Soul to be exactly fearched, the Imperfecti ons and Corruptions of it to be discovered; a ftricter Course of Piety to be undergone, whereby it may make deep Impreffions in the Mind, and as it were take Root in it. This Time the Church hath most wisely des termined, and not left her Sons to their own Direction; who might poffibly deferr their Repentance, till either it were prevented by Death, or Sin had taken fuch deep Root, that it could not be removed.

And fuch was the excellent Difcipline of the Church herein, in former Ages; fo Solemn and Devout their Observation of Lenti I mean not in abftaining from this or that fort of Meat, for that, even when rightly used, is but fubfervient to the great Delign; but in the forming an Exercise of a strict Repentance, of a more careful Obedience, and more conftant Devotion; that it could not fail to have great Effect upon the Minds of all forts of Chriftians. They were not content to exercise in fecret all these Acts of Mortification (for fo I call whatsoever tends to destroy Sin in Man, which is the true Notion of Mortification) but did it in Publick, in the Face of the whole Church, and in many external Acts of Life. Those who had committed more hainous Sins voluntari ly underwent a publick Penance; fequeftred themselves from the Rank of the Faithful, placed themselves in a particular Part of the Church appointed for the Penitents; there Sa

publickly

publickly confeffed their Sins, implored the Mercy of God, and defired the Interceffion of the whole Church for them.

Not only thofe, but all other Chriftians, who were not confcious to themselves of any flagrant Crimes, ftill applyed themfelves, during all that holy Seafon, to an extraor dinary exercife of all the Acts of Religi on; denied themselves many of the ordina ry and innocent Pleafures of Life; that they might without interruption attend to the forming of a true Repentance, to the mortifying of their Lufts, and to the improving of their good Refolutions into habits of Piety. I mean not that they macerated themfelves with Hair-cloth, or Whippings, or unreasonable Faftings; those were the Follies of latter and more ignorant Ages: But they afflicted their Souls with the continual thoughts of having offended God by their Sins; they endeavoured to form a hatred of Sin, by taking the Shame of it upon themselves in a publick Confeffion; they daily implored the Mercy of God, with all the ardent expreffions and real figns of Repentance, which Pious Souls could invent. They fitted themselves for the receiving of that Mercy, by railing and fixing fteady Notions and Refolutions of their Duty to God, and their Obligation to all the Precepts of Religion; by generous Acts of Charity, by a vigilant ftruggling with all finful Motions, and even rooting them out by Maceration, if no

other

other means could prevail; that fo they might present themfelves pure and unspotted to their Lord at the enfuing Solemnity of Eater; when whofoever did not Communicate, and had not prepared himself for it by fuch a precedent exercife of Repentance, did not prefume to take upon himfelf the Name of a Chriftian.

While this excellent Difcipline prevailed, an univerfal Piety could not but be produced among the Profeffors of Chriftianity; when all thote Arguments, which now chiefly hinder the practice of Repentance, did then promote it. I mean a general Example, and the fear of Shame. It was then no mɔre than fashionable to put on at least the pretence of Repentance in this Holy Seafon; and then to indulge to the Body its wonted Pleasures and Gayeties was no lefs abfurd than to rejoyce at a Funeral, when all compose themselves with a feeming Gravity. Again to confefs the guilt of Sin, when all joyned in the fame Confeffion, was no matter of Shame. Whereas now the Example of Impenitence prevails; and to put on a more fevere Deportment, to reftrain the ufual method of Life, would be accounted and de, rided as a Singularity. Now the Order of things is inverted, and through difufe of Confeffion, whether publick or private, fhame is affixed, not to the Commiffion, but to the Confeffion of any Sin. So that if the former excellent Difcipline could be re

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treived,

treived, the same shame, which now diverts us from Confeffion, would then deterr us from Commiffion,

It can scarce be hoped indeed, that a Discipline, so far furpaffing the degenerate Spirit of latter Times, will ever be reftored: Yet this we think our selves obliged to remind you of, that ye might understand for what end this Holy Seafon was at firft Inftituted; and might be moved by this Noble Example to to make at least some use of fo excellent an Inftitution; if not to confefs your Sins in publick, yet at least to confefs them to God in fecret; if not to put your felves to an open Shame, yet at leaft to conceive inwardly both a fhame and hatred of your Sin; to examine your Confciences ftrictly, to purge them from all Corruptions, to remove all vicious Habits, to reconcile your felves to God by an earneft Repentance of past Sins, and a well-grounded beginning of future O bedience. To this end the Church, fince fhe çan do no more, is wont, during this Solemnity, to inculcate by frequent Exhortations the Duty of Repentance; and to this purpose I have chofen this Text, Except je repent, ye hall all likewife perish.

These words of our Lord were occafioned by a pernicious Error of the Jews, that the not execution of exemplary Vengance upon them in this Life, was an Argument that they were no great Sinners; and that signal Calamities were an Indication of an ex traordinary

traordinary Impiety; whereas those who efcaped any fuch Calamities, might prefume themselves to be Innocent, and thereupon deferr, or wholly omit Repentance. Thus Pilate having lately flain feveral Galileans at Ferufalem in the Act of Sacrificing, and the Tower in Siloam having flain Eighteen Men by a fudden Fall, as we read in the Second and Fourth Verses; the Jews presently concluded that this Ćalamity, which they supposed to have been inflicted by the extraordinary Direction of God, was preceded with an extraordinary guilt of the Sufferers; and not finding fuch Calamities to fall upon themselves, thence raised a false perfwafion that they were more Righteous than thofe unhappy Men, and more beloved by God. To correct this false perfwafion our Lord affureth them, that it was no other than a vain delufion to think that thofe Galileans were finners above all the Galileans: Or that those upon whom the Tower fell, were finners above all the Inhabitants of Jerufalem: Or that themselves were more Righteous than either, and tells them that unless they repent, they shall all likewife perish.

In which Words he

Į. Infinuates the error of their perfwafion, that the not execution of Divine Vengeance in this Life, is an Argument_of the Innocence of Men, and little neceffity' of Repentance. And

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II. Pro