mmon Light, and Knowledge; as that it has been, and is much owing
to the preceding fashionableness of a very general Ignorance, both in
regard of Religion, and also of other useful Sciences; for Men's not
knowing how profitably, and with pleasure to employ their Time, is
apparently one great cause of their Debauchery; and so long as the
Consciousness and Shame of not acting like rational Creatures is not
extinguished in them, the uneasiness of that remorse puts them
Naturally upon seeking out Principles to justifie their Conduct upon;
few Men being able to indure the constant Reproaches of their own
Reason: Whence if they do not conform their Actions to the dictates of
that, they will Naturally indeavour to warp their Reason to a
compliance with their practices: A reconcilement one way, or other,
between these, being necessary to the making Men, that are not very
profligate indeed, in good conceit, or even at Peace with themselves.

By that want of Knowledge which I have ventur'd to say is fashionable,
I understand not only ignorance among Men, who have leisure for it, of
Arts and Sciences in general; but also, and especially the want of
such particular Knowledge as is requisite to every one for the well
discharging either their Common or peculiar Business and Duty; wherein
Religion is necessarily included, as being the Duty of all Persons to
understand, of whatever Sex, Condition, or Calling they are of. Now to
affirm that the greater part of People are ignorant concerning that
which is not only their Duty to know, but which also many are so
sensible they ought to know, as that they pretend to understand it
enough to be either zealous about, or else to contemn it; and to
assert likewise that they want the knowledge of what is peculiarly
belonging to them, in their particular Station, to understand; are
such Charges as ought not to be alledg'd, if they are not so evidently
true, as that we cannot open our Eyes without seeing them to be so.

In respect of Religion, it is, I think, universally allow'd to be true
of the common People of all sorts (tho' surely not without Matter of
Reproach to some, or other, whose Care their better Instruction ought
to be) that they are very ignorant. But we will consider here only
such superior Ranks of Persons, in reference to whom what has already
been said, has been spoken: And to begin with the Female Sex, who
certainly ought to be Christians; how many of these, comparatively,
may it