endowed. Whatever ftrains of panegyric can be invented, are immediately embraced, without confulting any arguments or phænomena: It is efteemed a fufficient confirmation of them, that they give us more magnificent ideas of the divine objects of our worship and adoration.

Here therefore is a kind of contradiction between the different principles of human nature which enter into religion. Our natural terrors present the notion of a devilish and malicious deity: our propenfity to adulation leads us to acknowledge an excellent and divine. And the influence of these oppofite principles are various, according to the different fituation of the human understanding.

In very barbarous and ignorant nations, fuch as the AFRICANS and INDIANS, nay even the Japonese, who can form no extenfive ideas of power and knowledge, worship may be paid to a being, whom they confefs to be wicked and deteftable; though they may be cautious, perhaps, of pronouncing this judg ment of him in public, or in his temple, where he may be supposed to hear their reproaches.

Such rude, imperfect ideas of the divinity, adhere long to all idolaters; and it may fafely be affirmed, that the GREEKS themselves never got entirely rid of them. It is remarked by XENOPHON*, in praise of SOCRATES, that this philofopher affented not to the vulgar opinion, which fuppofed the gods to know fome things, and be ignorant of others: He maintained, that they knew every thing; what was done, faid, or even thought. But as this was a strain of philofophy + much above the conception of his countrymen, we need not be fuprifed, if very frankly, in their books and converfation, they blamed the deities,

Mem. lib.i.

It was confidered among the ancients as a very extraordinary, philofophical paradox, that the prefence of the gods was not confined to the heavens, but were extended every where; as we learn from LUCIAN. Hirmetimus five de fetis

deities, whom they worshipped in their temples. It is obfervable, that HERODOTUS in particular fcruples not, in many paffages, to afcribe envy to the gods; a fentiment, of all others, the most fuitable to a mean and devilish nature. The pagan hymns, however, fung in public worship, contained nothing but epithets of praise; ever while the actions afcribed to the gods were the most barbarous and deteftable. When TIMOTHEUS the poet recited a hymn to DIANA, in which he enumerated, with the greatest eulogies, all the actions and attributes of that cruel, capricious goddess: May your daughter, faid one prefent, become fuch as the deity whom you celebrate*.

But as men farther exalt their idea of their divinity, it is their notion of his power and knowledge only, not of his goodnefs, which is improved. On the contrary, in proportion to the fuppofed extent of his fcience and authority, their terrors naturally augment; while they believe, that no fecrecy can conceal them from his fcrutiny, and that even the in moft receffes of their breaft lie open before him. They must then be careful not to form exprefsly any fentiment of blame and disapprobation. All must be applaufe, ravishment, ecftafy. And while their gloomy apprehenfions make them afcribe to him measures of conduct, which, in human creatures, would be highly blamed, they muft ftill affect to praife and admire that conduct in the object of their devotional addreffes. Thus it may fafely be affirmed, that popular religions are really, in the conception of their more vulgar votaries, a fpecies of demonism; and the higher the deity is exalted in power and knowledge, the lower of courfe is he depreffed in goodness and benevolence; whatever epithets of praise may be bestowed on him by his amazed adorers. Among idolaters, the words may be falfe, and belie the fecret opinion: but among more exalted religionists, the opinion itself contracts a kind of

• PLUTARCH, de Superftit.

falfe

falfehood, and belies the inward fentiment. The heart fecretly detefts fuch measures of cruel and implacable vengeance; but the judgment dares not but pronounce them perfect and adorable. And the additional mifery of this inward ftruggle aggravates all the other terrors, by which these unhappy victims to fuperftition are for ever haunted.

