240 The Life of reps Chrift Vol. II. do not find, that he left the Bufinefs he was about, to fpeak with her when fhe deured it. Nor it feems did fhe underftand her Power fo well as the Churchof Rome bath done fence, when (as is to be feen in forceof their Mafs-Books) they addict's to her in thefe Terms, Yore matrix impera Redemptori; " By the Autho- " rity of a Mother, command the Redeemer. TheFourth Paffage is not much different from the former, Luke II.27. When a certain Woman faid to him, Bled is the Womb that bare thee, and the Paps which thou haft fuckd ; hefaid, Tea, rather bled are they that hear, the Word of God and keep it. He does not deny what was faid in Honour of her ; but turns his Dif- courfe another Way; and forefeeing the Danger of a fuperftitious Veneration of her, he feems to bring her down to the fame Level with all fincere Chriftians; teachingus, that no external Privilege or Relation, how glorious foever, no not that of being the Mother of the Son of God, was fo valuable, as doing the Will of God : Tea, rather bled are they that hear the Word ofGod and keep it. The Laß Paffage is at the Time of his Death, john rg. 25, 26, 27. Now there flood by the Croft of jefus, his Mother : Whenyefus therefore fan) his Mother, and the Difciple fianding by whore he loved, hefaith unto his Mother, Woman, beholdthySon: Thenfaith he to the Difciple, Behold thyMother. And from that Hour that Difciple took her unto his own Home. Here indeed he (hewed his great Kindnefs and Concern- ment for her, in committing her to the Care of his belt beloved Friend : but yet without any extraordinary Demonftrationof Refpeec in the Manner of it. There are all thePafhages I know in the Gofpel, which concernour Lord's Car- riage towards his Mother ; which upon the whole Matter, is fo ftrange, that we cannot imagine but there mull be force fpecial and extraordinary Reafon for it; and we who have lived to, fee and know what bath happen'd in the Chriftian World, are now able to give a better Account of this great Caution and Refer- vednefs in his Behaviour towards her; namely, that out of his infiniteWifdom andForefight, he fo demeaned himfelf toward her, that he might lay noTempta- tion before Men, nor give the leaft Occafion to the Idolizing of her. He always call'd her Woman; and by the Privilege of his Divinity and highOffice, hardly feems to pay her the Refpe& due to a Mother, that he might reftrain all Chrifti- ans from worfhipping her as a Deity ; or if they did, that they might have no Colour or Excufe for it, from any Thing he faid or did. This is fo probable an Account of that which might otherwife feem fo unaccountable, that I per- fwade my felf, that all unprejudiced Perfons will readily affent to it. And which is farther remarkable in this Matter, the Apoftles of our Lord in all their Wri- tings ufe the fame Refervednefs; and no Doubt, by the Dire&ion of the fame Spirit, concerning the bleffèdMother of our Lord. For throughout the Hiftory of the Alts, and all the Epifiles of theApofiles, there is but onceMention made of her, and that only by the by, Ails 1. 14. where it is faid, that The Difciples all continued with one Accord in Prayer and Supplication, with the Women, and Mary the Mother ofJefus. So far are they from propofing her for an Obje& of our Wor- fhip, that theyonly once make Mentionof her, and that joining with others in Prayer and Supplication to God, without any fpecial Remark concerning her ; much lefs do they fpeak of any Devotion paid to her. And furely if This bled among Women, the Mother ofour Lord, (for I keep to theTitles which the Scripturegives her) have any Senfe of what we do herebe- low, fhe cannot but look down with the greatefk Difdain upon that Sacrilegious and Idolatrous Worfhip which ispaid to her, to the high Dithonour of the great God, and our Saviour, and the infinite Scandal of his Religion. How can the without Indignation, behold how theyplay the Fool in the Church ofRome about her;? What an Idol they make of her Image ? and with what Sottithnefs they give Divine Honour to it ? How they place her in their Idolatrous Pi&ures in equal Rank with the blefdTrinity, and turn the Salutationof the Angel, Ave Maria, Hail Mary full of Grace, into a kind ofPrayer; and in their Bead-rollof Devotion, repeat it ten Times, for once that they,fay the Lord's Prayer, as of greater Virtue and Efficacy ? And indeed they almoft juftle out the Devotion due to Almighty God, and our bleffed Saviour, by their.endlefs Idolatry toher. So
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