، into your Heart: What Enemy (ƒ) more outrageous and troublesom have fome Men than their own Pleafures, which when they have once ⚫ made familiar and cuftomary, they can't get rid of 'em, but are as it were drown'd in them whe-. •ther they will or no. For, fuch is the unhappy. • Condition of the Voluptuous, that they are Slaves to their Pleasures without the true Enjoyment of ''em; and what is the greateft Misfortune of all, they hug their Chain : Therefore don't think ye are fo foon free. The Jefuits will not fail to fay, that all these Pagans are Quefnellifts; and for this very good Reason, because they teach all the Truths that are oppofite to their Errors. But there are others behind, who by no means believe that the Converfion of Sinners is wrought fo fpeedily as thofe Fathers imagine; or that the Tranfition is fo rapid as they say it is from Vice to Virtue. No no, a Man does not become honeft with the fame Eafe as he does a Libertine: As Plato fays very justly, We fall (g) eafily into Vice; we run into it, as one may fay, full speed. But 'tis not fo with Virtue: The Gods expect that we should go thro' many Toils and Sweats before we attain to it; and they have made the Road tedious and difficult.' The Poet Lucilius makes ufe of the fame Term to exprefs the fame Truth: The (b) Gods, Ja (f) Quis hoftis in quemquam tam contumeliofus fuit, quam in quofdam voluptates fuæ funt? Voluptatibus itaque fe mergunt, quibus in confuetudinem adductis carere non poffunt -ferviunt itaque voluptatibus, non fruuntur; & mala fua, quod malorum ultimum eft, amant. Sen. Ep. xxxix. p. 136. t. 2. (g) See the abovemention'd Author, p. 48. where you'll find the Paffage in the Latin. (b) Virtutem voluere Dii fudore parari Arduus eft ad eam, longufque per ardua tractus, Lucil. be, be, have decreed, that Virtue fhall only be attain⚫ed by the Sweat of the Brow. The Road which "leads to it is tedious, painful, and difficult. 'Tis steep at the first fetting out; but when you have ❝furmounted the lofty Cliffs, the Path to illuftrious Virtue, which you at firft thought impaffable, • will become eafy, and then you'll be recompens❜d for all your Toil.' I did not care to fupprefs these last Words, because I had a Mind to fhew, that the Pagans would not only have refus'd Abfolution, but at the fame time would have comforted their Penitents. Now from all these fine Principles let us draw the Confequence, which is perfectly natural and plain; but must be terrible to the Bull, and to you the Vicars of the good Shepherd. Now, according to Perfius, Horace, Catullus, Seneca, Plato, and Lucilius, a Perfon must be ignorant of the Nature of Sin, who thinks that Converfion is a Work of Rapidity, and in confequence that an habitual Sinner may be immediately reconcil'd to God. Therefore, 'tis a Behaviour full of Wisdom, of Light, and of Charity, to defer Abfolution to fuch as are fo liable to Sin: And by the Rule of Contraries, 'tis a Behaviour full of Folly, Blindnefs, and Cruelty, to grant fudden Abfolution to Sinners of this kind: Yet, Fathers, this is your Fehaviour, and what the Bull authorizes; but 'tis a Behaviour difallow'd by holy Men, and condemn'd by the Profane : whereas the Conduct of Father Quefnel is justify'd by all Tradition, (i) all the Fathers, all the Doctors of the Church; and before their time, by the wifeft of the Pagans. (i) See the 10th Part of the Hexaples, Tom. iv. Discipline of Penance, p. 348. You You have more to say still, my Fathers. Your Father Francolin deferves a particular Attention. But before we produce his Sentiments, 'tis fit the Publick fhould know, that Baldhaffar Francolin, a famous Divine of the Jefuits Society, caus'd a Theological Tract to be printed at Rome in the Year 1705, with the Permiffion of Clement XI. the then Pope, intitled, (k) The Roman Clergyman forewarn'd against too much Severity; in which he has mufter'd up the feveral extravagant Sayings of the Cafuifts, relating to the Administration of the Sacrament of Penance, in order to defend them : That is to fay, this Jefuit took Pains from that time to juftify the new Doctrine of his Brothers; to the End, that when the Bull had difpers'd the old Doctrine, the new might be the only one of weight and authority in the Church. After this fhort Preamble, let us juft call to mind what this Romish Clergyman told us before, concerning the primitive Fathers of the Church: That they talk'd like Orators when they exhorted to Virtue, and demanded a tedious painful Penance, try'd and animated by Charity.?