that offers itself is, to apprise ourselves of SERM. II. the Truth of the following Propofitions.

It, That no feeming Improbabilities, no Objections, be they ever fo numerous, provided they do not amount to an abfolute Impoffibility, ought to reverse an Affent, which is founded, as the Affent to Christianity is, upon Moral Certainty,

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IIdly, That there does not appear any folute Impoffibility in the Contexture of the Chriftian Revelation. The Confequence of which is,

IIIdly, That a thinking Man may enjoy himself with perfect Eafe and Tran quillity, in the Profeffion and Belief of Chriftianity; which he cannot do, if he think upon the Stretch, in a State of Infidelity,

I begin with the firft of these Propofitions, viz. That no feeming Improbabilities, no Objections, &c.

By Moral Certainty is meant fuch an Evidence, as, though it does not exclude a mere abftract Poffibility of Things being otherwife, fhuts out every reasonable Ground of suspecting, that they are fo; an Evidence which we cannot reject, without contradicting the common Senfe and Reason of Mankind.

SERM. II. kind. It is an Evidence of fo high a Nature, that Men of plain Understandings generally confound it with abfolute Certainty; and would be furprized to hear any Man affert that it is only probable in the highest Degree, that there is fuch a Country as Italy. Yet it is in the fame Senfe, that Philofophers must be understood, when they fay, that it is only highly probable, that our Saviour and his Apoftles wrought several uncontrouled Miracles, by which they proved the Divinity of their Miffion and the Truth of their Doctrines; meaning by highly probable, that it is not capable of rigorous Demonftration, it is morally certain, but not feientifically. fo. The Bulk of Mankind can well enough diftinguish Certainty in general from Uncertainty: but to afcertain all the Boundaries and Degrees of Evidence, to fix precifely the Point, where abfolute Certainty ends, and moral Certainty begins, is a Tafk, to which at least unimproved Capacities are not fuited; like thofe common Machines, which ferve well enough for all the Purposes of Life to inform one in general, how the Time paffes, without pointing out to a Tittle the minute and fmalleft Differences of Time.

Taking it for granted (what every one who has written upon the Subject has proved) that Chriftianity is founded upon moral Certainty it will follow, that, if we be

not abfolutely fecure from a phyfical Poffi- SERM. TI bility of Error; we are certainly fecure from the Guilt and Immorality of Error in embracing it. For He at leaft ftands clear of Immorality and Guilt, who acts agreeably to the Will of his Creator; and he acts agreeably to his Will, who is determined by moral Certainty: Becaufe unless moral Certainty were allowed to be a proper and rational Ground of Conviction, all. Adminiftration of Justice muft ceafe; all Truth and Commerce ftagnate; and fuch a Scene of Confufion be opened, as must be highly disagreeable to God, who is a God of Order and not of Confufion. God formed us focial Creatures : now we cannot act as focial Creatures, without fome Degree of mutual Truft repofed in one another; and no mutual Truft can be repofed in one an-. other, if those are not to be depended upon who gave, as the Apoftles and primitive Martyrs did give, the ftrongest Proofs of their Integrity. The numerous Converts to Christianity in the firft Century could not have believed it to be true, if it had been falfe. For not to mention other Things, they must have had an inward Conscioufnefs, whether they had received those miraculous Gifts or not; for the Abuse and Mifapplication of which St. Paul, in his first Epistle to the Corinthians, reproves and cenfures them. They must have had

an

SERM. II. an abfolute Certainty, fuppofing no extra ordinary Gifts were communicated to them, that he from whom they received their Religion, and whofe Epiftles, as appears from St. Peter and others, were univerfally read as of divine Authority, was a fhameless Impoftor. And yet they could not have. profeffed the Belief of it, knowing it to be an Impofture, at a Time when Chriftians were of all Men most miserable, without any Profpect of worldly Honour or Advantage, but with a certain Expectation of exquifite Torments; except upon a Suppofition, that they loved Misery and avoided Happiness as fuch. In a Word, Society muft difband upon the fame abfurd Principle, whereby fome labour the Subverfion of Chriftianity, viz. the Denial of the Force and Validity of moral Certainty. Rigorous and ftrict Demonftrations resemble precious Stones; with whatever Luftre and Brightness of Evidence they may shine, they cannot be purchased without great Expence of Thought; and when they are purchaf ed, they are not always neceffary for the Ufes of common Life. Whereas Moral Evidence is like current Species: It is current Proof on which the Stamp of Credibility is fixed, and by which the common Business of Life is carried on.

Though we have not an abfolute Certainty that we cannot err, yet we have an abfolute

abfolute Certainty that we do not fin, in SERM. 11. yielding our Affent to fuch moral Proofs, as Christianity is fupported by. And when this tranfient Scene is clofed, the grand Question may be, as far as Matters of Belief are concerned, not whether the Doctrines which we embraced had their Foundation in the Truth and Reality of Things, but whether the Evidence, upon which we embraced them, was of an obligatory Nature or not: fince if it were of an obligatory Nature, then, though they should prove to be false, yet we may be as much the Objects of the divine Displeasure for rejecting them, as if they had been true.

For we

may certainly be juftly punished for not complying with fuch Evidence, as God has laid us under an Obligation to fubmit to, and to which we do, without any Hefitation, fubmit in the highest Concernments of Life.

What has been hitherto advanced, proceeds upon a Suppofition, that fuch Evidence may poffibly mifguide us: but if we take the Veracity and Goodness of God into the Account, we may we may advance a Step higher in the Scale of Certainty, and arrive at fuch a determined Proportion of it, as no Improbabilities can deftroy the Force and Weight of it. For let there be never so many Improbabilities in Christianity, yet as long as they are but Improbabilities, and do not amount to a direct