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lib. f.

COLOTES; and before him by CICERO, who Ad Attic. lib. 4. ep. fomtimes understands by them indigefted and un- 16. finish'd treatifes, in contradiftinction to fuch as were perfect and ftudioufly polifh'd. But his Exoterics are to be fought from none, preferably to ARISTOTLE himself, who referrs to them in, many places. The Stoic Philofophers, nay the Epicureans, had certain fecrets among themfelves, CLEM. 47 wherof they did not cafily permit the reading to lex. Strom. every body. PLATO wifely providing for his own fafety, after the poysonous draught was adminifter'd to SOCRATES by profane and impious perfons, wrote rather poetically, than philofophi, cally wherfore, by epically transforming the nature of things, the elements, and the celestial globes, with the paffions of the body and the qualities of the mind, into Gods, Goddeffes, Geniufes, and Demons, he furnish'd large materials for fables to the Platonics falfly fo call'd; for night is not more unlike to day, than the modern to the primitive Platonics. I pass over in filence (fays APULEIUS, who for all his affected In Apolaluxuriancy of ftile, is an excellent Commentator gia, pag. on the Antients) thofe fublime and divine Platonic +19. doctrines, understood by very few of the pious, and abfolutely unknown to every one of the profane. All PLATO's books are fo full of the Exoteric and Efoteric diftinction, which is the true key to his works, that out of them alone I cou'd write a fizable volum on this fubject. Who is there that feems to speak more pofitively about a beginning of the world, or a Creation in our language, than he and yet he's affirm'd by PHURNU- De nat. DeTUS, to have maintain'd the UNIVERSE to be or. cap. 2. JOVE. Nay he plainly enough infinuates fo much As. Ehimself in diverfe places. Befides that in his fecond Amft. book de Republica, he divides Theology into fymbo- 1688. lical or mystical, and into philofophical or demon

t

trative,

dit. Gal,

per

ftrative, of which diftinction he makes almost a petual ufe. Wherfore I wou'd advife certain perfons, who affect citing of P LAT O before other writers, to deal fairly, by acquainting their readers in what fense he speaks: and whether from exotic tradition, or philofophical perfuafion; whether Exoterically and Vulgarly, or Efoterically and as a Philofopher. But the Academics, the true followers of PLATO (of whom prefently by themselves) held quite another courfe, and a much better. Ephefian HERACLITUS, in the book which he DIOG, La intitul'd Of Nature, explain'd nothing clearly; ert. lib. 9. whence he got the furname of Scotinus, or Obfeure. Yet because he fell under the blame of feveral, on account of this obfcurity, fome body has honor'd his memory with the following Epi

Sect. 8.

Id. Ibid.

gram.

You must not HERACLITUS flightly read,
The way is rugged, and the book obfcure;
But if into his fenfe he does you lead,
All's plain, and like the fun it felf moft pure.

The readers wanted a key, that might open 'em
a paffage into his fecret meaning: and fuch a key,
that I may hint it en paffant, is to be, for the most
part, borrow'd by the skilful from the writers
themselves.

VI. BUT

B

VI.

GUSTIN.

6.

cap. 5.

UT difmiffing the reft, which wou'd be infinite labor to run over particularly, it was the custom of the Apud A uAcademics (fays CICERO) to conceal contra Atheir opinion; and not to difcover it to cadem lib. any body, except to fuch as had liv'd with them even to old age. I fhou'd have thought this an overcaution, unless I had known the Superftitious to be fo very jealous, and ever bent upon mischief. What CICERO has fomwhere written about others, does not lefs appofitly agree to the Academics. There are two forts of books, fays he: the one popu- De fin.bolarly written, which they call'd Exoteric; the other nor. & malor. lib. 5. more perfectly written, namely the Efoteric, which they left in their Commentaries, or finish'd Pieces. Hence he rightly concludes, that the fame Philofophers do not always feem to fay the fame thing, tho they continu'd of the fame opinion; which is as true as Truth it felf, of many writers in our own time. Wherfore the incomprehenfibility of the Academics, their dubitation and perpetual fufpenfion of affent; were not fo propos'd and recommended, as if in effect they always doubted (which is impoffible) or that they retain'd their affent, by reafon of the infuperable incomprehenfibility of things: but firft, because they were unwilling to declare their judgment of every thing indifferently; and fecondly, they were willing fafely to difpute concerning all fubjects whatfoever, by equally maintaining both fides of the question. Nor will any man in his senses, we may

reasonably

Ibid.

