deity and of man, different from, and superior, in purity, dignity and truth, to those of any other people, ancient or modern, Christians alone excepted. That such is the fact infidels cannot, and dare not deny. They have assiduously endeavoured, indeed, by confounding the character of the people with the nature of their religion, to mislead our judgement, in investigating the cause of this extraordinary circumstance; and they have most scandalously misrepresented various particulars, in order to palliate their opposition to the whole. But, however much we may despise the general character of the Jews, let us not, like our infidel opponents, imitate their obstinacy. Their history is curious, and may be instructive. At all events, it becomes us, as men and as scholars, to investigate it with candour, and to endeavour to account for the peculiarity of their circumstances, and the acknowledged superiority of their religious acquirements.

"It is seldom that men sit down for the direct purpose of imposing on the world a system of religion or of science, which they themselves know to be false; because they, who are capable of forming such a project, must also foresee the numerous and almost insurmountable obstacles which will obstruct its progress, and the ignominy and ruin which must necessarily follow its want of success, They who labour to propagate

or extend such systems as are really false, are generally first deceived themselves. The cosmogony of Sanchoniatho, and the mythology of the poets and priests of other pagan nations, are by no means to be considered as direct impostures. They are indeed false and ridiculous; but the leading facts and principles, though newly combined, extended by learned labour, and embellished by ingenious description, constituted the general belief of the nations to which these works were addressed, long before their authors were born; and were, if I mistake not greatly, the gradual corruptions of truth, and of revelations really made. It is easy to extend principles already known, and, by taking advantage of general belief, or ancient prejudices, to gain credit to a system newly arranged, but founded on principles sanctioned by common credit from time immemorial. The authors of such systems may likewise be free of the worst parts of an impostor's character; and, whilst they are adding fiction to fiction, and extending the influence of error, they may possibly imagine that they are only amplifying what is true. Such unquestionably is the natural and gradual progress of religious corruption. But though the criminality of those who contribute to this progress be less, the danger of it is probably greater, than that of direct imposture. An absolute impostor

must be an abandoned character. He must

have lost all regard to truth, virtue, and moral justice, and he has doubtless some selfish end to serve, for the accomplishment of which he thinks fair dealing inadequate. In adjusting the particulars of his scheme, however, and the mode of its promulgation, even allowing him all the caution and foresight of which human nature is capable, some extravagance, some inadvertency, and want of character, will unquestionably appear, and lead to its detection. If its purpose be to overturn former systems, force must be used, to make its reception general; and, even then, some advantage must be taken of popular prejudices, and a licence and encouragement must be granted to popular passions and vices, to make its influence permanent or durable. The scheme being formed in secret, and founded on de ceit, will shrink from all intelligent enquiry, because it will want all rational evidence. However artfully contrived, too, and however contrary it may seem to former systems and prejudices to be, it can contain nothing absolutely new, or which was totally unknown before. Its novelty, therefore, if it shall be found to possess such a quality, must be the effect of a cautious combination of systems before prevalent, and of opinions already known; and its permanency, if it shall happen to be permanent, will be the consequence, not of any evidence, either real or pretended, or of any natural

quality to enforce belief, but of early initiation, and of that laxity of morals which impostures always wink at, if they do not sanction them.

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Impostures are first propagated by the arm of temporal power; and the impostors themselves, led on by the love of increased dominion, enlist powerful abettors of their plan, by the expected rewards of successful imposition. All this, in particular circumstances, may be effected with so much art as to conceal the moving passion from common eyes, and may be prosecuted with so much vigour, as effectually to prevent the resistance of the more enlightened. But amidst the most artful conduct, the character of an impostor will occasionally lead to actions which will betray his principles. He cannot, in every instance in private and in public, be consistent; and though he may in some measure succeed with the vulgar, he will leave sufficient room for others to confute his pretensions. Power once acquired by force, bribery, and fraud, may long be preserved by the same means, and by the encouragement of ignorance and credulity. But an imposture can never gain credit among men who are able to examine its pretensions, and at liberty to reject it, if they think it false; unless among such as are willing to surrender their reason and their judgment, if they are allowed to indulge their passions. No former period could, with a

ny hopes of success, be assigned by an impostor, in which there was any direct evidence for his doctrines; because if there really had been any such, it must have been known previous to his appearance, and handed down, either by tradition or in writing, or it would lose all its force; and he would certainly appeal to no such evidence in the present period, or before the persons on whom he wished to impose, because his inability of affording any such, must instantly annihilate his credit.

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Though false systems of religion, however, have certainly obtained, and impostors have occasionally succeeded in the world, no argument can thence be drawn. against religion in general, or against the disseminators of the true. Indeed it may from thence be deduced, as an incontrovertible maxim, that if there were no true religion, there never could have been a false one; if there never had been an inspired teacher of that religion, there never would have been an impostor assuming the character. If there ever was a revelation made to man, it will follow of course, that the religion founded on it, or proceeding from it, must still exist, and that it is possible to discover it; and its evidence, to those who shall be disposed to pay the proper attention to it, will appear to be as strongly marked, and as convincing, as the falsehood of the others is obvious.