THE whole Pagan, Mahometan, and Christian World, have been long (too long) plagu'd with Priests and Priest-craft; the common Theme, the daily Discourse, the general Complaint, the fatal Malady, the eternal Grievance and State-Sore, believ'd it to be incurable; and therefore born as an Affliction without Remedy.

What it is that so universally clouds (ex­cept they have entirely abandon'd their whole Reason) the Mass of People of all Nations of the known inhabited Globe (especially of Eu­rope, who are thought to be wiser and clearer-sighted, at least in Matters of this kind; having at this time more Learning among 'em than [Page 2]all the World besides) with this Stupidity, fatal and most pernicious Blindness, this de­testable and most ridiculous Bigotry, I know not; that, Comet-like, with fiery blazing Tail hovers over whole Kingdoms; Ominous, Por­tentous, Boding, Malevolent, threatning nought but Death of Multitudes, Destruction of Cities, Towns, and Villages, utter Ruin to, and ab­solute Extirpation of Families and Governments. For thus much scrupulous, superstitious Fools, and fly Hypocrites, when heated by Religion (pretended) have done, and may also do again.

What have we left now (after the dear Ex­perience of whole Centuries of Years, and ma­ny of them tumultuous, rebellious, and bloody ones too! to the Priest's eternal Shame be it spoke, who presented and gave fire too) but the mere empty Name and sound of Religion; the vast Numbers (Liberaries almost I may say) of Books and Pamphlets of Controversie, which tend not to the Pacification, but rather general Disturbance and Confusion of Mankind, in their Opinions, Notions, and even Practices of it? Nay, of Books too, that only bear the Gloss and Varnish of Religion? I shall say nothing [Page 3]of the mighty Breach of Civil Society, by foolish and unnatural Heats; the Pulpit and the Press go hand in hand, confederated, to improve the Mischief, and spread the Evil. Surely it must be for their Interest they bawl so boldly, and print so abundantly. Ah, this Interest! this damn'd prevailing Interest! that governs all the World (and even those Good Men too) that rules the Roast every-where; that in all places so absolutely plays the Tyrant, enslaving most (and wou'd if they cou'd all) Men's Persons, Purses, and Senses, notwithstanding all their specious and gilded Pretences to the contrary: Nay, they tell the World, that by their kind Assistance and never-failing Help, they shall all be made wise here, and happy hereafter; but believe them who will for me.

Whither then shall we fly, in search of that which is really (and not only call'd) True Re­ligion? I mean the Essential, not Nominal, which is in every body's mouth, and only there; that Religion which is to guide us in the dark and difficult Paths we move in, and which must hereafter save our main Stake.

If we go to the Church-National in every Kingdom (not to say one Word of our own, for they must not be medled with; the Press must be broke, and the Book burn'd, if they are touch'd, though never so gently) how wretched! how miserably are they divided, rent, and torn among themselves! You wou'd think your self amongst the feign'd Furies, or amidst the Sons of Mars in Battel, and not with the Ministers of Peace; so hot, so violent, so fu­rious (nay, and revengeful too, in due time) are they in their empty Disputes! And what a orry Account (God knows) do they give of the Business of t'other World, of which they make so great a Noise, and know nothing; (not that I deny a future State) whereas indeed to speak strictly, and home to the purpose, they are so much concern'd for, and busied in, and with the Profits, Honours, and Pleasures of this World, that they trouble themselves very little about that. Good Men! you'll say there's a great deal of reason they shou'd be so much esteem'd and respected as they are. But, 'pray', by whom are they so? By the Mobb, and some soft Heads amongst the Richer (not Wiser) [Page 5]sort of People; not by one Man of Sense, I am sure.

