real or imaginary, to which Divinity is falfely SER M. attributed, is an error against other religious IV. principles, either against the existence of the true God, or his unity: But this fpecies of idolatry, fo early introduc'd into the world, and which so generally prevail'd in it for many ages, is a moft direct and heinous indignity to the spiritual Divine nature. The unreasonableness of it, one would think, might cafily appear to men if they did but seriously reflect on themselves. For how just and evidently conclufive is St. Paul's argument to the Athenians? Acts xvii. 29. Forafmuch then as we are the offspring of God;-we intelligent creatures, conscious of intellectual and selfdetermining powers, and of noble affections which do not terminate on fenfible objects, but on spiritual and moral excellence;-we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold or filver or ftone, graven by art or man's device. What man is so far loft to a just sense of the dignity of his nature, as not to know that the vital principle within him of thought, of choice, of fublime defire, of rational and moral pleasure, is far more noble than a whole world of corporeal inanimate beings? And fhould we then fo affront the Father of our fpirits, from whom all their excellence is deriv'd, himself the original and pureft Spirit,

SERM.as to imagine he is like any material and cor→ IV. ruptible thing?

Superstition grew by degrees in the world, to fuch a height of stupidity and barbarity, as was reproachful to the intelligent human na→ ture; but the beginnings of it were more refin'd and plaufible. The first idols probably were the fun, moon and ftars, not as the ultimate objects of worship, but as the fuppos'd habitations of the Deity, the visible inftruments and magnificent reprefentations of his power and goodnefs: But afterwards those. creatures themselves were honour'd befides the Creator, and were admitted to a participation of the refpect due to him. For such is the weaknefs of mens minds, and if they do not carefully watch against it, their attention is fo eafily engrofs'd by the objects of fense continually before them, and which they find ufeful, that they forget things of vastly greater excellence and moment, which require careful reflection to preserve a lively sense of them. They proceeded next to the deifying of departed Heroes, imagining that their virtues were rewarded with an exaltation to a high dignity in the other world, and that they were even taken into a share of the divine adminiftration, still having an affectionate remembrance of their friends and their country, to

which they had been useful upon earth.

ASSER M.

thefe men fuppofed to be advanc'd to God- IV. head, were of mixt characters, the idea of the Divine moral purity and perfection began to be alter'd, and vices had their patrons among the Gods, till at length ignorance and corrup→ ́tion ftill increasing, fome of them were worfhipped with the moft obfcene and inhuman rites. Even brute animals of feveral kinds, and vegetables too became idols; and in fine, whatever recommended itself to the affections of men by its usefulness, and whatever was dreaded by them because it might be hurtful, was worshipped. Thus we fee that the tendency of departing from the fimplicity of a reasonable service, is to the most absurd opinions and practices, as oppofite to real religion as Atheism itself is: In this respect worse, because they deftroy humanity, and under the pretence of devotion, give a sanction to those crimes which nature itself, abstracting from any confideration of God, would abhor. Every kind of idolatry, even the most refin'd and for which the best excufes are made, (fuch as, that worship is not intended to terminate on the inferior beings, fenfible objects or others, before which it is offered, but that they are only us'd as helps to devotion, preserving still a higher regard for God, who is the ultimate object

I 4

SERM.object of adoration;) every kind of idolatry,
IV. I fay, is founded in falfhood, as the natural

progrefs of it is to the utter fubverfion of all
true piety and virtue. It proceeds from, or
imports fuch notions as these, which are con-
trary to the abfolute perfection of the divine,
immense and spiritual Being, That the pre-
fence of God is confin'd to fome particular
parts of the univerfe, to the fun, the stars or
fome eminently facred place upon earth; and
that he can poffibly be reprefented by fome
vifible fimilitude; or that there are fome ma-
terial objects which give us a truer and juster
idea of his nature than others. It is therefore
neceffary above all things, in order to the
practice of true religion, and perfevering in it,
that we endeavour by a conftant and diligent
attention, to fix in our minds becoming fen-
timents concerning the Deity, as a most pure
and perfect Spirit.

I have faid that idolatry (which in all its
forms, even the most innocent of them, is an
error against the doctrine of the text) tends
to corrupt the tempers and the manners of
but the obfervation deferves to be far-
ther confidered, and we may fee it justified
by the conftant experience of the world. St.
Paul, in the first chapter of his epiftle to the
Romans, teaches us concerning the Gentiles,

men;

and

A

and their own hiftories confirm it, that tho' SER M. they knew God,(for his works proclaim his be- IV. ing and perfections intelligibly to all mankind,) and their first and most natural sentiments concerning him were the best; yet not liking to retain him in their knowledge, they chang'd his truth into a lie, that is, into idolatry, built upon a false foundation, and repugnant to the real nature of the Deity. In confequence of which, they were abandon'd to fuch monftrous and unnatural wickednefs, as nothing could have drawn them into but their idolatrous fuperftition. And we find that the declenfions of the Jews to impiety and wickedness, began with inventing means and inftruments of fervice to the true God; but from thence proceeded to groffer kinds of superstition, which at last extinguished all sense of virtue and humanity, carrying them to the unnatural cruelty of facrificing their own children to Moloch. Even among Chriftians themfelves, fuperftition has had very lamentable effects; fome of them not only fubftituting their false worship in the place of virtue, and making atonement by it for their fins, but being led by a blind zeal for their own inventions, to fuch barbarity, as men, without a pretence of religion, would never have been guilty of