The Character of the Writers of the Established Church

§ 1. TILLOTSON. — There is such an easiness in his style, and beautiful simplicity of expression, as seems easy to be imitated, yet nothing more difficult. He had some puri* tanical expressions. Sometimes pathetic. — His method admirably clear, — beyond almost any other man. — Many of his sermons contain nothing remarkable; especially his posthumous ones; — yet there are some of them equal to any he published in his lifetime. — His best pieces are at the begining of his first and second volumes folio. His discourse on evil speaking is excellent. — He made great use of Barrow and Wilkins; with whom compare some of his sermons. There is sometimes great tautology; — but in controversy no man found such lucky arguments, nor represented the sentiments of his adversaries more fully, artfully and advantageously for confutation.

^”2, Barrow. — The most laconic writer a« mong our divines. — He has an amazing number of thoughts, though not always well digested or plainly expressed; Jie is sometimes excellent in these respects. — He attempted to introduce some new words, but without useful scriptures, and fine quo* tations from the Classics, and the Fathers, in the margin. Nothing is more elaborate than his discourses; most of them having been transcribed three times over, and some of them oflener. — Many of Tillotson’s finest sermons were a kind of translation from him; — partiealarly that on evil speaking. — The first volume of his sermons is the best, but they all deserve reading.

§ 3. WiLKiNs. — His method is very exact, bat too scholastic. — His style is almost as easy and pure as Tillotson’s. — Many excellent thoughts are thrown together in a very intelligible manner. — His Sermons, Natural Religion, the Beauty of Providence, on Prayer, and on Preaching, are his only practical works, and well deserve a reading. — Tillotson’s Wisdom of being religious is taken in a great measure from him.

§ 4. Beveridge. — Much like Henry, but not his equal. — He discovers great devotion, — has .many high flights,’ — but is sometimes weak. — His Private Thoughts the most valuable of his works; — many of his sermons are very low.

5. Scott. — His style is long and verbose; — many inelegant words, and some phrases shocking,’ — yet, on the whole, he is excellent. — His reasoning is strong and conclusive, though drawn out to an excessive length. He drives on with great warmth and pathos, — yet almost all appears too much forced. — His Christian Life is the best of his works, especially the first part. — The prayers at the end are absolutely the best I ever read. — Many of his sermons are valuable, especially those in the first volume; the subjects being good, pretty full, and methcdicallj, handled.

§ 6. South. — Smart wit, keen satire, sometimes fine language; — but his arguments are often weak. — All his works have the appearance of an ill spirit in controversy. — He has many levities entirely unbecoming the - pulpit; — and when most practical seems to writp with spleen, and to aim very little at usefulness. — The best sermons are in his first volume; though even in them, there is too great an affectation of wit; — and but little appearance of being in earnest for God amidst all his zeal against Heretics and Schismatics.

§ 7. NoRRis. — Excessively affected, pert and verbose, yet some good thoughts. His sermons on the Beatitudes are most celebrated. — He carries matters in general too high. — His discourses on the love of God are in the mystic strain. — His sermon on Religious Discourse deserves to be read. — He is in general too abstruse and metaphysical.

§ 8. Lucas. — His style is very peculiar, sometimes exceeding free, approaching to conversation; sometimes grand and solemn; — and generally very expressive. — His, method is not clear; but his thoughts are excellent. — Many of them are taken from an attentive observation of human life. — He wrote as being entirely devoted to God, and superior to the world. — His most valuable works are

LeCt 4.] WRITERS OP THB CHURCH. 27

his Practical Christianity, and his Inquiry after Happiness, especially the second volume.

9. Sherlock. — Strong aVguments, and awful representations: exceeding proper for conviction. — His style is plain and manly — His best works are those on Death and Judgment.

^10. Spratt. — He is the least considerable as a practical writer. — His htnguage is always beautiful, but many of his sentiments

are very weak. ^I’He Ciceronian style is

too much laboured. — Tully” is translated for many sentences together in some of his Sermons, though not mentioned. All his Sermons ir in one octavo volume, and deserve a reading.

^11. Clarke. — He slipped into very high reputation, chiefly by hia peculiarities. His style is quite plain and void of pathos. — His thoughts are well ranged, but many of them very obvious and frequently repeated. — Scriptures often well explained, though sometimes he takes more pains to collect parallel scriptures than is necessary; — and with solemn parade explains others that have no difficulty. — He takes more notice of grace and th atonement than most of his followers and

admirers. Several of his Sermons are on

subjects too near akin. He and Tillotson have made great use of the Fratres Poloni though they do not make any mention of them.

19. HoRNBCK. — Exceeding pathetic, but not elegant. — He is chiefly fit for devotional subjects; — but his words are too often grea

er tKan his thoughts. — His best pieces are those on Consideration, and The Crucified Jesus. See his pieces also on the Command* raents, on Prayer, Presumptuous Sins and several Sermons.

