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Article ON RELIGION, MORALITY, AND GOVERNMENT. ← Page 2 of 3 →
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On Religion, Morality, And Government.
It must be owned by the warmest friends of our establishment , that there have been very coercive methods used to convince such as had no inclination to . be convinced ; and it cannot be denied by the greatest enemies , that there is noiv no room for any such complaint . There is indeed an obsolete law , which requires the good people of England to go to some place of public worship , where a person claims a commission to preachthough the congregation should have
, no inclination to hear him ; and church-wardens are bound by oath to present such as neglect it , ( which , as 1 am informed , has-been actually put in practice , in times oj barbarous superstition ' ); but , I am not attempting to commit any such aft of violence upotr the understanding , as I do not pretend to any authority to command their attentionbut desire it only as a courtesy : neither is it fair to
re-, proach our constitution with a law which has been long since disused , though not formally repealed . All his Majesty ' s free-born subjects , any old law notwithstanding , are in full possession of the liberty of being Infidels , without having any further means of conviction impertinently obtruded upon them . Well-meaning divines may write books in defence of Christianity
, and some well-meaning Christians will read them . Sermons are still publicly preached ; and , in spite of all the honest endeavours of humane Infidels to prevent the continuance of such a grievance , they have still their hearers . But all this time , though believers re ; . d
books of infidelity , unbelievers are so happy as not tt . be compelled ., either by books or sermons , to inform themselves ; and they are so wise as not to do it of their own accord . Such is the present flourishing state of religious freedom in England . But since the clergy have the opportunity of instilling their notions into such multitudes as are led by the prejudice of education , the force of customor the influence of leto attend these public
, examp , lectures ; since the learned and pious author of ' ' The Ri g hts of Man has demonstrated , by the strongest assertion , that clergymen are the most unfit people for the business of instruction , by reason of their incapacity ; and since the great successor of the great S . crates has proved , as clearly , that Priests always have corrupted , and always will corruptreligion and misguide their hearers ; it is thought proper
, to rescue religious truths out of their bands . This noble work Citizen Thelwall lately attempted to do in several parts of the . kingdom , and has since published a course of lectures , in order to complete his benevolent designs . And if he has no other motive to this undertaking , but the propagation of truth and the gcod of mankind , I may assure myself" of his thanksand of . the thanks of all such
disinte-, rested writers , if I impartially examine any points of that kind , and freel y deliver my opinion concerning them ; provided I do it in the spirit of charity , with the temper of a philosopher , and in the language of a gentleman .
The liberty ofthe press is one ofthe most valuable privileges of ah Englishman , and a great security to our religious and civil ri ghts . I am not going to write against it , but to take the benefit of it in com-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On Religion, Morality, And Government.
It must be owned by the warmest friends of our establishment , that there have been very coercive methods used to convince such as had no inclination to . be convinced ; and it cannot be denied by the greatest enemies , that there is noiv no room for any such complaint . There is indeed an obsolete law , which requires the good people of England to go to some place of public worship , where a person claims a commission to preachthough the congregation should have
, no inclination to hear him ; and church-wardens are bound by oath to present such as neglect it , ( which , as 1 am informed , has-been actually put in practice , in times oj barbarous superstition ' ); but , I am not attempting to commit any such aft of violence upotr the understanding , as I do not pretend to any authority to command their attentionbut desire it only as a courtesy : neither is it fair to
re-, proach our constitution with a law which has been long since disused , though not formally repealed . All his Majesty ' s free-born subjects , any old law notwithstanding , are in full possession of the liberty of being Infidels , without having any further means of conviction impertinently obtruded upon them . Well-meaning divines may write books in defence of Christianity
, and some well-meaning Christians will read them . Sermons are still publicly preached ; and , in spite of all the honest endeavours of humane Infidels to prevent the continuance of such a grievance , they have still their hearers . But all this time , though believers re ; . d
books of infidelity , unbelievers are so happy as not tt . be compelled ., either by books or sermons , to inform themselves ; and they are so wise as not to do it of their own accord . Such is the present flourishing state of religious freedom in England . But since the clergy have the opportunity of instilling their notions into such multitudes as are led by the prejudice of education , the force of customor the influence of leto attend these public
, examp , lectures ; since the learned and pious author of ' ' The Ri g hts of Man has demonstrated , by the strongest assertion , that clergymen are the most unfit people for the business of instruction , by reason of their incapacity ; and since the great successor of the great S . crates has proved , as clearly , that Priests always have corrupted , and always will corruptreligion and misguide their hearers ; it is thought proper
, to rescue religious truths out of their bands . This noble work Citizen Thelwall lately attempted to do in several parts of the . kingdom , and has since published a course of lectures , in order to complete his benevolent designs . And if he has no other motive to this undertaking , but the propagation of truth and the gcod of mankind , I may assure myself" of his thanksand of . the thanks of all such
disinte-, rested writers , if I impartially examine any points of that kind , and freel y deliver my opinion concerning them ; provided I do it in the spirit of charity , with the temper of a philosopher , and in the language of a gentleman .
The liberty ofthe press is one ofthe most valuable privileges of ah Englishman , and a great security to our religious and civil ri ghts . I am not going to write against it , but to take the benefit of it in com-