entertain'd, after most frequent and fincere prayers to God for his direction; after an unbiafs'd and thorough examination of all the facred and authentick writers of the first times; after the hazard of all my hopes and preferment, of my family, nay, of my life itself in this world; after not only the attainment of full and clear fatisfaction in my own mind, but the affording the fame fatisfaction to fome others, who came with dread and caution every step, yet were not able to deny the evidence that I produc'd; after not only offering, but earnestly preffing the examination of my papers upon the archbishops and bishops, and the univerfity; after having plainly filenc'd the truly learned, fo far that not one of them appears willing to answer what I have to say. After all this, certainly you ought not to write as if I were evidently in the wrong; and that, instead of any examination, whether it be fo or not, you only would have endeavours us'd for my conviction. I am fo well affured that the doctrine, which that body of the chriftian church, which their adverfaries would call Arian, teach, is no other than the plain doctrine of the New Teftament, of the apoftolical conftitutions of Ignatius, and all the ancients; that it is with me a branch of my common chriftianity and as to the main, not to be difbeliv'd by me while I am a chriftian. And the evidence I have for what I fay is undeniable: as I am ready to fhew at what time, and before what company, you fhall please to hear it debated. And, good Sir, give me leave to fay, that fuch doctrines as you and bishop Beveridge do fupport in these matters, are no better than the heretical notions which Tertullian and fome of the Montanists took from elder Hereticks; and which were afterward propagated by thofe ignorant and pernicious Hereticks, Marcellus and Athanafius, contrary to the fenfe of

the

the body of the chriftian church in their times: and which, as improv'd by the later ignorant ages, have come down to our days; but begins to be seen and rejected by all the most learned and most impartial enquirers. Sure, Sir, we are not to believe Mysteries farther than they are a part of the revelation of Chrift; and fo far I fully believe any that are laid before me. But to believe any on the credit of fuch ignorant forgers as Athanafius, or Vigilius Thapfitanus, you must excufe me. We are to call no man mafter upon earth; fince one is our mafter, even Chrift. Even an apoftle would not pretend to bave dominion over the faith of chriftians; but exactly kept to that which Chrift had deliver'd. Neither they, nor an angel from heaven, could preach any other doctrines of the gospel than had been committed to them by Chrift himself, and which now appear in the apostles conftitutions. And as I am fully fatisfy'd that thofe conftitutions are of equal authority with the four gofpels themselves, and contain no other than that faith I contend for, fo do I think you greatly guilty of the neglect of thofe cautions before-mentioned, when you declare fo firm a belief of, and eager concern for fuch doctrines, as have plainly no foundation in all the original books of our religion. I run no hazard as to another world, because I keep close to that faith and practice which was once delivered to the faints, without fuffering any fynod or human' authority to turn me at all out of the way: whereas you venture in the most facred concerns, to believe and practice as the country and church, wherein you were educated, happen'd to inftruct you, and feem to think it a piece of impiety to do otherwife. I mutt confefs, I cannot but wonder at the learned, and especially at the clergy; that when things of that mighty confequence are fo folemnly propos'd to their confideration, they generally fatisfy them

felves to go on year after year, without troubling themselves about them: nay, they ftill venture to ufe the most heretical creed that is now extant in the world, I mean that afcrib'd to Athanafius: as if there were no account to be given hereafter, but the authority of the church were fufficient to fet afide that of our bleffed Saviour, and his holy apoftles, and to excufe all fuch antichriftian practices now among us. I heartily with that your zeal, integrity, and concern for true religion, might be made an inftrument of bringing thefe moft important matters to a fair and publick examination; for then I easily foresee the confequence. Pure and primitive chriftianity must then obtain: and the conftitutions of Chrift by his apoftles, instead of human laws and articles, must be the standard of our religious actions, and of our faith alfo. Which that they may foon be, is the earnest endeavour and prayer of,

Your most affectionate Servant,

WILL. WHISTON.

At the end of the fame year, 1710, I first publifhed my Hiftorical Preface. It was afterwards improved, and made a real Preface to my four volumes; which came not out till 1711. It then included, as a firft appendix, an account of my prosecution at, and banishment from the univerfity of Cambridge. But fince that edition, this laft account was reprinted 1718, with fome additions; I defire the future editions may be made from that copy. The fame thing is true of that Account of the Convocation's Proceedings with relation to me; which, at firft, was published by itfelf, fome confiderable time before the end of the year 1711. But this having been reprinted, and made The Second Appendix to my Historical Preface,

when

when it was become the real Preface to my first volume, which was published a little before the end of that year, thither I refer the reader.

N. B. I also read about a year other publick lectures, after those before-mentioned, and before my banishment from the university: which contained an account of all the ancient eclipfes of the fun and moon, that have been preserved to us, in the very words of the original hiftorians. A copy of which lectures was repofited in the archives of that univerfity. Which lectures were afterward printed, and ought to be added at the end of fome of the fore-mentioned aftronomical, or phyfico mathematical lectures.

The reader is also to observe, that I invented the Copernicus, an aftronomical inftrument, and afterwards published, for the examination of all thofe, and indeed of all the ancient eclipfes, that could poffibly be seen in any parts of the world, of which we have any ancient hiftories preferv'd, and this with much greater eafe, tho' not with quite the exactness, than formerly, by the ufual tedious calculations; that fo no hiftorians or chronologers might ever be at a lofs hereafter, for the circumftances of fuch eclipses as are mentioned by any ancient author whomfoever. Accordingly I calculated by it the eclipses of the fun and moon for four feveral periods of eclipfes, i. e. for four 18y. 11d. 7h. 43m. 3, at the diftance each from other of 800 years, i. e. for 418 to 400 years before; and 400 to 418, and for 1200 to 1218 years after the chriftian æra: befides those in my own time from 1700 to 1718. A table of which eclipses, 250 in number, I have now by me, not yet publifhed; but which ought to be added to the future additions of thefe lectures, both in Latin and English.

It

It must have been about the year 1711, when I was come newly to London, upon my banishment from the univerfity, that Dr. Clarke introduced me into the company of the lady Caverly, in Sobo-Square; whofe daughter by her firft husband, or niece, had been married to bishop Lloyd's fon; which occafioned her acquaintance with that great man, and her ftudying the revelation of St. John, about which fhe was greatly inquifitive. She had now living with her one Sir John Hubern, a fort of a fecondhand husband, but fuch an one as neither owned her for his wife, nor gave her his name; and, in fhort, as I learned afterward, was fufpected to live with her in fornication: however, the being a believer, loved to have chriftians of good reputation come and dine with her, fuch as fhe thought Dr. Bradford, Dr. Clarke, and myself; as Sir John Hubern, being an unbeliever, loved to have perfons like himself; fuch as Mr. Collins, and Dr. Tyndal, and where accordingly we ufed to meet, and to have frequent, but friendly debates, about the truth of the bible and chriftian religion. After fome time, when I was informed of this very fufpicious affair, I was uneafy; and told Dr. Clarke that he had brought me into a fnare; and defired him to let me know whether the lady Caverly and Sir John Hubern were marred or nor? his account was blind and uncertain: that he fuppofed they had been married fomewhere beyond fea, when she met with him in the army, after fome aukwark fort or other; and that they had lived as man and wife ever fince, tho' he would never own her for his wife. This account made me fo uneafy, that I could not go on with my vifits to my own fatisfaction, till the matter was better cleared up; and I defired to know the bottom of it before I proceeded; of which I had a very good opportunity foon offered, which I took hold of immediate

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