yet by the general suspicion of the world at this day most common.  The causes of it, which are in the parties themselves, although you handle in the beginning of the fifth book, yet here again they may be touched:  but the occasions of help and furtherance, which by the Reformers have been yielded unto them, are, as I conceive, two; namely, senseless preaching, and disgracing of the Ministry:  for how should not men dare to impugn that, which neither by force of reason, nor by authority of persons, is maintained?  But in the parties themselves these two causes I conceive of Atheism:  1.  More abundance of wit than judgment, and of witty than judicious learning; whereby they are more inclined to contradict any thing, than willing to be informed of the truth.  They are not therefore men of sound learning for the most part, but smatterers; neither is their kind of dispute so much by force of argument, as by scoffing; which humour of scoffing, and turning matters most serious into merriment, is now become so common, as we are not to marvel what the Prophet means by the seat of scorners, nor what the Apostles, by foretelling of scorners to come; for our own age hath verified their speech unto us:  which also may be an argument against these scoffers and Atheists themselves, seeing it hath been so many ages ago foretold, that such men the latter days of the world should afford:  which could not be done by any other spirit, save that whereunto things future and present are alike.  And even for the main question of the resurrection, whereat they stick so mightily, was it not plainly foretold, that men should in the latter times say, “Where is the promise of his coming?” Against the creation, the ark, and divers other points, exceptions are said to be taken, the ground whereof is superfluity of wit, without ground of learning and judgment.  A second cause of Atheism is sensuality, which maketh men desirous to remove all stops and impediments of their wicked life; among which because Religion is the chiefest, so as neither in this life without shame they can persist therein, nor—­if that be true—­without torment in the life to come; they therefore whet their wits to annihilate the joys of Heaven, wherein they see—­if any such be—­they can have no part, and likewise the pains of Hell, wherein their portion must needs be very great.  They labour therefore, not that they may not deserve those pains, but that, deserving them, there may be no such pains to seize upon them.  But what conceit can be imagined more base, than that man should strive to persuade himself even against the secret instinct, no doubt, of his own mind, that his soul is as the soul of a beast, mortal, and corruptible with the body?  Against which barbarous opinion their own Atheism is a very strong argument.  For, were not the soul a nature separable from the body, how could it enter into discourse of things merely spiritual, and nothing at all pertaining to the body?  Surely the soul were not able to conceive any thing of Heaven, no not so much as to dispute against Heaven, and against God, if there were not in it somewhat heavenly, and derived from God.