THE PREFAC E. T Here never appeared, I believe, among Christians, fo general a Dua tion as in the prefent Age, to the C. riftian Religion, in Men pret 'ing at least to Reason, and Learning, and Na ral Religion, and Moral Vertue. And tho' I could have little Encouragement to hope, that I should write any thing which might much prevail with Men of these Accomplishments; yet I was perfuaded, that fo good a Caufe, tho' but in weak Hands, could not fail of fome Effect upon all that would be at the pa to confider it. And to this purpofe, I thent, the best way would be, not to read Lecture as it were, of Anatomy upon the fevera' of it, and represent it Piece-meal, likelets Carcafs, divided and diffected had been able to fhew never fo much Skill in the Operation; but to give an entire View of the Grounds and Reasons of Chriftianity, the connexion of its Parts between themfelves and the Preference which it has to all other Religions; from whence, I knew, it must appear in as true a Light, and with as much Life and Force, as it could do under the Disadvantages, which might be expected from no A 2 better better a Pen. There is an Excellency in every Part of our Religion feparately confider'd, but the strength and vigour of each Part is in the Relation it has to the rest, and the feveral Parts must be taken altogether, if we would have a true Knowledge, and make a just Estimate of the Whole. But that which I made my more particular Care, and which, I thought, the more requir'd my Pains, because I had not obferved it to be much infifted upon by others, was to fhew the Neceffity of a Divine Revelation, the infufficiency of Natural Religion, and the Imperfections and Errors of Philofophy, as well as the manifest Falfhood of the Religions both of the Heathens and of the Mahometans; and moreover to prove, that befides all other Things requifite to a Divine Revelation, the Religion delivered in the Old and New Teftament has received a full Promulgation in all Parts of the World. From these Foundations thus laid and fecur'd we have no lefs than a Demonstration for the Truth of our Holy Religion. We are often told by thofe that are no Friends to our Religion, that we must by all means take great Care of not being deceived through the Prejudices derived from our Edu cation, but I believe it would be found upon Enquiry, that fuch Men are fo far from being prejudiced in Favour of our Religion, that their Prejudices lie extremely against it, For, befides the Corruption of Humane Nature always inclining to Error and Vice, tho' E they they had the Principles of Christianity instill'd into them in their tender Years, yet they could learn them then only as confefs'd Truths, to be receiv'd for Articles of Faith and Rules of Life. But the first thing probably to which they have fet themselves with any Application, was the reading of Heathen Authors, and when perhaps they have ftudied Philofophy and other Humane Learning for many Years, but never confidered Divinity, as a Science, and have fearched into it no farther, nor have any other Notion of it, than what they were taught in their Childhood or Youth, they look back upon their first Inftructions as groundless, and fit only for Children, because they find little or nothing of them in thofe Authors, with whom they have been fo long converfant, and whom upon many Accounts they have so just Reason to admire. This feems to be the Cafe of many who have read ancient Heathen Authors, without the Regard, which ought always to be had to That, which is acknowledg'd by All, who have made any due Enquiry into thefe Things, to be the best Learning and of greatest Antiquity; and is no where to be had but from the Scriptures. Others there are, who have often heard of the Names of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, and of Tully, Seneca, and other Famous Writers; they find them frequently quoted, and commonly with Commendation, feldom to difcover any Fault in them, unlefs it be in their Notions of Natural Philosophy, where Religion feems to be less concerned. They have heard too of the A 3* Greek Greek and Latin Hiftorians, and thefe, for any thing that they know or confider, may be as Faithful and as Ancient as the best. But tho' all these Authors have indeed very many Excellencies, yet we must not fo far mistake, as to think all things Excellent which they deliver. I shall therefore, befides what I have already obferved, make fome farther Reflections in this place, both upon the Hiftory, and upon the Philofophy of Heathen Nations, and then I hope I may be allowed to expoftulate with the Adverfaries of our Religion, concerning the Unreasonableness of their Proceedings, before I come to give a fhort Account of my present Undertaking. I. Whatever knowledge almost we have now left of the Antiquities of other Heathen Nations, it comes conveyed down to us by the Greek Authors; and yet there is perhaps no Nation, which generally had a worse Reputation in matters of History, not only by common Fame and the Invectives of Satyrifts, but from the Cenfures of the best Writers, and the Accufations which the Hiftorians made one of another, as a Jofephus fhews of many whofe Works are now loft. b Thucydides himself could not escape free from Cenfure, who complains of the negligence and unfaithfulness of the other Greek Hiftorians, and he is thought to point particularly at Herodotus, whom Plutarch expofed in a fet Difcourfe: tho' much indeed has Vid. Jofeph..contr. Apion. lib. i. a Thucyd. lib. i. c. 20, 21. been |