194 ANTIENT METAPHYSICS. Book IIT. 



trm of the Univcrfe as it is contained in the dodrine of the Trinity? 

 And I fc\j that they are a fequel or continuation of that dodlrine, 

 Ihowing the progrefs of it through all the Beings of the univerfe. 

 According to the fyilein of the univerfe, contained in that doc- 

 trine, all things are not immediately from the Firft Caufe, or 

 Cauje of Ca/tfes^ as Ariftotle expreifes it, but med ately through 

 the other Two Perfons, the Second of which is faid to be the only 

 begotten if the F'lrfl Caife^ or of the Father^ as he is called : And 

 from the Second Perfon is produced the Third, that is the Holy. 

 Spirit. Now, the firft produdion of the Firft Caufe is undoubtedly 

 a real being or fubftance ; and fo is the produdion of the Third 

 Perfon ot^ the Trinity from the Second. From thefe two Perfons 

 of the Trinity Plato carries on the produdion of all the other beings 

 of the univerfe, by his ideas, which are all immaterial fubftances^ 

 having likewife an exiftence by themfelves. And as all the beings 

 in the univerfe have in them either intelligence, or a principle of 

 life and animation, or both, it is evident, that they muft be all de- 

 rived from one, or other, or both of thefe principles. The firft 

 ideas derived from them muft be ideas the moft general, and con- 

 fequently the moft excellent, as containing in them all other ideas. 

 From them are produced ideas lefs general; and fo on from genus 

 to fpecies, down to the loweft fpeciefes, from which proceed the 

 ideas that are incorporated with body, as I have defcribed the pro- 

 grefs in a preceding part of this chapter*; fo that here the whole 

 fyftem of the univerfe is carried on, as the progrefs of it is given us 

 in the dodrine of the Trinity, by beings that have each a real and 

 feparate exiftence, and the more excellent producing the lefs ex- 

 cellent. 



From what is above faid, it is evident that, in the Trinity, there 

 is a proceffion, or emanation, from the Firft Perfon, or Author of 



the 



^ Page 186. and 187. 



