OF THE MANNER AFTER WHICH THESE DISCOURSES ARE WRITTEN, AND THE SIMPLICITY OF STYLE USED IN THEM. That the writers of those times used no affectation of human elo. quence, but delivered themselves with the greatest plainness that they were able. This manner of writing the best and most proper for instruction. A short account of the occasion of the present collection, and the translation that is here made of the foregoing Treatises. 1. THERE is yet one thing to be observed by me, in reference to the discourses here subjoined; and that is, fourthly, concerning the manner in which they are written, and that true primitive simplicity which appears in all the parts of them. 2. It is one property of truth, that as it does not need any disguise, so neither does it seek by any vain ornaments of human eloquence to recommend itself to the approbation of those to whom it is tendered. When the Apostles preached the Gospel to the world, they did it not with excellency of speech, nor with enticing words of man's wisdom; but in the demonstration of spirit and of power. They gave such convincing proofs of their divine mission, as forced all indifferent persons to acknowledge their authority: and they thought it after that, too mean a thing to endeavour to catch men's ears, when without any such arts they had before captivated their reason, and forced them to confess the truth of what they delivered. method of those holy They knew the ex 3. And the same was the Fathers who succeeded them. cellency of their doctrine, and the mighty influence which the revelations it made of the future state, would be sure to have upon the minds of all considering men: and therefore they contented themselves to lay these things before them in a plain and simple manner, and yet with such efficacy and power as surpassed all the rhetoric in the world. For indeed the kingdom of God is • 1 Cor.iv.20, not in word but in power.e 4. Let not then the reader be surprized, if in the foregoing discourses he meets with none of those ornaments that are wont to recommend the writings of others to his perusal; but rather let him consider that he has here to do with men who were above such a care. Their business was to instruct, not to please; to speak to men's hearts and consciences, not to their fancies; and they knew that this is always best done by a plain and natural discourse, by solid rules and substantial motives, not by vain words, which if they satisfy a man at the present, yet seldom leave any lasting impression behind them. 5. But of the authors of the foregoing treatises, and of the discourses themselves, I have said enough, perhaps too much; though yet I think no more than what was necessary to prepare the English reader, for whom I am now chiefly concerned, to a useful perusal of them. As for the present collection I shall only say thus much; that it is the first of this kind that has been set forth in our own language: nor were the greatest part of the foregoing pieces ever (that I know of) before translated into it. 6. I confess, when I consider the great usefulness of such a work, and the high esteem which not only the ancient Fathers, but the most learned of all ages have had of the treatises here collected together, I have sometimes wondered, that among so many things as have of late been set forth in the English tongue, none has hitherto undertaken such a task as this. But when I came to the trial, I soon found out what may perhaps have been one reason of it; for indeed could I have foreseen the difficulty of the work, I must question whether I should ever have been persuaded to go about it. And this I say, not to magnify any thing that I have done, which I have too much reason to fear will be far from deserving any great commendation, but to suggest an apology for whatever defects those of greater leisure, more health, and better abilities shall chance to find in it, notwithstanding all the care I have taken to guess aright at the intention of my authors, and to deliver what, upon the best examination I could make, I took to be their meaning. 7. I need not say any thing to convince those who are at all acquainted with these matters, and who are alone the competent judges of the present performance, how hard oftentimes it is, with the help of the best copies, to hit upon the true meaning of an author who lived so many ages since, as those I have here collected; and what great defects, in many places there are, in the copies I have here been forced to make use of, is not unknown to them. But however, I am not aware of any great errors that I have committed, and am in some hope that (in this edition of these treatises) I have no where very much, nor at all dangerously, mistaken the meaning of those holy men, whose sense I have undertaken to represent. 8. This I am sure of, that my design in this whole undertaking, was to minister the best I could, to the interests of truth and piety; and I thought myself, at this time, the rather obliged to do it from the press, since it has pleased God, in some measure, to take me off from the ability of doing it from the pulpit. 9. If it shall be asked how I came to choose the drudgery of a translator, rather than the more ingenu ous part of publishing somewhat of my own composing? It was in short this; because I hoped that such writings as these would find a more general and unprejudiced acceptance with all sorts of men, than any thing that could be written by any one now living; who, if esteemed by some, is still in danger of being despised by more, whose prejudice to his person will not suffer them to reap any benefit by any thing, though ever so useful, that can come from him; whilst such tracts as these may possibly receive a general respect from all sorts of persons, and meet not only with an entertainment, but with an esteem from all. men. 10. These were the motives that first induced me to go about this work; in the reasonableness of which, should I chance to be mistaken, yet I cannot but persuade myself, that the honesty of my intentions will excuse me to all indifferent persons. Let others then, to whom God has given better opportunities and greater abilities, serve the Church in better and higher performances. It shall suffice me in any way to minister to the souls of And if by this present undertaking I shall in any measure have contributed to the reviving of a true sense of piety and devotion among us, and especially to the disposing of any number of men to consider more seriously the fatal consequences of our present divisions, and to labour what in them lies towards the composing of them, I shall heartily bless God both that he first prompted me to undertake this troublesome task, and has since enabled me, though amidst many infirmities, to go through with it. |