And what is the rehgion which obtains amongst us?
[Verily, we might almost conceive ourselves to be in Samaria, rather than in Britain, where the light of the Gospel so clearly shines. For what is the object which the generality of us aim at, even in religion ? is it not merely to have within our own bosoms a foundation for self-applause ? As to any real dehght in holy exercises, we do not pretend to it. To read the word of God with a devout application of it to our own particular case; to commune with God in secret, and pour out our souls before him in praise and thanksgiving ; these are not really the emjoloyments we affect : as for enjoy- ing his presence, and receiving communications from him in answer to our prayers, we scarcely contemplate such a thing as attainable by us : if we do our duty, as we call it, that is all that we are concerned about; that satisfies our conscience; and we neither desire nor think of any thing beyona.
In perfect accordance with these views are all our services. We come to the house of God : we follow the minister in the different parts of the service, standing, sitting, kneeling, as occasion requires, and making our responses at the places assigned us : we then attend to his discourse with interest or indifference, as it may happen : and then congratulate our- selves as having performed a duty, though the soul has not been really engaged in a single word that has been uttered either by the minister or ourselves. Samaritan-hke, we de- volve almost the whole service on the minister ; and, if he have discharged his office with regularity and decorum, we conclude that tve have done all that was required of tis.
If it were asked of us. Why we professed the Christian faith at all, the greater part of us would have no better reason than that by which the Samaritans were influenced ; " We follow the religion of our forefathers." We are Christians, in fact, for the very same reasons that Mahometans or Pagans profess the faith maintained respectively by them. We have taken our religion upon trust from those who have gone before us, without ever having examined it for ourselves : and it is owing to the circumstance of our having been born in a Christian land, and not to any conviction of the truth and excellency of our religion, that we are Protestants and not Papists, or Christians and not Heathens.
God in Christ is professedly the object of our worship ; but the gods whom we really worship, and by choice, are the plea- sures, and riches, and honours, of this vain world. On the7n our heart is fixed ; to them is our time devoted ; and, if we but attain them to the extent of our desires, we bless ourselves as having gained the objects most worthy of our pursuit.]