Poor, and yet whilft it comes in any of thefe Ways it may be truly faid to be God's Gift. And therefore in like manner God's being faid to give, and our praying him to give us a new Heart, and fuch like Expreffions, do not imply but that ftill the Concurrence of our own Choice and Care is neceffary to all Saving Qualities. But I infift not upon this.

2. It is from hence evident that Voluntary Poverty and Beggary is no Part of Chriftian Perfection: which I the rather observe, because the Church of Rome, in Oftentation of her own Holinefs, fhews, forfooth, Societies of Men in her, who for God's Sake chufe Poverty, and profefs Beggary; which feems to be fomething ftrange, unless it were an high Point of Religion to throw away that which our Lord Jefus hath commanded us to ask in our daily Prayers, to refuse that which he hath taught us to defire. But yet I must needs fay, that perhaps the Matter is not altogether fo clear in Point of Fact as they pretend. For there may be reason to think that these Votaries of Poverty are only poor in the World, but wealthy enough when they are out of it, as they love to speak, that is, when they are gotten within their Monafteries and Peculiars. And therefore, as we may well say, if they chufe to want a Competency, or moderate Proportion of Worldly Conveniencies,

encies, when they may have them, that this is not Religion, fo if they have fuch a Competency, that is no Poverty. 'Tis not their fhutting up themselves in Religious Houses, nor their begging Comfort when they are out of them, that can answer their Profeffion of Poverty, if all the while they live at Eafe and want Nothing. But does the Mystery lie in this, that they are poor, becaufe, fay they, we are Proprietors of nothing, fince all they get goes to a common Stock, and the Wealth they live upon is the Goods of the Church, but as for themfelves there is not one of them that can call any thing his own? If the Cafe be fo, this is juft as if a Company of rich Merchants fhould throw in all their Wealth into one Stock, and live upon it in common in some Place, where they should be far from the Noife and Business of the World.

But now will any one believe that they are the poorer for fo doing, and not rather that they enjoy the Advantage of Wealth often with greater Eafe and Quiet than other Men? And if thefe Mens Condition in the World be not worse than this, while they pretend to Poverty, if they call this Poverty, I do think that they had made out their Pretence a great deal better, if they had placed the Perfection of Religion in an easy Enjoyment of Wealth, rather than in a Voluntary Poverty, fince Wealth with Ease is not

Poverty

Poverty. And they must have been very hard put to't to make out this Propofition, that 'tis any Point of Religion at all to enjoy Wealth or a Competency with Ease.

But however, if their Condition be fuch as is by them pretended, fuppofing that fome, at least of a Mendicant Society, were in great Want indeed, and really fo poor as by their Profeffion of Beggary they make a Shew of being, and would be thought to be,this Voluntary Chofen Poverty is no Perfection, but a vain Superftition, to say no worse, because we are not to make a Choice contrary to our Prayers.

There are two Places they quote for Voluntary Poverty out of the New Testament. One is, that our Saviour commanded the rich Man in the Gofpel to fell all that he had, and to give it to the Poor. If thou wilt be perfect, fell all that thou haft.

But to this it may be faid,

1. That this Man being particularly required fo to do, could not have been faid to chufe Poverty, as they of Rome pretend to do. For he was commanded, fo are not they, to part with all. In him it had been the Perfection of Obedience, in them it is not fo.

2. This was plainly a Trial made by our Saviour of the Sincerity of the Man that was inclin'd to be our Lord's Difciple. For our Lord, not willing to conceal from him

what

what the Confequence thereof would certainly be, that is, fuffering of Perfecution, tried him by this Command, whether he would be at the Charge of lofing all for the Gospel's Sake. As if he had faid, "If you "will be perfect you must prefer the Truth, "and the doing of your Duty, and what you fhall gain by that, before all World

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Interefts, even Life it felf, otherwise you are not fit to be my Difciple. There"fore let me fee whether you fit loofe

enough from your great Eftate to part "with it, as certainly you must e'er long,

rather than to renounce my Doctrine. If

you can now find in your Heart to fell it, "and give the Price of it to the Poor, be"fore it be taken from you, then you may "be satisfied that you are fit to follow me. "But if you cannot bring your self to it

now, you are not likely to forego your "Wealth, when it is either neceffary to do "that, or to deny me before Men. And "therefore go and fell all that thou haft, "and follow me, and thou shalt find Trea"fure in Heaven." But his Heart could not ferve him to do this, and fo he plainly fhewed that he was not yet fit to make a Difciple. Now all that can with any reafon be inferr'd from hence in behalf of Voluntary Poverty, is this: That the Disciples of Chrift muft chufe to part with all that they are worth in the World, even with

Life it felf, rather than renounce their Profeffion, and depart from their Duty to God. And this I conceive is nothing to the Case of Affected Poverty, when a Man is not put to his Choice

The Other Place is from the Jewish Converts felling all they had, and laying the Price at the Apofiles Feet..

ed.

To which two Things may be answer

1. That this did not reduce those that did so to abfolute Poverty, because the Intent of fo doing was, that the Difciples fhould live in common upon the Stock that was by this means raised, by which means they,that had little or nothing to live upon, were provided for. And,

2. There was a peculiar Reafon in this Cafe. For they had all a common! Stock, not for the Relief of the Poor only, but for other Works of Christian Piety and Chatity, because the Jewish Chriftians in all Probability believed, that before that Generation was ended Jerufalem would be destroyed, and that in Prudence they could not ufe their Eftates to better purpose. And so neither was their making all Things common to be a standing Precedent to the Church, nor did their living in common make thofe Poor that were not fo, but relieved those that were really fo before. So that neither of thefe Places make any thing O

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for