pofe the truth of fome religion or other. And among Chriftians, the truth of the Chriftian religion is taken for granted, where ever we fpeak of mens fuffering perfecution for it. And the plaineft cafe among Chritians is, when they are perfecuted, because they will not openly deny and renounce the Chriftian religion. And this was generally the cafe of the primitive Chriftians; they were threatened with tortures and death, because they would not renounce Jefus Chrift and his religion, and give demonftration thereof, by offering facrifices to the heathen Gods.

2dly, Men do truly fuffer for the caufe of religion, when they are perfecuted, only for making an open profeffion of the Chriftian religion by joining in the affemblies of Chriftians for the worthip of God; though they be not urged to deny and disclaim it, but only to conceal and diffemble the profeffion of it, fo as to forbear the maintenance and defence of it upon fitting occafions, against the objections of thofe who are adverfaries of it. For to conceal the profeffion of it, and to decline the defence of it, when juft occafion is offered, is to be ashamed of it, which our Saviour interprets to be a kind of denial of it, and is oppofed to the confeffing of him before men, Matth. x. 32. 33. Whosoever shall confefs me before men, him will I alfo confefs before my Father which is in heaven: But whofoever shall deny me before men,. him will I alfo deny before my Father which is in hear ven. And this by St Mark is expreffed by being afhamed of Chrift; that is, afraid and afhamed to make an open profeffion of him, and his religion; Mark viii. 38. Whofoever therefore fhall be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and finful generation, of him alfo fhall the Son of man be afhamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father, with the holy angels.

And this likewife was the cafe of the primitive Chriftians under the moderate Emperors, when the perfecution of them was not fo hot, as to drive them to a denial of Chrift: Provided they would be contented to conceal and diffemble their religion, in that

cafe

eafe they did not hunt them out, nor perfecute them to renounce their religion, if they made no difcovery of themselves. But yet they who fuffered, becaufe they would not conceal their profeffion of Chriftianity, did truly fuffer for the cause of religion.

3dly, Men do likewife truly fuffer for the caufe of religion, when they fuffer for not betraying it, by any indirect and unworthy means; fuch as among the primitive Chriftians was the delivering up their Bibles to the Heathen, to be burnt and defroyed by them: for to give up that holy book; which is the great inftrument of our religion, is in effect to give up Chriftianity itself, and to confent to the utter extirpation of it.

And fuch likewife is the cafe of those who suffer in any kind for not contributing to break down the fences of religion in any nation, where the providence of God hath given it a legal establishment and secu rity, or, in a word, for refufing to countenance and further any defign, which visibly tends to the ruin of religion for to deftroy religion, and to take away that which hinders the deftruction of it, are in effect much the fame thing.

:

4thly, Men do truly fuffer for the cause of religion, when they fuffer for the maintenance and defence of any neceffary and fundamental article of it, though they be not required to renounce the whole Chriftian religion For what St Paul fays of the article of the refurrection of the dead, is true of any other neceffary article of the Christian religion, that the denial of it. is a fubverfion of the whole Chriftian faith; because it tends directly to the overthrowing of Chriftianity, being a wound given to it in a vital and effential part. And this was the cafe of thofe who, in any age of Chriftianity, have been perfecuted by heretics, for the defence of any article of Chriftianity.

And I cannot but observe by the way, that after the Heathen perfecutions were ceafed, perfecution was first begun among the Chriftians by heretics; and bath fince been taken up, and carried much beyond that bad pattern, by the church of Rome; which, befides a ftanding inquifition in all countries which.

are.

are entirely of that religion, (a court, the like whereto, for the clancular and fecret manner of proceed ing, for the unjust and arbitrary rules of it, for the barbarous ufage of mens perfons, and the cruelty of its torments, to extort confeffions from them, the fun never faw erected under any government in the world, by men of any religion whatfoever); I fay, which, befides this court, hath by frequent croifadoes for the extirpation of heretics, and by many bloody massacres in France and Ireland, and feveral other places, destroyed far greater numbers of Chriftians, than all the ten Heathen perfecutions; and hath of late revived, and to this very day continues, the fame or greater cruelties, and a fiercer perfecution of Proteftants, if all the circumftances of it be confidered, than was ever yet practifed upon them; and yet whilst this is doing almoft before our eyes in one of our next neighbour nations, they have the face to complain of the cannibal laws and bloody perfecutions of the church of England, and the confidence to fet up for the great patrons of liberty of confcience, and enemies of all compulfion and force in matters of religion.

