V. Natural Duties only are capable of being perceived by us to be Duties; thefe having their Foundation in Nature, and the Reafon of Things themselves, are, in a Degree proportionable to our refpective Faculties, to be traced out by us; but whatever has not its Foundation there, and is but authoritatively afferted to be a Duty, can never poffibly be perceived by us to be fo, and muft neceffarily be derived from Superftition or Enthufiafm.

VI. That adorable Being! who in infinite Wif dom created us with reafoning Powers and Facul ties, very limited and confined, will, in Juftice, require of us a Conduct, but proportionate to the Abilities of Perception and Action that we have, and not according to what we have not.

So that now, if from the due Confideration of the above Propofitions, it fhould be thought fufficiently to appear, that thofe Duties only are neceffary to be believed and practifed by us, the Reasons of which we perceive to be founded in Nature; and the Difcharge of which, in the beft Manner we can, is intimately connected with our Happiness, and the Approbation of him, whofe Favour is better than Life; then it will follow, That if any thing elfe is enjoined as a Duty, in any, even in the Chriftian Inftitution, it cannot be neceffary to be obferved, in order to eternal Salvation. And as every Doctrine or Precept of

the Gospel, that has its Foundation discernable in Nature, is an effential and conftituent Part of the Religion of Nature, or Deism; so Deism is all, in the Chriftian Inftitution, that can poffibly approve itself, to the true, genuine Reafon of Man. Let then the Waterlands, the Warburtons, and the Stebbings of the Age, if not for the fake of Modefty, yet for the fake of the high Character they affume as Embajadors of CHRIST, no longer fubftitute Scurrility, and Sophistry, in the room of Reafon and Argument; but if they must be writing against the Deifts, let them do it, by fairly denying their real Principles, and openly avowing, and defending the contrary to them. What Honour they would reflect by this honeft Procedure, on the Religion they profefs, will obviously appear, by confidering a few fundamental Principles of the Deifts, the oppofite to which, it will then fall to their Lot to maintain.

I. There is a God; that is, a neceffarily-exifting, felf-fufficient, and an infinitely perfect Being, who is, in and of himself, infinitely happy.

II. Infinite Happinefs, confidered as effential to the Deity, appears to be the Refult of the Contemplation of his own effential Perfections, and a pure Confcioufnefs of an invariable Conformity in Affection and Action, to Truth.

III. Truth, abftractedly confidered, has a ne

ceffary

ceffary Existence in Nature, independent of, and, in the Order of our Conceptions, prior to, the Will of any Being whatever.

IV. To us, the only conceivable Motive the fupreme Being could have to create us, and every other Species of intelligent Beings, was that of communicating Happiness to us, and them.

V. Rational and intelligent Creatures are capable of being in their Measure happy, as God is happy, but only, as in their Measure they are pure, as He is pure: Or, in other Words, as they confcientioufly conform themselves to the Law of Truth, and discharge the Obligations of Reason.

VI. As, by our very Frame and Conftitution, we are rendered incapable of Perfection, fo the kind Author of our Beings, who could not make us but to be happy, will gracioufly accept a fincere Defire, and Endeavour, to know and do what is right, and Penitence and Amendment, in all those Instances in which it appears to us we have done otherwife; this being the nearest Approach to Perfection, that, in our prefent State, we are capable of.

VII. To afpire after rational Happiness, the fame in Kind with that of the Deity, by an humble Imitation of him, in all his imitable moral Perfections,

Perfections, is the only End of all true Religion. He therefore who really believes the Being of a God; that he is poffeffed of every poffible Perfection; that he is neceffarily happy in the Confcioufnefs of the Perfection of his Being, and the abfolute Rectitude of his whole Nature; that believes likewife there is Truth in oppofition to Falfhood, that it has a neceffary Exiftence in Nature, and who in his Measure regards it too, in the Whole of his Conduct, and thereby afpires to affimilate himself to the Deity in Rectitude and in Blifs, that is, aims by being pure as God is pure, to become happy as he is happy; is a truly religious Man, a proper Object of Divine Complacence, a promifing Candidate for Heaven, and the refined, intellectual Joys of that unknown, tho' certain and immortal, State of Existence.

Having propofed this equitable Method, for those Gentlemen I have complained of, to regard in their dealing with the Deift, I fhall enter upon what I intended, namely, the propofing to you my Difficulties with regard to Chriftianity, in order to obtain Satisfaction; by making my Objections to thofe Doctrines that lie out of the reach of our Reason, to determine of their Truth or Falfehood; and thofe Inftitutions, which are confeffedly no constituent Parts of Religion. As I apprehend it to be the proper Business of the Understanding, to be chiefly imployed in the great Affairs of Religion, becaufe this is the only rational

Means

Means of obtaining the fole End of Being, viz. Happiness; fo in my Exercises of this kind I have deemed it my Duty to endeavour to acquire, and therefore have paid a fteady Regard to, Truth; and whether upon an impartial Examination, I thought I found it among Friends, or Strangers, learned, or illiterate, whether agreeable, or contrary to the Notions I have been educated in, I have treated it with equal Deference and readily embraced it. But as I am not more certain of the Truth of any Propofition than this, viz. I am fallible, and therefore may err; fo I chufe not only to review my Sentiments myself, but alfo to call in to my Affittance a Friend, whofe Ability and Integrity I am thoroughly fatisfied of. I have above obferved, that formerly when I heard you apply the Name, Infidel, to me, it gave me fome Uneafinefs; but upon a repeated Enquiry into the Reasons of that Uneafnefs, I am far from finding there were any just ones for it; fo that I venture to tell you, I think my prefent Sentiments may very properly be stiled Deifm, as that imports the Religion of Things, and not of unmeaning, or many meaning Words; of the Htart, but not of the Book. It is not nominal, but real, Deifm I now intend; and by which, Sir, I would fain be understood to mean, that Religion, which confifts of only fuch Doctrines and Precepts as appear to have their Foundation in Reason and Nature. And tho' it is faid by fome, that Chriftianity is grounded on natural Religion, and is an Improvement of it; yet, after

all