Reftored and the Reftorer; but Tiemúljîn obtaining feveral Battles over the Confederates, one of them, called Tein, who was Prince of Hongkila, forfook them, and gave his Daughter in Marriage to Tiemúljin. The War lafted many Years, and Tiemüjin was always Conqueror.

Gemuka, however, who was the Incendiary of this War, fucceeded fo far by his evil Arts, as to ftir up a Difference between Tiemûtjîn and Toli, which ended in the Destruction of the latter, 203. whofe Army was cut to pieces between the Rivers Tula and Kolon, which flow north of Peki and Toli himself was killed in the Country of the Naymans, by an Officer, a Native there. Tali, who upon his Elevation, we have mentioned, was called Vang-ban, is fuppofed to have been the fame with Prefter John.

Here we are obliged to break off for the prefent, defigning to give the Remainder of this Hiftory at the head of what we fhall have to fay of and from the two remaining Volumes, hereafter to come under our Confideration.

ARTICLE XXIX.

NouveauxSermons fur l'Hiftoire de laPaffion dé notre Seigneur JESUS CHRIST, & fur des Sujets qui y ont du raport. Par feu M. JAQUES SAURIN, Pafteur à la Haye.

That is,

New Sermons on the Hiftory of the Paffion of our Lord JESUS CHRIST, and other Subjects relating thereto. By the late Reverend M. JAMES SAURIN, Minifter at the Hague. Two Vol. 8vo. Printed

at

at Rotterdam for Jean Daniel Beman, MDCCXXXII. Vol. I. p. 480. befides the Dedication to the Queen of GreatBritain, and an Index of the Texts preached upon. Vol. II. p. 494, and an Index of the Texts.

The firft Volume contains XII Sermons, and
1st the Second XIII.

ni Benigno 31. W doriw .00
goode clncy VOL. I.

ERMON I. (from Matth. xxvi. v. 1–16. incluf) In this Sermon, preached in the Beginning of Lent, the Author declares his Del fign in this, and the following Difcourfes, is to give the History of our Saviour's Paffion, and to difpofe his Hearers to come into the Defign of the CHURCH, which, during fome Weeks, commemorates this great Event vir

In order to bring them to it, after a Para phrafe on the Words of the Text, the Author turns his Difcourfe on the Feftival of Lent; which, fays he, is both tilbunderftood, and worfe folemniz'd, by moft Chriftians. He, firft, p.23. inquires into the Original of it: The primitive Chriftians thought themfelves bound to folemnize, by extraordinary Devotions, the Anniverfary of the Sufferings of Chrift, from what our Saviour had faid to the Difciples of John, Matth. ix. 15. When the Bridegroom fball be taken from the Disciples, then fhall they faft. In conformity to this they fafted, and afflicted themselves for their Sins, from Thursday Night to Sunday Morning. Irenæus, quoted by Eufe bius in the twenty-fourth Chapter of the fifth Book of his Ecclefiaftical Hiftory, fays, SomeEpift. Can. think themselves obliged to faft but one Day, fome

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p. 25."

ad Batil.

p.881.

two; Balam.

two; and others feveral Days: and fome reckon forty Hours in the Days of their fafting, which diverfity is of old standing in the Church, &c. Dionyfius Alexandrinus, All Chriftians, fays he, do not practife alike on this Article during these fix Days (lately introduced) for fome pass the fix Days entirely in Abftinence; others only four Days; others, again, only three; fome, only two, and fome none at all. In procefs of time the forty Hours Abftinence, which were originally inftituted, were converted (fome think about the Time of the firftCouncil of Nice)into forty Days.

Mr. Saurin, fecondly, proceeds to justify the Inftitution of Lent. Tho' what he has faid in the firft Part, fays he, be fufficient for that purpose, yet he lays down two Propofitions to fupport it. First, That the Guides of the Church, tho' they are never to fwerve from the Revelation, may, jointly with the Sovereign, appoint certain Festivals according to the Circumftances the Church may be in; and concludes this first Propofition by thefe Words, Obey them that have the rule over you, and fubmit your felves, for they watch for your Souls. Heb. xiii. 17. His fecond Propofition is, that the Feftival of Lent is one of those that the Guides of the Church may appoint, without ufurping an Authority over Confcience.

Thirdly, The Author takes notice of Abuses brought into the Inftitution of this Feftival by Superftition. The firft Abufe or Miftake is, to refer the Original of it to the Apoftles. Secondly, 'Tis a Miftake to endanger one's Health by obftinate, &c. Abftinence. Thirdly, Another Miftake is, to abftain, and to be nice in the choice of fome forts of Aliments only. Fourthly, 'Tis a grofs Abuse to inflict corporal Punishment

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on the Tranfgreffors of this Inftitution. Upon which our Author relates, that among the Capitularies of Charlemagne, there is one which exprefly forbids to eat Flefb during that Festival upon pain of Death. But if thro' Superftition, thefe feveral Abufes complain'd of by our Author, have crept into the folemnizing of this Feftival, he laments in the

Fourth Article, That Men are grown remifs in the keeping of Lent, under pretence of reforming Divine Service, and bringing it nearer to its original Purity He afterwards makes a Parallel between the Practice of the Church of Rome, and the Reformed, in Holland, (I fuppofe) very much to the advantage of the former; and concludes this Part with faying, that the lat. P. 36. ter give room, by their Conduct, to question whether the Reformation has been more advantageous than fatal to the Chriftian World.

The Author proceeds in the

Fifth Place, to give his Model of Devotions for that Festival, which he digefts under five Heads, in a pathetic manner, and then concludes.

SERMON II. (Of the Sentence paffed by CHRIST upon Judas, from Matth. xxvi. 17-25. incluf.) Mr. Saurin makes, at firft, four Reflections. I. Existence is the Foundation of Happiness or Mifery. Existence, in itself, is p. 50. of no value, and 'tis Happiness or Mifery determines the true worth of it; if it were poffible that Existence could be attended with neither Happiness nor Mifery, or with an equal Portion of both, Existence would be of no value, but it would be better or worse, for a Man to exift in proportion to the meafure of Happiness or Mifery his Existence is attended with: therefore Judas's

004

Judas's Existence being to be attended with more Mifery than Happiness, it had been better for him not ta bave been born.

P. 51.

P. 54.

P. 56.

II. In order to judge rightly whether it had been better for a Man to exist, or not; the whole Courfe of his Existence, and not a few Moments of it, must be confider'd: whether in the whole Time of his Exiftence he had a greater fhare of Happiness, or Mifery. If Judas's Life and Death be confidered, neither were attended with more Mifery than other Men's. Therefore there was to be a Time after his Death when his Existence was to be attended with more Mifery than Happiness, and in that sense it is that it had been better for that Arch-Traitor never to have existed.

III. There are very few Men (if any) but would choose to live on Earth in the manner we do, all things confider'd, than be annihilated; therefore Chrift, by the Sentence he paffed upon Judas, would give us to understand, that the Miferies of the Oeconomy this Wretch was juft going to enter upon, would be greater than those of this prefent Life, how great foever these are.

IV. The Miseries Judas is threaten'd with,are, ft, of the most fatal kind; and 2dly, the worst of that kind.

The Author examines next, what the Mo tive was that could carry Judas to so heinous an p. 65. Action, and concludes it was Avarice. He then

confiders, 1. The Nature of Avarice. 2. The Crime it carried him to. 3. The Circumstances wherein he chose to perpetrate it. And 4. and laftly, The feveral Pretences he used to colour his Thirst of Money with; and his Confeffion. Towards the Close of his Sermon Mr. Saurin has thefe Words.

"Amidft