which are not neceffary at that particular time, and which in their opinion would criminally prophane the Days that the Jews or Chriftians call Holy; then it feems proper and neceffary that the Jew fhould preferve his Saturday as well as the Chriftian his Sunday facred for Rest. and divine Worship, as preferring Obedience to God rather than Men: and I think he must confequently submit to fuch Penalties as the State thinks neceffary for the publick Welfare. I fee not how this can be avoided. The State must be the Judge.

XII. The State therefore in fuch Cafes, as I said before, ought to injoin no other Penalty for fuch Neglects, than a wife and tender Father would impofe upon a Child who loves and honours him, when he is constrain'd to neglect fome part of his Father's Commands in order to obey God and his Conscience: And the Penalty or Forfeit of each Man for neglect in fuch a Cafe must neceffarily be small, when it is meafured by and adjusted to the Detriment which it is fuppofed the State may receive from each fingle Perfon's abfence or neglect of the required Hour and Civil Service appointed by the State. Or if the Penalty fhould be reduced a little below the Detri

ment

ment the State can be fuppofed to sustain by the Neglect, I think it would not be amifs, fince 'tis an Expreffion of Tenderness to the Consciences of good Men, who are in all other respects faithful and obedient to the State.

XIII. And after all, every private Person must be left to his own Confcience, to judge or determine how far the Action required by the State would prophane the Day which he calls facred, and whether God calls him to comply with the Orders of State, or to refuse it, and submit to the Penalty: Always fuppofing that the Christian should not intirely neglect the publick Worship of God on a Sunday nor the few on a Saturday; but as far as poffible, fhould chufe thofe Hours for the Worship of God, which are best suited to the Conveniency of the State and the ge

neral Eafe of those of his own Sect: Nor do I think in fuch cafes God would be found a rigorous or hard Master.

XIV. And perhaps this may be one Reafon why the Inftitution of the Chriftian Sunday is not fo plain and express in the New Teftament, nor the Rules of the Obfervation of it fo evident, nor fo ftrict and particular as the Sabbath of the Jews: (viz.) because

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because the Church of Christ being to be raised up in all Nations, the Confciences of young Chriftians might be put under too fevere a Bondage in fome places, where the Demands of the State might greatly interfere with the Religion of the Sunday; efpecially if the peculiar Obligations to keep the Day were fo very ftrict, and the Prohibitions were fo fevere as was injoin'd to the Jews.

XV. Yet ftill I think it must be granted, if we would keep up any ferious Sense of Religion and the Returns of publick Worship, one Day in seven is little enough in general to be devoted to that Purpose, which both the Jews and Chriftians believe to be divinely appointed.

I.

SECT. VIII.

Of a Particular Religion profess'd by the
Ruling Powers.

A

Nother Question arifes here. If the fupreme Power of the State or Civil Government profeffes fome particular reveal'd Religion, or worships the Great God

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with fome peculiar Modes and Ceremonies of its own, may not the Rulers of the State authorize and appoint Men to be publick Teachers of their own Religion in all the Forms and Ceremonies thereof? and may not these Men celebrate these Ceremonies by publick Authority, and lead others into the Worship of their God according to these special Forms and Ceremonies? and may not the Rulers appoint these Teachers or Priests to be paid out of the publick Revenue, or by Tythes, &c, i.e: Tenths or Twelfths of the Improvement of the Land, or by any Taxes imposed by the Government?

II. To this I answer, that every Governor, every Teacher, and every fingle Person seems to have a natural Right and Liberty not only to practise their own Religion themselves, but to perfuade as many as they can to worship the God they worship, and that in and by their own approved Forms. If Duty to God should not require it, Benevolence and Love to our Neighbors will incline Men to this: But we must attempt it fo far only as Reason and Perfuafion can prevail, without any Compulfion or Force, for Confcience and Religion must be ever free: Whatsoever is done by meer Compulfion or

Terror

Terror of Men is not hearty and voluntary, and therefore 'tis not Religion, and can never be pleasing to the Great God.

III. But I cannot yet fee any fufficient Reafon why a State should appoint the Peculiarities of any reveal'd Religion or the special Rites and Ceremonies of any particular Worshippers, or the Men who celebrate them to be supported at the publick Charge: for these Peculiarities are not ne ceffary to the Prefervation of the State, nor to the common outward Civil Welfare of a People; and I think the Power of the Magiftrate reaches no further.

Nor will I venture to fay that Taxes or Tenths or Twelfths or any Subfidy should be raised by the State for any other end than the Civil Welfare of the State requires. If a Heathen Prince impose a Tenth Penny as a Tax to maintain Heathen Worship, would a Christian willingly pay it, and think himself bound in Confcience to do it?

Is not this evidently the Reason why the People called Quakers in our Nation at home or abroad, refuse to pay the Tythes to the Clergy of the Church of England, or of other Christian Churches, because they preach and practise many things in Religion which the Quaker

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