LUCIAN obferves that a young man, who reads the hiftory of the gods in HOMER or HESIOD, and finds their factions, wars, injuftice, inceft, adultery, and other immoralities fo highly celebrated, is much surprised afterwards, when he comes into the world, to obferve that punishments are by law inflicted on the fame actions, which he had been taught to ascribe to fuperior beings. The contradiction is still perhaps ftronger between the representations given us by fome later religions and our natural ideas of generofity, lenity, impartiality, and juftice; and in proportion to the multiplied terrors of these religions, the barbarous conceptions of the divinity are multiplied upon us t. Nothing can preferve untainted the genuine principles of morals in our judgment of human conduct, but the abfolute neceffity of these principles to the exiftence of fociety. If common conception can indulge princes in a fyftem of ethics, fomewhat different from that which fhould regulate private perfons; how much more thofe fuperior beings, whofe attributes, views, and nature, are fo totally unknown to us? Sunt fuperis fua jura t. The gods have maxims of juftice peculiar to themselves.

SECT. XIV. Bad influence of popular religions on morality.

HERE I cannot forbear obferving a fact, which VOL. II.

* Necromantia.

Dd

+ See NOTE (EEE.)

may

Ovin, Meram. lib. ix. 5012

may be worth the attention of fuch as make human nature the object of their enquiry. It is certain that, in every religion, however fublime the verbal definition which it gives of its divinity, many of the votaries, perhaps the greateft number, will ftill feek the divine favour, not by virtue and good morals, which alone can be acceptable to a perfect being, but either by frivolous obfervances, by intemperate zeal, by rapturous ecftafies, or by the belief of myfterious and abfurd opinions. The leaft part of the Sadder, as well as of the Pentateuch, confifts in precepts of morality; and we may also be affured, that that part was always the leaft obferved and regardéd. When the old ROMANS were attacked with a peftilence, they never afcribed their fufferings to their vices, or dreamed of repentance and amendment. They never thought, that they were the general robbers of the world, whofe ambition and avarice made defolate the earth, and reduced opulent nations to want and beggary. They only created a dictator*, in order to drive a nail into a door; and by that means, they thought that they had fufficiently appeafed their incenfed deity.

In EGINA, one faction forming a confpiracy, barbaroufly and treacheroufly affaffinated feven hundred of their fellow-citizens; and carried their fury fo far, that, one miserable fugitive having fled to the temple, they cut off his hands by which he clung to the gates; and carrying him out of holy ground, immediately murdered him. By this impiety, fays HERODOTUS †, (not by the other many cruel affaffinations), they offended the gods, and contracted an inexpiable guilt.

Nay, if we fhould fuppofe, what never happens, that a popular religion were found, in which it was exprefsly declared, that nothing but morality could gain the divine favour; if an order of priests were in

+ Called Dictator clavis figendæ caufa. T. LIVII, 1. vii. c. 3. * Lib. vi.

inftituted to inculcate this opinion, in daily fermons, and with all the arts of perfuafion; yet fo inveterate are the people's prejudices, that, for want of fome other superstition, they would make the very attendance on these fermons the effentials of religion, rather than place them in virtue and good morals. The fublime prologue of ZALEUCUS's laws infpired not the LoCRIANS, fo far as we can learn, with any founder notions of the measures of acceptance with the deity, than were familiar to the other GReeks.

This obfervation, then, holds univerfally: but ftill one may be at fome loss to account for it. It is not fufficient to obferve, that the people, every where, degrade their deities into a fimilitude with themfelves, and confider them merely as a species of human creatures, fomewhat more potent and intelligent. This will not remove the difficulty. For there is no man fo ftupid, as that, judging by his natural reafon, he would not efteem virtue and honefty the most valuable qualities which any perfon could poffefs. Why not afcribe the fame fentiment to his deity? Why not make all religion, or the chief part of it, to confift in these attainments?

Nor is it fatisfactory to fay, that the practice of morality is more difficult than that of fuperftition; and is therefore rejected. For, not to mention the exceffive penances of the Brachmans and Talapoins ; it is certain, that the Rhamadan of the TURKS, ring which the poor wretches, for many days, often in the hottest months of the year, and in fome of the hottest climates of the world, remain without eating or drinking from the rifing to the fetting fun; this Rhamadan, I fay, must be more fevere than the practice of any moral duty, even to the most vicious and depraved of mankind.. The four lents of the MusCOVITES, and the aufterities of fome Roman Catholics, appear more difagreeable than meekness and benevolence. In fhort, all virtue, when men are