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No 201. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20.,

Religentem effe oportet, religiofum nefas.

Incerti Auctoris apud AUL. GELL.

A man fhould be religious, not fuperftitious. IT is of the last importance to feafon the paffions

of a child with devotion, which feldom dies in a mind that has received an early tincture of it. Though it may feem extinguished for a while by the cares of the world, the heats of youth, or the allurements of vice, it generally breaks out and discovers itself again as foon as difcretion, confideration, age, or misfortunes have brought the man to himself. The fire may be covered and overlaid, but cannot be intirely quenched and fmothered.

A ftate of temperance, fobriety, and juftice, without devotion, is a cold, lifelefs, infipid condition of virtue; and is rather to be ftiled philofophy than religion. Devotion opens the mind to great conceptions, and fills it with more fublime ideas than any that are to be met with in the most exalted science; and at the fame time warms and agitates the foul more than sensual pleasure.

It has been obferved by fome writers, that man is more diftinguifhed from the animal world by devotion than by reafon, as feveral brute creatures discover in their actions fomething like a faint glimmering of reafon, though they betray in no fingle circumftance of their behaviour any thing. that bears the leaft affinity to devotion. It is certain, the propenfity of the mind to religious worfhip, the natural tendency of the foul to fly to fome fuperiour Being for fuccour in dangers and diftreffes, the gratitude to an invisible fuperintendent which arifes in us upon receiving any extraordinary and unexpected good fortune, the acts of

love and admiration with which the thoughts of men are fo wonderfully tranfported in meditating upon the divine perfections, and the univerfal concurrence of all the nations under Heaven in the great article of adoration, plainly fhew that devotion or religious worship must be the effect of tradition from fome firft founder of mankind, or that it is conformable to the natural light of reafon, or that it proceeds from an instinct implanted in the foul itfelf. For my part, I look upon all these to be the concurrent caufes, but which ever of them fhall be affigned as the principle of divine worship, it manifeftly points to a Supreme Being as the first author of it.

I may take fome other opportunity of confidering those particular forms and methods of devotion which are taught us by Christianity; but thall here obferve into what errours even this divine principle may fometimes lead us, when it is not moderated by that right reason which was given us as the guide of all our actions.

The two great errours into which a mistaken devotion may betray us, are enthusiasm and superstition.

There is not a more melancholy object than a man who has his head turned with religious enthu fiafm. A perfon that is crazed, though with pride or malice, is a fight very mortifying to human nature; but when the diftemper arifes from any indifcreet fervours of devotion, or too intense an application of the mind to its mistaken duties, it deferves our compaffion in a more particular manner. We may however learn this leffon from it, that fince devotion itself (which one would be apt to think could not be too warın) may disorder the mind, unless its heats are tempered with caution and prudence, we thould be particularly careful to keep our reafon as cool as poflible, and to guard ourfelves

ourselves in all parts of life against the influence of paflion, imagination, and conftitution.

Devotion, when it does not lie under the check of reason, is very apt to degenerate into enthufiafin. When the mind finds herfelf very much inflamed with her devotions, fhe is too much inclined to think they are not of her own kindling, but blown up by fomething divine within her. If the indulges this thought too far, and humours the growing paffion, fhe at laft flings herfelf into imaginary raptures and ecftafies; and when once fhe fancies herfelf under the influence of a divine impulfe, it is no wonder if the flights human ordinances, and refufes to comply with any established form of religion, as thinking herself directed by a much fuperiour guide.

As enthusiasm is a kind of excefs in devotion, fuperftition is the excess not only of devotion, but of religion in general, according to an old heathen faying, quoted by Aulus Gellius, Religentem effe portet, Religiofum nefas; a man fhould be religious, not fuperftitious: For as the author tells us, Nigidius obferved upon this paffage, that the Latin words which terminate in ofus generally imply vicious characters, and the having of any quality to an excefs.

An enthufiaft in religion is like an obftinate clown, a fuperftitious man like an infipid courtier. Enthufiafm has fomething in it of madnefs, fuperftition of folly. Moft of the fects that fall fhort of the church of England have in them ftrong tinctures of enthusiasm, as the Roman Catholick religion is one huge overgrown body of childish and idle fuperftitions.

The Roman Catholic church feems indeed irrecoverably loft in this particular. If an abfurd drefs or behaviour be introduced in the world, it will foon be found out and difcarded: On the contrary, a habit or ceremony, though never fo ridicu

lous,

lous, which has taken fanctuary in the church, fticks in it for ever. A Gothic bishop perhaps, thought it proper to repeat fuch a form in fuch particular fhoes or flippers; another fancied it would be very decent if fuch a part of publick devotions were performed with a mitre on his head, and a crofier in his hand: To this a brother Vandal, as wife as the others, adds an antick drefs, which he conceived would allude very aptly to fuch and fuch mysteries, until by degrees the whole office has degenerated into an empty fhow.

Their fucceffors fee the vanity and inconvenience of the ceremonies; but instead of reforming, perhaps add others, which they think more fignificant, and which take poffeffion in the fame manner, and are never to be driven out after they have been once admitted. I have feen the Pope officiate at St. Peter's, where, for two hours together, he was bufied in putting on or off his different accoutrements, according to the different parts he was to act in them.

Nothing is fo glorious in the eyes of mankind, and ornamental to human nature, fetting afide the infinite advantages which arife from it, as a ftrong, fteady, mafculine piety; but enthusiasm and fuperftition are the weakneffes of human reafon, that expofe us to the scorn and derifion of infidels, and fink us even below the beafts that perish.

Idolatry may be looked upon as another errour arifing from mistaken devotion; but becaufe reflections on that fubject would be of no ufe to an English reader, I shall not enlarge upon it.

L

VOL. III.

N

MONDAY,

N° 202

MONDAY, OCTOBER 22.

Saepe decem vitiis inftructior, odit, & horret.

HOR. Ep. xviii. lib. 1. ver. 25

Many, though faultier much themselves, pretend Their lefs offending neighbours faults to mend.

THE

IE other day as I paffed along the street, I faw a sturdy prentice-boy difputing with an hackney-coachman; and in an inftant, upon fome word of provocation, throw off his hat and periwig, clench his fift, and strike the fellow a flap on the face; at the fame time calling him rafcal, and telling him he was, a Gentleman's fon. The young Gentleman was it feems bound to a blackimith; and the debate arofe about payment for fome work done about a coach, near which they fought. His master, during the combat, was full of his boy's praises; and as he called to him to play with his hand and foot, and throw in his head, he made all us who ftood round him of his party, by declaring the boy had very good friends, and he could trust him with untold gold. As I am generally in the theory of mankind, I could not but make my reflections upon the fudden popularity which was raifed about the lad; and perhaps, with my friend Tacitus, fell into obfervations upon it, which were too great for the occafion; or afcribed this general favour to caufes which had nothing to do towards it. But the young blackfmith's being a Gentleman was, methought, what created him good-will from his prefent equality with the mob about him: Add to this, that he was not fo much a Gentleman, as not, at the faine time that he called himself fuch, to ufe as rough methods for his defence as his antagonist. The advantage of his having good friends, at his mafter expreffed it,

was