And for that Hydra of Separation, of more Names than Heads; those red-hot Monsters, that Salamander-like can live (for ever) in the Fire of Contention; those Mount Aetnas, that belch out nothing but Fire and Brimstone, Hell and Damnation; their Doctrines (not to mention their Practices, wholly contradictory, selfish, worldly, and to our Cost, for we can rember it, very bloudy) are so terrible, so full of Horrour and Despair, and Heaven gain'd by their Assistance, which is seldom, if ever) with so much difficulty, that many of their Hearers have gone immediately from their Auditories, and poison'd, hang'd, or drown'd themselves; and others left in a desponding Condition, only fit for Pity and Compassion; there Men well not help us at all in this matter.

What if we should take a Taste of the New Roman (Catholick, as they call it themselves, though falsly, every-body knows) Religion? I doubt we shall relish it but very indifferent­ly; not to run through the several Orders of Crafty Jesuites, Letcherous Priests, and Lazy [Page 6]Monks; but to stick a little upon the Jesuites (who have often stuck upon our Skirts) their greatest Champions, their Captain-Generals; those cunning Rogues, that, Mole-like, love, live, and act under-ground, and in the dark; those Hocus-Pocus's, those German, French, Spa­nish, Portuguese, and Italian Juglers, with their Powders of Pimper de Pimp (I mean their Poli­ticks) have confounded and embroil'd the grea­test part of the World, (where they have had to do) though, I think, we of England are highly oblig'd to them, for a Civility they late­ly did us, in easing us of a King that began to be very troublesome to us; it must be a­vow'd, they are ingenuous and modest Men, for they don't pretend to abundance of Religion; they spend their time in, and bend their Stu­dies wholly to Politicks (let the other Orders look to what Religion is left, and cultivate it, if they will or can;) they content themselves with the secular Government of the World. Alas! they are Men of some Ambition, and love to Rule, but hate to be Rul'd, no, not by their own Provincial (who, I am sure, has lately complain'd to the Pope of them) and instead [Page 7]of Pulpits, you may find them in Princes Cabi­nets: 'Tis not enough for them to be their Con­fessors, but they must be their most private Counsellors too; and it may be those Princes are not altogether in the wrong, because all their Applications tend to assist them in their Mysteries (as they call them) of State, those Arcana Imperii. But let those golden Heads have a care, and look to themselves, lest they be serv'd (by them) as a Gentleman was that travell'd some Years since to France (the second time; though one wou'd have thought he had had enough of the first, at least if had reflected upon his and his Brother's good Usage there, and from their dear (indeed) Brother Lewis too) to learn the Trade of Empire, or to better his Air (I am sure he has not better'd his Condition by it) or to learn to Cock his Hat a little handsomer a-la-mode de France. Well; 'tis no great matter which; he has had time and leisure enough to bemoan his Misfortunes, and seriously to consider whence they sprung. And, to conclude this Paragraph, may they all be so treated, who adhere so stifly to the So­ciety [Page 8]of Jesus, or indeed to any other of the Black Gang.

And for the poor Mahometans and Pagans, we can expect but little help from them, we may rather pity their Blindness and Ignorance (of both which, the World seems agreed they have enough) though I am of Opinion, there are many curious and fine Heads amongst them, that plainly see, and fain would cure the worst Disease in their State; I mean being rid by their own Asses, I should have said Priests.

Well; whether shall we now go? Not to the Royal Courts of the World, I hope, a­mongst the Terrestrial Gods, to find out Reli­gion; I fancy we shou'l lose our Labour, and have nothing but that for our Pains; and be­cause we are unwilling to peep into the pri­vate Chapels, or in the least to reflect upon the Religion of the Folks that live there, (because they are great Ones, and it may be they will smoke us off for it, and punish our saucy Cu­riosity) we will e'en let them alone, especially in matters of that kind.

