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CONTENTS.
Preparatory Considerations.Of the ante-
cedent Credibility of Miracles
PART I.
Of the direct Historical Evidence of Christi-
anity, and wherein it is distinguished from
the Evidence alleged for other Miracles.
Page
1
Proposition stated.......
PROPOSITION I.
That there is satisfactory Evidence, that
many, professing to be original Witnesses
of the Christian Miracles, passed their
Lives in Labours, Dangers, and Sufferings,
voluntarily undergone in Attestation of
the Accounts which they delivered, and
solely in Consequence of their Belief of
those Accounts; and that they also sub-
mitted, from the same Motives, to new
Rules of Conduct.......
CHAPTER I.
Evidence of the Sufferings of the first Pro-
pagators of Christianity, from the Nature
of the Case....
9
10
CHAPTER II.
Evidence of the Sufferings of the first Pro- pagators of Christianity, from Profane Testimony.
CHAPTER III.
Indirect Evidence of the Sufferings of the first Propagators of Christianity, from the Scriptures and other ancient Christian Writings..
CHAPTER IV.
Direct Evidence of the same..
CHAPTER V.
Observations upon the preceding Evidence.. 51
CHAPTER VI.
That the Story, for which the first Propaga-
tors of Christianity suffered, was miracu-
lous..
57
CHAPTER VII.
That it was, in the main, the Story which we
have now, proved by indirect Considera-
tions
CHAPTER VIII.
The same proved from the Authority of our
Historical Scriptures......
CHAPTER IX.
Of the Authenticity of the Historical Scrip- tures, in eleven Sections
SECT. I. Quotations of the Historical Scrip-
⚫tures by ancient Christian Writers..
SECT. II. Of the peculiar Respect with which
they were quoted
SECT. III. The Scriptures were in very early
Times collected into a distinct Volume...
SECT. IV. And distinguished by appropriate
Names and Titles of Respect..
127
131
136
SECT. V. Were publicly read and expounded
in the religious Assemblies of the early
Christians
138
SECT. VI. Commentaries, &c. were anciently
written upon the Scriptures...
141
SECT. VII. They were received by ancient
Christians of different Sects and Persua-
sions
147
SECT. VIII. The four Gospels, the Acts of
the Apostles, thirteen Epistles of Saint
Paul, the First Epistle of John, and the
First of Peter, were received without
Doubt by those who doubted concerning the
other Books of our present Canon....... 154
SECT. IX. Our Present Gospels were consi-
dered by the Adversaries of Christianity as
containing the Accounts upon which the
Religion was founded..
SECT. X. Formal Catalogues of authentic
Scriptures were published, in all which
our present Gospels were included......
SECT. XI. The above Propositions cannot be
predicated of those Books which are com-
monly called Apocryphal Books of the
New Testament......
CHAPTER X.
159
165
168
Recapitulation.
173
the Evidence alleged for other Miracles .. 178
PROPOSITION II.
That there is NOT satisfactory Evidence, that
Persons pretending to be original Witnesses
of any other similar Miracles, have acted
in the same Manner, in Attestation of the
Accounts which they delivered, and solely
in Consequence of their Belief of the Truth
of those Accounts
Consideration of some specific Instances
178
200
...