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He wrote the hiftory of his nation, the Jews; the fiege, capture, and deftruction of Jerufalem at which he was prefent. Several of the apoftles were alive when he was in the prime of life, and St. John furvived him. With these means for information with respect to the miracles exhibited by Jefus in his life-time, the phenomenons at his death, and the continued miracles after : how is it that he doth not notice any of them? But if this were fo; is it not extraordinary that the learned and intelligent Pagans could refift fuch proofs of a divine miffion? they could not view fuch things with careless indifference; much lefs could they, as we find they did, laugh at the performers, deteft their abettors, and abhor a religion fo propagated. But the truth is, that it was not fo: there were no fuch miracles performed. It may be asked, how it was poffible the fathers; men of refpectable characters; and teachers of fo pure a religion, could claim fuch power, record so many acts, and sometimes offer proofs, without fome foundation, fome ground to ftand upon, some support? What these were, we are told by Lucian, Celfus, Porphyry, Julian and others Lucian fays Whenever any crafty juggler, expert in his trade, and who knew how to profit by it, went over to the Chriftians he was fure to grow rich, by impofing on their credulity.' Celfus reprefents all the Chriftian wonder workers, as meer vagabonds and coinmon cheats, who rambled

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rambled about to fairs and markets; not in the circles of the wifer or better fort, for among ⚫ fuch they never ventured to appear; but where they saw a set of raw young fellows, flaves, or < fools, here they obtruded themselves, and prac⚫ticed all their arts of deception.' Cæcilius calls thema lurking nation, fhunning the light;

mute in public; prating in corners.' The charge of fraud and impofture was conftantly urged against them by their opponents, and I think, with good reafon. Did they ever exhibit their miracles among the learned, intelligent, or higher ranks of people? No. To whom then? To the lowest clafs, to the uninformed, weak and ignorant only. What were thofe miracles? Such only as might eafily be counterfeited, when aided by collufion-cafting out devils, healing the fick, lame, blind, and caufing the dumb to speak. It is obfervable that the primitive fathers, and their fucceffors, the great advocates for the Chriftian caufe; though they record fo many miracles wrought in its fupport, never afferted that they themselves poffeffed a power of performing them: nor do the former give us the name of any particular person who did. They, craftily or ignorantly, content themfelves with faying these miracles are done by us; by our people; among us; by our exorcifts.' Ignorant men: women: boys: or any simple Chriftian. The latter frequently affert that their prede

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ceffors were endued with this power; and most of them were, in rotation, honoured in the fame manner. There is one miracle, which for its ufefulness in propagating the gospel, would have been of more worth than all the reft; I mean the gift of tongues. And though we find upon record inftances of faints and martyrs, who spoke after their tongues were cut out, fome of them even better than before, yet we do not read a fin gle instance wherein that gift was exercised by any particular perfon; and the reason is obvious, it could not be counterfeited. Another miracle could not be counterfeited eafily; and therefore, though much talked of, I prefume was never practiced. I mean raifing the dead to life. From the time of the apoftles, (and in their time we read but of two in the Acts) throughout the three first centuries, we do not find a fingle record that this miracle was actually performed upon any par ticular occafion enough offered in which the interefts of Christianity would have been greatly promoted by this proof of its fuperior excellence. The Heathens, as Irenæus confeffes, conftantly affirmed, the thing was impoffible; and therefore I think it probable that a few real, undif guifed, and open performances of this miracle, properly timed, would have influenced their greatest philofophers and moft learned fceptics. We read that Autolicus, an eminent Heathen, in anfwer to the arguments of his friend Theo

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philus, Bishop of Antioch, (the first prelate of the Eastern Church) who wished him to embrace the Chriftian faith, replied-Raife before me

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one man from the dead, and I will immediately 'become a Christian. Surely this was a reafonable request, if, as Irenæus afferts at this very ime, raifing from the dead was frequently performed, and that men fo raifed dwelt among them many years: here however, the Bishop wanted power: the Heathen faith. The doctrine of faith feems to have been the chief ground and fupport of the Chriftian religion: the Pagans affirmed the primitive Chriftians had no other. Celfus fays- They neither chofe to receive, or to give any reason for their faith: but gene

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rally replied-Do not examine, but believe ' only, and thy faith will fave thee." Julian affirms-that the fum of all their wifdom was comprized in this fingle precept-Believe. When we examine what they were required to believe, we cannot wonder at the ridicule which enfued. Tertullian (who wrote about the end of the fecond, and died in the beginning of the third century) fays The Son of God was crucified 'it is no fhame to own it, because it is a thing to be ashamed of. The Son of God died: it is

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wholly credible, because it is abfurd. When buried, he rose again to life: it is certain, becaufe it is impoffible. The pious St. Austin faid -' He believed fome things, because they were • abfurd

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abfurd and impoffible.' When the abfurdity, and even impoffibility of a thing was thus urged as an argument, proof, or inducement for its belief, what ferious anfwer could be given by fenfible men? They plainly faw the fathers taught, practifed, or encouraged, the greatest abfurdities; the boldest forgeries; the groffeft impofitions: and all these in fo bungling a manner; that they imposed upon none but the weak and ignorant. To fuch only could the faid Tertullian address himself, when he faid- The true difciples of • Chrift have nothing more to do with curiofity or < enquiry; but when once they are become be

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lievers, their fole business is to believe on.' Was he not warranted in faying this, by the great faint, Paul? Who, in his Second Epiftle to the Corinthians; fays- We walk by faith, not by fight,'ch. v, v. 7*. We find, by the writings of Cicero, Lucian, and others; that human reafon had obtained an eafy triumph over Paganifm, as a religion; by detecting and expofing its extravagance, its follies, its deceptions: but as magiftrates, they still conformed to it as a civil inftitution, ufeful to the ftate when fubfervient to it. After this could it be expected that men, thus enlightened; would receive from fuch men, and fo inforced; a faith which apparently was abfurd in a much

* Another quotation from the fame Epistle, vide page and another from his Epiftle to the Romans, vide page

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