3. But he answered and said unto them, Why do you also tranfgrefs the Commandments of God by your Tradition ? 4. For God commanded, faying, Honour thy Father and Mother; and he that curfeth Father or Mother let him die the Death. 5. But ye fay, Whofoever fhall fay to his Father or Mother, It is Corban, by whatsoever thou might eft be profited by me, 6. And honour not his Father or his Mother, he fhall be free. Thus have ye made the Commandments of God of none Effect by your Tradition. 7. Ye Hypocrites, well did Efaias prophefy of you, faying, 8. This People draweth nigh unto me with their Mouth, and honoureth me by their Lips, but their Heart is far from me. 9. But in vain do they worship me, teaching the Commandments of Men. 3 N. B. This is a terrible Denunciation to us alfo while not the Jews only, but those that call them. felves Chriftians, but in Reality are Papifts or Proteftants, Lutherans or Calvinifts, Members of the Church of England, or of the Church of Scotland, &c. who generally agree in following human Traditions, or human Laws, inftead of the Laws of God, and the Chriftian Conftitutions and Canons. Even our beft Judges, both in Law and Equity, Ecclefiaftical and Temporal, having long laid afide the Laws of God by Mofes; which, in my Horeb's Covenant Revived, I have fully proved oblige Chriftians Chriftians, as well as Jews, excepting the Ceremonial; and that all, both Chrift himself, his Apoftles, and old Chriftians, till Anti-Chriftianism and Popery came in, acknowledged the Obligation of thofe Laws. Nor could I ever find that God Almighty, or our Bleffed Saviour, gave any Power to Chriftians to make fuch Laws for themselves; but abfolutely required of all that owned the one to be their Creator, and the other their Redeemer, to fubmit themselves to thofe divine Laws, even tho' it were in the directed Oppofition to all the Contradictions of Civil or Canon Laws, or Acts of Parlia ment. So that they are not the Jews only, but those called Chriftians alfo have incurred the juft Anger of God on this Account. I hinted at this fundamental Error in the former Part of this Work, Pag. 625, 626, when I faid, 'I had no Bufiness in the Lord Chancellor's Court; but added withall, That if the Lord Chancellor would determine Causes by the Laws of God, and not by the • Laws of Men, I would come and hear him.' Whether God Almighty will any longer bear this publick Rejection of his divine Authority, which is the very Effence of Anti-Chriftianifm, and Foundation of the higheft Impiety both in Jews and Christians, the Rabbins of the one, and the Kings and Judges of the other, ought well to confider; left the Judgments of God, the avenging Judgments of God, foon overtake them; at whofe Tribunal the Offenders must needs appear to be utterly inexcusable. He that hath Ears io bear let him hear. II. As to the Roman Catholicks, their greatest Crimes (befides the last, common to Jews, Papists, and Proteftants, in general) feem to be. Grofs Infidelity; As to the grofs Infidelity in Italy, it has been long taken Notice of, that the weak Part of the People there are guided by the Pope and his Cardinals, and are in a deplorable Slavery to the groffeft Superftition; but that the more fagacious and intelligent, comply indeed with the Superftition of their Country, but are in reality the groffeft Infidels. Nay, it has been obferved, that in Order to bring Proteftants over to their Religion, they have aimed firft to make them Scepticks or Infidels: A very melancholy Instance of which I remember many Years ago. As to the French Papifts, who have much more Learning than the Italians, yet was I informed by a very intelligent Friend of mine, who was there many Years ago, that he was affured, the Belief of Chriftianity could not then hold out at Paris ten Years longer. As to the prefent Belief of Religion among the Virtuofi there, if we take it from that which the celebrated Monfieur De Fontenelle, and the Author of Confiderations on Hiftory feem to have, we fhall find Scepticism or Infidelity are come near to Perfection in that Kingdom also; as the Reader may find in their own Words, quoted before in my Obfervation on Dr. Middleton, Page 39, 40. L As As to the grofs Idolatry, and fome other Crimes of the Church of Rome, I fhall give it in the Words of the Prophecy of St. John, at the End of the first fix Trumpets, or Judgments fent to awaken, and convert the Popish World; which affures us, Apoc. ix. 20, 21. that The rest of Men who were not killed by thefe Plagues, yet repented not of the Works of their Hands, that they Should not worship Demons, and Idols of Gold, and Silver, and Brafs, and Stone, and Wood; which neither can fee, nor hear, nor walk. Neither repented they of their Murders, nor of their Sorceries, nor of their Fornication, nor of their Thefts. See Effay on the Revelation, 2d Edition, Page 219. As to the cruel Perfecutions which the Papists have brought on good Men, they have been so many, and fo barbarous, as is almoft incredible: The Parifian Maffacre; the Irish Maffacre; the Cruelties exercised on the poor Waldenfes, and Albigenfes, with thofe in our Queen Mary's Reign; and those the Inquifition has all along exercised, and ftill exercifes upon both Jews and Proteftants, whenever they have them in their Power, are Evidences of this barbarous Cruelty, truly undeniable. So that after this most inhuman of Crimes, it is hardly neceffary to enumerate any other upon this Occafion. III. As to the Proteftants, especially in England, their greatest Crimes feem to be these following: Following laft Following Human inftead of Divine Laws. 40 Years. Refufal to tolerate Primitive Christianity, the fame 40 Years. Curfing the Eufebians, or Primitive Christians,' 13 Times a Year, by publick Authority, in the Athanafian Creed. Tolerating and Encouraging Mafquerades, Ridotto's, Balls, and Plays; with Mr. Henley's vile abufing of the Primitive Liturgy, and all that is facred, every Lord's-Day Evening, for 23, or 24 Years together. Encouraging, by Act of Parliament, the Poor to Drunkenness and murdering themselves, in the Ufe of Gin, and other Spirituous Liquors. Grofs Infidelity. The open Breach of God's Everlasting Covenant, the Ten Commandments. Of all which in their Orders: (1.) Proteftants, as well as Papifts, follow Human instead of Divine Laws. This has appeared already under the former Article, but deferves to be here particularly remembred, because the very Nature of the Proteftant Religion fuppofes its Profeffors fenfible of fuch grofs Errors in Popery, as required an intire Reformation. from them; which ought to have obliged them to leave not only those Laws made by Popes, or Popish Councils, but to change them for Divine Laws. Otherwife we only change L 2 |