malefactors, they pray, The Lord have mercy on thy foul.'* Thefe and the above mentioned may fuffice as fhort fpecimens of the pope's pride and cruelty. Let us next take a view of the temper of his mind with regard to earthly treafure, and fee what title he has to the appellation of a reprefentative of Chrift on this account also. Now we find by the history of the New Teftament that Chrift Jefus, who was greater than Mofes, who promised to the obedient an increase of outward fubftance, as of corn and cattle, Deut. xxviii. (the fanctions of his laws being, for the most part, outward rewards and punishments) ever directed the defires of his difciples, not to the riches of this world, but to the fpiritual ones, exprefsly enjoining them not to "Lay up treasures on earth, where moth and ruft do corrupt and thieves break through and steal, but in heaven." (Mat. vi. 19. 20.) Nor do I find in the catalogue of bleffings pronounced by our Lord on the Mount, or elsewhere in the New Testament, one bleffing on rich men as such, but on those who were poffeffed of a heavenly difpofition of mind: on the contrary, I find woes denounced on the rich and full, but bleffings to the poor, in Luke vi. and confiftently with this the apostle Paul, in his first epiftle to Timothy, chap. vi. fays, "Having food and raiment let us be therewith content; but they that will be rich, fall into temptation and a fnare, and into many foolish and hurtful lufts, which drown men in destruction and perdition; for the love of money is the root of all evil, which while fome coveted after they have erred' from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many forrows. But thou Man of God, flee these things, and follow after righteoufnefs, godlinefs, faith, love, patience, meeknefs." * Sermons against Popery, A. D. 1735 Such was the fenfe of the apoftle Paul concerning the difpofition of mind that ought to prevail in a Christian bifhop with regard to the riches of this world. Let us fee how confiftently with this the bishops of fucceeding times have acted. After the Chriftian religion became modifh, the liberality, partly of certain pioufly difpofed perfons, and partly of fome deluded ones, who vainly ima gined that by donations of this fort they might purchafe the remiffion of their fins, became great, and in procefs of time increased to an enormous degree, even fo far as to corrupt the minds of the receivers ; for with the acquifition of riches the defire of them alfo by and by increased, even as commonly happens to mere carnal men; and truly to a greater degree in those apoftatizing Chriftians than in heathens. Property and power entering into Chriftian (even as in other) focieties, created parties and factions. To accept of the office of a bifhop became, in process of time, no longer an inftance of felf-denial, nor a post of labour and vigilance as at firft, but a defirable bait to fenfual men; and whereas their profeffed Lord and Mafter teftifieth of himself that though the foxes had holes, and the birds of the air nefts, yet he had not where to lay his head, nothing less than ftately palaces at length would fatisfy thefe his profeffed reprefentatives. In fhort, the gofpel-motive of love to the fouls of men, gave way to, and was fupplanted by views merely carnal and human; Chrift was followed for the loaves and fifhes, preaching the gofpel became a trade, and a very gainful one too. A few inftances fhall fuffice to fhew what an advantageous trade the pope and his agents did follow, and how the fpirit of avarice at length prevailed fo far as to render the trade of prieftcraft bare-faced, and that this was driven on to that extremity as at length to threaten, in fome fort, the ruin of thofe that were exercised therein. The office of a bishop or other minister was originally fuch as required a conftant and affiduous refidence; and indeed many fevere canons and dec: ees of councils were made against pluralifts and non refidents; as likewife against the translations of bishops from one city or bishoprick to another. But what did these canons avail? Truly they were but like spiders' webs, letting the great flies through, and catching the little ones, and fo proved an effectual ftratagem to bring money into the apoftolical exchequer; for by that one claufe of the pope's difpenfing power, the richer clergy were indulged in their non-refidence, &c. whilst the poor vicars were bound by a conftitution of Otho, to take a strict oath of continual refidence, and without it their inftitution was declared to be null and void.* The pope, in procefs of time, engroffed to himself the collation of almost all the church preferments, and conferred the greatest part of the benefices, in England on the cardinals and their relations, who enjoyed the profits without ever refiding; and these benefices were commonly farmed out to the English, who, to make the most of them, got the cure served for a very fmall falary. Hence divine fervice was neglected, the churches ran to ruin, and the inftruction of Chriftians was almoft wholly laid afide. It appeared, however, upon a computation, made by order of king Henry III. A.D. 1245, that more money was carried out of England annually by the pope's authority, than all the revenues of the crown put together; and without doubt all the riches of the nation had been conveyed away through this channel, and the ecclefiafticks foon become mafters of all the * Dr. Ayliff's Parergon juris Canonici Anglicani. VOL. III. + Rapin's History of England. B lands of the kingdom (feeing they daily acquired and never alienated), had not certain ftatutes, particularly that of Mortmain, enacted in the reign of king Edward I. to check the growth of the riches of the clergy, prevented it.* But to conclude, about the year 1475, was erected the famous trade of pardons and indulgencies, i. e. a procurement of the remiffion of the pains of purgatory, which was fold for money like any other ware, in the time of Boniface IX.t And Thuanus fays, that the pope fent his bulls throughout Chriftendom to raise money for his immenfe expences, promifing the expiation of all fins, and eternal life at a fet price and rate, according to the nature of the crimes; and he appointed a treasury and queftors, and preachers, to fet forth the value and efficacy of thofe indulgencies. The collectors under the authority of pope Leo X. about the year 1516, perfuaded the people that whofoever would give ten fhillings, fhould at his pleasure. deliver one foul from the pains of purgatory, and preached, that if it were one jot lefs than ten fhillings, it would profit them nothing.' Hence many were encouraged to fin, and the authority of the keys was much debafed. Behold the awakening impofition that made all men feel the bondage; and indeed this feems to have been the ne plus ultra of Romifh corruption, or the very midnight of popifh darknefs, out of which, by God's good providence, emerged more refplendent beams of the glorious light of the reformation. For this kind of filthy merchandize, being, among other countries, propagated alfo in Germany, by the means of Tecellus, a Dominican friar, his fcandalous fermons much moved Martin Luther the monk, who upon this * Rapin's Hift. and Sermons against Popery. Fox's Acts and Monuments. occafion published certain propofitions concerning indulgencies, which gave rife to a controverfy, and from these small beginnings he proceeded with great zeal and conftancy to detect many of the long eftablifhed errors of popery. That great corruptions did really prevail in the church about this time; that there was a strong neceffity and even a loud call for a reformation, we may very fafely affirm, fince we have a remarkable teftimony of Adrian the pope, then reigning, in his instructions published against Luther,t acknowledging it in these words: "We confefs that God fuffereth this perfecution to be inflicted on his church for the fins of men, efpecially of priests and prelates of the clergy, and the Scripture teftifieth that the fins of the people do ifsue out from the fins of the priests. We know that in this holy fee there have been many abominable things wrought and practifed. And no marvel if the ficknefs beginning at the head have defcended afterward to inferior prelates. Wherefore, &c. in us fhall be lacking no diligence of a better reformation, first beginning with our own court, that like as the contagion firft from thence defcended into all the inferior parts, fo reformation and amendment of all that is amifs from the fame place, again fhall take its beginning: whereunto they fhall find us fo much the more ready, for that we fee the whole world fo defirous of the fame.' So far Pope Adrian. Now, that under the influence of fuch directors as thofe above defcribed, novelties and corruptions of the primitive difcipline and doctrine fhould creep in, we need not wonder; fome inftances whereof have been occafionally mentioned already, viz. their prohibition of marriage to the clergy, their excluding the laity from the affemblies for church difcipline, and |