43-$ LOGIC: OR, THE RIGHT IIS$ Or REASON. religion has its infant, votaries who are born, live and die in the same faith, without examination of any article. The Turks are taught early to believe in Mahomet, the Jews in Moses ; the heathens worship a multitude of gods, under the force of their education. And it would be well if there were not millions of christians, who have little more to say for their religion, than that they were born and bred up in it. The greatest part of the christian world can hardly give any reason why they believe the bible to be the word of God, but because they have always be- lieved it, and they were taught so from their infancy, As Jews and Turks, and American heathens, believe the most monstrous and incredible stories, because they have been trained u p amongst them, as articles of faith ; so the Papists believe their transub- stantiation, and make no difficultyof assenting to impossibilities, since it is the current doctrine of their catechisms. By the same means the several sects and parties in christianity, believe all the strained interpretations of scripture, by which they have been taught to support their own tenets : they find nothing difficult in all the absurd glosses and far - fetched senses that are sometinies put upon the words of the sacred writers, because their ears have been always accustomed to these glosses : and therefore they sit so smooth and easy upon their understandings, that they know not how to admit the most natural and easy interpretation in op- position to them. In the same manner we are nursed up in many silly and gross mistakes about domestic affairs, as well as in matters of political concernment. It is upon the same ground that children are trained up to be whigs and tories betimes ; and every one learns the distinguished terms of his own party, as the Papists learn to say their prayers in Latin, without any meaning, reason, or devotion. This sortof prejudice must be cured by calling all the prin. ciples of our young years to the bar of more mature reason, that we may judge of the things of nature and political affairs by juster rules of philosophy and observation : and even the mat- ters of religion must be first enquired into by reason and con- science, and when these have led us to believe scripture to be the word of God, then that becomes our sovereign guide, and rea- son and conscience must submit to receive its dictates. II. The next prejudice which I shall mention, is that 'which arises from the custom or fashion of those amongst whom we live, Suppose we have freed ourselves from the younger prejudices of pur education, yet we are in danger of having our mind turned aside from truth by the influence of general custom. Our opinion of meats and drinks, of garments and forms of salutation, are influenced much more by custom, than by the eye, the ear, or the taste. Custom prevails even over sense
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