts as thefe, Matt. xv. 13. Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. I answer, I fhail not take upon me to enquire into the fense of those words of Chrift, or of any other text in which men think that perfecution is countenanced: all I fhall obferve is this, that each religious party will be fure to interpret them in their own favour, and to the prejudice of those who are contrary-minded to them. And from hence it will follow, that if those words are a proper argument, and the ground and reason for perfecution to one fect of christians, then they will be fo to every other fect. And this, indeed, would make good, in a literal fenfe, thofe other words of Chrift, that he came not to bring peace on the earth, but a fword; because this would lay a foundation for a thorough perfecution, and Christendom would become a field of blood. The Papifts, of courfe, will confider themselves to be the vineyard which the Lord hath planted, and that all other fects and parties of chriftians are plants which their heavenly Father hath not planted, and which, therefore, are to be rooted up. The cafe will be the fame, with refpect to Proteftants: the epifcopal party will confider themselves as branches of God's planting, and that all other fects are plants which their heavenly Father hath not planted, and therefore are to be rooted up. The Presbyterians will likewife, of course, confider themselves as branches of the Lord's planting, and that all others are plants which their heavenly Father hath not planted, and therefore are to be rooted up. This language and reasoning will fuit Independents, Anabaptifts, Quakers, Muggletonians, and all other fects and parties of chriftians whatever: they are, each of them, in their own eftimation, the branch of God's planting, the work of his hand; whereas all others are plants which their heavenly Father hath not planted, and therefore are to be rooted up. In fhort, this is fuch language and reafoning as will fuit all parties, and all countries, as well North and SouthBritain, as Spain or Portugal: every man may gird his fword upon his thigh, Qq

and

and go forth in the name and strength of the Lord his God, and flay till he has laid heap upon heap, becaufe every plant which his heavenly Father hath not planted, is to be plucked up root and branch. Thus ftands the cafe, if perfecution be admitted upon fuch reasoning, as above. But can fo vile a thing as perfecution, which introduces nothing but mifery into this world, and which anfwers no good end, with relation to another; Can that, I fay, be justified, or so much as countenanced from the religion of Christ? no, certainly. The chriftian religion is excellently calculated to promote the common tranquillity, by recommending peace, unanimity, forbearance, brotherly kindness, and univerfal charity to our practice. Yea, it recommends loving and doing good, and contributing all we can to each other's happiness in this world, as the only fure way to obtain the happiness of another: and therefore one would think it above the skill of the most subtle sophister, to extract the deadly poison of persecution from it. And yet, how monstrous and unnatural foever this may be, it has proved true in fact: chriftians have not only perfecuted, but they have likewise endeavour'd to justify their conduct herein, from the chriftian revelation; which, were it not for the commonnefs of it, would be too furprizing a thing to be imagined. Upon the whole, I hope it appears that error is not damnable, and that perfecution is not juftifiable.

The ufe I would make of this difcourfe is to obferve, that as perfecution is an evil thing and bitter, and which can by no means be justified, as I have before fhewn; fo it is high time that it were banished out of the chriftian world. Alas! How many weeping eyes and aching hearts has it cauflefly produced, and how many precious lives have been facrificed as victims to it? Is it not, then, full time for christians to think with themselves, that perfecution is not a beauty, but a blemish to their profeffion? and that as their obligation to love, and do good to each other, arifes from their being men, who are, by nature, entered into the one great fociety, or commonwealth of mankind; fo it is not their different opinions in any point, which can poffibly cancel or take off this obligation? And, as perfecution is exceeding vile in itself, fo it does not change its nature from the different hands thro which it paffes: it continues the fame in all countries, in all parties, and in all perfons, tho it is, indeed, less excufable in fome than in others, as being more inconfiftent with fome men's principles, than with other men's. And thus perfecution is lefs excufable in a Protestant than in a Papist, as I have fhewn above. And tho fome men are apt to see it in a different light, when they view it in another party, than when they see it in their own, it being gilded over, and called by another name in the latter cafe; yet it is not really another, but the fame thing. The afflicting and grieving men, for the fake of their religious principles, is perfecution, whether it be in Poland or in Britain: and therefore it ought to be equally detefted by us. many cruelties practifed by the Roman Catholicks have often deeply affected the proteftant world, and made every tender heart to bleed; and yet Proteftants have been too apt to cherish that viper in their own bofoms, which, when seen at a distance preying upon others, raifes in them fo much horror and indignation. And, as perfecution does not change its nature, from the different hands by which it is executed, fo neither is it lefs perfecution, by reafon of the diffe

