ESSAYVII. 187 the manners of the man, and gives a visible tincture to his notions and his practices. Furio can never converse about the calmest and most speculative points of divinity, but his indigna- tion kindles against every different opinion, his fiery temper breaks out and blazes, and he bestows on his own deportment the honourable names ofshining light andburning zeal. His peevish and angry passions are so blended with his understanding, that hard names are his best arguments; most convincing to himself,, though they are the just scorn of the wise. He stabs his brethren that differ from him to the heart, with pointed railing ; and from an aversionto an opinion rises to an immortal hatredof the per- son. If our great Creator lias united anyof our souls to bodies that are less infected with this vicious juice, we have reason to adore his sovereign goodness. II. Self-love and pride, and a vain conceit of our opinions, is another spring of uncharitablecarriages. Did you ever see a weak and humble soul sensible of its own poverty and ignorance, and ready to esteem others above himself, easily indulge this un- charitable humour ? Alas ! poor foolishmankind is very prone tg esteem itself wise and knowing. Little Laudillus, who is almost always in the wrong, has much ado to persuade himself, that he was ever capable of mistaking. He secretly, thinks all his opi- nions to be divine truths, and therefore_he is very lavish in pro- nouncing error and heresy upon every notion and practice that differs from his own. He takes the freedom to chuse a. religion for himself, but lie allows no man besides the same liberty. He is sure that he has reason to dissent from others, but no man has reason to dissent from him. He sets up for infallibility without a triple crown, and fixes a see of ecclesiastical sovereignty on this - side the water. He awes some slavish spirits into submission, and they become treacherous to their own souls, and to the rights of human nature, by delivering up their faith and consciencesto his imperious dictates : Then the man grows haughty, surly and severe, especially if he be advanced to any degree of honour and authority in the church : Then in his inflexible justice he delivers by the humble and inquisitive christian unto Satan, because he 'cannot assent and consent to all and every thingcontained in his scheme ; and he teaches perhaps his elder brethren the doctrines and discipline of the gospel, as Gideon did the elders of Succoth, . with the briars and thorns of the wilderness; Judges viii. 16. III. This hateful vice maybe derived from a thirdoriginal ; and that is a constant and friendly acquaintance with the menand books of our own opinion,and an avoidanceof all the writersand persons that differfrom us. Thishas a mighty influence to beget and maintain uncharitable notions ; get this is the constant prac- tice, not only of the unlearned, but of too many of the learned - world. ¡lermes sits all the year in his own cell, and never looks
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