But what do you think if we shou'd bear down upon the Navy, and board them? They are a sort of Soldiers as well as we, therefore one wou'd think we might allow them some Religion, being in a manner a part of us; no, we must at last to the Army, (the Camp is in­deed the proper Seat of it) especially if we are able to make any thing of our Title out. Well; we'll march thither by and bye; but before we part with the honest jolly Tarpollins, we must have a fling at them, and their Commanders too, who have not much more Sence than they, whatever they may have of Religion: Alas, poor Rogues! when on Salt-water, they readily swallow the Common, or any Prayer, or the Directory, and by wholesale, as they do Punch or Flip; but seldom are over-zealous till they return to Land, when they, with their whole Family, hasten away to the Conven­ticles, where Cant, Noise, and Nonsence, Whining and Sighing, are much in Admira­tion. So that where so little Reason resides, we can't, with any Hopes or Justice, expect to find Religion.

Come on then, let us away to the Field of Mars, and there we shall find it. I have ex­amin'd all Religions, and that very seriously too, and yet can't tell what to think of them; for all pretend to be in the right; Ours, they all cry, is the purest, the best, the most holy Religion: And how shall we be satisfied in this matter? For they not only boldly affirm theirs to be the True Religion, and all the others false; but most of them will fight (and desperately too) as well as prate for it; more-especially when their Zeal is over-hot by the impudent Pulpiteers: But if you strictly examin into their Lives and Actions, you will find them like the rest of the World; and if they do differ, 'tis only in being more craftily and compleatly wicked.

Were I yet to chuse my Religion, I wou'd not by any means turn Turk, though for no other Reason but that the Alcoran so strictly and severely forbids the Use of Wine; not but that I think some Amends is made for this, in their sweet and pleasing (and perhaps Rational) Doctrine of Polygamy; and Mahomet's Pro­mise [Page 11]to his Followers, of the Enjoyment of beautiful Women in Paradise. In which Points (for my particular) I esteem them less Erro­neous; nor am I a little pleas'd with the Ob­servations of the Learned, that the same He­brew Word in the Old Testament that stands for an Hostess, signifies also an Harlot. For what can be more unreasonable than to tie me to one Wife, who am to eat my Bread in more Countries than one?

And though I am not absolutely a Turk, in propagating my Religion by the Sword, and it be none of my Opinion, that Soldiers are the only Missionaries; yet I am so much a Christian to declare my own ought to be defen­ded with my Life; for I ever thought it the noble Posture of defending the Creed, after the manner of the Knights of Malta, with Swords drawn: And what is of great conside­ration with me, in the receiving the Nicene Creed into my Belief, and indeed has strong­ly confirmed me in it, is, That in the Muster-Rolls of the Councils, it had been, upon a just [Page 12]Calculation, computed, That the Fathers who car­ried it for the Creed, were Three hundred and eighteen; the precise Number of Abraham's Family which he listed in the Field.

I must confess, the Pagan Religion, which consisted chiefly in bloudy Sacrifices, taught its Professors more Gallantry, and bred in them greater Principles of Honour than the Christian, which in this particular also receded (not that I will say degenerated) from the Jew, who brave­ly profess'd with Circumcision, and so even in his tender Years, seal'd his first Sacrament with Bloud. To say nothing of the other (many) Instances, in which the Pagan had the Ad­vantage of the Christian Religion; as, in the Institutions of their Games, and their Triumphs, their Prizes, and their Crowns, which they a­warded to their Conquerours, and those that got the Mastery in their Games. But then what again reconciles me much to the Chri­stian Religion, is, Her Declaration in the Can­ticles, That the Church is Terrible as an Army with Banners; and Her assuring me, That [Page 13] even the Life of Man is a Warfare upon Earth: Which seems the true and genuine Lan­guage, of the Church-Misitant; and she appear'd no less in the Age of the Holy War, and of the Expedition of Christian Princes to the Holy Land; since which time, She has split into innumerable Sects at Home, for want of keeping her Men in constant Breath and Exercise against the Turks and Saracens abroad: And Christian Princes have spent their Metal upon each other, which they employ'd with much more Honour against the Common Enemy of CHRISTENDOM.

