So abfurd and pernicious is the conduct of the Free-thinkers, even admitting them to be in the right. But if, inftead of removing the rubbish of fuperftition, they be indeed fubverting the grounds of true religion, what name must be given to this degree of madness and impiety?

On the whole, I fear we are in no right way. Whether in the Public too we refemble the picture this fage hiftorian hath drawn of degenerated Greece, I leave to fuch as are better skilled in those matters to determine.

tion- "J'ay lu quelques ouvrages de My Lord Bolingbroke"Or, Monfieur, dans cet ouvrage pothume, dont vous me "donnes une idée, il me femble qu'il vous prepare une matiere "continuelle de triomphe, Celui qui attaque la Religion re“velée n'attaque que la Religion revelée; mais celui qui at

taque la Religion naturelle attaque toutes les Religions du "monde. Si l'on enfeigne aux hommes qu'ils n'ont pas ce “ frein cì, ils peuvent penfer qu'ils en ont un autre: Mais

il est bien plus pernicieux de leur enfeigner qu'ils n'en ont pas "du tout. Il n'eft pas impoffible d'attaquer une Religion re"velée, parce qu'elle exifle par des faits particuliers, et que les «faits, par leur nature, peuvent etre une matiere de difpute: ** mais il n'en est pas de même de la Religion naturelle; elle "eft tirée de la nature de l'homme, dont on ne peut pas difpu❝ter, et du sentiment interieur de l'homme, dont on ne peut *pas difputer encore. J'ajoute à ceci, Quel peut être le "motif d'attaquer la Religion revelée en Angleterre ? on l'y a "telle:nent purgé de tout prejugé deftructeur qu'elle n'y peut "faire de mal, et qu'elle y peut faire, au contraire, une infinité "de biens. Je fais, qu'un homme en Espagne ou en Portugal "que l'on va bruler, ou qui craint d'être brulé, parce qu'il ne "croit point de certains articles dependans ou non de la Religion "revelée, a une jufte fujet de l'attaquer, parce qu'il peut avoir "quelque efperance de pourvoir à fa defence naturelle: Mais il "n'en eft pas de même en Angleterre, où tout homme qui at"taque la Religion revelée l'attaque fans intereft, et où cet "homme quand il reuffiroit, quand même il auroit raifon dans “ le fond, ne feroit que detruire une infinité de biens pratiques 46 pour etablir une verité purement fpeculative.

A Paris ce 26 May 1754

"J'ay eté ravi, &c.

"MONTESQUIEU.

The great Geographer, whofe knowledge of men and manners was as extenfive as the habitable globe, fpeaks to the fame purpose: "The multi"tude in fociety are allured to virtue by thofe en"ticing fables, which the poets tell of the illuftri"ous atchievements of ancient heroes, fuch as the "labours of Hercules and Thefeus; and the re"wards conferred by the Gods, for well-doing. "So again, they are reftrained from vice by the "punishments, the Gods are faid to inflict upon "offenders, and by thofe " terrors and threatnings "which certain dreadful words and monftrous forms "imprint upon their minds; or by believing that "divine judgments have overtaken evil men. For "it is impoffible to govern women and the grofs "body of the people, and to keep them pious,

m

holy, and virtuous, by the precepts of philofo"phy: this can be only done by the FEAR OF THE "GODS; which is raised and fupported by ancient "fictions and modern prodigies. The Thunder "therefore of Jupiter, the Ægis of Minerva, the "Trident of Neptune, the Thyrfus of Bacchus, and "the Snakes and Torches of the Furies, with all "the other apparatus of ancient theology, were the "engines which the Legiflator employed, as bug"bears, to ftrike a terror into the childifh imagina❝tions of the Multitude","

τυπων

n

Laftly,

m Strabo's words are Καὶ φόβεις, καὶ ἀπειλὰς, ἢ διὰ λόγων, ἢ διὰ TUπшv άwpwv," Fears and threatnings either by words or dreadful forms." Cafaubon, who corrected the last word very justly, has given us no explanation of the allufion in this obfcure fentence. I am perfuaded, the author had in his mind the dreadful words fpoken, and the representations exhibited in the Myfteries, for the very purpose the author here mentions: fo aπλας refers to λόγων, and φόβος το τύπων αώρων. The reader, who remembers what has been faid in the fection of the Mysteries, in the foregoing book, concerning this matter, will be inclined to believe this to be the true explanation,

* Οἵ τε πολλοὶ τῶν τὰς πόλεις οἰκόνων εἰς μὲν προτροπὴν ἄγοναι τοῖς ἡδέσι τῶν μύθων, ὅταν ἀκέωσι τῶν ποιητῶν ἀνδραγαθήματα μυθώδη διη

γεμί

Laftly, Pliny the elder " owns it to be expedient

for Society, that men fhould believe, that the "Gods concerned themselves in human affairs; and "that the punishments they inflict on offenders, “though sometimes late indeed, as from Governors "bufied in the adminiftration of fo vaft an Uni"verse, yet are never to be evaded." Thus He, tho' an Epicurean; but an Epicurean in his senses: from whom we hear nothing of the mad ftrains of Lucretius," That all religion fhould be abolished, "as inconfiftent with the peace of mankind."

BUT

SECT. II.