5thly, Men do truly fuffer for the cause of God and religion, when they fuffer for afferting and maintaining the purity of the Chriftian doctrine and worship: and for oppofing and not complying with thofe grofs errors and corruptions, which fuperftition and ignorance had, in a long courfe of time, brought into the Chriftian religion. Upon this account many good people fuffered in many paft ages, for refifting the growing errors and corruptions of the church of Rome, which at firft crept in by degrees, but at last broke in like a mighty flood, which carried down all before it, and threatened ruin and deftruction to all that oppofed them. Upon this account alfo, infinite numbers fuffered among the Waldenfes and Albigenfes, in Bohemia, and in England, and in most other countries in this western part of Christendom. And they who fuffered upon this account, fuffered in a good caufe, and for the testimony of the truth.

6thly and lastly, Men do truly fuffer for the cause · of religion, when they fuffer for not difclaiming and renouncing any clear and undoubted truth of God whatsoever; yea, though it be not a fundamental point and article of religion.

And this is the cafe of thofe many thousands, who, ever since the 4th council of Lateran, which was in the year 1215, (when tranfubftantiation was first defined to be an article of faith, and neceffary to falvation to be believed), were perfecuted with fire and fword, for not understanding thofe words of our Saviour, This is my body, (which are fo eafily capable of a reasonable fenfe), in the abfurd and impoffible fenfe of tranfubftantiation. And though this difowning of this doctrine be no exprefs and direct article of the Chriftian religion; yet it is a fundamental article of right reafon and common fenfe because the admitting of tranfubftantiation does undermine the foundation of all certainty whatsoever, and does more immediately fhake the very foundation of Christianity itfelf. Yea, though the Chriftian religion were no wife concerned in this doctrine, yet out of reverence to reafon and truth, and a juft animofity and indig nation at confident nonsense, a man of an honest and generous mind, would as foon be brought to declare or fwear, that twice two do not make four, but five, as to profess his belief of transubstantiation.

And though all truths are not of equal confequence and concernment, yet all truth is of God; and for that reafon, though we are not obliged to make an open profeffion of all truths at all times, yet we are bound not to deny or renounce any truth, nor to make profeffion of a known falfehood or error: for it is merely becaufe of the intrinfical evil of the thing that it is impoffible for God to lie; and the Son of God thought it worth his coming into the world, and laying down his life, to bear witness to the truth. Šo he himself tells us, John xviii. 37. To this end was I born, and for this caufe came I into the world, that I fhould bear witness to the truth.

Thus

4

Thus have I fhewn you in these plain inftances, (to which most other cafes may be reduced), when men may be faid to fuffer truly for the cause of religion and truth.

I shall mention two or three cafes wherein men may feem to fuffer for the caufe of religion, but cannot truly be faid to do so.

ft, When men rafhly expofe themselves to danger, and run upon fufferings for the fake of religion. Thus feveral of the primitive Chriftians voluntarily expofed themselves when they were not called in queftion, and in the heat of their affection and zeal for God and religion, offered themfelves to martyrdom, when none inquired after them. This, in the gracious interpretation of God, who knowing the fincerity of their zeal, was pleased to overlook the indif creet forwardnefs and rashness of it, might be accepted for a kind of martyrdom; but cannot in reason be juftified, fo as to be fit to be made a pattern, and to be recommended to our imitation. For though God may be pleased to excufe the weaknefs of a wellmeaning zeal; yet he can approve nothing but what is reasonable.

To fuffer chearfully for the caufe of God and his truth, when he calls us to fight this good fight of faith, and to refift unto blood; and when we are reduced to that trait, that we must either die for God and his truth, or deny them: to fuffer, I fay, in this cafe with courage and patience, is one of the nobleft of all the Chriftian virtues. But to be perfect volunteers, and to run ourselves upon fufferings, when we are not called to them, looks rather like the facrifice of fools; which though God may mercifully excufe, and pardon the evil of the action, for the good meaning of it, yet he can never perfectly approve and accept of it. But I think there is little need now-a-days to caution men against this rafhnefs; it is well if they have the grace and refolution to fuffer when it is their duty, and when they are called to it.

2dly, Nor can men be truly faid to fuffer for the caule of religion, when they fuffer not for their faith,

but