It was indeed an Age of Gallantry, the Genius of it truly Martial and Heroick, and the Race of Men such as seem'd born to distinguish Themselves in Feats of Arms, even in their Sports and Exercises, which were Noble and Manly; and what is yet more, even in their very Tales and Ro­mances; for much about that time, as some think, were all those bold Fables of Knights [Page 14]and Giants first hatched; which contributed not a little perhaps to that Expedition, as in succeeding Times they grew up to the Illustrious Orders of Knighthood of Saint George, and the Golden Fleece.

While these Legions had a Power over Men's Minds, they became bold by Me­ditation; their Heads were fill'd with No­tions of Braves and Hero's; and they were carried, even beyond themselves, to Great and Generous Enterprizes.

Thus Alexander, by having Homer under his Pillow, became a Conquerour; and Thu­cydides, as it is reported, by hearing Herodotus read, cou'd not contain himself from Tears, but was spirited into an Historian, by meer force of Emulation. But, alas! these Tales have long since lost their Reputation; the Love-Romances and Novels are altogether in Vogue and Esteem; whilst those of Chi­valry are wholly laid aside, and in Dis­grace.

Other Notions have prevail'd, with which Men have been too long unhappily perverted and debauch'd: Feats of Arms, heretofore in the greatest Admiration, are now ridi­cul'd and run down, under the odious Terms of Knight-Errantry; so visible are the Decays of the ancient Courage, that, in the Opi­nion of some, the Degeneracy of the Spa­niards, from their former Reputation in Arms, is, in a manner, owing to the Buffoonries of Don Quixot.

I remember to have read the Statute of 33 Hen. 8. cap. 9. which ascribes the Growth of Debauchery, and Decay of Military Discipline with us here in England, to the Disuse of Archery; and the change of the ancient Exercise of the Long-Bow, for the more unmanly new Exercises of Tennis, Bowls, and Nine-Pins; to which might be added, the Desuetude of those Mar­tial Sports once in use, of Tilting, Tourna­ments, and Running at the Quintin; as also the Discontinuance of the Trial once so [Page 16]frequent in criminal Cases, by Battel or Combat; a Priviledge, which if it be denied to others, yet, if I may be allow'd to speak in the behalf of my Profession, I think it hard to barr us from claiming it as our Right: For why shou'd my Hands be tied up, when my Life is in question more strictly by Formalities of Common Law, than I am by Civil Law, in making my Will to dispose of my Estate; since the Emperours made duly this Provi­sion for the ease of Soldiers, That their last Wills should be good, though made without Solemnities of Law; the reason of which is plainly declar'd to be in consideration of their Ignorance of the Law, as an Allowance less than necessary to our close Attendance on our Colours: Nor is it reason to expect the Skill of other Arts from us, whose sole Profession is the Art of War; and to this purpose Ju­venal, Satyr XVI.

Though had the Trial by Battel been a Right in such Cases, yet indulg'd to all, I am of Opinion, it might have been no less a means to redeem the ancient Honour of the Eng­lish Nation, than the Juego de Toros, or the Bull-Feast has been esteem'd among the Spaniards, to retrieve their lost Reputation in Arms; which has so visibly declin'd of late among them, that Don Quixot, conside­ring the general Entertainment he has met with in so many Nations, and his Transla­tion into so many Languages, seems at pre­sent to have a better Right to the Universal Monarchy, than they, who once laid claim to it themselves, notwithstanding he turns all Fighting into a Jest; and his Story is no less than a most accomplish'd Libel, on all the Soldiers of Christendom.

