Thus, because some ancient astronomers had observed that both the distances as well as the revolutions of the planets were in some proportion or harmony one to another:  therefore people that abounded with more imagination than skill, presently fancied the Moon, Mercury, and Venus to be a kind of violins or trebles to Jupiter or Saturn; that the Sun and Mars supplied the room of tenors, and the Primum Mobile running Division all the tune.  So that one could scarce hear a sermon, but they must give you a touch of “the Harmony of the Spheres.”

Thus, Sir, you shall have them take that of St. PAUL, about “faith, hope, and charity.”  And instead of a sober instructing of the people in those eminent and excellent graces, they shall only ring you over a few changes upon the three words; crying, “Faith!  Hope! and Charity!” “Hope!  Faith! and Charity!” and so on:  and when they have done their peal, they shall tell you that “this is much better than the Harmony of the Spheres!”

At other times, I have heard a long chiming only between two words; as suppose Divinity and Philosophy, or Revelation and Reason.  Setting forth with Revelation first.  “Revelation is a Lady; Reason, an Handmaid!  Revelation is the Esquire; Reason, the Page!  Revelation is the Sun; Reason, but the Moon!  Revelation is Manna; Reason is but an acorn!  Revelation, a wedge of gold; Reason, a small piece of silver!”

Then, by and by, Reason gets it, and leads it away, “Reason indeed is very good, but Revelation is much better!  Reason is a Councillor, but Revelation is the Lawgiver!  Reason is a candle, but Revelation is the snuffer!”

Certainly, those people are possessed with a very great degree of dulness, who living under the means of such enlightening preaching, should not be mightily settled in the right notion and true bounds of Faith and Reason.

No less ably, methought, was the difference between the Old Covenant and the New, lately determined.  “The Old Covenant was of Works; the New Covenant, of Faith.  The Old Covenant was by MOSES; The New, by CHRIST. The Old was heretofore; the New, afterwards.  The Old was first; the New was second.  Old things are passed away:  behold, all things are become new.”  And so the business was very fundamentally done.

I shall say no more upon this subject, but this one thing, which relates to what was said a little before.  He that has got a set of similitudes calculated according to the old philosophy, and PTOLEMY’s system of the world, must burn his commonplace book, and go a-gleaning for new ones; it being, nowadays, much more gentle and warrantable to take a similitude from the Man in the Moon than from solid orbs:  for though few people do absolutely believe that there is any such Eminent Person there; yet the thing is possible, whereas the other is not.

I have now done, Sir, with that imprudent way of speaking by Metaphor and Simile.  There are many other things commonly spoken out of the pulpit, that are much to the disadvantage and discredit of the Clergy; that ought also to be briefly hinted.  And that I may the better light upon them, I shall observe their common method of Preaching.