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ing them to light, or freeing them from corruption, or illustrating their doctrine, or afferting their authority, than the members of any church, or indeed of all the churches in all the world.

Ye are the fons of the clergy, who, by this rule of God's word, thus interpreted, reformed from Popery in fuch a manner, as happily to preferve the mean between the two extremes, in doctrine, worship, and government; and who perfected this reformation by quiet and orderly methods, free from thofe confufions and tumults that elfewhere attended it: So that our temple, like that of Solomon, was built without the noife of axes or hammers.

And as they shut out Popery in the most effectual manner, by only paring off thofe corruptions it had grafted on pure and genuine Christianity; fo did they stand boldly in the breach, when it meditated a return, and for ever filenced the champions of that baffled caufe, by their immortal and unanswerable writings: So that you, their fons, were at the altar itself (if I may fo speak) initiated by your fathers, as the great Carthaginian was by his, into an hereditary averfion from Rome; which, I doubt not, will ever laft, and will ever preferve you against all her open affaults, or her fecret and undermining approaches.

Ye are the fons of a clergy, diftinguished by their zeal for the rights of the crown, and for their reverence towards those that wear it, and famous for fuffering always together with it, and for it: Immoveably firm to their duty, when they could have no profpect of reward; when they might have loft their integrity with advantage,

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and could fcarce with fafety retain it; when they faw majefty oppreffed and finking, and the fury and madnefs of the people prevailing against it; "and they looked, and there was none to "help; and they wondred that there was none to uphold," Ifa. Ixiii. 5.

Finally, ye are the fons of the clergy, who are the fartheft removed of any, from all poffible fufpicion of defigning to enflave the undeftandings or confciences of men, who bring all their doctrines fairly to the light, and invite men with freedom to examine them; who have been the best advocates in the world for the ufe (the due use) of reason in religion; as knowing the religion they profefs to be fuch, that the more exactly it is fitted by reafon (pure, unbiaffed reafon) the more reafonable ftill it will be found.

Of this holy root, ye are the branches; from this excellent order of men ye fpring; happy in your extraction on many accounts, but chiefly in this, that it derived to you the inc ftimable advantages of an honest, sober, and religious education; that, by the means of it, the first impreffions made upon your tender minds, were on the fide of virtue and goodness, that you had the earlicft and beft opportunities of knowing God and your duty, and were led into the immediate practice of what you knew; that "from children you were "acquainted with the holy Scriptures, which are

able to make you wife unto talvat on," and bred up every way in "the nurture and adinonition of "the Lord." A bliffing, which, next to that of life itfe f, is the greaten that man can bestow;

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and without which even life itself would often prove rather a curfe than a bleffing to thofe to whom it is bestowed.

Let others then value themselves upon their birth: We, I am fure, have great reafon to thank God for ours; and to exprefs our thanks by openly owning our parentage, and paying our common devotions to God among the numerous attend ints of this day's folemnity-A folemnity, which I doubt not but St. Paul himself, if fentible of things below, is now pleased to fee, and thinks this holy place, that bears his name, never better employed than on fuch occations as thefe, which tend to promote the honour of the Chriftian priesthood, and the fervent exercife of charity; two arguments on which he, in his epitiles, dweils often, and often delights to dwell.

As our birth therefore does honour to us, fo it is one way, in which we alfo do honour to our birth, if we countenance fuch meetings by our prefence, and promote the great ends of them by our example; if we take thefe opportunities of practising, and thereby recommending and inftilling, brotherly kindnefs; "confidering one "another, to provoke unto love, and to good "works; not forfaking the affembling of our"felves together, as the manner of fome is," Heb. x. 24, 25. Should any little difference of fentiments happen, any perfonal prejudices obtain among the members of the fame holy community, let them not hinder us from uniting to procure the common good of it, and from pursuing with joint hands in 1hs, the unexceptionable defign of this pious and wife inititution. If our Jerufi

lem

lem be in other refpects unhappily divided, yet, in this refpect at least, let it "be as a city that is "at unity in itself, whither the tribes go up, even "the tribes of the Lord, to testify unto Ifrael "to give thanks to the name of the Lord:" Pfal. cxx. 3, 4. And let every one of us be ready, on fuch occafions, to exhort himself, and others, in the language of good David,-"I was glad when ་་ they faid unto me, We will go into the house "of the Lord. Our feet fhall stand in thy gates, "O Jerufalem. For my brethren and compa"nions fake, I will with thee profperity! yea, "because of the houfe of the Lord our God, I "will seek to do thee good," ver. 1, 2, 8, 9. Let there be no "Spots in thefe" our "feafts of "charity;" nothing that may fully the brightness and damp the chearfulness of this day's folemnity: But let us flock to it like brethren and like Chriftians, "forbearing one another, and for⚫ giving one another, if any man hath a quarrel

against any;" and adding to the external exercife, the inward temper and fpirit alfo of that divine grace, which is kind, envieth not, seek"eth not her own, is not eafily provoked, but is "eafy to be intreated, thinketh no evil, beareth "all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, "endureth all things."

Thus if we think, and thus act, we fhall indeed fhew ourselves to be every way worthy of our defcent, and duly mindful, not only of the advantage we receive from thence, but of the obligations alfo which are on that account incumbent upon us; even the obligations of adorning our facred parentage by an anfwerable fanctity of behaviour,

behaviour, and of diftinguishing ourselves as much by an inherent and habitual, as we are already distinguished by an external and relative holiness. This was what I, in the fecond place, propofed to confider.

II. We stand in the nearest relation to them, who ftood in the nearest relation to God, and

who were on that account obliged "to be holy even as he is holy :" to imitate every way, as far as human infirmity would fuffer them," the apoftle, and high-prieft of their profeffion, who was holy, harmlefs, undefiled, feparate from finners." Some fhare of their obligations defcends to us; who" partaking of the rooot and fatnefs of the olive tree," whereof we boast to be the branches, ought also to produce the fruits of it.

The fons of fervants do, in a peculiar manner, belong to him, whofe fervants their fathers were: At his will and in his interests they ought entirely to be. We therefore, being born of parents who were employed in the holy functions of God's family, the church, and were dedicated to his immediate fervice, ought to look upon ourselves as particularly devoted to the honour and interest of their and our great mafter: The cause of religion and goodness (which is the caufe of God) is ours by defcent, and we are doubly bound to efpouse it.

As our advantages, towards practifing and promoting piety and virtue, were greater than thofe of other men; fo will our excuse be less, if we neglect to make use of them. plead, in abatement of our guilt,

We cannot that we were ignorant