----Let us alfo not forget that curious Secret he discover'd to us; That it was the Refult of Wisdom altogether ⚫ divine, that the Jefuits had found out fo gentle and agreeable a Method in the Adminiftration of the Sacraments, inftead of the antient Severity: A Severity, fays he, which, far from reftraining Licentioufnefs, has been the occafion of augmenting it, by diverting from Penance those whom ⚫ it did not turn aside from Sin.' To these Strokes we will add what he tells us further, which is perfectly comfortable. (k) Clericus Romanus contra nimium rigorem monitus, &c. (1) Our prefent Condition, fays he, with a pofitive confident Air, is much happier than theirs was who liv'd in the foregoing Ages:---And why? Is it because inftead of Cyprians and Auguftins, we have Efcobards, Tambourins, Baunis, Valencias, Francolins, Archdekins, and the like? most certainly. Says this Romish Clergyman again, (m) I deny that there was more Piety in that infant • Church which you call rigid and fevere, than "there is in it now.' What this Piety is, which truly flourishes in our Time, and for which we are oblig'd to the Jefuits, we fhall fee presently. (n) • Never till now, fays he, were the Churches fo fplendid; never fo many Spectacles, or Shews of Piety in our Temples, fo many religious Of'fices, nor fo many Remedies for the Cure of • Souls.'---What Jargon is here! Remedies, Spectacles, Offices, fine Churches: yea, Francolins and Archdekins; this favours ftrongly of a Stage-Player, and not of an Orator. Alas! be it known to you Father Francolin, and your whole Tribe; know, that with all your Practices of eafy Piety, were they even as your Father Le Moine fays, (o) more eafy than Vice, and more agreeable than Pleafure: Know, that with all your trifling Reme• dies of Weekly, or at moft Monthly Expiations, which are made for Crimes with more Alacrity (1) Effe longè meliorem noftrorum temporum conditionem quam præcedentium. Franc. Tom. ii. Difp. 11. p. 312. (m) Loquor de fidelibus Ecclefiæ adolefcentis, quam feveram & rigidam appellas: hanc ergo fanctiorem fuiffe nego. Ibid. P. 314. (2) Nunquam uberiora fuerunt adjumenta, quàm modò, cum tantus eft Templorum nitor, tot in Templis pietatis fpectacula, tot officia religiofa, quæ exercitationes tam variæ -tot morbis animæ curandis remedia. Ibid. p.313. (0) In his Book of Easy Devotion, p. 291. than than they were formerly committed (p);' know, that with all your Spectacles or Shews, which are not fo edifying as they are fcandalous and profane, by reafon of the Luxury and Immodefty of the Perfons who affift therein: Know, that when all's done, ye are but Quacks: Know, in fhort, that with all your fine, magnificent, gilded Churches, ye are nothing before God but whited Sepulchres, if Love, reprefented by that Gold, doth not dwell in your Hearts. Perhaps you think I am fending you to Jefus Chrift or St. Paul to learn this Truth: you are mistaken, thofe Masters are too fublime for you. Perfius is the Man I recommend you to: Hear the Queftion this Poet is going to put to you, and fince you can't answer it, he will for you. 'Tell me, (q) ye Pontifices, or Gentlemen Pontiffs, for what ufe is all this Gold in your facred • Places? Why it fignifies juft as much as the jointed • Babies, which when the Girls are too big to play * with they offer to Venus. Hear now what this Pagan is going to add; Let us Let us prefent the Gods with an honeft, fincere, generous Heart, affected with the moft lively Paffion for Juftice and Honour: That's all I wish to give them, and I am fure of obtaining what I want, tho I should give them no other Sacrifice than a little Meal ' and Salt.'---But to offer fuch a Heart as this to the Deity, would be relapfing into the Practice of (P) Alacrius multo atque ardentius fcelera jam expiantur, quam ante folebant committi: nihil jam menftruâ, nihil hebdomadaria expiatione moribus receptum magis, In the Picture of the first Century, L. iii. c. 8. p. 372. (4) Dicite, Pontifices, in fanéto quid facit Aurum ? Compofitum jus fafque animi, fanctofque receffus G • the |