A.D. with the fame horror with which we do: the "god of this world," with confummate dexterity, infatuates his flaves, by a fucceffive variety of wickednefs, adapted to circumftances. The fcenes of villainy, meanness, indecency, hypocrify, and barbarity, which, for feveral years, have been carrying on in France, under the mask of philofophy, liberty, and rationality, have found, in our own country, many defenders, or at least apologifts. The reafon is, that irreligious fcepticism or atheiftic profaneness is the darling of these times, as fuperftition was that of the thirteenth century. And, if men will not learn the all-important leffon, namely, to obey the divine oracles, there feems no end of the deceits by which the prince of darkness will impofe on mankind. In 1176 fome of the Waldenfes, called heretics, 1176. being examined by the bishops were convicted of herefy. They were faid to receive only the New Teftament, and to reject the Old, except in the teftimonies quoted by our Lord and the Apostles*. This charge is confuted by the whole tenour of their authentic writings, in which they quote the Old Teftament authority as divine, without reserve or hefitation. Being interrogated concerning their faith, we are told, that they said, we are not bound to answer." Other accufations against them were as follow, namely, that they afferted the truth of the Manichean doctrine of two independent principles, that they denied the utility of infantbaptifm, and that the Lord's body was made by the confecration of an unworthy prieft, that unfaithful minifters had any right to the exercife of ecclefiaftical power, or to titles and first-fruits, or that the faithful ought to attend their pastoral fervices, or that auricular confeffion was neceffary, or that * Baron. Cent. XII. that oaths were in any cafe lawful. The reader, who has attentively confidered the foregoing accounts of the Waldenfes, will know how to feparate the falfehood from the truth contained in these charges. "All these things," fays Baronius," the wretched men afferted, that they learned from the Gospels and Epiftles, and that they would receive nothing, except what they found exprefsly contained there, thus rejecting the interpretation of the doctors, though they themselves were perfectly illiterate. They were confuted," he adds, " at a conference before the bishop of Albi, from the New Teftament, which alone they admitted; and, they profeffed the Catholic faith, but would not fwear, and were therefore condemned." From this account, however imperfect, and in feveral instances, palpably injurious, fome farther light may be collected of the ftate of the Waldenfes at that time.` In 1178, the fame Lewis and Henry, who had A.D. fixteen years before, in fo unkingly a manner, given 1178. their "power and ftrength to the beast," hearing that the Albigenfes grew in numbers, determined to attack them by the fword, but afterwards thought it more prudent to employ preachers. They fent to them several bishops and ecclefiaftics; and they employed Raymond of Touloufe and other noblemen to expel the refractory. The commiffioners arriving at Toulouse exacted, by an oath, of *Rev. xvii. 13. It is evident, that the term Albigenfes, or rather Albienfes, employed by our author, was taken from the town of Albi, where the Waldenfes flourished, And, indeed, through the dominions of Raymond, earl of Toulouse, and through the fouth of France, including the territories of Avignon, their doctrines, at that time, fpread with vaft rapidity. All these were called in general Albigenfes, and, in doctrine and manners, were not at all diftinct from the Waldenfes. of the Catholics there, that they fhould give information of the heretics whom they knew. Great numbers were hence difcovered. Among thefe was a rich old man called Peter Moranus, who had pretended to be John the Evangelift *. This perfon, denying the bread to be the body of Chrift, was condemned: his goods were confifcated: his caftles, the conventicles of heretics, were thrown down. Peter abjured his herefy, and was brought naked and barefoot into the Church before all the people; the bishop of Toulouse and a certain abbot beating him on each fide from the entrance of the building to the steps of the altar, where the cardinal legate celebrated mass. There, being reconciled to the Church, he again abjured his herefy, anathematized heretics, and fubmitted to another penance, which was this, namely, aftet forty days to leave his country, to ferve the poor at Jerufalem three years; and, during the forty days, each Sunday to go round the Churches of Touloufe naked and barefoot, difciplined by rods, and to make various reftitutions. It was ordered, however, that if he should return after three years from Jerufalem, then the reft of his property, till that time held in fequeftration, fhould be reftored to him.Many others abjured their herefies, but fome refufing to take the oaths of fubjection were excommunicated, with candles publicly lighted; and princes were ordered to expel them from their dominions. Roger, prince of the Albienfian diocefe, was excommunicated. The account of our English hiftorian Hovedent is fimilar to this of Baronius. It is remarkable, that the former calls the doctrine of the Albigenfes the * It fhould be recollected, that this is the account given by Baronius, a very determined enemy of the Waldenfes. + P. 327. the Arian herefy. But Arian or Manichee, or any other term of reproach fufficiently answers the defign of determined perfecutors. It seemed proper to give the account of the barbarous treatment of the rich old gentleman of Touloufe, who, though he recanted, was punished, because it confirms the truth of Perrin's narrative of the like perfecutions, and demonstrates, from the testimony even of Roman writers, that the horrors of papal tyranny have not been mifreprefented in general by proteftant authors. And, on this occafion, I cannot but difapprove of the rafhness or the prejudices of an able historian, who has already fallen under our notice*. He fays, that the Albigenfes, being examined, denied the Manichean doctrine of the two principles, though charged on that account with falfehood by their enemies: and this author believes thefe fame enemies, who gave no proof of fincerity, that we know of, and accufes the Albigenfes of diffimulation, though fuch numbers of them were fuffering continually for their principles. The man, who undertakes to be an hiftorian, ought to be acquainted with the writings and evidences, which are produced on both fides of a controverted fubject, fo far as materials can be procured. If the author before us had read with the leaft attention the Waldenfian records, he would never have afferted, that the Waldenfes were legitimate defcendants of the fect of Manes. The fubjects of Raymond, earl of Toulouse, and of fome other great perfonages in his neighbourhood, fo generally profeffed the Waldenfian doctrines, that they became the peculiar object of papal vengeance. The inhabitants of Touloufe, Carcaffone, Beziers, Narbonne, Avignon, and many other cities, who were commonly called the Albi Berington's Hift. of Henry II. p. 395. genfes, genfes, were exposed to a perfecution as cruel and atrocious as any recorded in hiftory. Rainerius, indeed, owns, that the Waldenfes were the most formidable enemies of the Church of Rome, caufe," faith he, " they have a great appearance of godlinefs; because they live righteously before men, believe rightly of God in all things, and hold all the articles of the Creed; yet, they hate and revile the Church of Rome; and, in their accufations they are easily believed by the people." It was referved to Innocent the third, than whom no pope ever poffeffed more ambition, to inftitute the Inquifition; and the Waldenses were the first objects of its cruelty. He authorized certain monks to frame the procefs of that court, and to deliver the fuppofed heretics to the fecular power. The beginning of the thirteenth century faw thousands of perfons hanged or burned by thefe diabolical devices, whofe fole crime was, that they trusted only in Jefus Chrift for falvation, and renounced all the vain hopes of felf-righteous idolatry and fuperftition. Whoever has attended clofely to the subjects of the two Epiftles to the Coloffians and the Galatians, and has penetrated the meaning of the Apoftle, fees the great duty of HOLDING THE HEAD, and of refting for juftification by faith on Jefus Chrift alone, inculcated throughout them as the predominant precept of Christianity, in oppofition to the rudiments of the world, to philofophy and vain deceit, to will-worship, to all dependence for our happiness on human works and devices of whatever kind. Such a perfon fees what is genuine proteftantifm, as contrafted to genuine popery; and, of courfe, he is convinced, that the difference is not merely verbal or frivolous, but that there is a perfect oppofition in the two plans; and fuch as admits of no coalition or union; and that therefore the |