The

rent

rent way, or the different degree in which it is practifed. The afflicting and grieving men, for the fake of their opinions, is perfecution, in what way, or in what degree foever it takes place. He that makes his neighbour's differing from him, in opinion, the ground and reafon of his contributing to his unhappiness, is guilty of perfecution, whether he afflicts him in this or that way, or to a greater or lefs degree. Perfecution in its notorious inftances (fuch as the cruelties of the inquifition, the maffacres of France or Ireland, the burnings of Smithfield, the executions at Thorn, and the like) is exceeding shocking to human nature, as it makes a deep impreffion upon the more tender part of our compofition, viz. our affections, and thereby chills our blood, when we reflect upon it. And as the greater inftances only deeply affect us, and ftrike us with horror; fo fome men are apt to think that these only are vile, and come under the name of perfecution: whereas every injury, done to our neighbour, for the fake of his religious principles, is perfecution, and has the fame natural vileness, of what degree foever it be. It fprings from the fame root, and would, if indulged, carry men to the highest severities. The fame fpirit which disposes one man to bring another before the judgment-feat, in order to have him fined or imprisoned, for his advancing a propofition which contradicts another propofition that had been advanced before, would, if indulged, difpofe him to hale the other to execution, tho, poffibly, it is what at firft he did not intend. If those men who are for moderate perfecution, as fome call it, fhould be told, that the time would come in which they would imbrue their hands in the blood of their innocent neighbours, they would be apt to cry out with Hazael, Am I a dog, that I should do this great wickedness? And yet the fame motive, and the fame fpirit which difpofed them to the lefs, would, if followed effectually, lead them on to do the greater evil.

Is it then not high time for chriftians, of all denominations whatever, to put on the spirit of christianity, by putting on that fpirit and temper which abundantly fhewed itself in him whofe name they bear? The fpirit of Chrift is a fpirit of love, and love worketh no ill to its neighbour. And as our being animated by this fpirit is what will be an evidence to us that we are Chrift's true Difciples; fo this will be fuch an antidote as will effectually expel and purge out of us the poisonous spirit of perfecution. Perfecution is of a growing nature: and, when once it breaks out, we cannot poffibly judge where it will ftop: and, therefore, we ought carefully to guard against all approaches to it, which will be effectually done by fubjecting our tempers and actions to Chrift's law of love. And, as we ought to purge out every thing that may difpofe us to perfecution, fo we ought, from the reafon of the thing, to use our endeavours to check and controul it, when or wherever it appears. Perfecution is a deadly evil, which every heart and every hand fhould be engaged to banish from this world. We are all, by nature, united in the one great fociety, or commonwealth of mankind: and tho we are divided into kingdoms, nations, &c. which are parts and branches of that one great fociety; yet our union with one part does not deftroy our relation, nor take off our obligations to the rest. We are, by nature, fo far made guardians of each other's happiness, as that it becomes our duty, when their neceffity calls, and our ability enables, to minif0 g 2

ter

ter affiftance and fuccour to them. Let then every Proteftant, every chriftian, every man put forth his endeavour to fupprefs and banish, as a common evil, perfecution from this globe. But,

O Happy, thrice happy Britain! fhe fitteth as a Queen among the nations, and as a Princess among the provinces, and knows no fuch forrow, being under the guardianship of a Prince*, whofe reign has not been polluted and ftained with the blood of perfecution, and I trust will not; a Prince who has hitherto not only made Britain's enemies to be at peace with her, but has kept her also from offering violence to herself, and from thrufting a dagger into her own breaft; which is the cafe of perfecution. Her children, tho differing much in their religious fentiments (which, poffibly, is the cafe all the world over, where men have not padlocks put upon their understandings) may every one fit down under his own vine, and under his fig-tree, enjoying the fruits of their own labour, and have none to make them afraid. In her the fons of violence cannot hurt; and, by the bleffing of a good government, the lionik, wolfish spirit, which is greedy of prey, and longs to devour, is made peaceably to lie down with the lamb, yea, the kid, the fatling, and the young lion lie down together. O Britain! may fuch peace long continue within thy walls, and plenteoufnefs within thy palaces: and may thy happy days be lengthened out to many generations: be thou as a city, that is at unity in itself, whofe members are cemented together by the spirit of love. Let thy virtue and goodness render thee amiable in the fight of the nations; and let thy glory fhine forth as the fun at noon-day. May thy guardian angel long continue to be fuch; let him not go down to the grave, till he hath filled up a good old age, and be gathered to his fathers as a fhock of corn that is full ripe. May the Princes that spring out of his loins be Britain's Protectors to our lateft pofterity. And, O that it may be a diadem in their crown, that they have answered the purposes of government, by guarding and fecuring the happiness of this people. And may every defign formed against them, or Britain's profperity, be blafted and brought to nought. But, can there be any man who can wish the removal of fuch a government, whilft they happily live under the protection of it? If any fuch there are, as they must be monsters in nature, fo I trust their number is but small. We are guarded from enemies abroad, and kept in the quiet poffeffion of bleffing at home, which government was defigned to fecure to us. And what farther can we wish for? Not, furely, for the return of a Popish Pretender, because that is to with the return of popery, the return of mifery. Popery is an engine fitted to destroy and lay waste the happiness of mankind, by introducing oppreffion, tyranny, and perfecution. Can then any man, who wishes Britain's glory and happinefs, defire the removal of that Prince, that family from the throne, which are our only fecurity? And can he wish for the placing a Popish Preten der in their stead? No, that is an apparent contradiction; every fuch perfon being, in the nature of the thing, an enemy to Britain's happiness.

every

To conclude, let perfecution ceafe; and be no more heard of, either in Bri tain or in this world. And let peace and tranquillity flourish and prevail in this and in all lands. And then the gracious purpose of our kind Creator will be fully answered, in the common felicity of his creatures: to which I am perfuaded every good man will fay, Amen. *K. George I.

TREA