AN ESSAY. 195 detriment which it is supposed the state may receive from each single person's absence or neglect of the required hour and civil service appointed by the state. Or if the penalty should be re- duced a little below the detriment the state can be supposed to sustain by the neglect, I think it would not be amiss, since it is an expression of tenderness to theconsciences of good men, who are in all respects faithful and obedient to the state. XIII. Answer III. And after all, every private person must be left to his own conscience, to judge or determine how far the action required by the state would profane the day which he calls sacred, and whether God calls him to comply with the orders of state, or to refuse it, and submit to the penalty : Always supposing that the christian should not entirely neglect the public worship of God on a Sunday, nor the Jew on a Sa- turday; but as far as possible, should chuse those holm for the worship of God, which are best suited to the conveniency of the state and the general ease of those of his own sect : Nor do I think in such cases God wouldbe found a rigorous or hard master. XIV. And perhaps this may be one reason why the institu- tion of the christian sabbath or Sunday, is not so plain and ex- press in the New Testament, nor the rules of the observation of it so evident, nor so strict and particular as the sabbath of the Jews : viz. because the church of Christ being to be raised up in all nations, the consciences of young christians might be put under too severe a bondage in some places, where the demands of the state might greatly interferewith the religion of the Sun- day; especially if the peculiar obligations to keep the day were so very strict, and the prohibitions were so severe as was enjoined to the Jews. XV. Yet still I think it must be granted, if we would keep up any serious sense of religion and the returns of public wor- ship, one day in seven is little enough in general to be devoted to that purpose, which both the Jews and christians believe to be divinely appointed. XVI. As for the times and places of public worship in ge- neral, the magistrate has certainly so much to do in them, as not to suffer assemblies under rretence of religion, to meet in such places and at such times, ás may give any just and reasonable umbrage to the state, that sedition or gross immoralities are prac- tised there. And if any society should think fit to keep their assemblies in caves, and lurking holes at midnight, the magis- trate may always demand an officer to be present with such as- semblies, to take care that the state received no damage, and that morality and peacebe preserved in the state : Or perhaps he may generally suppress such meetings, in such places and sea- sous, where there is just andevident reason for suspicion of such wicked practices, notwithstanding all pretences of conscience: n 2
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