6 BACON'S ESSAYS 



' If an heathen come in, and hear you speak with several 

 tongues, will he not say that you are mad ? ' And cer- 

 tainly it is little better, when atheists and profane persons 

 do hear of so many discordant and contrary opinions in 

 religion ; it doth avert them from the church, and maketh 

 them 'to sit down in the chair of the scorners.' It is but a 

 light thing to be vouched in so serious a matter, but yet it 

 expresseth well the deformity. There is a master of scoff- 

 ing, that in his catalogue of books of a feigned library sets 

 down this title of a book, The morris-dance of Heretics. For 

 indeed every sect of them hath a diverse posture or cringe 

 by themselves, which cannot but move derision in world- 

 lings and depraved politics, who are apt to contemn holy 

 things. 



As for the fruit towards those that are within ; it is 

 peace ; which containeth infinite blessings. It establisheth 

 faith. It kindleth charity. The outward peace of the 

 church distilleth into peace of conscience. And it turneth 

 the labours of writing and reading of controversies into 

 treatises of mortification and devotion. 



Concerning the Bounds of Unity ; the true placing of 

 them importeth exceedingly. There appear to be two 

 extremes. For to certain zelants all speech of pacification 

 is odious. ' Is it peace, Jehu ? What hast thou to do 

 with peace ? turn thee behind me.' Peace is not the 

 matter, but following and party. Contrariwise, certain 

 Laodiceans and lukewarm persons think they may accom- 

 modate points of religion by middle ways, and taking part 

 of both, and witty reconcilements ; as if they would make 

 an arbitrement between God and man. Both these ex- 

 tremes are to be avoided ; which will be done, if the league 

 of Christians penned by our Saviour himself were in the 

 two cross clauses thereof soundly and plainly expounded : 

 ' He that is not with us is against us ' ; and again, ' He 

 that is not against us is with us ' ; that is, if the points 

 fundamental and of substance in religion were truly dis- 

 cerned and distinguished from points not merely of faith, 

 but of opinion, order, or good intention. This is a thing 

 may seem to many a matter trivial, and done already. But 



