This farther I ought to acknowledge to Mr. Bold, and own to the world, that he hath entered into the true sense of my treatise, and his notions do fo perfectly agree with mine, that I fhall not be afraid, by thoughts and expreffions very like his, in this my fecond vindication, to give Mr. Edwards (who is exceedingly quick-fighted, and pofitive in fuch matters) a handle to tell the world, that either I borrowed this my "vindication" from Mr. Bold, or writ his "animadverfions" for him. The former of thefe I fhall count no difcredit, if Mr. Edwards think fit to charge me with it; and the latter, Mr. Bold's character is answer enough to. Though the impartial reader, I doubt not, will find, that the fame uniform truth, confidered by us, fuggefted the same thoughts to us both, without any other communi

cation.

There is another author, who in a civiler ftyle, hath made it neceffary for me to vindicate my book from a reflection or two of his, wherein he seems to come fhort of that candour he profeffes. All that I fhall fay on this occafion here, is, that it is a wonder to me, that having published what I thought the fcripture told me was the faith that made a chriftian, and defired, that if I was mistaken, any one that thought fo, would have the goodnefs to inform me better; fo many with their tongues, and some in print, should intemperately find fault with a poor man out of his way, who defires to be fet right; and no one, who blames his faith, as coming fhort, will tell him what that faith is, which is required to make him a chriftian. But I hope, that amongst so many cenfurers, I fhall at laft find one, who knowing himself to be a chriftian upon other grounds than I am, will have fo much chriftian charity, as to fhow me what more is abfolutely neceffary to be believed, by me, and every man, to make him a chriftian.

A SECOND

OF

CHRISTIANITY,

&c.

ACAUSE that ftands in need of falfhoods to fupport

it, and an adverfary that will make ufe of them, deserve nothing but contempt; which I doubt not but every confiderate reader thought anfwer enough to "Mr. "Edwards's Socinianifm unmasked." But, fince in his late "Socinian Creed," he fays, "I would have an"fwered him if I could," that the intereft of christianity may not fuffer by my filence, nor the contemptiblenefs of his treatife afford him matter of triumph among thofe who lay any weight on fuch boafting, it is fit it should be fhown what an arguer he is, and how well he deferves, for his performance, to be dubbed, by himself, "irrefragable."

Those who, like Mr. Edwards, dare to publifh inventions of their own, for matters of fact, deferve a

name

name fo abhorred, that it finds not room in civil converfation. This fecures him from the proper anfwer due to his imputations to me, in print, of matters of fact utterly falfe, which, without any reply of mine, fix upon him that name (which, without a profligate mind, a man cannot expofe himself to) till he hath proved them. Till then, he muft, wear what he has put upon himself. This being a rule, which common juftice hath prescribed to the private judgments of mankind, as well as to the public judicatures of courts, that all allegations of facts, brought by contending parties, fhould be prefumed to be falfe, till they are proved.

There are two ways of making a book unanswerable. The one is by the clearnefs, ftrength, and fairness of the argumentation. Men who know how to write thus, are above bragging what they have done, or boafting to the world that their adverfaries are baffled. Another way to make a book unanfwerable, is to lay a ftrefs on matters of fact foreign to the question, as well as to truth; and to stuff it with scurrility and fiction. This hath been always fo evident to common sense, that no man, who had any regard to truth, or ingenuity, ever thought matters of fact befides the argument, and stories made at pleasure, the way of managing controverfies. Which showing only the want of fenfe and argument, could, if ufed on both fides, end in nothing but downright railing: and he must always have the better of the caufe, who has lying and impudence on his side.