UT to give this matter its full evidence, it will be proper to fet together the PUBLIC PROFESSIONS, and the PRIVATE SENTIMENTS of the ancient THEISTICAL PHILOSOPHERS: who, notwithstanding they were for ever difcourfing on the doctrine of a future ftate of rewards and punishments, to the People, yet were all the while fpeculating in private on other and different principles. A conduct which could proceed from nothing, but a full perfuafion that this doctrine was the very vital part of Religion;

*

મંત્ર

γεμένων· οἷον Ηρακλέας ἄθλος, ἢ Θησέως, ἢ τιμὰς παρὰ τῶν θεῶν νεμο μένας,—εἰς ἀποροπὴν δὲ, ὅταν κολάσεις παρὰ θεῶν, καὶ φόβες, καὶ ἀπειλάς, ἢ διὰ λόγων, ἢ διὰ τύπων αώρων τινῶν προσδέχωνται, ἢ καὶ πιτεύωσι περιπεσεῖν τινας. . Οὐ γὰρ ὄχλον τε γυναικῶν, καὶ παντὸς χυδαία πλήθος ἐπαγαγεῖν λόγῳ δυνατὸν φιλοσόφῳ, καὶ προσκαλέσασθαι πρὸς εὐσέβειαν, καὶ ἱσιατήλα, καὶ πίτιν, ἀλλὰ δεῖ καὶ διὰ δεισιδαιμονίας· τἔτο δ' εκ ἄνευ μυθο ποιίας, καὶ τερατείας. Κεραυνὸς γὰρ, αἰγίς, καὶ τρίαινα, καὶ λαμπάδες, καὶ δράκοπες, καὶ θυρσόλοΓχα τῶν θεῶν ὅπλα, μῦθοι· καὶ πᾶσα θεολογία ας χαϊκή· ταῦτα δ' ἀπεδέξαντο οἱ τὰς πολιτείας κατασησάμενοι μορμολύκας τινὰς πρὸς τὰς νηπιόφρονας. Strabo, Geogr. 1. i.

• Verum in his Deos agere curam rerum humanarum credi, ex ufu vitæ eft; pœnafque maleficiis aliquando feras, occupato Dep in tanta mole, nunquam autem irritas effe. Hift. Nat. l. ii. c. 7.

and

and the only fupport of that influence, which divine worship hath on the minds of the Multitude.

Now, though after reading their history, reflecting on their characters, and examining their writings with all the care I was able, it appeared to me, that these men believed nothing of that future ftate which they so induftriously propagated in the world; and therefore on this, as well as other accounts, deserved all that afperity of language with which they are treated by the Sacred writers; yet the contrary having been long and generally taken for granted, and their real opinions often urged by our ableft divines, as conformable and favourable to the Chriftian doctrine of a future ftate; I fufpect that what I have here faid, will be exclaimed against as an unreafonable and licentious paradox,

But, for all this, I do not defpair of proving it a certain, though an unheeded, truth: and then I fhall hope my reader's pardon for the length of this enquiry, as it is of no fmall moment to fhew the fenfe Antiquity had of the ufe of a future ftate to Society and as, in fhewing that ufe, I fhall be able to clear up a very important point of antiquity, doubly obfcured, by length of time and perverfity of contradiction.

But, before I enter on the matter, I fhall, in order to abate the general prejudice, explain what is meant by that FUTURE STATE, which, I fuppofe, the THEISTICAL PHILOSOPHERS did not believe. And this the rather, because the contrary opinion has continued the longer unquestioned, through the lax and ambiguous ufe of the term. Thus, because it was evident, that all, or most of the theistical philofophers believed, as well as taught, the immortality, or rather the eternity of the foul, men, tied down to the affociations of modern ideas, concluded that they

believed,

believed, as well as taught, the doctrine of a future flate of rewards and punishments.

To make the reader, therefore, mafter of the question, it will not be unfit, juft to diftinguish the feveral fenfes, in which the Ancients conceived the PERMANENCY of the human foul; and to referve the explanation of them, and affignment of them to their proper authors, for another place.

This permanency was either,

1. A SIMPLE EXISTENCE after this life: or,

II. EXISTENCE IN A STATE OF REWARD AND PU• NISHMENT, according to men's behaviour here. Each of thefe was two-fold.

Simple existence was either,

I. AN IMMEDIATE REFUSION OF THE SOUL, ON DEATH, INTO THE UNIVERSAL NATURE or TO' "EN, FROM WHENCE IT PROCEEDED:

Or, II. A CONTINUANCE OF ITS SEPARATE AND DISTINCT EXISTENCE, ON DEATH, FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD, BEFORE ITS REFUSION INTO THE TO "EN, IN A SUCCESSIVE TRANSITION THROUGH VARIOUS ANIMALS, BY A NATURAL AND FATAL, NOT MORAL DESIGNATION.

Existence in a state of rewards and punishments was either,

I. A STATE OF REWARDS AND PUNISHMENTS, IMPROPERLY SO CALLED; WHERE HAPPINESS AND MISERY WERE THE NATURAL AND NECESSARY CONSEQUENCES OF VIRTUE AND VICE; NOT POSITIVELY SO, OR BY THE FREE DESIGNATION OF WILL:

Or, II. A STATE OF REWARDS AND PUNISHMENTS, PROPERLY SO CALLED; WHERE THE HAP PINESS AND MISERY CONSEQUENT ON VIRTUE AND VICE,

7