: Therefore Bernard strained the thought too far and so did Dean Colet after him'; who is the first man I have met with, that ventured formally to say (for Bernard had not expressed the figure so boldly) that a bad life was a heresy, and the worst heresy. However, neither of them intended to extenuate the guilt of heresy at all, but to magnify another kind of guilt, as still greater according to their way of reasoning, or rather rhetoricating. Archbishop Tillotson glances upon the same thoughtm, but gives a very different turn to it; and cannot, I think, be reasonably understood of heresy strictly and properly such, but of what some have wrongfully called so. Bishop Taylor, a very moderate man, in a treatise written on the side of liberty, may be a very proper arbitrator, to clear and determine the whole dispute. "Men think they have more reason to be zealous "against heresy than against a vice in manners, because "it is infectious and dangerous, and the principle of much "evil. Indeed, if by heresy we mean that which is against "an article of the Creed, and breaks part of the covenant "between God and man by the mediation of Jesus Christ, "I grant it to be a grievous crime, a calling God's veracity "in question, and a destruction also of a good life; be "He sheweth plainly, that there be two kinds of heresies, one arising "from perverse teaching, and the other from a naughty life of which two "this latter is far worse and more perilous, reigning now in priests." Colet's Sermon before the Convocation, A. D. 1511. Reprinted in the Phoenix, vol. i. p. 7. m Tillotson's Sermons, vol. i. p. 402. fol. edit. His reflection upon those who were too censorious in charging heresy upon others, and at the same time too indulgent to their own vices, runs thus: "Deluded people! that do not consider, that the greatest heresy in the "world is a wicked life, because it is so directly opposite to the whole design "of the Christian faith and religion; and that do not consider, that God will sooner forgive a man a hundred defects of his understanding, than one "fault of his will." N. B. Heresy, justly so called, is not a mere defect of understanding, but a fault of the will: and it is more directly opposite to religion than common offences; as overturning the authority of a law is worse than transgressing it, or as mutiny, sedition, and rebellion are worse than common felonies. "cause upon the articles of the Creed obedience is built, " and it lives or dies as the effect does by its proper cause: "for faith is the moral cause of obedience. But then he"resy, that is, such as this, is also a vice, and the person "criminal, and so the sin is to be esteemed in its degrees "of malignity. And let men be as zealous against it as "they can, and employ the whole arsenal of the spiritual "armour against it. Such as this is worse than adultery 66 or murder; inasmuch as the soul is more noble than the "body, and a false doctrine is of greater dissemination "and extent than a single act of violence or impurity. "Adultery or murder is a duel, but heresy (truly and "indeed such) is an unlawful war, it slays thousands. "The losing of faith is digging down a foundation : all "the superstructure of hope and patience and charity "fall with it.—But then concerning those things which "men now-a-days call heresy, they cannot be so for"midable as they are represented. And if we consider "that drunkenness is certainly a damnable sin, and that "there are more drunkards than heretics, and that drunkenness is the parent of a thousand vices, it may be better "said of this vice than of most of those opinions which "we call heresies, it is infectious and dangerous, and the principle of much evil, and therefore as fit an object of our pious zeal to contest against "," &c. Thus far Bishop Taylor. 66 66 In the sum of the matter, I entirely agree with him. The result, I think, is, that nominal heresy, or an error in slight matters, not affecting the foundation, not hurting the vitals of Christianity, is not so bad as real immorality and it is equally true, on the other hand, that nominal immorality is not so bad as real error in religion, though in the slighter doctrines. But supposing the error and the maintaining of it to amount to real heresy, it is then a vice, and the greatest of vices: so the whole will turn upon the nature, quality, and tendency of what is Taylor's Liberty of Prophesying, Dedicat. p. 42, 43, Invincible ignorance will equally and so is wide of the purpose. charged as an heresy. excuse any other vice; P. 139. All parties are for creeds under one shape or other. It may be asked perhaps, what creed the Sceptics are for, who profess to doubt of every thing? I answer, that their pretended scepticism is mostly affectation, and they generally are as credulous as other men; frequently more so. If they believe less of religion, as some of them perhaps may, yet they are easy of belief as to any thing else. They have their systems, their maxims, their probabilities, (as they are pleased to call them,) which make up as long and large creeds as our certainties do: only there is this difference, that they commonly prefer a creed of paradoxes, and sometimes glaring absurdities, before a rational faith. And while we believe as much as we can prove, and no more, (which is believing