And fuperlunary felicities, Thy bofom warm. I'll cool it, if I can; And turn thofe glories that inchant, against thee. And from the clouds, where pride delights to dwell, Look down on earth.-What feeft thou? Wond'rous things! Terreftrial wonders, that eclipfe the skies. What lengths of labour'd lands! what loaded feas! The mid-fea, furious waves! Their roar amidft, And now, LORENZO! raptur'd at this scene, Whofe glories render heav'n fuperfluous! fay," Whose footsteps these !-Immortals have been here. Could less than fouls immortal this have done? Earth's cover'd o'er with proofs of fouls immortal; And proofs of immortality forgot. To flatter thy grand foible, I confefs, Thefe are Ambition's works; and these are great : Tranfcend them all-But what can these transcend? 'Tis moral grandeur makes the mighty man : M A PREFACE. S we are at war with the power, it were well if we were at war with the manners of France. A land of levity is a land of guilt. A ferious mind is the native foil of every virtue, and the fingle character that does true honour to mankind. The foul's immortality has been the favourite theme with the ferious of all ages. Nor is it ftrange: It is a subject by far the most interesting and important that can enter the mind of man. Of higheft moment this fubject always was, and always will be. Yet this its higheft moment feems to admit of increafe, at this day; a fort of occafional importance is fuperadded to the natural weight of it; if that opinion which is advanced in the Preface to the preceding Night be juft. It is there fuppofed, that all our Infidels, whatever scheme, for argument's fake, and to keep themselves in countenance, they patronife, are betrayed into this deplorable error, by fome doubt of their immortality, at the bottom. And the more I confider this point, the more am I perfuaded of the truth of that opinion. Though the distrust of a futu rity is a strange error, yet it is an error into which bad men may naturally be diftreffed. For it is impoffible to bid defiance to final ruin, without fome refuge in imagination, fome prefumption of escape. And what prefumption is there? there are but two in nature but two, within the compass of human thought; and thefe are- -That either GOD will not, or can not punish. Confidering the divine attributes, the first is too grofs to be digefted by our strongest wishes. And fince omnipotence is as much adivine attribute as holiness, that GOD cannot punish, is as abfurd a fuppofition as the former. GOD certainly can punish as long as wicked men exift. In non-existence therefore is their only refuge; and confequently, non-existence is their ftrongest wish. And strong wishes have a strange influence on our opinion; they bias the judgment in a manner almost incredible. And fince on this member of their alternative, there are fome very fmall appearances in their favour, and none at all on the other, they catch at this reed, they lay hold on this chimera, to fave themselves from the fhock and horror of an immediate, and abfolute, defpair, On reviewing my fubject, by the light which this argument, and others of like tendency, threw upon it, I was more inclined, than ever, to purfue it, as it appeared to me to ftrike directly at the main root of all our infidelity. In the following pages, it is, accordingly, purfued at large; and fome arguments for immortality, new (at leaft to me) are ventured on in them. There alfo the writer has made an attempt to fet the grofs abfurdities and horrors of annihilation in a fuller and more affecting view than is (1 think) to be met with elsewhere. The gentlemen for whofe fake this attempt was chiefly made, profess great admiration for the wifdom of heathen antiquity. What pity 'tis they are not fincere! If they were fincere, how would it mortify them to confider with what contempt and abhorrence their notions would have been received by these whom they fo much admire? What degree of contempt and abhorrence would fall to their share, may be conjectured by the following matter of fact (in my opinion): extremely memorable. Of all their heathen worthies, Socrates ('tis well known) was the moft guarded, difpaffionate, and compofed; yet this great mafter of temper was angry! and angry at his laft hour! and angry with his friend! and angry for what deferved acknowledgment angry, for a right and tender inftance of true friendship towards him! Is not this furprifing? What could be the caufe? The cause was for his honour! 'twas truly a noble, though, perhaps, a too punctilious regard for immortality; for his friend' afking him, with such an affectionate concern as became a friend, "Where he should depofit his remains." it was refented by Socrates, as implying a dishonourable fuppofition, that he could be fo mean as to have regard for any thing, even in himfelf, that ! was not IMMORTAL. This fact well confidered, would make our Infidels withdraw their admiration from Socrates; or make them endeavour, by their imitation of this illuftrious example, to fhare his glory and, confequently, it would incline them to perufe the following pages with candour and impartiality; which is all I defire ; and that for their fakes; for I am perfuaded, that an unprejudiced Infidel muft, neceffarily, receive fome advantageous impreffions from them. Fuly 7th 1744. |