reasonably believe, deny them to have acted both wittily and wifely, as things then flood. Mos E s,the moft illuftrious Lawgiver of the Jews (that I may pafs over in filence all the other Prophets, with their eternal types and allegories) is not difown'd by his followers, to have departed fomtimes from the accurate truth of divine and natural matters; and frequently to accommodate his words, when fpeaking of GOD himself, to the capacity and preconceiv'd opinions of the vulgar. This is inconteftable and hence it is, that the Rabbins vend fo many fables, and that there is fuch palpable darkness in the Cabala (I wish it refted only there) concerning the MOSAIC Religion and Republic. Some of the Rabbins, however, were more fubtle. What can be more Efoteric in fome places. than the Talmud? which makes the Worlds not onely plural, but also numberless; tho it fpecifies the number of eighteen thoufand, a certain fum for an uncertain: befides that the Cabalas we juft nam'd, makes the world infinite and eternal, increated and immenfe. JESUS CHRIST himself taught for the moft part in parables, exMAT-15 prefly forbidding the children's bread, or that 26. & 7.6. which is holy, meaning the true doctrine, to be MAR. 7. caft to the dogs: and admonishing his difciples, after the manner of the Philofophers,not to caft their pearls before fwine; fince thefe animals trampling fuch ill beftow'd gifts under their feet, and turning again upon their benefactors,not with gratitude but fury, will do their endeavor to tear them to pieces. This is ever the way of the fordid and the ignorant. We speak wisdom among them that 1 Cor. 2.6. are perfect, fays PAUL: lefs profoundly ther fore among the ruder fort, nor do the other Apoftles (from, whom I might bring many paffages to this purpose) speak a different language; tho farr be it from me to make any comparison be

27.

MAT. 7.6.

tween

tween them, and the nations or fects I have brought on the stage in this difcourfe. Thefe, as we have shown, made use of fables out of fear or craft; thofe imploy'd parables for edification, and the more effectual conveyance of their doctrine. Yet, that we may not leave this fubject abruptly, the first notions are not better known,than are the fymbols, tropes, types, allegories, fhadows, and myfteries, which on every occafion are alledg'd by all kinds of Chriftians. Tis not a thing therfore either fo ftrange or wonderful, that it fhou'd be cagerly controverted on every fide, that it fhou'd be a matter of the niceft inquiry, and a queftion agitated with no fmall concern among fo prodigious a variety of fects, what was in reality the original and genuin Inftitution of JESUS? and this whether it be, that at the beginning it was involv'd in fuch facred obfcurity; or rather that it was afterwards thus perplext, by the inventions of the wily or the imaginations of the weak. But in whatever manner it fo happen'd, I am downright afham'd of those Fathers, who made fuch ordinary actions as eating bread, drinking wine, and dipping in water, or washing with it, to pafs for tremendous and inutterable Mysteries. Very intelligible and appofite figures we grant expoßa, 'em to be, very fignificative of the things they poseg represent and exhibit; but containing nothing ter- pupa, rible or abftrufe, much less inutterable or incon- appna, aceivable. Nevertheless, what thofe Fathers onely prasa feign'd to be MYSTERIES, that they might in nothing come fhort of the Heathenifm they had quitted; their fucceffors took care fhou'd become unintelligible to fome purpose, and be tremendous in more fenfes than one, or in any fenfe except that of the Gospel. Yet for as awful and frightful as the Fathers defcrib'd the Chriftian MYSTE RIES, they order'd them to be moft diligently con

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