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heathen or a mahometan judge of us from our written tenets, and from our oral profeffions! Certainly, that we were a nation of faints, nearly approaching to the dignity and holiness of demigods or angels: that our land must be an elyfium or a paradife. But let him walk our streets in the open day, and what notions will he form of our fanctity, from those frequent fpecimens of ribaldry, profaneness, and blasphemy that are bellowed from the mouths of children; those babes and fucklings that were ordained to give praise to God!— But perhaps he might have more candor than to judge of us by the common people; when, at the fame time, that is the fureft way of characterizing any nation; fince They conftitute the greateft part of it.

Let

Let him therefore join the politest affemblies, and he will foon find that the infection has reached the head, that the disease is epidemical, and that every conversation has a tincture of prophaneness. Let him next attend our midnight revels and our gaming tables, and what else could he think, but that legions of infernals were let loofe among us? Perhaps he might be induced to make a further trial of us, from his having been told, that there are certain ftately fructures dedicated to the fervice of the great God, which are every day opened, more particularly on the fabbath day, where the greatest multitudes refort, and where he would fee the most elevated devotion, and the pureft worship in the world. But how would his expectations be answered?

answered? On the common days of the week, would he not find our spacious temples entirely deferted, or thinly fpread over with the old and infirm? And on our fabbaths, what numbers would he fee idle at home, fetting out on journies, or expeditions of pleasure, wandering in the fields, or carousing in taverns? And in the midst of our devotion, how must the inattention and indecency of many fhock and difguft him? And would he not haften to leave us, with this indelible reproach, that we have the best religion, but the worst practice upon earth? Hence it is, that our moft pure and holy religion, through our own abuse of it, is become the fubject of triumph to fectaries, of ridicule and railing to deifts and infi

dels, and of fcorn to atheists.

And

with

with what grace can we defend the doctrines of our church against their united endeavours. What avails the acuteness, the folidity, and strength of our arguments: and how unjustly do we boast of the fuperiority of revelation over reason, and of the church of England over all other reformed churches; when the diffolutenefs of our lives cannot ftand the fearch of a moral enquirer ?

The fhame that arifes from the consciousness of our bearing a bad character, has often a good effect upon private persons; and if their interest is concerned, feldom fails of producing a reformation. Whilft he that ftifles this ingenuous paffion, is fure to become completely wicked, a torment to himself, and a scandal to mankind.

mankind. So, were we once made fenfible, that the profaneness of every individual tends to blacken the credit of our religion, this fingle motive would be fufficient to prevent it's progrefs. But whilft every one wantonly indulges his vicious inclinations; he forgets that whereinfoever he fuffers, the whole body fuffers with him; and that he is the caufe, fo far as his example actuates, of bringing a whole kingdom, nay, perhaps, the christian world, into disgrace.

Were it, I fay, merely our concern for our character as a collective oody, this alone fhould check our profanenefs; but were the ill opinion that others have of us, the ony ill confequence of this fin, christianity teaches us, and the example of our

Lord

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