CONFERENCE I. 43! free them from the intoxicating . influences of prejudice, custom, passions, &c. it is possible, in the nature of things, that the powers ofreason may then trace out such a religion, which, if sincerely practised, may leadthem to final happiness. VII. But since we find by wretched and deplorable experi- ence, that there have been very few among the best of the hea- then nations, whose reason being left to itself, without any tradi- tions of divine revelation, have worked well this way, and traced out all the most important and necessary principles of religion ; and since also we have seen what shameful ignorance, even of the chief ofthese principles, isfound universally reigning among the ruder and more unpolishednations, so that scarce a man of them knows tke true God, or believes or practises the necessary duties towards God, and but very imperfectly toward his neigh- bouror himself; we may plainly infer this sufficiencyof human rea- son to guide all men in matters ofreligion, is but little more than a speculative and abstract idea ofsufficiency ; it is a sufficiency, at best, that has very little or no influence : It issuch a natural capacity, or remote power, or sufficiency, as is scarce likely to become effectual, in practice, in one soul among ten thousand of these rude and brutal creatures which we have been speaking of. And whatsoever speculative, natural, or remote sufficiency in matters of 'religion and happiness, may be ascribed to human reason among the rude and barbarous nations of the earth ; yet it can hardly be called a proximate and practical sufficiency for this purpose : So that there seems to be a plain necessity of some higher means and advantages than they are possessedof, in order to introduce any thing of real religion actually amongst them. This appears evident to me, since I have scarce grounds enough to suppose there is one single person in several of thesesavage nations, that has arrived at so much religion and holiness, as to be fit, according to the representations of scripture, to enter into the presence of God, and heavenly blessedness, under all the guidance and conduct of their own reason ; so ineffectual is it to combat with their natural stupidity, their innumerable prejudices, the incessant influence of their brutal education and customs, and their strong propensities to vice. Loc. Permit me, gentlemen, after the moderator has spoken, to put in one word, which perhaps has been toomuch neglected in our present debate, though it has been at first agreed to belong to the question ; and that is this : Ifall man- kind used and exercised their reason well, and as they ought to do, I query whether it would not only have a remote, but also a proximate and practical sufficiency, to find out the articles of natural religion, so far as is necessary for future happiness : For it is evident enough, that neither the savage nor the polite nations which we have had occasion to speak of, have used their rea- son as they might and ought to have done on religious subjects.
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