in

A third Letter for Toleration.

08

A. p. 14.

A. p. 20.

A.p. 6,7, 8,9 , io.

A. p. 22.

" and give a fair hearing to reasons offered for the enlightening his mind, and" discovering truth to him, who goes two or three times a week several" miles on purpose to do it, and that with the hazard of his liberty or purse;" unless you mean your instructions, your reasons, your truth? Which" brings us but back to what you have disclaimed, plain persecution for" differing in religion.

" Sometimes this is to be done, To prevail with men to weigh matters" of religion carefully and impartially. Discountenance and punishment“ put into one scale, with impunity and hopes of preferment put into the“ other, is as sure a way to make a man weigh impartially, as it would be“ for a prince to bribe and threaten a judge to make him judge uprightly.

" Sometimes it is, To make men bethink themselves, and put it out of" the power of any foolish humour, or unreasonable prejudice, to alienate" them from truth and their own happiness. Add but this, to put it out of" the power of any humour or prejudice of their own, or other men's; and I“ grant the end is good, if you can find the means to procure it. But" why it should not be put out of the power of other men’s humour or pre-" judice, as well as their own, wants, and will always want, a reason to“ prove. Would it not I beseech you, to an indifferent by-stander, appear“ humour or prejudice, or something as bad; to fee men who profess a“ religion revealed from hea> en, and which they own contains all in it ne-" cessary to salvation, exclude men from their communion, and persecute" them with the penalties of the civil law, for not joining in the use of ce-“ remonies, which are no-where to be found in that revealed religion ?" Would it not appear humour or prejudice, or some such thing, to a sober" impartial Heathen, to see Christians exclude and persecute one of the same" faith, for things which they themselves confess to be indifferent, and not" worth the contending for ? Prejudice, humour, passion, lusts, impressions" of education, reverence and admiration of persons, worldly respects, love" of their own choice, and the like; to which you justly impute many men’s“ taking up and persisting in their religion; are indeed good words; and so," on the other side, are these following, truth, the right way, enlightening," reason, sound judgment; but they signify nothing at all to your purpose," till you can evidently and unquestionably shew the world, that the latter,“ truth, and the right way, &c. are always, and in all countries, to he“ found only in the national church; and the former, viz. passion and pre-" judice, &c. only amongst the Dissenters. But to go on :

“ Sometimes it is, To bring men to take such care as they ought of" their salvation. What care is such as men ought to take, whilst they are" out of your church, will be hard for you to tell me. But you endeavour" to explain yourself in the following words : that they may not blindly" leave it to the choice neither of any other person, nor yet of their own lusts" and passions, to prescribe to them what faith or worship they shall embrace." You do well to make use of punishment to shut passion out of the choice;" because you know fear of suffering is no passion. But let that pass. You" would have men punished, to bring them to take such care of their salva-

“ tion,