and Aesculapius?  Juno’s image and that of [6380]Fortune spake, [6381]Castor and Pollux fought in person for the Romans against Hannibal’s army, as Pallas, Mars, Juno, Venus, for Greeks and Trojans, &c.  Amongst our pseudo-Catholics nothing so familiar as such miracles; how many cures done by our lady of Loretto, at Sichem! of old at our St. Thomas’s shrine, &c. [6382]St. Sabine was seen to fight for Arnulphus, duke of Spoleto. [6383]St. George fought in person for John the Bastard of Portugal, against the Castilians; St. James for the Spaniards in America.  In the battle of Bannockburn, where Edward the Second, our English king, was foiled by the Scots, St. Philanus’ arm was seen to fight (if [6384]Hector Boethius doth not impose), that was before shut up in a silver cap-case; another time, in the same author, St. Magnus fought for them.  Now for visions, revelations, miracles, not only out of the legend, out of purgatory, but everyday comes news from the Indies, and at home read the Jesuits’ Letters, Ribadineira, Thurselinus, Acosta, Lippomanus, Xaverius, Ignatius’ Lives, &c., and tell me what difference?

His ordinary instruments or factors which he useth, as God himself, did good kings, lawful magistrates, patriarchs, prophets, to the establishing of his church, [6385]are politicians, statesmen, priests, heretics, blind guides, impostors, pseudoprophets, to propagate his superstition.  And first to begin of politicians, it hath ever been a principal axiom with them to maintain religion or superstition, which they determine of, alter and vary upon all occasions, as to them seems best, they make religion mere policy, a cloak, a human invention, nihil aeque valet ad regendos vulgi animos ac superstitio, as [6386]Tacitus and [6387]Tully hold.  Austin, l. 4. de civitat.  Dei. c. 9. censures Scaevola saying and acknowledging expedire civitates religione falli, that it was a fit thing cities should be deceived by religion, according to the diverb, Si mundus vult decipi, decipiatur, if the world will be gulled, let it be gulled, ’tis good howsoever to keep it in subjection.  ’Tis that [6388]Aristotle and [6389]Plato inculcate in their politics, “Religion neglected, brings plague to the city, opens a gap to all naughtiness.”  ’Tis that which all our late politicians ingeminate.  Cromerus, l. 2. pol. hist. Boterus, l. 3. de incrementis urbium. Clapmarius, l. 2. c. 9. de Arcanis rerump. cap. 4. lib. 2. polit. Captain Machiavel will have a prince by all means to counterfeit religion, to be superstitious in show at least, to seem to be devout, frequent holy exercises, honour divines, love the church, affect priests, as Numa, Lycurgus, and such lawmakers were and did, non ut his fidem habeant, sed ut subditos religionis metu facilius in officio contineant, to keep people in obedience. [6390]_Nam naturaliter_ (as Cardan writes) lex Christiana lex est pietatis, justitiae, fidei, simplicitatis,