The unmarker, in the entrance of his book, fets a great diftance between his and my way of writing. I am not sorry that mine differs fo much as it does from his. If it were like his, I fhould think, like his, it wanted the author's commendations. For, in his first paragraph, which is all laid out in his own teftimony of his own book, he fo earnestly befpeaks an opinion of maftery in politenefs, order, coherence, pertinence, ftrength, ferioufnefs, temper, and all the good qualities requifite in controverfy, that I think, fince he pleases himself so much with his own good opinion, one in pity ought not to go about to rob him of fo confiderable an admirer. I fhall not, therefore, conteft any of thofe

excellencies he afcribes to himself, or faults he blames in me, in the management of the difpute between us, any farther than as particular paffages of his book, as I come to examine them, fhall fuggeft unavoidable remarks to me. I think the world does not fo much concern itself about him, or me, that it need be told in that inventory, he has given of his own good parts, in his first paragraph, which of us two has the better hand at flourishes, jefting, and common-places;" if I am, as he fays, p. 2, troubled with " angry fits, and paffionate ferments, which, though I ftrive to palliate, are eafily difcernible, &c." and he be more laudably ingenuous in the opennefs of that temper, which he fhows in every leaf; I fhall leave to him the entire glory of boafting of it. Whatever we brag of our performances, they will be juft as they are, however he may think to add to his, by his own encomium on them. The difference in ftyle, order, coherence, good breeding (for all thofe, amongst others, the unmasker mentions) the reader will obferve, whatever I fay of them; and at beft they are nothing to the queftion in hand. For though I am a "tool, pert, childish, ftarch'd, impertinent, in"coherent, trifling, weak, paffionate, &c." commendations I meet with, before I get to the 4th page, befides what follows, as, "upftart Racovian," p. 24. « Flou "rifhing fcribbler," p. 41. " Diffembler," 106. "Pe"dantic," 107. I fay, although I am all this, and what elfe he liberally beftows on me in the reft of his book, I may have truth on my fide, and that in the present cafe ferves my turn.

Having thus placed the laurels on his own head, and fung applause to his own performance, he, p. 4, enters, as he thinks, upon his bufinefs, which ought to be, as he confeffes, p. 3, "to make good his former charges." The firft whereof he fets down in these words: That

I unwarrantably crowded all the neceffary articles of "faith into one, with a defign of favouring foci"nianifm."

If it may be permitted to the fubdued, to be fo bold with one, who is already conqueror, I defire to know, where that propofition is laid down in thefe terms, as VOL. VI.

0

laid

laid to my charge. Whether it be true, or falfe, fhall, if he pleases, be hereafter examined: but it is not, at prefent, the matter in question. There are certain propofitions, which he having affirmed, and I denied, are under debate between us: and that the difpute may not run into an endless ramble, by multiplying of new, before the points in conteft are decided, those ought first to be brought to an iffue.

To go on, therefore, in the order of his "Socinian"ifm unmasked," (for, p. 3, he has, out of the Mishna, taught me good breeding, "to answer the firft, and fo " in order.") The next thing he has against me is p. 5, which, that the reader may understand the force of, I muft inform him, that in p. 105, of his " Thoughts "concerning the causes of atheifm" he said, that I "give this plaufible conceit," as he calls it, "over "and over again, in these formal words," viz. "That "nothing is required to be believed by any chriftian man, but this, that Jefus is the Meffiah." This I denied. To make it good, "Socinianifm unmasked," p. 5, he thus argues. Firft, " It is obfervable, that this guilty man would be fhifting off the indictment, by excepting against the formality of words, as if fuch "were not to be found in his book: but when doth he "do this? In the clofe of it, when this matter was ex"haufted, and he had nothing else to fay," Vind. p. 113, "then he bethinks himself of his falvo, &c." Anfw. As if a falfhood were ever the less a falfhood, because it was not oppofed, or would grow into a truth, if it were not taken notice of, before the 38th page of the anfwer. I defire him to fhow me these "formal words "over and over again," in my "reafonablenefs of chrif

tianity" nor let him hope to evade, by faying I would be "fhifting, by excepting against the formality "of the words."

To fay, that "I have, over and over again, those for"mal words," in my book, is an affertion of a matter of fact; let him produce the words, and juftify his allegation, or confefs, that this is an untruth publifhed to the world: and fince he makes fo bold with truth, in a matter vifible to every body, let the world