ner. To this Part of the Accufation, I fear, there are too many that muft plead guilty. It is often acknowledged and lamented by the best Men and beft Friends of their Order; but comes aukwardly and insincerely from the Mouth of an Enemy. The Lazy and the Vicious are their Delight: It is their Pleasure to fee a Clergyman live in Defiance of his Duty, and expose himself to the Scorn and Contempt of leud and riotous Company, They love a Man that will facrifice his Duty and Conscience to a Merry-meeting; that will be as leud and profane as the rest of the Company over his Bottle, and even blaspheme for a good DinSuch as these are the Disgrace of their Order, and are, for that very Reason, the Friends and Favourites of the Ignorant and Profane. The honeft Doctor, that will talk leudly and profanely, and never baulk his Glass, is fure to give no Interruption to the Mirth of the Company; he can never have the Con→ fidence to rebuke the Vices in others, which he encourages by his own Example. Nor is this all.-It is a great Confolation to their Spirits to find the Parfon as wicked as themselves. The most fanguine Atheist has fome Doubts that difquiet him: The merrieft Sinner has fome uneafy Moments, fome Mifgivings of Confcience, fome Sufpicions of Danger, which he knows not how to conquer; but, when he fees the Reverend Doctor, (whofe Profeffion is to know, to teach, and to practise better) give into all the shocking Liberties of a wicked Conversation, it gives him a fort of Hope, that he himself does not really believe the Doctrine he preaches to others; and though he may, on a Sunday, talk the Language of a Christian Believer; yet it is only for Form's fake, being a neceffary Service to seVOL. II, K cure cure his Tenure and his Maintenance. And this is the true Reason why too many, who, in other refpects, judge and act like Men of Senfe and Honour in their Treatment of the Clergy, feem to bid Defiance to both. Reafon and good Senfe direct us to judge of Men and Things by their internal Excellency and Usefulness to Mankind; whatever tends to promote the most excellent Ends by the most eafy and agreeable Means, are the most eminently esteemed and valued by Men of Sense and Understanding. Now can any End be more excellent than that which Religion propofes? Can there be a more valuable Intereft than the eternal Happiness of all Mankind? Nay, do not think I am going beyond the Articles of my own Creed. Upon the strongest Convictions of fober Reafon, I believe there is a God; and that he is a Rewarder of them that endeavour to serve and please him to the best of their Knowledge and Power: The fame unpréjudiced Reafon affures me, that the human Soul is immortal; which all the Free-Thinkers of the Heathen World believed as well as I: And therefore I conclude, that the Rewards of Virtue and Piety will be eternal in the World to come. Well then, is not everlasting Happiness to be preferred to everlasting Mifery? Is not a quiet Confcience better than a guilty one? Is it not the highest Prudence to secure even a probable Reversion of everlafting Happiness, and prevent even a Poffibility of being miferable for ever? Thefe are the Ends which even Natural Religion proposes, of which no Man of common Sense can entertain a serious Doubt. Nor are the Means lefs excellent and reasonable than the End. The Means are the Exercife of every moral Virtue. Now will any Man " Man in his Senfes fay, that the Practice of every Virture is not more excellent than the Practice of every Vice? Is not the Character of a just and upright Man better than that of a Rogue and a Villain? Is not a fober temperate Man more valuable than a Sot or a Rake? Is it not much more excellent to be merciful, bountiful, and charitable, than to be a covetous, hard-hearted Oppreffor? Is it not more reasonable and excellent to serve and worship God to the best of our Knowledge and Power, and do Good to Mankind, than it is neither to fear God, nor regard Man? It is an Affront to common Sense to make so abfurd a Suppofition as this Question implies: I fay then, that those, whose Business it is to promote these glorious Ends, who labour in it with Integrity, Prudence, and Courage, and live agreeably to their Preaching, deferve to be confidered as Friends and Benefactors to Mankind, and the most useful Supports of civil Government and Order in the World. It is allowed on all Hands to be a Point of Equity and natural Justice to judge impartially of the moral Characters of Men, and to fix Marks of Infamy or Honour in Proportion to their different Degrees of Merit or Demerit, in their different Stations of Life. Now confider how valuable, to every Man of Senfe and Honour, is the Character of a generous obliging Neighbour, a fincere Friend, a just Servant, and a faithful Steward? Every Man, at first hearing, has a secret Efteem and Affection for thefe Characters: And why so? but because they act juftly and honourably in their different Stations of Life. So again, for the fame Reason, every Man of Senfe and Honour esteems an upright kilful Lawyer, a learned careful Phyfi K 2 cian, `cian, a vigilant and active Magiftrate, an uncorrupt Judge, an honeft bold Commander by Sea or Land. Is not then a fincerely good and virtuous Man; is not a serious, learned, conscientious Clergyman, intitled to the fame Proportion of Efteem and Honour? Surely he ought to be; and that for the very fame Reason, because he faithfully executes the Truft committed to him, and acts agreeably to his Character. Confider again, on the other hand, how deteftable to every Man of Honour is the treacherous Neighbour, the falfe Friend, the unfaithful Servant, the unjuft Steward, the corrupt Lawyer, the ignorant or negligent Physician, the wicked Judge, the cowardly treacherous Commander, and all for the fame Reafon, because they act unworthily and difagreeably to their Characters, and betray the feveral Trufts repofed in them. And now tell me, is not every wicked immoral Man, particularly every fcandalous immoral Clergyman, equally deteftable! Are they not under higher, or at least equal Obligations to act agreeably to their Characters, and faithfully to execute the se veral Duties of their Office, to live exemplary and fober Lives, to encourage the Virtues, and rebuke the Vices, of others; and promote, to the utmost of their Power, the Interefts of Truth and Virtue, the temporal Happiness and Peace of Mankind, and the Salvation of their Souls hereafter? Surely this is their indifpenfible Duty. And whofoever acts otherwife, is a Traitor to his Truft, an Enemy to God and his own Soul. Every Man of Senfe and Honour must acknowledge this to be the true State of the Cafe: Yet, in spite of this ftrong Conviction, this undeniable Conclufion, we fee daily Men who value themselves uporr their fuperior good Senfe, and nice. Horrour, who would think it a Reproach to their Understandings to be mistaken in their Judgments about a Horse or a Dog; and would blush to be told they had not Sense, enough to diftinguish a good one from a bad one, yet. have a fecret Pride and Pleasure in diftinguishing and careffing a vicious unworthy Clergyman purely for being fuch; and defpifing and affronting the Virtuous and the Good, purely for doing their Duty, and acting agreeably to their Character and Profeffion.Shame and Repentance be the Portion of those who either give or receive this unworthy Preference. But let not the Learned, the Diligent, the Faithful, and the Virtuous fuffer Reproach for the Vices of their unworthy Brethren, which their Enemies openly approve and encourage, and their best Friends condemn and lament, but can neither prevent nor cure. Thus far we have confidered the general Charge against the whole Body of the Clergy, and what may and ought to be produced in their Defence, though we pretend not to justify the intire Conduct of every individual Character. Our Acquaintance among the Clergy (especially of the higher Order) is not fufficient to enable us to judge, whether there be, as Sir Harry boldly affirms upon his own Knowledge, any immoral, ignorant, fneaking Time-fervers, &c.-among them. If there be, we give them up, and have nothing to plead in their Behalf. But ftill, my Friend, let us judge fairly and impartially, and lay the Blame where it ought to be laid. If there be fuch, they could neither ordain nor prefer themselves; they, therefore, that ordained or preferred fuch unworthy Perfons, have the greater Sin. It is a popular Saying, |