Thankfgiving for the De

Ghoft.

me a Spirit of Patience under all Croffes, and in all Provocations; a Spirit of Trust and stedfaft Repose of Mind in thy Care and Providence; a Spirit of Forgiveness to my Enemies; a Spirit of Humility to make me quiet and eafy in myself, meek and gentle to others, and to free me from all the Sin and Torment of Pride, Envy, and Ambition; and finally fo let him guide me and govern me through the whole Course of my fhort Life here, that I may not fail to obtain everlafting Life, through Jefus Christ our Lord. Amen.

It

V.

T is very meet, right, and my bounden Duty, that I fhould at all Times, and in all Places, fcent of give Thanks unto thee, O Lord, holy Father, the Holy Almighty Everlafting God, through Jefus Chrift our Lord, according to whofe most true Promife, the Holy Ghoft came down as at this Time from Heaven, with a fudden great Sound, as it had been a mighty Wind, in the Likeness of fiery Tongues lighting upon the Apostles, to teach them and to lead them into all Truth; giving them both the Gift of divers Languages, and alfo Boldness, with fervent Zeal, conftantly to preach the Gofpel unto all Nations, whereby we have been brought out of Darkness and Error, into the clear Light and true Knowledge of thee, and thy Son Jefus Chrift: Therefore with Angels and Archangels, and with all the Company of Heaven, I laud and magnify thy glorious Name, evermore praifing thee, and faying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hofts, Heaven and Earth are full of thy Glory. Glory be to thee, O Lord moft High. Amen.

СНАР.

CHA P. XXII.

Monday in Whitfun-Week.

WHA

THAT fhews the great Solemnity of the Festival we commemorate at this Time? A. The particular Care the Church hath taken to fet apart this and the following Day for the Exercife of religious Duties; to the end that we might have Leisure to offer up our Praises and Thanksgivings to God, for that perfect Discovery he hath made of his Will to Mankind in the Chriftian Revelation, which contains the best and fureft Means of ferving him, and of performing thofe Obligations we lie under to the divine Majefty; and which hath been confirmed by the Descent of the Holy Ghost.

Q. How is the Knowledge of Religion attained?

A. Either by the Light of Nature, which difcovers to us the Being of a God, and the infinite Perfections of the divine Nature; particularly his Goodnefs which inclines him to reward those that ferve him and diligently feek him; and his Juftice, which requires him to punish those that difobey him; and that therefore confequently there is a Part of Man which will fubfift in the next World, capable of these future Rewards or Punishments, which leads us to the Immortality of the Soul; which Syftem of Principles, with a fuitable Practice deducible from them, we call Natural Religion;

or

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or elfe by Supernatural Revelation, which we call Revealed Religion.

Q. What do you mean by Supernatural Revelation?

4. God's manifefting himself, or his Will to Mankind fome Way or other, over and above what he hath made known to us by the Light of Nature; in fuch a Manner and in such Inftances, that all our own Reasonings could never have attained unto; which Manifestation was fometimes made immediately by God, and fometimes by the Mediation of Angels, as were most of the Revelations of the Old Testament.

Q. How doth it appear that a Revelation from God is poffible?

A. This is evident from the Nature of God, and the Capacities of Men, as well as from that Proof which is produced to fatisfy us concerning a Miffion from God. An infinite Being that created our Souls capable of knowing him and loving him, can never want Power to communicate farther Light to our Minds, and make farther Difcoveries of his Will and Pleafure: And Man thus made after his own Image can use thofe Faculties he is endowed with, both in receiving and delivering the Matter of the Revelation, especially when it offers itfelf in a Manner fuitable to thofe Faculties. And when fuch Things are difcovered as by Prophecy, which none but God could reveal, and fuch Things done as by Miracles, which none but an Almighty, at least a fupernatural Power, could effect, we are as fure fuch Evidences are Proofs of a fupernatural Revelation, as we are .that the Creation of the World is a Demonftration

Now

stration of the Existence of a Deity. this is a Matter fo evident, that it hath been generally believed among all Mankind, even among the Heathens, who were deftitute of true. Revelations, and the Confent of all Nations, that there is fuch a Principle as Inspiration in the World, doth make it plain, that it carries no Repugnancy to natural Light, supposing that there is a God, that he fhould reveal his Mind by fome particular Perfons to the World; to which Purpose the Teftimony of Tully is very De Divin. confiderable; and among most of the Philofo-lib. 1. phers these two Principles went together, the Existence of a Deity, and the Certainty of Infpi

ration.

Q. Whence appears the Neceffity and Expediency of Divine Revelation?

A. From the great Ignorance and Corruption of human Nature, and that Misery and Guilt which Mankind had contracted, which was plain even to thofe that were unacquainted with the Original of it: so that some extraordinary Means became neceffary for their Recovery. And from the infinite Goodness of God, whofe Providence not only extends his Care to the Bodies of Men and their outward Conditions in this World, but chiefly to their immortal Souls and their Happiness in another Life upon which Account rational Creatures plunged in Mifery, become fit Objects of the divine Care and Compaffion. For though natural Light convinces us of the Existence of a Deity, and fhews us how reasonable it is to pay our Adorations to that Power that created and preferves us, yet it does not fufficiently direct us in the Way and Manner of performing it, though

though it gives us fome Hopes of Pardon upon our Repentance, from the general Notion of God's Goodness; yet it prescribes us no certain Method for the obtaining our Reconciliation. So that Revelation was necessary both to relieve the Wants of Men in a natural State, and to recover the Luftre and Brightness of their natural Principles, fullied and impaired by the Degeneracy of Mankind; and farther, to add fuch Improvements, as might be perfective of human Nature, and inftruct Men in the Method of appeafing an offended Deity. All the Pretences of the Heathen Lawgivers, as Licurgus, Numa, &c. to have received their Laws from fome Divinity, was a tacit Confeffion that Revelation was neceffary and expedient to conduct Men to Happiness.

Q. What are the feveral Kinds of Revelation? A. The feveral Kinds of Revelation whereof fome are mentioned by the Jews, and others recorded in Holy Scriptures, are Infpiration, Vifions, Dreams, Prophecy, Oracle, Voices, particularly the Bath-Col, and that which the Jews. reckon peculiar to Mofes, which they called Gradus Mofaicus.

Q. What do you mean by Inspiration?

A. Infpiration is a Revelation which is infenfibly communicated and breathed as it were into the Soul of a Man, fo that the infpired Perfon does not think his own Thoughts, nor order his own Conceptions, nor form his own Notions fo far as he is infpired. But this doth not exclude the Exercife of his own Reason in thefe Operations; but thefe Infufions not proceeding from any Reasoning in themselves, but from an external and fupernatural Caufe, it