584 
but in fact, it was anterior to, Laud, and 
had been introduced into this. country -by 
James the First... It was, received, with 
still more favour by the clergy, than by the 
lawyers. or soldiers. of the Cavalier.party, 
for we nowhere find.it so strongly. professed 
as in the speech of the Vice-Chaneellor. of 
Cambridge, and the infamous decree. of the 
University of Oxford, afterwards ordered to - 
be burnt by the common hangman.” 
We hope it will not be thought an 
unpardonable digression, if we observe 
by the way, that this too prevalent pro- 
pension of the clergy to servile. polities 
and their apparent pliancy to the pur- 
poses of arbitrary encroechment and 
courtly. corruption is, we verily believe, 
the principal cause of that zeal with 
which many, not otherwise vicious or 
inconsiderate, individuals, co-operate in 
the diffusion, of deistical doctrines and 
principles .of unbelief... Independently 
of the evidences’ of its divine’ original, 
in the conclusiveness of which the des- 
cription of persons alluded to may pe>- 
haps not coincide, the Christian religion 
is at any. rate so. superior in moral 
beauty. to all other religions or. super- 
stitions. of which we. have either pre- 
sent evidence. or treasured record: so 
much more accordant to the present 
habitudes ‘of civilization, and so much 
more in unison with every benignant and 
every social feeling: ‘while, at the same 
time, the whole evidence of record and 
observation on the general constitution 
and propensions of the human mind so 
demonstrably evince that a clinging to 
the idea of something supernatural, an 
unperishing and unperishable something 
upon which the imagination can repose, 
is almost» inseparable (in the mass of 
mankind at least) from the very power 
of thought; that he who can believe 
that the mass of the population of any 
country can any more liye without a 
religion of some sort or other, than 
they. can. liye without, bread, has little 
reason to laugh at the credulity. of those 
who can believe in any creed, how re- 
plete scever with dogmas the most in- 
congruous to. experience. With. the 
evidence for these convictions. before 
Memoirs of the Affairs of 
dities of some. new system.of supensti- 
tion, that»might be preached..to theni. 
There is-but one answer. to this:that we 
have ever heard; and the clergy, (ifthey 
wish. to-silence-the zeal.of .nbelievers), 
would. do well to consider. it. It is— 
that religion is made a stalking horse.for 
political purposes : .that. the sermons 
of the clergy, their pamphlets. and their 
two-penny tracts arethe- servile doctrines 
of adulation to the powers that bes, and 
that they render the pretended*sanetity 
of their function subservient:to the op- 
pressor, instead of protective to the op- 
pressed. Whilst such ‘are the purposes 
to which the profession of religion is 
perverted, the friend of man, confound- 
ing the use with the abuse, may be the 
enemy of religion; reform the abuse of 
such perversion,.and, every, friend. of 
man will- be the friend.of .Christianity 
also. But to return to the :memoir— » 
“ This theoty, as despotic and as “estruc- 
tive of freedom as the theocratic dogma of 
the Turkish sultans, is nowhere tobe found 
so positively and expressly laid down as in 
the writings of Lewis the XIVth. He 
founded his supreme power not on the Jaivs 
of his kingdom, or the consent of the nation, 
but on the doctrine that. kings were ap- 
pointed and.maintained in their thrones by 
God himself. | In speaking to luis son of the 
reverence due to religion, he says: ‘To 
tell you the truth, my son, we-are wanting 
not only in justice, but in prudence, when 
we are wanting in veneration for him of 
whom weare only the lieutenants. Our sub- 
mission for him, is the rule and the example 
of that which is due to us. ‘The armies, 
the councils, all human industry, would be 
weak means. of maintaining us upon the 
throne, if every one. believed that. he had 
the same right as we, and did not revere a 
superior power, of which ours) is <a) part. 
The public homage which we render to this 
invisible: power might justly be styled the 
first and most, important part of our policy, 
if it were not that it ought to haye amotiye 
more noble and more disinterested.” ”” 
We believe it is perfectly unnecessary 
in our pages to follow.the arguments by 
which the noble confutes the doctrines 
of the royal author; brands them as giv- 
ing sanction to the atrocities.of “blood 
_ and -vice,”” to “robbery, and. murder. ;” 
and as no less. injurious to Divine Pro- 
vidence than. degrading to human. na- 
ture; while; at the same time; he /ex- 
poses their inapplicable absurdity, ‘by 
tracing the successive’ usurpations*and 
dae SEH TAR aQE dispensations 
"If he was not, indeed,’a bastant’ of Co- 
ral’ Mazarine’s, ‘and *the “man iv thé fron 
mask, the real heir fo the throne 2" = 
