"root are holy. If then fome of the natural "branches were broken off, if fome of the na"tural Jews of the stock of David were broken "off and rejected, and thou an heathen of the "wild Gentile race wert taken in and ingrafted

into the church of God in their room, and "there partakeft of the bleffings promifed to "Abraham and his feed, be not fo conceited of "thyfelf as to fhew any DISRESPECT TO THE "JEWS. If any fuch vanity poffefs thee, re"member that the privilege which thou haft "in being a chriftian is derived to thee from "the promise which was made to Abraham and "his feed, but nothing accrues to Abraham or "his feed from thee."

From these full and irrefragable proofs it appears, that not only the law of nature, but the LAW OF CHRIST entitles us to the protection of fociety; and it is a monftrous oppreffion of us Jews, that we fuffer any ufage from chriftians which is repugnant to christianity itself. If all the evangelifts and apostles prove the perfecutions and penal laws which we labour under to be oppofite to the intentions of Jefus Chrift: If all the different fects in the chriftian religion maintain, that perfecution for religious opinions is contrary to the law of God, and to the order of nature: What argument can be offered to ex

VOL. IV.

I

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empt us from any indulgence which can be allowed to our brethren of the diffenting perfuafions?

And yet it hath happened, as much to our amazement as to our indignation, fince the debates concerning the facramental test have been revived in this kingdom, that, having applied ourfelves to certain reverend pasters of diffenting congregations offering our friendly affiftance to them in the profecution of their design, afsuring them of the defire which we fincerely profefs to remove these unjust restraints on the naturalrights of mankind, and propofing to join with them in their petition to the king's most excellent majefty, and to both houses of parliament, they have utterly refused to countenance or to concur with us; they have found out diftinctions to prove that they have rights by nature, which we have loft by unbelief; that they have a privilege by grace, which we cannot lay hold of but by coming over to their faith: And in short, have flatly told us, that none but chriflians ought to be capable of employments in a christian country. So little does it avail any body of men to believe in GOD, that they are nevertheless to be perfecuted, as though they believed in none at all, unlefs they fubfcribe to all the reft of the creed.

We

We told them that we were the children of Ifrael; that MOSES was at least as divinely infpired as CALVIN; that we had as much refpect for the TEN COMMANDMENTS, as presbyterians, independents, anabaptifts, or French prophets; that we thought the obfervance of our law would make us good fubjects, though we were not happy enough to be fatisfied in our confciences of the truth of the christian religion; that no fociety had any right to exact more of its members than we had always yielded; and, that as we had never been wanting in dutiful fubmiffion to our fuperiours, we hoped it was no immodeft demand to be admitted on the fame footing with other fects of diffenters; that it is true, we are charged with too violent a paffion for the mammon of unrighteousness, but that we find the most fanctified chriftians, in respect of worldly lucre, as little fcrupulous of taking the profit to themfelves, as they are of throwing the fcandal upon us: That we GET what we can, and KEEP what we GET, not by any principle of religion, but of convenience; and that this principle reigns in as full perfection amongst the faints at Hackney, as among the children of Ifrael in Bury ftreet, or Duke's place.

We cannot but admire at fuch uncivil ufage from our brethren the diffenters, who have laid them

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themselves under fo many obligations to us Jews, have turned us out of the poffeffion of all our ancient privileges, and allow us as little right in the old Jerufalem, as we pretend to have in the new. In short, they make as free with Sion, as if they were lords of the manor; and appropriate the songs of Sion to themselves, as if they were hymns of their own compofing. They have made prize of all the psalms of David, as if he had not been king of Ifrael; and all the bleffings of the LAW, and all the curfes in the PROPHETS are converted to their own use, as if the Ifraelites had no property in them. After this, it is marvelously strange, that they will fhare with us none of their em luments, and that they would debar us of all indulgences which they lay claim to themselves.

You, Sir, who are an orthodox high priest, will judge between us Jews, and the diffenters, whether we have not the fame right as the best of them to employments? Or, what pretence there can be, that against the conftitution of the country in which we live, we, of all other people, should have no share in enacting or executing the laws which we are bound to obey? Why might not the LAND OF CANAAN be as profitably reprefented in parliament as the KINGDOM OF SCOTLAND, and with as little prejudice to the church of England, from our

SYNA

SYNAGOGUE, as from THEIR KIRK? Why may we not adorn one fide of St. Stephen's chapel with our flaxen wigs and fallow faces, in as becoming a manner as our northern brethren appear on the other fide in their black ones?

With regard to publick employments, are there not abundance of them in this happy island, which are fitter for Jews, than for chriflians, and which have infenfibly transformed good chriftians into real Jews, by the prevalent force of example? What may you think, Sir, of us Jews, in the capacity of excife officers? Or, what think you of excife officers, as different in any thing from us Jews; but that the CIRCUMCISED are in all respects fit to be excisemen, and that the EXCISEMEN are most of them fit to be circumcifed?

I could, Sir, give you many reasons to convince you, that natural chriftian policy fhould induce you to favour us Jews; that you have many obligations to us as a clergyman, though you forget all relation to us as a chriftian; that as our religion was the parent of yours, our syNAGOGUE is the buttress of the chriftian CHURCH, an evidence of its extraction, an authority to prove its antiquity, a living record to testify whence you had your revelation; and that therefore you cannot be too indulgent to a peoI 3

ple,