I confess I am not wife enough to find out any essential Difference between the present and the old Roman Worship; they both dedicate their Temples to dead Men and Women, whom the Papists call Saints, and the Pagans called Demi Gods and Goddesses: The latter had Forms of Hocus-Pocus, which they called Confecrations; and were intended to conjure and call down their Deities to inhabit personally their Temples, their Images and Idols : The Popish Priests confecrate their Churches for the fame Purpose, viz. to obtain the more immediate Prefence of the Deity: Like the old Romans too, they erect Altars in their Temples, where they worship Saints with Supplications, Tears, Grimaces, antick and distorted Faces and Gestures, Musick, and Ceremonies, and tender Offerings and Oblations to them; and, like the others, often make Processions, Cavalcades, and Shews in their Honour; and fometimes go in Pilgrimages to them to obtain their Favour.

The Popish Priests have prophaned the plain and simple Direction of our Saviour to his Difciples, for commemorating the Benefits we have received by his Death, by turning it into an old Roman Sacrifice: Amongst them, the Pipers and Harpers were the Forerunners of the Shew; and before the modern Sacrifice, the Organs strike up a Tune: There the Priests went up to the Altar in a white Garment free from Spots, (being an Emblem of Innocence;) in new Rome the Priest wears a white Surplice: The Heathen Prieft turned about to the East, being the Region of the Rising Sun, and bowed; the Popish Priest does the same: The Horns of the Beast facrificed were mark'd with Gold, and his Blood receiv'd in Golden and Silver Vessels; here the pretended Christian Sacrifice of the real Body and Blood of Christ, is poured into the fame costly Cups, or laid upon as rich Plates and Dishes: The old Roman Altar was raised, by several Steps, above the Floor of their Temples; so is the present. The Priest, amongst them, made a crooked Line with his Knife from the Head to the Tail of the Vic tim; the Popish Priest plays Tricks of Legerdemain with his Fingers over the Elements : Lastly, When the Beast was confecrated and killed, the Heathen Priests regaled themselves upon what was left, after their Gods were served; the Romish Priests make it prophane for any Layman to drink of the confecrated Wine, or for any one even to eat the Bread but the Communicants.

The old Romans had different Orders of Priefts, with different and distinct Offices and Revenues, viz. the High Priest, the Luperci, the Augurs, the Haruspices, the Pontifices, the Flamines, Salii, Feciales, Sodales, the Duumviri, Decemviri, Quindecemviri, the Keepers of the Sybilline Books, the Corybantes, &c. The present Romans (besides the several Sorts which are in Ufe and Fashion amongst us) have a Pope, Cardinals, Dominicans,

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nicans, Franciscans, Jesuits, Carmelites, Benedictines, Mendicants, Capuchins, Ciftertians, Obfervantines, Augustines, Servites, &c. In Imitation also of the Vestal Virgins, in old Rome, they have founded feveral Orders of Nuns, who take a Vow of Chastity, for the Breach of which they are immured, as the others were burned alive: And as they had a Right to deliver from the Hands of Justice, any Malefactors they cafually met in their Walks ; so the present Romish Priests claim and exercise an equal Right to protect all Criminals who can fly to them for Prorection, which is borrowed from that of the old Roman Afyla.

The old Romans had their Dies faftos & nefastos, their Fasts and Feasts, their Sacrificia, their Epulas, their Ferias, in Honour of their Gods and Demi-Gods; the present Romans alfo make Distinctions of Days a great Part of their Religion; they too have their Dies faftos & nefastos, their stated Fasts and Feasts in Honour of their Saints, or to commemorate and condole past Misfortunes, or rejoice over signal Successes; and some of their Feafts, and particularly their Carnivals, exceed in Lewdness and Prodigality, the Bacchanalia of the Ancients.

The Heathens had their Deos Tutelares, to whom the Defence of certain Countries were committed; and their Deos Presides, who had the Safe-guard of particular Cities; the Papists have Saints, who supply the fame Offices: Offices: Artificers and Profeffions have alfo their particular Saints who prefide over them; Scholars have their Saint Nicholas, and Saint Gregory; Painters, Saint Luke, as Soldiers and Lovers had formerly their Mars, and Venus: Diseases too have their Saints to cure them, as the Pox, Saint Roque; the falling Evil, Saint Cornelius; the Tooth Ach, Saint Apollin: And even Beasts and Cattle have their's, Saint Loy is the Horseleech, and Saint Anthony the Swineherd...

As the Heathen Priests would fuffer none to come into their Sanctuaries but them selves; neither will the Popish Priests permit any Layman to come within the Rails of the Altar, and profane with unhallowed Feer that Holy Place, As the Ancients obliged all who were initiated into their Myste ries to confess, under the most severe De nunciations, all the Secrets of their past Lives, by which Means they were so much in their Power, that they never afterwards durst blob out what they faw, nor give the least Oppofition to their Designs; so the Romish Priefts trust their Mysteries only to the vere Adepti, and have made the fame use of Confeffion, (the loss of which is forely lamented by others;) for they oblige, upon the Penalty of Damnation, all their Votaries to confefs not only their private Sins, but secret Thoughts, as well as every Thing else they know of other Peoples, which may any way regard the Interests of their Order; and

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and fo have Possession and fast hold of all Families, and become acquainted with all the Designs, which may ever thwart their Pride; and consequently have fecured their own Domination, and the Peoples Misery, beyond almost a possibility of Redress.

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Lastly, As the Heathen Priests facrificed Goats to Bacchus, for browfing his Vines, and Men to Pluto and Proferpina, and other angry Deities, to appease their Wrath, and avert Evils from themselves; so the Popish Priefts sacrifice and devote their Enemies, under the Names of Hereticks and Schifmaticks, to the infernal Fiend: And as those Idolaters were allowed to know when was the most proper Time to make their Sacri fices to their Deities, and what Victims would be most acceptable to them, as being prefumed to understand best the Minds of their provoked Gods; fo the present Ones are in Possession of the fole Judgment of what is Heresy, and of sacrificing by that Means whom they please to their Ambition and Revenge; which equally subjects the unhappy Laity to them.

They have alfo imitated the Heathens in making every human Foible and Imbecility, as well as every common and uncommon Appearance in Nature, contribute to their Interests; which shall be the Subject of my next Paper.

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