§ 13. Hopkins. — His motto, Aut suaviiaie 1 aut vi, well answers to his works; — yet he, trusts most to the latter. — He awakens awful* ly; sometimes there is a little of the bombast; he bends the bow till it breaks; an error carefully to be guarded against.

§ 14L Boyle, — His style is very rough and obscure. Yet some words are highly illustrative by antitheses, he being very careful in the choice of them. He has many lively similes very proper to be quoted, especially in his Seraphic Love, and Theodora and Dydimus, — sentences unreasonably long, abounding with parentheses and hard words of his own coining. — He has» in short, many faults in his style, but some inimitable beauties.

§ IS. ScooGAL. — One of the first rank, though he wrote but little. — Every page abounds with noble and proper thoughts; — clothed with a decent eloquence, suited to the subject. He appears to be the best model of all, his class. — His Life of God in the Soul of Man, and Sermons, should be oflen read.- His early death, at the age of twenty-eight, was an unspeakable loss to the world. § 16. Law. — Very recluse. — His productions have a severity seldom to be found in this age. — His language is generally just and beautiful; very nervous but sometimes unnatlira!. He is ready to affect points of wit, and strokes of satire; — in which however be does not equal South. — Many characters are admirably drawn. — Tn this he comes nearer the Jesuits than any English writer. — -His Treatise on Christian Perfection is very femous. His Serious Call still better.

§ 17. Fleetwood. — Surnamed Silvertongued; — remarkable for easy and proper expressions. — He considers several cases, which, though often obcurring in human life, are seldom taken notice of in Sermons. — On this account he may be consulted with advantage. — In respect of true politeness he has been equalled by few, — His Sermons on Relative Duties are good; but his Four Funeral Sermons shew the orator much more.

<J 18. Atterbury. — The glory of our English orators. — In his writings we see language in its strictest purity and beauty. — There is nothing dark, nothing redundant, nothing deficient, nothing misplaced. — Trivial thoughts are avoided, uncommon ones introduced and set in a clear, strong light, and in a few words; — some admirable similes, and more graceful allusions to scriptures than any of this class. On the whole, he is a model for courtly preachers. His Four Volumes should be carefully read. — His two last are the best. — The chief Sermons are Acquaintance with God, Religious Retirement, Lady CoTBs’s Character, Propagation of the Gospel, Sufficiency of Revelation, Terrors of Con-Bcience, Curse on the Jews, and Felix Trerobliog.

§ 19. Blair. — A man of plain good sense. — A beautiful simplicity slnd great seriousness run through all bis writings. — A desire to spare all unnecessary words is very apparent. — His Commentary on Matt. v. — viii. is the best extant. — He has some excellent and striking similes, which are chiefly taken from the affairs of slaves, planters, or foreign colonies. He lived in Jamaica, — He suggests a multi-’ tude of excellent things which he does not prosecute at large. — He appears to have been a person of the utmost candour, and has solicitously avoided all unkind and contemptuous reflections on his brethren. — He guards his hearers against all undue confidence in their immediate relation to, and strict attendance on the established worship, beyond almost any other divine in the Church of England. — He has an excellent way of bringing down criticisms to common capacities; — and has discovered a vast knowledge of scripture in the suitable application of them.

§ 20. Seeker — is so remarkable an instance of the laconic style, that the few Sermons he has published deserve an attentive reading; — especially that on the Oxford act, which is the wisest I ever read, considered in the view of a Philosophical Essay.

§ 21. A. Bp. Leighton. — One of the most eminently devout and pious writers his age has produced. — His Sermons indeed are not accurately digested, and sometimes contain only hints not fully opened; — which is the more excusable, as none of them were intend-Lect. 4] WBITBRS OF THE CHURCH. 31

ed for the press by the author. — His works ought to be reckoned among the greatest trea« sures of the English tongue. — They continually overflow with love to God, and breathe a heart entirely transformed by the gospel, above the views of every thing but pleasing God. — There is a vast deal of spirit, and charming imagination; multitudes of the most beautiful figures; and scriptures applied with happiest all usions.-Metaphors, especially those in the text, are sometimes pursued into allegory; yet very natural. — Upon the whole, they are such as none but a very ingenious, learned, religious man could write; — and yet, even by such an one must have been written with great care; — not the effect of any laborious efforts for particular discourses, through a habit of speaking and writing; but the guarded overflowings of a copious fountain. — -This attainment, however, must have been the conaeqtience of a most resolute application both of the head and heart. — Few uninspired writers have a greater tendency to mend the world. — The disappointment which the learned and polite complained of, when these posthumous works were published, is chiefly to be charged upon their ignorance of the true beauties and use of Theological Writings.*

* We are happy to inform the public, that proposals are jast issued for a new edition of the Works of this excellent Divine, and we learn that the publisher, Mr. OerUj of Great Turnstile, Holborn, is in possession of some Taluable Manuscripts, which together with his Life from authentic materials, unknown to his former Biographers, will appear in this enlarged