It were to be wish'd, however, the witty Spaniard had infected only his own Country­men; [Page 18]but it is to be fear'd, alas! the Poison has been transplanted too far in so short a time; and that it has taken but too deep root with too many of their (once Re­nown'd) Neighbours; nay, and even of our own Nation too: For I have been credibly inform'd, of one of the Senior Fellows of a certain College in Oxford (too well known to need Naming) who having imbib'd a fond Opinion, That whatever was the last Employment of a Soul at the point of Death, would hold the same even to the Day of Judgment. He, in pursuance of such an Opinion, when he apprehended himself near his last Moments, made all the haste his Extremity of Age would allow, to turn over the Leaves of Don Quixot; as if he cour­ted no better an Employment for his Soul, than to be engag'd in that Comieal History until the Day of Judgment. What shall I say else to the applauded Satyr against Man, of one of our admir'd Wits, wherein he has bid Defiance to our Profession, and to all Man­kind at once, in telling us, That [Page 19] ‘All Men wou'd be Cowards, if they durst,’ but only this, That if Cowards bid so fair for Universal Monarchy, the Spaniards even yet may hope not to be excluded. But this, alas! is but the Gospel of a Poet, who was suppos'd to have said this in defence of him­self, who lay under some Scandal of that kind.

But what do we talk of single Persons, when of late there is risen up a New Sect among us, who make Conscience of Cow­ardice, and entail Religion upon it; I mean the sneaking Anabaptists, who are proper Patrons for such a Doctrine as this, That all Wars are unlawful. I shall not press them with the Heroick Description of the War-Horse in the Book of Job, because I hear that has not the Authority of Canonical Scripture with them, but is reputed no less Apocry­phal than our Profession. But what do they say to the Practice of one of the first Re­formers [Page 20]abroad; Zuinglius, who scrupled not to be a Captain, and died bravely in his Calling at the Battel of Zurick; leaving an Example behind him, which those of the Helvetian Reformation have follow'd close ever since, as all Republicks taste much of their first Be­ginnings, since the Swiss-Cantons are in effect but a Commonwealth of Soldiers; who by hiring of War abroad among their Neigh­bour-Princes, have wisely found the way to free their Country from Thieves, as also from the unhappy and dismal Effects of Civil Wars at home (as they are generally call'd) though I think for the most part very rude and sharp, and indeed the worst sort of all.

Where are they now that accuse Rapine and Poverty, as the natural and immediate Results of War; since it appears, by a juster Calculation of Astrology, that Beggars en­ter'd into all Christian Countries, upon the Dissolution of Slaves; as even the Repub­lick of Switzers affords us a Glorious Instance [Page 21]in the other respect, since no Commonwealth furnishes out more Soldiers, or has fewer Thieves.

I take Mr. Hobbs to be a far better Divine than any of the Anabaptists, in his Opinion, That the State of Nature is a State of War, where every Man's Sword is against another. Nor do I think his other Opinion, That Dominion is soun­ded in Power, altogether so ill-grounded and extravagant, since it cuts off so many nice Disputes about Princes Titles, and the Rights and Justice, or Lawfulness of their Wars, which seems so unreasonable to engage Men of our Profession in, that it appears a Task much fit­ter for an Army of Casuists than Soldiers.

Did the Anabaptists look for Miracles, their condemning all Camps as unlawful, might me­rit the same Excuse, as their condemning all Colleges and Schools, as vain and superfluous, from their Pretences to Inspiration; for so the Argument would hold alike fair, and conclu­ding for banishing both Soldiers and Scholars [Page 22]out of the World; and as they make one step to make Dunces by Divine Right for com­pany.

I deny not but that I gaze often, as I ought, with profound Reverence and Admiration, upon Sampson's killing Heaps upon Heaps, with the Jaw-bone of an Ass; and upon the Walls of Jericho falling flat before the Trumpets of Rams-horns; and upon Gideon's miraculous Campagne with his Three hundred Men, arm'd with their Lamps lighted, and their Pitchers in their hands. These I look upon as very extraordinary and magnificent Scenes in that Age of Miracles: But now that these mira­culous Militia's are ceas'd, which it may be were peculiar to that State, I frankly own, That the Sword of God and Gideon is to me more intelligible; and I ingenuously profess my self much of the same Belief of that Spa­nish Marshal, who us'd to say, He trusted in God and great Squadrons.