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consider churches, and the matter of divine service, that it consists of holy readings, prayers, and exhortations to piety, there is reason to think that thẻ house of God is a natural means of promoting piety and religion, and rendering men devout, and sensible of their duty to God. The very nature of divine assemblies thus carried on has this direct tendency: I ask you whether this is not very plain, that churches thus employed should have this effect? Consider therefore the play-house, and the matter of the entertainment there, as it consists of love-intrigues, blasphemous passions, profane discourses, lewd descriptions, filthy jests, and all the most extravagant rant of wanton, profligate persons of both sexes, heating and inflaming one another with all the wantonness of address, the immodesty of motion, and lewdness of thought that wit can invent: consider, I say, whether it be not plain, that a house so employed, is as certainly serving the cause of immorality and vice, as the house of God is serving the cause of piety? For what is there in our church service that shows it to be useful to piety and holiness; what is there in divine worship to correct and amend the heart, but what is directly contrary to all that is doing in the play-house? So that one may with the same assurance affirm, that the playhouse, not only when some very profane play is on the stage, but in its daily common entertainments, is as certainly the house of the devil, as the church is the house of God. For though the devil be not worshipped by hymns directed to him, yet most that is there sung is to his service; he is there obeyed and pleased in as certain a manner, as God is worshipped in the church.

You must easily see, that this charge against the playhouse is not the effect of any particular temper, or weakness of mind; that it is not an uncertain conjecture, or religious whimsy; but it is a judgment founded as plainly in the nature and reason of

things, as when it is affirmed, that the house of God is of service to religion: and he that absolutely condemns the playhouse, as wicked and corrupting, proceeds upon as much truth and certainty, as he that absolutely commends the house of God, as holy, and tending to promote piety.

When therefore any one pretends to vindicate the stage to you, as a proper entertainment for holy and religious persons; you ought to reject the attempt with as much abhorrence, as if he should offer to show you, that our church service was rightly formed for those persons to join in, who are devoted to the devil. For to talk of the lawfulness and usefulness of the stage, is full as absurd, as contrary to the plain nature of things, as to talk of the unlawfulness and mischief of the service of the church. He therefore that tells you, that you may safely go to the playhouse, as an innocent, useful entertainment of your mind, commits the same offence against common sense, as if he should tell you, that it was dangerous to attend at divine service, and that its prayers and hymns were great pollutions of the mind.

For the matter and manner of stage entertainments is as undeniable a proof, and as obvious to common sense, that the house belongs to the devil, and is the place of his honour, as the matter and manner of church service proves that the place is appropriated to God.

Observe therefore, that as you do not want the assistance of any one, to show the usefulness and advantage of divine service, because the thing is plain, and speaks for itself; so neither, on the other hand, need you any one to show the unlawfulness and mischief of the stage, because there the thing is equally plain, and speaks for itself. So that you are to consider yourself as having the same assurance, that the stage is wicked, and to be abhorred and avoided by all Christians, as you have, that the

service of the church is holy, and to be sought after by all lovers of holiness. Consider therefore that your conduct, with relation to the stage, is not a matter of nicety, or scrupulous exactness; but that you are as certain that you do wrong in as notorious a manner, when you go to the playhouse, as you are certain that you do right when you go to church.

Now it is of mighty use to conceive things in a right manner, and to see them as they are in their own nature. Whilst you consider the playhouse only as a place of diversion, it may, perhaps, give no offence to your mind: there is nothing shocking in the thought of it; but if you would lay aside this name of it for a while, and consider it in its own nature, as it really is, you would find that you are as much deceived if you consider the playhouse as only a place of diversion, as you would be, if you considered the house of God only as a place of la

bour.

When therefore you are tempted to go to the play, either from your own inclination, or from the desire of a friend, fancy that you was asked in plain terms to go to the place of the devil's abode, where he holds his filthy court of evil spirits; that you was asked to join in an entertainment where he was at the head of it; where the whole of it was in order to his glory, that men's hearts and minds might be separated from God, and plunged into all the pollutions of sin and brutality. Fancy that you are going to a place that as certainly belongs to the devil as the heathen temple of old, where brutes were worshipped, where wanton hymns were sung to Venus, and drunken songs to the god of wine. Fancy that you are as certainly going to the devil's triumph, as if you was going to those old sports, where people committed murder, and offered Christians to be devoured by wild beasts, for the diver sion of the spectators. Now whilst you consider

the playhouse in this view, I suppose you can no more go to a play than you can renounce your Christianity.

Consider now therefore that you have not been frighting yourself with groundless imaginations; but that which you have here fancied of the playhouse is as strictly true as if you had been fancying, that when you go to church you go to the house of God, where the heavenly host attend upon his service; and that, when you read the Scriptures, and sing holy hymns, you join with the choirs above, and do God's will on earth, as it is done in heaven. For observe, I pray you, how justly that opinion of the playhouse is founded. For was it a joy to him to see idols worshipped, to see hymns and adorations offered up to impure and filthy deities? Were places and festivals appointed for such ends, justly esteemed places and festivals devoted to the devil? Now give the reason why all this was justly reckoned a service to the devil, and you will give as good a reason why the playhouse is to be esteemed his temple.

For what though hymns and adorations are not offered to impure and filthy deities, yet if impurity and filthiness is the entertainment, if immodest songs, profane rant, if lust and passion entertain the audience, the business is the same, and the assembly does the same honour to the devil, though they be not gathered together in the name of some heathen God.

For impurity and profaneness in the worshippers of the true God, is as acceptable a service to the devil, as impurity and profaneness in idolaters; and perhaps a lewd song, in an assembly of Christians, gives him a greater delight than in a congregation of heathens.

If therefore we may say, that a house or festival was the devil's, because he was delighted with it; because what was there done was an acceptable

service to him: we may be assured, that the playhouse is as really the house of the devil as any other house ever was. Nay, it is reasonable to think that the playhouses in this kingdom are a greater pleasure to him than any temple he ever had in the heathen world. For as it is a greater conquest to make the disciples of Christ delight in lewdness and profaneness than ignorant heathens; so a house that, in the midst of Christian churches, trains up Christians to lewdness and profanenes, that makes the worshippers of Christ flock together in crowds, to rejoice in an entertainment that is as contrary to the spirit of Christ, as hell is contrary to heaven: a house so employed may justly be reckoned a more delightful habitation of the devil than any temple in the heathen world.

When therefore you go to the playhouse you have as much assurance that you go to the devil's peculiar habitation, that you submit to his designs, and rejoice in his diversions (which are his best devices against Christianity); you have as much assurance of this, as that they who worshipped filthy deities were, in reality, worshippers of the devil.

Hence it appears, that if instead of considering the playhouse as only a place of diversion, you will examine what materials it is made of; if you will consider the nature of the entertainment, and what is there doing, you will find it as wicked a place, as sinful a diversion, and as truly the peculiar pleasure of the devil, as any wicked place, or sinful diversion in the heathen world. When therefore you are asked to go to a play, do not think that you are only asked to go to a diversion, but be assured that you are asked to yield to the devil, to go over to his party, and to make one of his congregation. That if you do go, you have not only the guilt of buying so much vain communication, and paying people for being wicked, but are also as certainly guilty of going to the devil's house, and doing him the same

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