thinkers, in the worst fenfe of the word, in the Popish church, as well as among Proteftants, who will never fcruple to facrifice any little religion they profefs to their fafety, honour, or gain. And indeed the monftrous mafs of abfurdities which compofe the body of the Romish religion, hath, above all things, given birth to the pernici ous and infernal fyftem of infidelity; for here one may find enough at will to fhock his faith, and stun his reason, and ample room to play off the batteries of wit and ridicule; while men of fuperficial minds, and corrupt morals, unable to feparate truth from fable, or to diftinguish between what is genuine and truly divine in religion, and the figments of dreaming priests, artfully or ignorantly impofed upon the world, have dared openly to attack and explode Christianity itself; while more are fceptical, and unbelievers in their heart. But none, we hope, will fay, that a relaxation of the ftatutes was needful, either in point of juftice or humanity, for the fake of men of fuch eafy and pliable confciences, which, without fuffering violence, can commodiously affume all forms: for though they may fometimes appear in the mafk of Papists, yet Popery can as little be faid to be the religion of their understanding or confcience, as Proteftantifm, Judaifm, or the religion of Xinto. To tell us, there are few or no real Papists now in Britain, is an odd fort of argument to prove the injuftice and inexpediency of the laws formerly framed against them. If this was true, it would only follow, that, probably, there would be lefs occafion for executing thefe laws; but it could furnish no proper reafon for their repeal, while one fuch remains in the realm, or while there is danger of fuch men arifing in it. If there are no longer any real Pa pifts, these laws can hurt no body; for, in that cafe, they have no fubjects to whom they are applicable. In the mean time, if our modern enlightened Roman Catholics are fo only in name, it may be a very eafy matter for them to renounce that too, and hereby get rid of all trouble and fear fear arifing from ftatutes made against men, for whofe dangerous principles and practices they are no longer refponfible. But to repeal the old laws, and make new acts of toleration for them, under the name and notion of Roman Catholics, must be very needlefs, and glaringly abfurd. If it be faid," that a diftinction may be made between "the Catholic principles which are purely religious, and "thofe which may be called political, and that Romanists *may be indulged in the one, though they cannot in the "other, being inconfiftent with the peace and fafety of the "ftate: whereas, by the old ftatutes, they were restrict"ed in all, and made equally criminal for both; as apέσ pears from the tests and formulas appointed therein to "be fubfcribed. The late acts in their favour, it may be "faid, proceed upon this distinction, fo neceffary to main tain religious liberty entire: they grant relief to the Ca"tholics who reject the doctrines dangerous to fociety, "though they cannot, in confcience, renounce or forfake "the other articles of the Romish religion, fuch as tran"fubftantiation, invocation of faints, and the like. So that the Roman Catholic religion is indeed tolerated, "though but in part, and fo limited as not to be hurt"ful."-But the folly and abfurdity of this may foon appear to every one who reflects, that Popery is one indivifible thing, whofe parts cannot be feparated without deftruction to the whole: nor can any one thing belonging to it be retained, profèffed, or tolerated; under the formal. notion of a Roman Catholic doctrine, but all the rest must neceffarily follow in its train. Its parts are infeparably linked together in a chain; deny one, and you virtually deny all; admit one, and you interprétatively admit all. Though it is poffible a man may hold one or more of the particular errors of the church of Rome, without being a Papift; yet, to hold any of them as a Papist doth, or on the. the fame ground he doth it, without admitting all of them without exception, certainly involves a contradiction *. There is the highest reafon, therefore, why Proteftants fhould not be too hafty in crediting the boafted converfion and reformation of Catholics, nor allow their ears to be fo easily caught with a fair tale. It is fcarce poffible for them to be too much upon their guard against their wiles, This is an obfervation which ought ftill to be particularly attended to in this argument: and this confideration, we think, may be alone fufficient to vindicate the test oath in England, and the formula in Scotland, appointed to be taken by fufpected Papists, from the clamour raifed against them, as authorifing perfecution for confcience fake, and rendering perfons criminal merely for religious opinions contrary to the written word of God. We need not examine here the near connection between true religion and found policy, or how far it may be warrantable for the civil magiftrate, in order to gain more completely the direct ends of his office, to interfere in certain religious opinions and practices: nor hall we here inquire, how far any of these particular doctrines referred to, as merely religious, may be exceptionable in a political view :-transubstantiation, for example, overturns the first and cleareft dictates of reason, and deftroys the glaineft teftimony of our fenfes, whereby the evidence of facts, of such importance in fociety, is invalidated, and rendered doubtful;-the primacy of the Pope, as explained and acknowledged by