1833That the Earth may be à Planet.
able to find out ſuch a Secret as this, beſides
ſome fabulous Pythagoreans, and of late Co-
pernicus? Is it poſſible that the World ſhould
laſt for above five thouſand years together,
and yet the Inhabitants of it be ſo dull and
ſ@upid, as to be unacquainted with its mo-
tion? Nay, ſhall we think that thoſe excel-
lent Men, whom the Holy Ghoſt made uſe
of in the penning of Scripture, who were
extraordinarily inſpired with ſupernatural
Truths, ſhould notwithſtanding be ſo groſ-
ly ignorant of ſo common a matter as this?
Can we believe, if there were any ſuch thing,
that foſhua, and fob, and David, and Solo-
mon, & c. ſhould know nothing of it? Cer-
tainly it muſt needs argue a ſtrong aſſectati-
on of Singularity, for a Man to take up any
groundleſs fancy againſt ſuch antient and
general Authority.
ſome fabulous Pythagoreans, and of late Co-
pernicus? Is it poſſible that the World ſhould
laſt for above five thouſand years together,
and yet the Inhabitants of it be ſo dull and
ſ@upid, as to be unacquainted with its mo-
tion? Nay, ſhall we think that thoſe excel-
lent Men, whom the Holy Ghoſt made uſe
of in the penning of Scripture, who were
extraordinarily inſpired with ſupernatural
Truths, ſhould notwithſtanding be ſo groſ-
ly ignorant of ſo common a matter as this?
Can we believe, if there were any ſuch thing,
that foſhua, and fob, and David, and Solo-
mon, & c. ſhould know nothing of it? Cer-
tainly it muſt needs argue a ſtrong aſſectati-
on of Singularity, for a Man to take up any
groundleſs fancy againſt ſuch antient and
general Authority.
I anſwer:
As we ſhould not be ſo fondly
conceited of our ſelves, and the extraordina-
ry Abilities of theſe preſent Ages, as to think
every thing that is antient to be abſolute:
Or, as if it muſt needs be with Opinions, as
it is with Clothes, where the neweſt is for
the moſt part beſt. So neither ſhould we be ſo
ſuperſtitiouſly devoted to Antiquity, as to
take up every thing for Canonical, which
drops from the pen of aFather, or was appro-
ved by the conſent of the Antients. ’Tis an
excellent ſaying, Δ{εἶ} ἐλευ θέριον ἐιν{αι} τũ 11Alcinous μη Τ μέλλοτα φιλοσοφ{εἶ}ν It behoves every
one in the ſearch of Truth, always to preſerve
aPhiloſophical liberty: Not to be ſo
conceited of our ſelves, and the extraordina-
ry Abilities of theſe preſent Ages, as to think
every thing that is antient to be abſolute:
Or, as if it muſt needs be with Opinions, as
it is with Clothes, where the neweſt is for
the moſt part beſt. So neither ſhould we be ſo
ſuperſtitiouſly devoted to Antiquity, as to
take up every thing for Canonical, which
drops from the pen of aFather, or was appro-
ved by the conſent of the Antients. ’Tis an
excellent ſaying, Δ{εἶ} ἐλευ θέριον ἐιν{αι} τũ 11Alcinous μη Τ μέλλοτα φιλοσοφ{εἶ}ν It behoves every
one in the ſearch of Truth, always to preſerve
aPhiloſophical liberty: Not to be ſo
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