190 THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND. more and more capable of exerting his own intellectual powers, than to limit this matter by months and years. When childhood and youth are so far expired, that the rea- soning faculties are grown up to any just measure or maturity, it is certain that persons ought to begin to enquire into the reasons of their own faith and practice in all the affairs of life and religion ; but as reason does not arrive at this power and self-sufficiency in any single moment of time, so there is no single moment when a child should at once cast off all its former beliefs and practices ; but by degrees and in slow succession he should examine them, as opportunity and advantages offer; and either confirm or doubt of, or change them, according to the leadings of conscience and reason, with all its best advantages of information. When we are arrived at manly age, there is no person on earth, no set or society of men whatsoever, that have power and authority given them by God, the Creator and governor of the world, absolutely to dictate to others their opinions or practices in the moral and religious life. God has given every man reason to judge for himself, in higher or in lower degrees. Where less is given, lesswill be required. But we are justly chargeable with criminal sloth, and misimprovement of the talents with which our Creator has entrusted us, if we take all things for granted which others assert, and believe and practise all things which they dictate, without due examination. II. Another case wherein authority must govern our assent, is in many matters offact. Here we may and ought to be de- termined by the declarations or narratives of other men ; though I must confess, this is usually called testimony rather than au- thority. It is upon this foot, that every son or daughter among mankind are required to believe that suchand such persons are their parents, for they can never be informed of it but by the dictates of others. It is by testimony that we are to believe the laws of our country, and to pay all proper deference to the prince, and to magistrates, in subordinate degrees of authority, though we did not actually see them chosen, crowned, or in- vestedwith their title and character. It is by testimony that we are necessitated to believe there is such a city as Canterbury or YÓrk, though perhaps we have never been at either ; that there are such persons as papists at Paris and Rome, and that there are many sottish and cruel tenets n their religion. It is by tes- timony we believe that christianity and the books of the bible, have been faithfully delivered down to us through many genera- tions ; that there was such a person as Christ our Saviour, that he wrought miracles and died on the cross, that he rose again and ascended up to heaven. The authority or testimony of men, if they are wise and
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