Romanifts, entails flavery upon nations, and natively draws after it the most dangerous confequences ;-external idolatry, again, tends to alienate the worship, and to leffen the veneration due to the fupreme God; multiplies fuperftitious times, rites, and customs, accompanied with great and needlefs expence, to the detriment of the commonweal; and fo of others. Suffice it to remark, that, as these are all diftinguishing doctrines of the Romish church, they may, very properly, be made a test for knowing Roman Catholics: and if there be any of their peculiar tenets to which they are known to be attached above others, and which they more freely and explicitly avow, they are fo much the more fit for the purpose. And from the chief place which they have in the Popish fyftem, and from the neceflary connection in which they ftand to one another, and the whole complex system, their recufancy as to these is equivalent to the profeffion of every other tenet in Popery for, according to the peculiar nature of the Roman-Catholic profeffion, he that acknowledges himself a Catholic in these points, renders himself guilty of all the reft. Befides, the religious doctrines of Papifts, and those called political, are fo interwoven, and mutually dependent upon each other, that it is not poffible, either in theory or practice, totally to separate them. But herein Papists differ from all other fects; and what is here faid, by way of apology for the laws and religious tefts, so far as they refpect Papifts, cannot apply equally other religions, nor at all affect the cafe of other diffenters. Ff or too fufpicious of their strong pretenfions of friendship: or if diftruft and jealoufy can here be carried to a fault, it appears to be the most reasonable, as well as the fafeft extreme. Though Popery, like the Trojan horfe, wear no hoftile appearance, when fuing for accefs, yet it will, one time or other, be found big with latent mifchief: and thofe who, in a fond fit of unwary kindnefs, and mistaken hofpitality, pull down the walls and bulwarks of their laws to admit it, may, at laft, pay dear for their credulity. O miferi, quæ tanta infania, cives? Creditis avectos hoftes? aut ulla putatis O wretched countrymen! what fury reigns? DRYD. VIRG That religion, as we have feen, gives but too much countenance to the infernal arts of hypocrify and deceit, and its profeffors have ever appeared fufficiently skilled in thefe, when they have had a favourite defign in view; or when their own particular interests, or that of their party, required them. They are fruitful in expedients; and if they mean to folicit favours, they very well know what method is moft calculated to fucceed. They will speak in the mildest tone, and hide the cloven foot as much as poffible. Every one who has looked into the hiftory of past times, knows that it is nothing new for them to affume counterfeit characters, the moft oppofite to their real, and to profefs to be of a fpirit and principles which have not the the remoteft affinity or refemblance to their own. They will take care to avoid threatenings, bluftering, and violence, when thefe would only hurt themfelves; nor are they fuch fools as to fhew their weapons when they cannot ftrike. So the froward child will be quiet, while the rod is over him: the thief will be honeft, till he meet with his opportunity; and the affaffin and traitor may fometimes be found penitent, when the halter is about his neck, or the hatchet before his face.-How often have the crafty friends of Rome given a temporary and feemingly hearty compliance with that government which they have been fecretly undermining, and plighted their allegiance to that prince whofe ruin they have been plotting. In all the contefts. which the British monarchs have managed with the Papal See, there have not been wanting numbers, even of the clergy, who pretended to take fide with the prince, readily fubmitting themfelves to the regal prerogative, in oppofition to the fupremacy of the Pope. Thefe fupple fycophants have, by turns, obeyed the ftrongest master, abounding, for the time, in professions of loyalty, refusing no acts of fealty, fcrupling, in appearance, no oaths or tefts; till they could again conveniently shake off the fetters, and betray the caufe of their king and country*. In every preceding age Papifts This might be illuftrated, by abundance of examples, in the days of the Henrys, Edwards, John, Elifabeth, &c. Just before the confpiracy of Babington, against the life of that queen, and for fetting up a Popish pretender by force of arms, the party then, to hide the matter, and deceive the government, pablished a book to this effect, "That good Catholics were to employ no other " arms against their prince but the arms of primitive Christians, tears and daily "prayers."-Before King James I. left Scotland, the body of English Papists had fent their agents into Scotland to wait on him, offering great promifes of fidelity for his protection, and tampering fecretly for a public toleration; and afterwards they presented fupplications and addreffes one upon another, styling him, Moft puiffant prince, and orient monarch; "courting and betraying,” as one fays, faluting and fmiting, in the vileft and most perfidious manner." And this weak prince was but too much difpofed to liften to their fyrem fong, till he and the whole nation were almoft drawn into the whirlpool of deftruction. They pretended more than ordinary loyalty even at the very juncture when they were going into the deepest treafon. When the gun-powder plot was |