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I Dissenters
Dissenters I
1
The inclination on
the part of the S
to destroy the
Church, without the
ability would afford
no reason for putting
them under
any ent disagreeable
restraint
2
Coercion or attractive
methods employ'd
to produce
conformity are either
mischievous or useless.
3
Useless as to all
those who would have
conformed without them.
4
Mischievous as being
productive of immorality,
i:e: of falshood
as to all those
who would not have
conformed without them
to 17
5
The text compel
them to come in
whatever be the interpretation
put upon
it, if it were to be
understood to authorize
persecution to
induce men to become
Christians, could not
to induce men to take
a part in the controversies
among Christians
6
Catholics no probability
of their
increasing — it would
be for the world to
go back again in
knowledge — bought
conversions by alms
not to be recounted
as any thing.
7
Persecution, if
you can justify
one degree, so you
may every other
8
Such is the meanness
of antipathy
particularly religious
antipathy, sooner
than omitt any
chance of gaining
its ends, it will
put on the mask
of cowardice.
9
All references to
history is the
story of the wolf &
the lamb.
10
Church to be defended
— meaning the
ecclesiastical as well
as every other property
of Churchmen
11
Every other apprehension
of Cir
of the church is a
a diffidence of, a
rebellion against the
general will.
12
It can not but
be done but by
a majority — Then
you think the majority
will be against
you?
But if the majority
are against you
you are in the
wrong. Fallible
as it is there is
no other palpable
criterion of truth
than this
13
Those who say
this will let it Atheists
&c are certainly
no friends
to Atheists any more
than to Dissenters:
They mean to stigmatize
the one by the
allusion and the other
by the comparison
14
But by this supposition
they pay
Atheists the highest
compliment, and
give one of the strongest
arguments that
can be given for the
innocence or rather
meritoriousness of Atheism.
Atheists
have then more conscience
than believers.
15
There is a something
which restrains
them from being
guilty of falshood
for worldly advantage gain
or to avoid
suffering, even
under with the one possibility
of detection
even where detection
is impossible.
16
Churchmen afraid
of the destruction
of the Church by
the Dissenters must
suspect that the
force of truth is
against them —
For what but the
force of truth can
prevail against
the force attraction of so many such
a body of wealth, & dignities and honours
Bishopricks so
many bribes for
keeping people to
the Church
17 from 4
To maintain that
tests &c have any
effect is to acknowledge
the insincerity
of those who
take them.
18
There is no proposition
whatever you
can not get people
to subscribe to, by
if you pay them
for it, and punish
them for not doing
it.
19
What you want
to come in for your
share of the loaves
and fishes? — The
complaint of the
monopolist against
the fair trader —
of the rich Shopkeeper
against the
poor Hawker.
20
Americans a proof
that Beefeaters
are not intolerant
now — This more a
point than history.
21
Catholics had a
plea for persecution
which Protestants
have not.
22
. . to punish men
for continuing of the
religion of their Fathers
23
Churchmen to inveigh
against innovation!
they
who owe their existence
to innovation
24
Funds for the propagation
of the Gospel
moderate — I wish
they were more ample
Funds for the propagation
of falshood
immense — 14,000
a year from Durham
10,000 from Canterbury
6,000 from York, 2,000
on an average from
the other Bishopricks
25.
The real and true
Members of the Church
of England, are they,
and they only, who
would be so, were there
nothing to be got by it
26
Bolingbroke, to his other
profligacies, added that
of &c proscribing gainsayers
to a "system he
did not believe
27
To exact oaths of
Papists, saying Papists
do not hold themselves
bound by Oaths, is
to say I insist upon
making use of this method
because I am sure it
can not answer its
purpose
Public May 12. 1769
Philanthropos. 'Is it
not an article of faith
in the Church of Rome ...
that no person can be
saved who is not a member
of that church?..
Are men who hold such
doctrine ... calculated
to become good members
of society in a Protestant
country, unless restrained
by Statutes containing some
degree of rigour ... &c
Whosoever would be saved
must thus think of the
Trinity.
I beg pardon of
the Church &c
I have never been
able to hate those
who differed from
me: if I must
hate it should rather
be those who
thinking with me
with regard to (those)
speculative points
would be for employing
the fruits
of hatred to force
others to think
with me &c
In common cases
a majority are
themselves bound by the laws
they make — instance
taxes, penal laws &c
But in these laws
are acts of
hostility of the majority
against the minority,
in which
the rights of the one
are sacrificed to the
passions of the other.
Intolerant laws all
turn upon confounding
the truth of a
proposition with the
obligation to believe
it.
It is universally
believed that the
garment of J.C.
was without seam.
Suppose that by a
collation of text or
discovery of new
any one should
succeed in proving to demonstration
that there
was a seam, would
that confer impose
on one an obligation
to believe it
The only standard
of importance
and fundamentality
is influence on moral
conduct. Just
this and every thing
is abandoned to overbearingness
& caprice
Of what importance
can a truth be, however
sublime from
which nothing follows?
The constitution of
the Godhead is with
respect to us frail
and ignorant mortals
of no more importance
than the make or
of our Saviours garment
It is more with
the true God as with
the
the the false ones of the
heathens of different
persons implied
different roles, and
by pleasing one a
man had to fear
the displeasing of the
another then indeed
it would be of importance.
As it is, it is of
none: but what is of
importance is that
a person pronouncing
one set of words
should be led to conceive
that a person
using another set of
words on that occasion
rendered him
awakened the wrath
of all these persons
and that to such a
degree as to be doomed
by their unanimous
sentence to eternal
misery
The ness the
notion that every
Penn is to wish
the ruin of the Church
is to consciousness of imparts a sort of
acknowledgement that
it will not bear
examination — In
every department of
government it would
be concluded at once
a proof of guilt
Pamphlets
Right of the Protestant
Dissenters
to a compleat toleration
affected 1789
Priestley's letter to
Pitt 1786 or -7.
Butler's petition of
the Catholics.
Quere of him whether
the Papers are paid
for insertions
Title
Thoughts on the
claims of the Dissenters.
Two races — Men
of cast, & Hallachores
..... &
Others.
It is the property
of tyranny to provoke
rebellion, and perhaps
to justify it.
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