Cleo. And it is clear as the sun, that he never did.
Hor. That his pretences to religion were no more than Hypocrisy, I have allow'd; but it does not appear, that he desired others to be Hypocrites too: On the Contrary, he took Pains, or at least made Use of all possible Means to promote Christianity among his Men, and make them sincerely Religious.
Cleo. You will never distinguish between Christianity, that is, the Doctrine of Christ, and the Interpretations, that are made of it by Clergymen; tho' I have often shew'd you the great Difference there is between them. Cromwell was a Man of admirable good Sense, and thoroughly well acquainted with Human Nature; he knew the mighty Force of Enthusiasm, and made Use of it accordingly. As to Strictness of Religion and the Love of Liberty, they had all along been the darling Pretences of the party he engaged in. The complaints of the Puritans against Episcopacy, and that the Church of England was not sufficiently reformed, began in Queen Elizabeth's Time, and were very near as old as the Reformation itself. The people's Murmurings and Struggles for Liberty were of some Standing, when King Charles the First came to the Throne: The Jealousies, which Parliaments had of the Regal Power and Prerogative, had been openly shewn in his Father's Reign, and, throughout the Course of it, been troublesome to his Ministers. That the Clergy of the Church of England had enjoin'd Things, and taught what they had no Warrant for from the Gospel, and that King James the First, as well as his Son, who succeeded him, laid Claim to a more absolute Power, than was consistent with the privileges of Parliament and the Constitution, in undeniable. Religion then and Liberty, being two topicks, that Abundance was to be said upon in those Days, became the Subject and Foundation of the Quarrels between the King and Parliament, that afterwards broke out into a Civil War.
Hor. I was not born in China or Lapland: there is not a Boy of Twelve Years old, that is ignorant of the Causes of that Civil War.
Cleo. I don't question your Knowledge; but only mention these Things, that from the Nature of the Dissentions, and the mischiefs that ensued upon them, we might see the Impossibility, that either Party should have acted from a Principle of Christianity. I shall now endeavor to demonstrate to you Two Things; the First is, that Clergymen, by a small Deviation from the Gospel, may so egregiously impose upon their Hearers, as to make even sincere Men act quite contrary to the Precepts of it, at the same Time that those subtle Declaimers shall seem to be full of Zeal, and to have the highest Value for Christianity. The Other is, that in a well disciplin'd Army, Acts of Devotion, and an outward Shew of Religion may do vast Service for the obtaining of Victory, tho' the General who appointed and order'd them, was an Atheist; the greatest part of the Clergy, who perform'd and assisted in them, were Hypocrites, and the Generality of the Men were wicked Livers. As to the First, I call a Man sincere in his Religion, who believes the Bible to be the Word of God, and acknowledging the Difficulty he finds in obeying the Dictates of the Gospel, wishes with all his heart, that he could practice the self-denial that is required in it; and is sorry, that he has not the Power to govern and subdue his stubborn Passions so well as he could wish. If to such a one, a Clergyman should preach the Strictness of Morality, and the Necessity of Repentance, that are taught in the Gospel, and moreover inculcate to him, that as to Divine Worship the Ceremonial was abrogated; that what was required of us, was the Sacrifice of the Heart and the Conquest over our darling Lusts; and that in short the Religious Duties of a Christian were summ'd up in loving God as his Neighbour; this Doctrine being every Way agreeable to that of Christ, a sincere man, who had read the New Testament, would easily give Ear to a Divine, who should preach it to him; and it is highly probable, that in Matters of Conscience, and every Thing relating to his Deportment, he should be glad of his Counsel. Suppose now, that there was another Clergyman in the same city, who likewise pretending to preach the Gospel, should, on the one Hand, represent the Doctrine of it as very indulging to Human Nature, and the Practice of it easily comply'd with, and, on the other, lay a great Stress on the Honour to be paid to his own Person, and the Performances of a Set of Ceremonies, no where mention'd in the Gospel; it is not likely, that our sincere Man should approve of his Sermons; but if this Second Divine should moreover call them Enemies to God, who should refuse to comply with every Part of these Ceremonies, and give the Name of Hypocrite to Every body, who should assert, that the Gospel required stricter Morality than what he taught; if he should sollicite the Magistrate to have all Persons punish'd, who were not of his Opinion; and if, by his Instigation, our sincere Man should actually be persecuted and plagued by his Fellow-Subjects; to judge from what we know of Human Nature, such Usage would fill the sincere Man with Indignation, and raise his Anger against all those, who were the Occasion of his Sufferings. Let us suppose like-wise, that this Man, besides his Sincerity, had Temper and Goodness enough to consider, that, tho' he had been unjustly dealt with, and was highly provok'd, yet his Religion taught and commanded him not to resent Injuries, but to forgive his Enemies, and to Love them that hated him; it is reasonable to think, that this Clashing between Nature and Principle would perplex him, and himself stand in Need of good Advice, what to do in this Dilemma. If in this Case, the Clergyman, who first preached to him the Purity of the Christian Religion, and the Severity of its Morals, and whom he often went to hear, should persist in the same Sentiments; and, continuing to recommend to him the Doctrine of Peace, make Use of all the Arguments, which the Gospel could furnish him with, either to warn him against Anger and all sinful Passions, Malice of Heart, Hatred and Resentment; or to exhort him to Fortitude in Afflictions, Heroick Patience in Sufferings, and on all Emergencies an entire Resignation to the Will of God; If, I say, the Clergyman I mention'd should do this, whatever might be the Success he did it with, he would have acted the good Shepherd, and his Sermons could never be made a Handle of for War or Rebellion. But if instead of it, he should seem to approve of the other's Anger, and, to justify it, enter into the Merits of the Cause; if he should endeavour to demonstrate, that all Ceremonies of Human Invention were superstitious, and that Kneeling down, where there were Pictures and Sculpture, was a manifest Token of Idolatry; if after this, by an easy Transition, he should go over to the Old Testament, expatiate on the Second Commandment, and produce several Instances of God's Vengeance on Idolaters, and the utter Destruction, that had often been brought upon them by God's own People, fighting under his Banner, and acting by his special Commission; If a Preacher should do this, and have Mischief in his Heart, it would not be difficult for him insensibly to mislead his Hearers, extinguish their Charity, and, working upon the Passions, make a sincere Man, who had really been ill treated, mistake in his own Breast the Spirit of Revenge for Religious Zeal, and, to maintain the Truth of the Gospel, act directly contrary to the Precepts of it. And the more regular the Life was of such a Divine, and the greater the Austerity of his Manners, the fitter Instrument would he be to sow Sedition, enflame an Audience, and make Tools of them for the Ambitious.
Hor. The First you have made out beyond my Expectations; but it has been at the Expence of your Revolution-Principles; I hope you'll never take them up again.
Cleo. I hope I shall have no Occasion for it: but what I have advanced has Nothing to do with the Controversy you point at. The illegal Sway of Magistrates is not to be justified from the Gospel, any more than the Resistance of the People. Where Two Parties quarrel, and open Animosities are to be seen on both Sides, it is ridiculous for either to appeal to the Gospel. The Right, which Princes have to enjoy their Prerogative, is not more divine, than that which Subjects have to enjoy their Privileges; and if Tyrants will think themselves more justifiable before God than Rebels, they ought first to be satisfied, that Oppression is less heinous in his Sight than Revenge.
Hor. But No body owns himself to be a Tyrant.
Cleo. Nor did ever any Malecontents own themselves to be Rebels.
Hor. I can't give this up, and must talk with you about it another Time. But now I long to hear you demonstrate the Second of your Assertions, and make that as evident to me, as you have done the First.