either the national church, or any other church which he may prefer. The temptations to pretended diffent, the complicated and endless collufions, which muft enfue, were the legislature to exempt any man from tythes who fhould profefs not to belong to the national church, would render fuch a plan fubverfive both of the national church and of fincerity.

But why is the national church hedged round with creeds and articles? Because otherwife it either could not exift at all, or could not exift with public utility. Would you have a pulpit open to be filled in the morning by a proteftant, in the afternoon by a catholic; to-day by a follower of Socinus; next week by a difciple of Swedenborg? Would a congregation be edified and confirmed in "the truth as it is in Jefus," by hearing the fundamental doctrines of Chriftianity alternately afferted, queftioned, denied? In primitive times, when a variety of doctrines fprang up among Chriftians; particular churches perceived the neceffity of manifefting their opinions by drawing up creeds and confeffions of faith. At the reformation, the church of England, like other proteftant churches, added to the creeds adopted in its congregations a fummary of its faith, con

tained in thirty-nine articles; and directed them to be presented for the affent of any person who fhould apply to be admitted to the office of minifter in the church, as a teft by which it might be known whether his fentiments accorded with the doctrines of the church. If they did not, he was of course an unfit perfon to be appointed one of its public teachers. The fame practice is continued for the fame reason.

Is the ecclefiaftical establishment then, it will finally be faid, free from attendant imperfections and mifconduct? It is free from neither. Shall I exprefs the answer in other words? It is a human inftitution adminiftered by men. Every work of man is tinctured with imperfection; every proceeding of man with mifconduct. But what is the rational line of argument? Take the most obvious of examples, civil government, and apply it. A king may be oppreffive. Is a republic likely to be lefs oppreffive? An hereditary crown may devolve into unworthy hands. Did the condition of Poland before its downfall recommend an elective monarchy? A parliament may be mifguided or corrupted. Would

you be ruled without a parliament by the defpotifm of an individual or of a mob? The utmost to be expected in a human institution

is,

is, that the advantages fhould greatly preponderate; and that difadvantages fhould be open to confideration and remedy. Try the ecclefiaftical cftablishment and the adminiftration of it by the first part of this rule. If afterwards you ftill feel a doubt remaining, remember with gratitude to heaven that you live under the legislature of a free country; a legiflature empowered to apply a remedy in its wisdom to any of thofe defects which, according to the common fate of all things below, may adhere to its nobleft works.

CHAP. XIII.

CONCLUSION.

IF the fummary accounts, which the preceding chapters furnish concerning the several fubjects of which they treat, have tended to evince the goodnefs and the providence of God; to eftablish the truth of Chriftianity, and of the proteftant faith; and to explain the nature and the utility of our ecclefiaftical eftablishment: the conviction thus produced may jufly derive additional confirmation from every enquiry into the detail of those topics, of which only the leading features have been sketched. The profecution of fuch enquiries, as the fource of most important knowledge, and of ftedfaft, rational, and uncontaminated faith, it is difficult to recommend with adequate folicitude. May the reader profecute them, under the divine bleffing, with the attention which they deferve; and with a difpofition adapted to the difcovery and to the love of truth! In the mean time, he will receive, I truft, with candour

fome concluding, and, perhaps, not unneceffary obfervations relative to Christian faith and to Chriftian practice.

I. Young perfons who, though little if at all inftructed in the evidences and groundwork of Christianity, have been accustomed, during their education, to the society, the language, and the public worship of Chrif tians, ufually come forth into active life, not only with full perfuafion of the truth of their religion, but with fcarcely a fufpicion that there can be many perfons in this country who doubt or difbelieve it. An avowed fceptic, or unbeliever, is in their eyes a phenomenon like a comet. And every one who is not a notorious fceptic or unbeliever they regard as, in faith at least, though perhaps not in practice, a good Chriftian. It may be well for them to know, without waiting until the leffon be inculcated by longer experience of the world, that they have formed a scanty conception of the number of thofe, who take little pains to conceal their fcepticism, or their unbelief; and that there exifts in the middle and higher claffes of fociety a large defcription of perfons, who, without openly rejecting Christianity, can by no means be faid to believe it. That the number of those who do not embrace the gofpel affords no argu

2

ment,