certainty of a resurrection; but of that very fort, which all philosophy had ever held to be impoffible, the refurrection of the body.

Mr. Millar, in his Hiftory of the propagation of Chriftianity, a work particularly recommended to his readers by Dr. Church, observes, “that by the good providence of God, philosophy

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began to flourish among the Heathens, a lit"tle before the coming of Chrift, which was of 66 great ufe to refine the minds of men, and ren"der them capable of receiving the celeftial and "fublime truths of the Gofpel [1]." But these narrow minded Anfwerers, whose thoughts never reach farther, than the contrivance of an expedient, how to clear themselves of a present difficulty, infift; that an Heathen, though he had been an eye-witnefs of fo ftriking a fact, and intirely convinced of its truth, yet, in fpite of all conviction, would have been insensible of the force of it, and incited onely, to perfecute and deftroy the particular actors in it. Nay, their whole reprefentation of the matter tends to perfuade us, that if the Heathens had been invited to see the Miracle performed in their prefence, they would have knocked the man down, as foon as he began to rife, and fmothered him again in his grave, before he was got out of it.

Such nonfenfe as this, which they would put upon us here for argument, can hardly fail of perfuading every intelligent reader, that a claim of Miracles, which wants fuch a defence, must

[1] Millar's Hift. p. 1.
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neceffarily

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neceffarily be fictitious: yet they procede with great complacency, to confirm it by feveral curious obfervations. "We may observe in the "next place, fays Dr. Church, that this Miracle "differs from others in one thing; that there is "no occafion for its being openly performed. "Because Infidels, who never had an opportude nity of seeing it, yet, if they have fufficient " evidence of it, ought in reason and conscience "to believe it. And fufficient evidence of its "reality may easily be had, even though no one "witness was present at the working of it [1]."

This obfervation indeed is new, and purely his own; never heard, I dare say, before, or thought of by any man, but is so contrary to all the notions, which History and experience have taught us on this article, that I cannot help wondering, whence it could come into this Doctor's head, or what facts and inftances he can have to ground it upon. If the end of all Miracles be to create faith and conviction: and if when performed before our eyes, they impart a stronger conviction, than an hundred witnesses can give, who had not feen them, it cannot be the peculiar difference of the greatest of all Miracles, that it need be reported onely, not feen; and that, in diftinction from all other Miracles, it -fhould require our belief, upon the testimony even of those, who themselves had not feen it : for furely, the more uncommon and furprizing [1] Ch. p. 187.

the

the nature of any miracle may be, the more it will always want to be openly performed.

In the history of the Gofpel we find the Miracles of this kind, which were wrought by our Lord, to have been peformed by him, in broad day-light and the midft of crouds. Thus in the City of Nain, the widow's fon was raised from the bier, as they were carrying him to his grave, in the fight of much people: fo that the rumor of it went forth through all Judæa, and all the region round about [1]. The daughter alfo of the Ruler was raised by him in fuch a manner, that the fame of it is faid to have gone abroad into all the land [2]. And in raifing Lazarus, Jefus lift up his eyes, and faid; Father, I thank thee, that thou haft beard me. And I knew, that thou hearest me always; but because of the people, which stand by, I faid it, that they may believe, that thou haft Sent me. Upon which many of the Jews, who had feen the things, which he did, believed on him [3].

What was it then, that could poffibly fuggeft fo crude an observation to our Doctor? Why nothing, but the character of this very primitive Miracle, which we are confidering as it is stated and described by Irenæus. With this indeed his obfervation perfectly tallies: for this, we must own, was of a kind, which had no occafion to be openly performed: the very report of it rendered it fufpected, and the production of it would have blafted it. For as they themselves allow,

[2] Matt. ix. 26. [3] John xi.

it was not defigned for the public, nor the converfion of the Heathens; but to be performed onely in the dark, among a few of the faithful; on certain neceffary occafions; which are neither specified, nor discoverable to any man. All which is fo palpably contradictory to the character and effects of this particular Miracle, that it can hardly fail of convincing every reader, that the original claim of it was false; and the inftances of it, which are faid to have fubfifted among the Chriftians, mere fictions, contrived by the crafty and political, to feed the credulity of the pious and the fimple.

But in what ever light we confider the account of this Miracle, as it is given by Irenæus and defended by these Advocates, it will appear to be nothing else but a ridiculous and contemptible tale. For fince the converfion of the Heathens, the most important of all ends, and to which all other Miracles were chiefly applied, was not intended by it, what necessary occafion could there be for it, among the private and disperfed Societies of the Christians, or what cause of weight enough, to engage a whole Church in a courfe of fafting and prayer for the performance of it? The Chriftians of this age, instead of being fond of life, were longing to be diffolved, and to be with Chrift; were thirsting after an immortality of glory, and offering themselves forwardly to Martyrdom, that they might obtain it a few years the fooner: they wanted no Miracle for the confirmation of their

faith; the firmness of which was the ground of God's favor to them, and of their own fortitude, in fuffering those perfecutions, to which it exposed them they were perfuaded of the refurrection of the body, and to pray therefore, to see an inftance of it, would not have been an act of piety, but of levity. And to fuppofe, that a whole Congregation fhould be induced to fast and pray, that a departed friend, or parent, or husband should be reftored to life, to relieve the prefent grief, or gratify the fond affection of particular perfons or families, cannot be thought a necessary occafion, or an end worthy of the interpofition of God.

Then as to the perfons, who were fo raised; they could not poffibly receive any imaginable benefit from a favor fo extraordinary for after they had been delivered from all the troubles of this life, it must have been an occafion of mifery and mortification to them, to have been thrown back again into the midst of them: and when they were arrived at their journey's end, and within the reach of that blifs, which had been the object of all their hopes, and the end of all their wishes, to be thrust back from it again at the very moment of fruition, must have been a difappointment, of all others, the most grievous to a pious foul. And for this, what amends could they receive in being reftored to fo wretched a life, as they must have led from the time of their refurrection; fculking perpetually, and hiding themselves among a few friends? fince if they happened

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