like wise men,) they believe what they have a mind to, proving nothing, by their own confession; which is resolving all into fond persuasion and credulity. The most considerable writer I know of, that ever appeared in behalf of general scepticism, (matters of faith only excepted,) is the celebrated Huetius, in a posthumous treatise, written, I suppose, for an exercise of wit, to divert himself and friends; unless he had some further latent view to serve the Romish cause. I may remark, that one article of his sceptical creed is, that the certainty of faith is superior to that of sense: a second is, that it is superior even to that of the first principles and axioms of Geometry P. One cannot desire any two plainer instances of the credulity of a sceptic. I mention not, how often he forgets the part he was to act, talking in the style of a dogmatist: Sure it is, or It is certain 9. Sometimes, he is fully persuaded', or fully convinceds, or certainly • A Philosophical Treatise concerning the Weakness of human Understanding. Printed in English, London, 1725. P Huet. Philosoph. Treatise, &c. p. 15. Page 28, 30, 34, 68, 75, 98, 150. . P. 7. • P. 33. knows: at other times, he speaks of evident proof", and irrefragable argument, and demonstration, just as any dogmatist would do. So hard a thing is it for the finest wit even to personate a sceptic with any tolerable grace, or without perpetual inconsistency: for which reason I before hinted that I look upon scepticism, so called, to be little else but affectation. Or if there really be any such kind of men who believe that they believe nothing, that very instance is an undeniable argument of their more than common credulity. Indeed, for a man to fall to arguing and proving that there is no such thing as proof or argument, is much the same as if one should make an eloquent harangue, lamenting that mortal men have not the faculty of speech, loudly complaining that all mankind are mutes. P. 141. Our way supposes that men ought to examine (if capable, and as far as capable) in order to know that the doctrine proposed is true. If it should be asked, what need of examination after so many wise and good men, and all morally certain; I would ask again, what need is there of studying the demonstrations of Euclid, which all the world agree in, as containing certain truth? A man might safely enough take them for granted, and by so doing might as soon become a sound Geometrician, as by the like method, in the other case, he might commence a sound Divine, or a confirmed Christian. At best, it would be resting faith upon mere human authority, which would be resting it on a wrong bottom; and, besides, would be neglecting the due improvement of the heart and cultivation of the mind. But may there not be danger in examining, danger of being led to dissent from what is right, and to embrace some error? Undoubtedly there may. And what conveniency is there without some inconveniency? Such danger must be risked, rather than found our faith upon a wrong principle, to render it worthless or contemptible: y P. 99. comp. 100, 104. P. 14. "P. 40. * P. 52. and it is better to hazard the chance of falling into some error in faith, than to be certain of committing a greater error in conduct. However, if men come with humility, modesty, and circumspection to the examination, and have patience to stay till they are clear, before they formally dissent, or before they declare it openly; there will be no great danger in examining every thing with the utmost severity. P. 142. The phrase of having dominion over one's faith, is of obscure meaning, &c. I did not then call to mind how well the meaning of that phrase had been lately cleared up by a very learned handy. P. 183. The darkness cometh not upon it. I referred to a very judicious critic, Lambert Bos, for the justifying my rendering of this text. I find since, that the learned Wolfius disapproves of what Bos had offered a: but I abide by Bos notwithstanding, who plainly has reason on his side. He did not insist merely upon the force of the word xaraλabeiv, but upon the phrase, upon the verb as joined with σκότος, or σκοτία. The examples which he gives from sacred and profane writers, of the use of the phrase, are all clear and full to his purpose. And if there be need of additional examples from ecclesiastical writers, there are several; as Origen, Cyril of Alexandria ©, and Theophylact. Clemens of Alexandria, in his comment, (if it be his,) seems to take in both the senses of that verb z Bishop Hare, Scripture Vindicated, p. 60–63. • Ingeniosior quam verior hîc est Lamb. Bos interpretatio—————-quod natura Aóys sanctissima et purissima sit, nec minimam cum impuritate habet communionem. Quæ notio quamvis in N. T. et apud ipsum Joannem nostrum, cap. xii. 35. occurrat, ab hoc tamen loco aliena merito censetur, in quo non tam quid tenebræ in Christum molitæ sint, aut moliri potuerint, quam quid Christus in tenebras molitus sit, exponitur. Conf. v. 10, 11.-Itaque rectius notio illa vocis xaraλabu hic tenetur, quæ receptionem aut agnitionem infert. Hanc enim N. T. Scriptoribus imprimis familiarem esse patet ex Actor. v. 13. Rom. ix. 30. Wolfii Cure Philolog. et Crit. in loc. vol. i. p. 784. b Origen. Comment. in Johan. edit. Huet. p. 73, 74. Cyril. Alex. Comment. in Johann. p. 23. |