So prone are men to entertain an idea of different deities, fuperintending different provinces in nature, and the administration of human affairs, that even after the difpenfation of the gofpel, when it might be thought that the doctrine of the unity of God, and the adminiftration of providence by himself, on which so much stress is laid in the fcriptures, had been fully established, idolatry again crept into the worship of imperfect mortals. The human mind was again distracted, and the human character again debafed, by an attention to a multiplicity of objects of worship, and the one true God was again overlooked, even by Chriftians.

Wholly occupied in their devotion to the virgin Mary, and innumerable other faints and angels, whom alone the fuperftitious Catholics addrefs on all the different occafions of human life, one, for example, for failors, and others for other defcriptions of men, or men in other fituations, the worship of Christians came to have as many objects as that of the Heathens. Christian idolatry had, however, this advantage over Heathen

ifm, that no Chriftian faint was the patron of vice, though its influence with refpect to morals was greatly diminished many fubftitutes being provided for moral virtue, which the worship of one God, and that a Being of perfect purity, would never have admitted.

How, then, does experience, or obfervation, juftify us in fuppofing that fupernatural instruction was not neceffary with refpect to the great articles of the unity of God, and the purity of his worship, as a guard against immorality in the worshippers? As it were to convince us of the contrary, God was pleased to permit whole nations of men, the moft famed for their wisdom and knowledge in other refpects, to fink into the most deplorable ignorance of his nature and worship, teaching a chofen and despised few the true knowledge of himfelf, and the purity of his worship, and by their means gradually enlightening the minds of the reft of mankind; and thankful should we be that this falutary light has reached us.

If we confider (but few perfons have fuf

ficient

ficient knowledge of antiquity to do it) how much of men's time was taken up by omens, and the bufinefs of divination, fo as miferably to distress their minds, and impede their exertions, in all Heathen countries, we shall be equally thankful for the pofitive, authoritative prohibition of such fuperftitious obfervances, by the univerfal parent of mankind, before their own reafon could difcover the vanity and folly of them. What imaginable connexion had the eagerness of chickens to eat their food in the morning, or the parti cular form of the liver of a victim, killed at that time, with the event of a battle in the coufe of the day? and yet the Romans, experienced as they were in the art of war, and who therefore had fufficient opportunity to discover the fallacy of those things, were never able to diveft themfelves of the idea of their being true prognoftics. Of what confequence was it whether an army began its march before, or after, the full moon? and yet the Lacedemonians, the most famous, not only for bravery, but for military skill in general, were the most

8

rigid

rigid obfervers of it. And if, towards the latter periods of the Grecian and Roman histories, the general and principal officers had the good fenfe to get above fo filly a prejudice, they were under the neceffity of deceiving the common foldiers by false reports of omens.

But, indeed, the wifeft of the Greeks and Romans were often among the most fuperftitious, and their affairs fuffered moft materially in confequence of it. The finest army that the Athenians ever fent out, and eventually the ftate itself, was ruined by the general refusing to put to fea during an eclipfe of the moon.

The bufinefs of divination and omens made a great part of the religion of all the Heathen nations, whether civilized or not. How then should that of the Jews be the only one that escaped? But by their lawgiver they were taught to hold all thofe practices in just contempt and abhorrence. Of themselves they could no more have been able to fee the folly of these obfervances than other people. They muft, therefore, have had their fuperior informa

any

tion from a Being who knew more of the real laws of nature, and the true causes of events, than of the human race; and who did not choofe that this deplorable ignorance, fo debafing to the mind, and fo prejudicial to men's affairs, fhould be univerfal; but that one nation, by no means fo much improved in other respects as their neighbours, fhould be free from it; and that by their means this freedom from fuperftition, as well as idolatry, should be extended to all the world.

How prone men are to fuperftition, we fee even among Christians, notwithstanding the light of divine revelation, and not only in the remains of Heathenifm, which are numberless among the common people in all Chriftian countries, but in things peculiar to Christianity. Whatever connects the favour of God and future happiness with any thing befides moral virtue, is fuperftition, and of a moft debafing and mifchievous nature; and yet almost the whole of what is called Popery is of this kind. Time was when a man who had endowed a church, made a pilgrimage, confessed to a

priest,