53° REMARKS Otf THE FOREGOING, 



particular and fingle cafes, it Ihould very often touch 

 upon probabilifm, and that, without this, we cannot 

 get through life. It was fo before Epi&etus and So- 

 crates, and will afiuredly fo remain as long as mankind 

 is not made up of deities. — Have the jefuits, one or 

 other of them, often very groffly mifufed their proba- 

 bilifm — as, alas, all the children of men, more or 

 lefs, have done before them, and flill are wont to do, 

 — then, in fo doing they have done wrong : but, not- 

 withstanding this, I trull, if it were neceffary, that I 

 could make it highly probable, that, letting afide the 

 mifufe, there is much truth in their probabilifm ; and 

 it ought not to be turned to their reproach, that they 

 have feen deeper into the human heart and into the na- 

 ture of things, than others. 



As to what relates to the devotion to the heart of Je- 

 fas, till I have flronger proofs, I cannot chufe but 

 find fomewhat doubtful in the affertion, that the theo- 

 fophical, but neverthelefs the found proteflant Doctor 

 Goodwin was the prime author of this pietifm. From 

 the title of his book not much can be concluded in fa- 

 vour of it ; and there have long been (even to my know- 

 ledge) proteftant divines enough, particularly lince the 

 times of this pietifm, who have addreffed themfelves to 

 finners, concerning the heart of Jefus, in terms that 

 would furnifh a fine ground-plot to vifions and pietaf- 

 teries in the tafle of the gentle Marie a la Coque. 



Secondly, the charge of idolatry fo directly brought • 

 againft the fociety of Jefus, on account of this devo- 

 tion to his heart, appears to me fomewhat fevere ; and, 

 if I may venture to fay fo, a little intolerant. In our 

 times, we ought never to forget that a poor fellow who 

 proftrates himfelf before a bundle of rags does it al-, 



ways 



